Hinduism, Theravada Buddhism, and Mahayana Buddhism: Similarities and Differences
Hinduism, Theravada Buddhism, and Mahayana Buddhism have some similarities and differences. For instance, all of them have Indian origin.
Beliefs state that the arrival of the Aryan people in India represented a significant moment in the history of Hinduism. The Aryans supplanted the earlier Harappan culture in the Indus valley, and they are thus the people described in the Vedas, the earliest sacred literature of Hinduism. (Read more about this here: Hinduism 101: An Indian Religion of the Vedas)
However, substantial controversy remains over this Hinduism’s historical origins. Although linguistic evidence apparently supports the notion of an Aryan migration, some scholars believe that this view needs to await validation from archaeology.
Nonetheless, there is no question that Hinduism traces its roots in India and is still practiced predominantly by its people. Hinduism is definitely an Indian religion.
All types of Buddhism, on the other hand, celebrate various events in the life of a man from India, the Buddha Gautama, “including his birth, enlightenment, and passage into nirvana. … The birth of the Buddha is celebrated in April or May, depending upon the lunar date, in these countries. In Japan, which does not use a lunar calendar, the Buddha’s birth is celebrated on April 8” (“Buddha,” n.d.).
Theravada Buddhism (from Pali words ‘thera,’ meaning ‘elders,’ and ‘vada,’ meaning ‘word’ or ‘doctrine’), the ‘Doctrine of the Elders,’ is the name for the school of Buddhism that takes its scriptural inspiration from the Pali Canon, or Tipitaka, which is generally acknowledged as the oldest record of the teachings of that man from India–Siddharta Gautama. (Detailed discussion here: Theravada Buddhism 101: The ‘Teachings of the Elders’)
Mahayana Buddhism is the branch of Buddhism prominent in North Asia, such as in China, Mongolia, Tibet, Korea, and Japan. Nonetheless, its roots can also be traced from India. Read more about this in: Mahayana Buddhism 101: The Faith in ‘Great Vehicle’)
Arising out of schisms, basically about both doctrine and monastic rules, within Indian Buddhism in the first century C.E., this Buddhism which is also known as the Great Vehicle (naturally) considers itself a more genuine version of the Buddhism. (Related: Hinduism, Theravada Buddhism, and Mahayana Buddhism: A Comparative Analysis)
Copyright © by Jens Micah De Guzman/ MyInfoBasket.com)
Also Check Out: The Worldview of Atheism by Jensen DG. Mañebog
Also Check Out: Why I Am Not an Evolutionist
Related:
Mahayana Buddhism: Basic Terms and Concepts
Theravada Buddhism: Basic Terms and Concepts