Hinduism vs Buddhism — 3 Similarities and 7 Differences

Hinduism vs Buddhism — 3 Similarities and 7 Differences

Hinduism vs Buddhism

2. Similar Symbolism

Apart from similar concepts, there are similar symbols that occur in both Hinduism and Buddhism, including mudra and dharmachakra.

Mudra is a system of symbolic hand gestures with meanings, often used during meditation. Buddha is often portrayed using these hand gestures in statues or paintings. Mudra is commonly practiced in both Hinduism and Buddhism but the positions, meanings, and uses are different.

Dharmachakra is a symbol common to Hinduism and Buddhism that looks like a ship's steering wheel. The wheel appears in India's national flag as well as the Thai royal family's flag. It is also called the Wheel of Law. The number of spokes varies, but eight is most common, representing the Eightfold Path teaching for Buddhists. Dharmachakra commonly appears on Hindu temple walls as well, particularly in temples of the sun god, Surya.

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3. Similar Practices

On the surface, you may notice that Hindus and Buddhists share a few common practices such as meditation and the use of mantras.

A mantra is the utterance of syllables or words in a melodic way, which is believed to have spiritual power and can bring the person to a higher spiritual awareness.

Hindus use mantras during rituals while worshiping gods. They also use it while praying. In Buddhism, mantra is more used as a meditation exercise to help the mind focus on certain things and let go of attachments.

existence of one god, but they do not believe it is necessary to seek god. This is reflected in their teachings which mainly talk about ethical behavior rather than worship towards a god.

Worshiping various different gods is very deeply ingrained in Hindu culture, but in Buddhism, followers are instead encouraged to focus more on self-discipline.

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which is known as the untouchables, gets the worst end of it.

Disapproval of the caste system was one of the things that triggered some of Gautama Buddha's teachings. Instead of dividing the society into hierarchical categories, he taught that all people are of equal value, therefore there is no caste system recognized in Buddhism.

4. Different Views on Buddha

Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, is a historical figure who was born a prince of India and lived in the 4th century BC. Buddhists see him as an admirable teacher who achieved enlightenment and founded the Buddhist religion.

Some denominations of Hinduism also recognized the figure of Buddha, but they perceive him as the 9th avatar of the god Vishnu, one of the three most important gods in Hinduism. They believe that Vishnu incarnated as Buddha in order to restore dharma, or moral order, in the world. Buddhists, however, do not share this view.

washing, semi-ritual spectacles, deity worship and prayer, and processions. The main festivals for Hindus include Diwali, Holi, Onam, Maha Shivaratri, and Ganesh Chaturthi. See The 12 Most Popular Festivals in India.

Diwali

Festivals are also an important aspect of Buddhist practice. At festivals, Buddhist will go the local temple or monastery and offer food to the monks, honor Buddha, concentrate on the Five Precepts (refraining from killing, stealing, sensuality/fornication, wrong speech, and intoxicants), listen to a Dharma talk or chant of the Buddha's teachings, and meditate. The major Buddhist festivals are Vesak (Buddha Day), Nirvana Day, Magha Puja, and Dharma Day.