[Prev][Next][Index][Thread]
Re: Re : ARTICLE : About Hinduism and Buddhism
vspatz@access.digex.net wrote:
> Perhaps I am wrong in this, so I would be happy to hear from those who
> have studied these religions, but one apparent difference between Hinduism
> and Buddhism -- actually the reason that I became attracted to Hinduism --
> is the relative emphasis on suffering and joy. Buddhism seems to me to
> emphasize suffering and the avoidance of it, while Hinduism seems to have
> a greater celebration of the joy in life as well.
You've almost pinpointed the difference in the *practical* aspect of
Buddhism and Hinduism (I assume you use this term for the vedanta).
Buddhism almost exclusively emphasizes the suffering of the world without
providing "support" in an absolute. Even though hinduism talks about the
suffering of the world, it provides "comfort" in an absolute. The vedantin
detaches himself from the world to proceed towards the transcendent, but the
Buddhist simply detaches himself from the world.
> Hinduism teaches, as I
> understand it that life should be fully enjoyed and then willingly
> renounced, while Buddhism seems to me to encourage a greater degree of
> detachment.
Actually, I heard (someone told me, I don't have the reference) that in one of
his works, Shankara says,"When a child, you are interested in playing; when a
youth, you are immersed in studies; when a man, you are involved in family
matters; on growing old, you are interested in maintaining your health. When
are you ever going to tread the path and attain mukti?"
So the part about "life should be fully enjoyed" can be disputed. Of course,
religious texts like the mahabharata are full of stories of enjoyment as well
as asceticism. The Mahabharata concentrates on the Kuru clan, and Yudhishthira,
a householder, is eulogised. The Ramayana is about Rama, who is a prince,
not an ascetic.
> Am I understanding this correctly? To me this is an essential difference
> that affects day to day life. I want joy and I want to work through
> suffering in life -- I don't want to avoid it all.
>
There was a posting which said that Buddhism does not "permit" house-holders
to obtain nirvana. If that's true, then it's a major difference between hinduism
and Buddhism, for hinduism definitely says (at least, Sri Ramakrishna says so)
that house-holders can attain mukti. One of the upanishads even consists of
instructions from a king to a Brahmana.
> Virginia
-Kartik
