HINDUISM AND BUDDHISM

1613 WD

Hinduism and Buddhism are ancient religions that have millions of followers today. They both started in ancient India. Although they are different religions, Hinduism and Buddhism share many similarities with regard to their beliefs, and their practices.

Hinduism began around 3,000 years ago near the Indus River of northwestern India. This religion has no original founder and no single holy text. Brahmins were the first Hindu teachers. They passed down the teachings of Hinduism through oral stories. This continued until approximately 1,500 B.C., when these stories were written down in a text known as the Rig-Veda by a group of people called the Arayans. Around the 1st century B.C. two more important Hindu scriptures emerged.

These Hindu scriptures were two epic poems called the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, which tell stories of warfare, religion and kings. (Messina, Colleen. p. 1) The Ramayana, Mahabharata, and another Hindu scripture called the Upanishads contain the core beliefs of Hinduism. (Messina, Colleen. p. 4)