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Hinduism vs. Buddhism Essay

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Hinduism and Buddhism are two of the most interesting religions in the world. To date, people still practice these religions in varying parts of the world. Although originating from the country of India, some have difficulty in differentiating between the two. Although Hinduism and Buddhism share many similarities, they are also different. What is Hinduism? Hinduism, the largest of the eastern religion and one of the oldest in the world. (Curry). Hinduism denotes the religions of majority of the people in India and Nepal and of some communities in other continents, who refer to themselves as Hindus. (Flood). It is said to have existed from 1500-300 BCE. What is Buddhism? Many say that Buddhism is an offspring of Hinduism. …show more content…

Practices are a method, procedure, process, or rule used in a particular field or profession. These elements are necessary because it allows differentiation of value between the religions. Although there are numerous comparisons between Buddhism and Hinduism, there are many differences between these two religions. Some of which includes the founders, their goal in life, their reaction to the caste system, their belief system and most importantly their principles and practices. Hinduism did not have one founder; it possessed a mixture of Aryans belief. Siddhartha Gautama “Buddha” was the one who founded Buddhism, without his teachings, Buddhism would not be as successful as it is now. The main goal of those belonging to the Hinduism religion was to achieve Moksha. Moksha is the release from reincarnation. Buddhism’s goal in life is to achieve Nirvana by accepting Buddha’s teachings. Nirvana is the state of peace that is achieved or is entered at death. The Caste System is a system of social structure that groups people on their inherited social status. The Hindu’s did the acceptation of the caste system; their belief was that their happiness determined their movement in the system in the other life. The social classes they were divided among were Brahmins (priests), Kshatriya (warriors), Vaishyas (free people) and Shudras (Indian servants) However, Buddhism rejected the caste system; a person’s place in life depended on that individual. Due to

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