Is Buddhism a religion or a philosophy?
“The thinker” by Augustine Rodin, usually used to represent Philosophy
Buddhism can be puzzling for someone brought up within one of the great monotheistic traditions such as Christianity or Islam. Although Buddhist traditions give a place to devotion and ceremony, Buddhism has no dogmas, no single great book. It involves no worship of a god. What Buddhism does have is a mass of teachings that in other traditions would be considered to lie within the realm of philosophy or psychology. For this reason there has been much doubts as to whether Buddhism is a religion at all.
Buddhism certainly does not fit into the template for religion created in the Western world. Whether that signifies that Buddhism is not a religion at all, or that it is simply a different kind of religion, is a moot point. To put the argument for the second possibility, it might be said that whereas the religions that grew up in the Middle East are essentially belief systems, Buddhism is a system of education.
More quesions and answers HERE.
Source:
- Without and Within – Ajahn Jayasaro
Ryokan Says
The question “Is Buddhism a religion or a philosophy” usually arise in those starting to study the Buddhist concepts, the initial premise of this religion is very philosophical, very near to the most representative question of an reflective mind, what’s the meaning of life?.
Whether Buddhism is a religion or not will depend in part in how the practicant assume it, we can’t deny that Buddhism have rites and beliefs, but the essential point that separate it from other religions is the level of concern whether their followers follow those rite and beliefs, the concerns in Buddhism is more about other more practical issues: the end of suffering, the well-being of other sentient beings, the reduction of the defilements and the promotion of the direct experience and introspection.
~Ryokan