Hinduism vs. Buddhism It is very easy to confuse Hinduism and Buddhism religions. In many ways the two religions are a lot like, but they also differ in a lot of ways. This paper will better inform you by comparing and contrasting Hinduism and Buddhism.
Hinduism, a religion that originated in India and is still practiced by most of its inhabitants, is a blend of ancient Aryan traditions with religious beliefs of peoples the Aryans conquered. Hinduism is a major world religion, not merely by virtue of its many followers, which estimated at more than 700 million, but also because of its profound influence on many other religions during its long, unbroken history. It's history dates back to about 1500 B.C. (O'Flaherty). Hindu's believe in Brahma, which is a single, supreme force that unites everything in the universe. They worship many gods, but each god symbolizes a different aspect of Brahma (Beers, p.137-138).
Vishnu with his 10 avatars (incarnations): Fish, T...
Buddha statue from the Gandhara-culture (1st centu...
Golden Buddha Statue of Gold Buddhism ReligionThere are three main gods in Hinduism, Brahma, seen as the creator of the world; Vishnu, seen as the preserver; and Shiva, seen as the destroyer. All of these gods are part of the same universal spirit. Hinduism teaches that every individual has a soul, which is part of a larger universal soul called atman (Beers, p.137-138). They also believe that after death you are reincarnated into either another person or an animal. Good karma would get your soul reincarnated into a higher caste; those who ignore their duties could be reborn into a lower caste or as an animal. Karma includes all the actions in a person's life that affect his or her fate in the next life. This determines whether a person is born into a high or low caste. People acquire good karma by obeying caste rules about diet, work, and social behavior...