Dear all,
This is not my article, but since it compares Buddha with Hindu god I
thought let us see your view.
Best regards
Suresh
WAS BUDDHA AN AVATHAARA OF VISHNU ?:
The
history of Sanatana dharma practically begins with the
Rigveda. Here, we have the astonishing record of the progress
of the mind from worship of the forces of Nature like fire, wind, rain etc., to
the realization of the Absolute spirit (Brahman). In this progress
we see the trail of broken idols, overthrown divinities and abandoned
faiths. Gods shaded away giving place to
others. Man realized that the truth is “that being the
one which the wise call by various names as Agni, Yama and Maatarishvan”.
The
Universal order was supposed to be maintained by sacrifices
(Yajna). The Universe itself was supposed to be a result of a Yajna
by Gods (Purusha sookata). Yajna became the means and Rita (cosmic
order) the end.
This
Yajna became so important in the later years and was made complex and varied
during the period of the brahmanas. Sacrificial religion of a
mechanical and soulless kind started prevailing.
It is in this
period that the concepts of Deva-Pitr-Rishi runas, varnaashrama dharma, swarga
and naraka etc., developed. Priests became very powerful.
After
this period of decadence, the renaissance represented by the Upanishads came
up. All later thoughts are the result of these Upanishads.
Bhagavadgita is the essence of these Upanishads and Brahma sootras is
a thread
which binds together all the upanishadic flowers. It is
this period when the foundations of Sanatana Dharma were firmly laid.
Brahman,
Atman, Moksha, Samsaara, Karma, Upaasana and Jnaana became important and the
Gods receded to the background. Priests were subordinated and
Yajnaas were looked down upon. Dyaana (contemplation) took
the place of worship. Jnaana takes the place of Yajna.
Unfortunately
after some time, the old sacrifices, mechanical rites and old beliefs in gods
resurfaced with greater vigour and varnaashrama dharma was made
tighter. The teachings of the Upanishads were ignored and orthodoxy
of the priests became more stringent. Grihya sootras became
more important than the shrouta sootras.
It
is this period which gave rise to a number of charlatans who aped the seers of
the Upanishads and propagated fantastic theories of their own and fought
between themselves which naturally confused the minds of the common
people. There was a mere babel of tongues and it was an age of
speculative chaos. True religion, morality etc., were lost and
meaningless rites, superstitions etc., took roots.
It
was in this period that the Buddhaavataara took place.
Buddhism
can be considered as a continuation of the deepest intuitions of the
Upanishadic Rishis. It retained the ethical ideals of the
religion, but repudiated the authority of the Vedas and ascendance of the
priests. Buddha did not break away from the religious
tradition of the country.
According
to Rhys Davids, “HE WAS BORN AND BROUGHT UP AND LIVED AND DIED A
HINDU”. “He can be considered as the greatest and the wisest
and the best of the Hindus” (see Buddhism pp 83-85).
Dr
Radhakrishnan in his “Indian philosophy” Volume I pp 676-694 has given a
detailed comparison between the Upanishadic religion and Buddhism. Let
us see the similarities between the
teachings of Buddha and those of the Upanishads.
1.
Both
do not accept the authority of any text (Vedas) and insist on personal
experience.
2.
Both
have contempt for ritualism and sacrifices.
3.
Both
say that the absolute reality (called Brahman by sanatanis and Dhrma by
Buddhists) cannot be comprehended by the intellect.
4.
Both
agree that Moksha or Nirvana, the state of changeless reality alone peace for
the mind of man.
5.
Both
agree that this reality can be reached only through renunciation, meditation
and realization of the oneness of all life.
6.
Both
consider the world and the individual self as impermanent.
7.
Both
believe in the law of rebirth and Karma.
Buddha’s
teaching was restricted to the four truths- there is suffering in the
world, there is a cause for it, it can
be removed and there is a way for that end. He believed in the eight
way path for emancipation- right belief, right
aim, right speech, right action, right living right effort , right mindfulness
and right contemplation. These lead to
Nirvaana.
Buddha
was more interested in providing remedy for the ills of life than in discussing
metaphysical questions. His
terminology has great similarity with that of the Upanishads. He
discouraged putting questions which had no bearing on the practical
life. His avataara can be considered as the second renaissance of
the Sanatana dharma and that is how he was considered as an incarnation of
Vishnu.
Corruption
in Buddhism:-
How
the religion started by him deteriorated is another story. If what
Buddha tought was retained in its
pristime glory, Buddhism would have remained a supplement to the
mystical teachings
of the Upanishads. It would be absorbed completely by the Vedic
tradition. But this did not happen.
The
Buddhists later adopted certain doctrines which were perversions of the
Upanishadic teachings. They introduced
the concepts of Anitya, Anaatma etc., They argued that there is no
permanent entity ( like Atma, Paramatma or
Brahma). The negative doctrines
widened the gap between the two religions.
Thus
Sanatana dharma was never eclipsed by either the Buddhism or Jainism
--
Thanks and best regards
J.Suresh
New No.3, Old No.7,
Chamiers road - 1st Lane,
Alwarpet,
Chennai - 600018
Ph: 044 42030947
Mobile: 91 9884071738
------------------------------------
Current Book Discussion: any Zen book that you recently have read or are
reading! Talk about it today!Yahoo! Groups Links
<*> To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Zen_Forum/
<*> Your email settings:
Individual Email | Traditional
<*> To change settings online go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Zen_Forum/join
(Yahoo! ID required)
<*> To change settings via email:
zen_forum-dig...@yahoogroups.com
zen_forum-fullfeatu...@yahoogroups.com
<*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
zen_forum-unsubscr...@yahoogroups.com
<*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to:
http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
