Free Essay Differences of Buddhism and Hinduism

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Differences of Buddhism and Hinduism

Throughout the history of mankind, most civilizations have had some kind belief system or religion. In Asia, two of the belief systems that they practice there are Buddhism and Hinduism. Hinduism and Buddhism are similar in many ways since Hinduism was derived from Buddhism. Both religions were polytheistic and had an ultimate goal of reaching a perfect state of being.

Though there are multiple similarities between Hinduism and Buddhism, there are still many differences between the two. First of all, the ultimate goal of the religions were different. Hinduism called their final place Moksha while Buddhism called it Nirvana. Another difference was that Hinduism regarded the caste system as a very important subject and had a major impact on the societies for being so strict. To achieve Moksha, a person would have to be born into the higher castes until they were in the highest one. Buddhism on the other hand was not so strict with their caste system and was not as enforced as much. A third difference is that Hinduism thought that some animals were sacred while Buddhism had different ideas.

Lastly, another difference was that over the years each religion existed, Buddhism spread among other countries and areas, while Hinduism generally stayed put and was contained mostly in India. Buddhism spread into many other countries and Hinduism did not because of two main reason. One main reason was because Hinduism was much more complex then Buddhism. More people converted to Buddhism because it was much more comprehendible and understandable than Hinduism. The other reason was because Buddhism accepted everybody openly. Hinduism on the other hand was not open to people who were not born into the caste system.

Hinduism and Buddhism are two of the most practiced religions. They are similar in many ways and are also different in some ways though. They both have a general basic belief and that is to be good and commit acts of kindness. Their differences are small, however the differences explain why Buddhism spread and why Hinduism did not.