Chapter 9: Hinduism and Buddhism Examining Religious Beliefs

1. Chapter 9: Hinduism and BuddhismExamining Religious Beliefs • All five of the world religions studied in this section are based on miracles • Historians cannot study actions that leave no direct evidence; they can only study the actions of believers • Religious belief creates standards of behavior and religious organizations • Creates a sense of the sacred

2. Examining Religious Beliefs • Historians can study: • Sanctification of time • Sanctification of space • Sanctification of language and literature • Sanctification of artistic and creative endeavor • Sanctification of family and ancestors • Creation of religious organization

3. Hinduism • The Origins of Hinduism • Because of use of Sanskrit, many believed that Hinduism was a product of the Aryan invasion • Now believe that Indus Valley people were source of many Hindu beliefs • Anthropologists believe that Hinduism is an amalgam of a variety of different beliefs • Outsiders, not insiders, see Hinduism as a unified religion

4. Hinduism • Sacred Geography and Pilgrimage • Hinduism is confined to the Indian subcontinent and its migrants • Broad dispersion of sacred places promotes pilgrimages to important sites • Each city and town has its own sites that foster close-knit communities

5. Hinduism • Central Beliefs of Hinduism • Rigveda • Oldest of four Vedas composed 1500-1200 B.C.E. • 1,028 verses of Sanskrit poetry that invokes early gods and speculates on the creation of the world • Does not claim to offer specific answers

6. Hinduism • Central Beliefs of Hinduism [cont.] • Caste • Rigveda introduced the caste system as result of sacrifice of Purusha, a mythical creature, into four parts • Caste is hierarchical and hereditary • Speculations of purpose include maintaining order among the diverse people of India, preserving frozen economic system, or suppressing subject people • Believe that today’s caste system existed in the past • Caste was often more important that government

7. Hinduism • Central Beliefs of Hinduism [cont.] • Brahmanas (from 900-500 B.C.E.) and Upanishads (800-500 B.C.E) • Former discusses rituals and myths; latter contains mystical speculation • From the Upanishads Hindus derive • dharma = religious and ethical duties • karma = human activities and impact on its atman • samsara = life cycle of different duties for different stages • moksha = unification of atman and Brahman

8. Hinduism • Central Beliefs of Hinduism [cont.] • The Great Epics • Bhagavad-Gita is part of Mahabharata • A story of duties and meaning of life and death • Warrior (kshatriya) must fulfill dharma by fighting • Krishna, blue-skinned god, is non-Aryan • Story supports bhakti, mystical devotion to god • Role of women is more prestigious than in Ramayana, where Rama’s wife Sita was subservient

9. Hinduism • Central Beliefs of Hinduism [cont.] • The Puranas • Focus on Vishna and Shiva, most popular of the Hindu gods • Goddesses serve as consorts to powerful male gods • Balance the suppressed vision of women present in earlier Hindu literature

10. Hinduism • Temples and Shrines • Shift in Hindu practice in 7th century C.E. • Personal prayer replaced sacrifice as way to communicate with the gods • Result was caves and temples of great beauty that reflected Hindu beliefs through art • Sexual passion and union of males and females entered worship as analogues for passion for gods

11. Hinduism • Religion and Rule • Powerful sought support in religion and religion validated power of elites • Brahmin priests were used to awe indigenous people after confiscation of local lands • Kings rewarded priests with land, court subsidies, and temple bequests in return for support

12. Hinduism • Hinduism in Southeast Asia • Brahmin priests and Hindu priests were used as early as the 3rd century C.E. to validate royal authority in rare example of spread of Hinduism outside India • Represented an extension of ongoing trade • Externals of Hinduism--Sanskrit, Indian gods, and Indian calendar--present by 5th century

13. Buddhism • Origins of Buddhism • Developed within Hinduism • The Life of the Buddha (born c. 563 B.C.E.) • Sheltered life shattered by introduction to human suffering at age twenty-nine • Reached enlightenment after meditation under tree • Antidote to pain and suffering is recognition that temptations are illusions • Key is Four Noble Truths and Noble Eightfold Path

14. Buddhism • The Origins of Buddhism [cont.] • The Sangha (groups of monks and nuns) • Initially open to women; nuns today are in Tibet • Obedient to order, monks are intellectually free • Settled into monasteries after abandoning tradition of begging • Abandonment of begging led to loss of contact with common people

15. Buddhism • Emergence of Mahayana Buddhism • 200 B.C.E-200 C.E. saw more Buddhist than Hindu shrines in India • General councils codify Theravada Buddhism and Mahayana Buddhism (“Greater Vehicle”) • Believed that bodhisattvas facilitated achievement of Nirvana by masses • Maitreya Buddha a servant to redeem humanity • Mahayana Buddhism a challenge to Hinduism

16. Buddhism • Decline of Buddhism in India • Buddhist appeal was for warriors and businessmen who felt scorned by Brahmins • Decline paralleled decline of Gupta empire • Many Indians could not easily distinguish Mahayana Buddhism from Hinduism • Buddhists relied on Hindu priests to conduct life-cycle ceremonies

17. Buddhism • Decline of Buddhism in India [cont.] • Hinduism became more attractive to Buddhists • Hindu religion built on common folktales • Could be Hindu and Buddhist at same time • Neither group treated women well • Began to wane with onset of Muslim traders along silk route • Muslims destroy remnants of temples and monasteries upon entering India

18. Buddhism • Jainism • Another religion of India, similar to both Hinduism and Buddhism • Like Theraveda Buddhism, Jains reject caste system and supremacy of Brahmins • Jains practice nonviolence to such a degree that many do not farm for fear of killing creatures in the soil • Rely on Hindu priests for ceremonies

19. Buddhism • Buddhism in China • Arrival in China: The Silk Route • First Buddhist missionaries to China in 65 C.E. • Pilgrimages to India to learn Buddhism included those of Faxian (early 5th century) and Xuanzang (early 7th century) • All traveled the silk route

20. Buddhism • Buddhism in China [cont.] • Relations with Daoism and Confucianism • Fall of Han discredited Confucianism and opened door to Buddhist ideas • Mahayana Buddhism similar to Daoism • In south, Buddhism represented philosophy for dealing with hazardous life in semi-exile • Buddhism and Confucianism accommodated each other • Buddhist travels promoted Chinese unity

21. Buddhism • Buddhism in China [cont.] • Buddhism under Tang Dynasty (618-907 C.E.) • Divided into eight major sects • Pure Land variant promised paradise for those who believed in the ruler of paradise, Buddha Amitabha • Chan taught the importance of meditation • Invented woodblock printing • Only woman to rule China in her own name, the “Emperor” Wu (625-705 C.E.), used Buddhism to legitimate her rule

22. Buddhism • Buddhism in China [cont.] • Buddhism’s Decline in China • Chinese power in central Asia broken by Islamic power • Central Asian Buddhism survived only in Tibet • Tang Emperor Wuzong (r. 840-846 C.E.) feared power of Buddhism and blamed it for decline of Tang power • Confiscated Buddhist lands • Destroyed Buddhist texts • Forced monks and nuns to leave monasteries and convents

23. Buddhism • Buddhism in Japan • Japan followed Shinto, “the way of the kami,” who were powers and spirits inherent in nature • After arrival of Buddhism, kami were seen as minor Buddhas while bodhisattvas and Buddhas were seen as major kami • Japanese royal family knew of adoption of Buddhism by Asoka and imitated his action

24. Buddhism • Buddhism in Japan [cont.] • Buddhism’s Arrival in Japan • Arrived 552 C.E. via Korea • Initial acceptance tied to belief that monks could work medical miracles • Acceptance at court came under Prince Shotoku Taishi (573-621 C.E.) • Saw Buddhism as a basis of Chinese power and wanted that power source for himself

25. Buddhism • Buddhism in Japan [cont.] • Buddhism’s Role in Unifying Japan • Japanese creation of Nara capital expanded imitation of Chinese practices including Buddhism • Buddhism joined Shinto as support of government • Buddhism facilitated Japanese centralization • Buddhist wealth and power alarmed many Japanese

26. Buddhism • Buddhism in Japan [cont.] • Japanese Buddhism Develops New Forms • Saicho monastery, placed far from centers of power, focused on Tendai variant that held enlightenment achieved by sincere religious devotion • Shingon (“True Word”) emphasized mantras • Amida (Amitabha) favored chanting mantras • Zen (Chan in China) emphasized defense of state and the importance of martial arts

27. Buddhism • Buddhism in Japan [cont.] • Lasting Buddhist Elements in Japanese Society • Cultivated an especially pure aesthetic dimension • Buddhist emphasis on transience of all life affected Japanese literature such as the Tale of Genji • Merged with aspects of Shinto

28. Comparisons • Both have experienced transformations • Both have sacred calendars and control of life-cycle events • Both have sacred languages • Both ultimately connect to common people • Both show flexibility of world religions • Both show ties between government and religion

29. What Difference Do They Make? • Hinduism sustains a religion of polytheism that provides cultural unity for South Asia • Buddhism is religion of hundreds of millions of people