Buddhism:
In fact, there is no difference between belief and superstition in the essence of Buddhism. Buddhism is Buddhism, and the basic content is the same everywhere. Buddhism is revealed from the sea of great compassion and wisdom of Buddha Sakyamuni (the founder of Buddhism), full of wisdom, light, coolness and ease. Buddhism is a cult form established according to this religious belief. Second, it must be universal; Third, it must be inevitable. In other words, it used to be like this, now it is everywhere, and it will be like this in the future. If the belief or trust in a truth or a thing cannot stand the test of these three conditions, it is not true belief, but superstition. A religious doctrine can't stand the test of the times, can't be guided by the environment, and can't open a new realm. It is superstition rather than true belief. But this is also superstition. In the popular areas of Mahayana Buddhism, especially in China, orthodox Buddhism has always been enjoyed exclusively by monks and a few gentlemen in the mountains. As for the orthodox beliefs of the people, they have never been popularized. Ordinary people have been living in the concept of mixed beliefs of Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism, such as the worship of ghosts and gods, and the belief that people are dead or have ghosts, which are not the products of Buddhism.
Buddhism, in a broad sense, is a religion, including its classics, rituals, habits, the organization of religious order and so on; However, Buddhism is very special among the major religions and thoughts in the world. All religions believe in God's creation and domination, but Buddhism is a complete atheist. So Buddhism is like religion but not religion, philosophy is not philosophy, and science is not science. This is the greatest feature of Buddhism. In a narrow sense, it is what the Buddha said. In Buddhist terminology, it should be called Buddhism. The preface to One agama says that all evil things should be avoided, and all good people should pursue and purify their minds. In a word, Buddhism is the teaching method of Buddhism to stop evil and promote good, and purify one's mind, and it is the education of Buddhism.
The connotation of Buddhism contains endless events, which is more than the curriculum content of modern universities. In space, it tells us that life in front of us has evolved into an endless world, so it is teaching, education, not religion; This is an education about wisdom and universal life consciousness. The education of China and Confucius is a life education from birth to death. Buddhism is the third generation of education, focusing on the past, present and future. Is Buddhism really education? If we observe carefully, this doubt will be eliminated. In daily life, only teaching can be called a teacher and student. We call Sakyamuni Buddha the fundamental teacher, which means that this education was founded by his old man, and he was the first founder. Buddhists call themselves "disciples", and disciples are self-proclaimed students in ancient China. From these names, we know that our relationship with Buddha is a teacher-student relationship. As far as religion is concerned, God is related to God. We are classmates with Bodhisattva-Bodhisattva was an early student of Buddhism, and now we are students of Buddhism. We and Bodhisattva are classmates in the early and late stages, and Bodhisattva is our senior. In daily life, we call monks "monks". In fact, there is only one monk in a temple. "Monk" is an Indian word, which translates as "pro-teacher". It means to teach my teacher personally, just like the guidance professor in the school now. He is very direct. Very close relationship. If he doesn't instruct me directly, call him a "mage", just like there are many teachers in the school, but he doesn't attend my class or instruct me. This is the difference between a monk and a mage. These names are only available in education, but not in religion. This can prove that Buddhism is education, not religion.
Just talk about the difference between Buddhism and other religions:
Most people think that Buddhism is just one of many religions in the world, and all religions are the same. In fact, Buddhism is very different from other religions. The so-called general religion here refers to religions other than Buddhism. These religions, among their followers, may think that their teachings are very different and incompatible. However, if we compare the teachings of Buddhism with the widely publicized teachings of these religions, we will find that their basic teachings are rarely very different. Therefore, in order to facilitate the explanation, the religious departments other than Buddhism are listed as a system and Buddhism is compared with this religious system.
First: Buddhism denies that God created the world and its initial beginning.
All religions, except Buddhism, have a common feature, that is, they all believe that there is an almighty God, a holy God: God created the world and created mankind, and God is omnipotent.
However, Buddhism does not admit that there is such an omnipotent god who created the world, because in basic theory, Buddhism simply does not admit that there is an initial beginning of creating the world.
The "primitive universe" theory of general religion made this mistake. The endless universe "continuous flow of cause and effect" is forcibly cut off by its own finiteness, insisting that there is a beginning. Because of such an initial assumption, an almighty God who created the world was created. The question is: If God is omnipotent and merciful, why doesn't his old man create himself for us miserable beings? But in fact, he didn't do it.
In fact, God is also an ideological assumption. The concept of God comes from the shock of ancient people to many unexplained phenomena in the universe, such as lightning, earthquake, tsunami and plague. The concept of "God" created by human beings not only explains the wonder of the universe, but also meets the actual needs of human beings and gives them a sense of security. This concept has its value in the progress of human politics and society. This artificial assumption is hard to justify. Buddhism not only shows that the "initial beginning" is the product of limited human thinking, but also tells us that this god who created the world and man-made things is also a fantasy in human thinking. The wisdom of Buddhism therefore surpasses the basic teachings of other religions, which is the biggest difference between Buddhism and other religions.
Second: the purpose of Buddhism is to make everyone become a Buddha, but other religions never allow people to become gods.
There are supreme buddhas, bodhisattvas and gods in Buddhism. But the supreme Buddha in Buddhism is completely different from the gods of other religions. To illustrate this point, I want to give a simple definition of "Buddha" first. Usually we call it Sakyamuni Buddha for short. (As mentioned above) In the eyes of historians, Sakyamuni Buddha was a thinker in India more than 2,500 years ago. In the eyes of Buddhists, Sakyamuni Buddha is the founder or leader of Buddhism in this world, but in Buddhism, Sakyamuni Buddha is the Qian Qian in the endless world and one of the infinite buddhas. The "Buddha" I want to introduce to you here is a general term for infinite buddhas, and it is broad. The definition of "Buddha" I tried is as follows:
"Buddha" is a rational personality, and his emotions and abilities have reached the most perfect state. In other words, the Buddha is an all-wise, all-compassionate and all-powerful person. Please pay attention to the difference between Buddhism and other religions. Buddha is not omnipotent, he can't give us relief. He can only teach us that we should get rid of it by our own efforts. Buddha can't let us go to heaven or condemn us to hell.
Buddha is not only different from the omnipotent god in other religions, but also tells us that everyone has this personality (also called Buddha nature in Buddhism) that can achieve the most perfect state of reason, emotion and ability at the same time. It is just like a calm lake with waves and a mirror-like surface. Human beings are obsessed with the external environment and phenomena, and all kinds of hypothetical ideas are exhausted for the so-called survival, fame, love and power, and they don't realize it until they die of old age, so they bury the Buddha nature of this instrument; The Buddha's supreme rationality, rich emotions and infinite ability can't achieve the perfect situation at the same time, and can't be freed from troubles and pains. The Buddha said that his purpose in the world is to teach all sentient beings and show his Buddha nature. The sad wish of the Buddha is to make everyone, all sentient beings, become the supreme Buddha like themselves. Therefore, in the eyes of Buddha, all human beings and sentient beings are the same.
Other religions are not. In other religions, God and man are always two opposing units. God is God, and man is man. This almighty God is the center of all doctrines. People must believe in God to be saved by God. People have to get the grace of God before they can go to heaven and live with God after death. But man can never be God. There is always a gap between God and man. Christianity and Christianity. However, this kind of "oneness" and "oneness with God" always means duality. After all, man can't become a god completely, but can only "be one" with God. This opposing "dichotomy" concept is actually formed by the limitations of its basic teachings. Therefore, many religious saints with profound realm, such as Master Eckhart and Islamic sage Ahalaj.
Buddha is not satisfied with becoming a Buddha by himself. He wants everyone to become a Buddha and teaches everyone how to become a Buddha. This embrace of equality, great wisdom and great compassion is indeed above the general religion. In short, Buddhism teaches people to have self-esteem and self-confidence in order to be free from the pain of life and death, and to free all sentient beings from the pain of life and death. We should cherish the teachings handed down by the Buddha and redouble our efforts to show our true nature.
Third: Buddhism is an inclusive and flexible teaching principle, while most other religions are exclusive.
The central idea of Buddhism, especially Mahayana Buddhism, is based on the theory that all people are equal and all beings have Buddha nature. Therefore, in Buddhism, there is no doctrine of the first ten commandments of Christianity: "You can't trust false gods". Christians regard the gods believed by Muslims or Hindus as evil gods, and Muslims or Hindus also regard the Christian gods as evil gods. They say don't believe in false gods. This dispute, which was settled by the war, the crusade and the Christian war between the old and new religions, is all historical examples. Buddhism does not have this problem. Buddhism believes that Buddhism is essentially equal and everyone can become a Buddha, so there is no atmosphere of exclusion and autocracy. Furthermore, Buddhism is tolerant, tolerant, and can accommodate all religious teachings. The theory of any religion is enough in Buddhism. But Buddhism is full of. However, there are many things that other religions can't find. For example, as far as compassion and salvation are concerned, Buddhism not only has a common teaching method with other religions, but also has a saying that there is no great sorrow in the same body. Vast bodhicitta, endless solemn bodhisattva wishes, profound and broad empty wisdom can't be found in any religious doctrine. Buddhism will never vilify other religions. Buddhism believes that all beings have different roots and different teaching methods. All religions have their values and functions, and all religions can enlighten and benefit a certain kind of sentient beings in a certain time and space. Following any good religion can make people gain benefits and happiness in this world and in the future. However, if they want to be liberated and fully enlightened, they must complete the conditions of liberation and full enlightenment. Buddhism believes that all religions are only shallow and there are few good and evil. For any question,
For another example, people with high IQ can understand and tolerate the realm of low IQ; However, it is difficult for a person with low wisdom to dream, let alone understand or absorb the realm of a person with great wisdom. Physicists can understand and absorb the common sense of ordinary people, but ordinary people can't understand, let alone absorb physicists' views and realms. Only the sea can absorb all rivers, and only profound Buddhism can absorb all other teaching methods.
Fourth: the gods of other religions have troubles and opinions; Buddha is a great liberator without troubles.
Generally speaking, religion says that if a person disobeys or goes against God, God will get angry, punish him, and even send him to hell to suffer forever. In the records of various religions, it is easy to see stories and admonitions such as God's anger and punishing the world's disasters. The final judgment of Christianity is particularly frightening. Because of this final judgment, you may be sentenced to hell and suffer forever, and there is no chance to turn over. If these words are true, it is really human misfortune. God should not have created man, but the man who was created, because he did not believe in God or was not baptized, was sentenced to hell by this merciful God and suffered forever. It's really an incomprehensible thing. Let's take ten thousand steps back. Suppose there is such an almighty god. Now let's study the character of this god. If God sends people to hell in anger, he is a man with hatred and revenge. Hatred means that the seeds of his troubles have not been exhausted. For example, if you are listening to my speech now, you may not be angry at this moment-at least I hope so. But that doesn't mean you don't have the ability to get angry. If I step down at this time and you slap me for no reason, you will be angry at once. This shows that the potential (seeds) of greed, anger and stupidity often exist in your heart and are deeply rooted and cannot be eliminated. As soon as we meet the outside world, it will take effect immediately. Therefore, whether you are a man or a god, if he is angry, he will punish those who do not obey him. He is the one who hasn't broken the seed of anger.
Buddha will not be angry and will not judge all beings; Buddha will not lose his temper and send people to hell. If a person will go to hell, it is his own retribution. If he sent it, it was not the Buddha who punished him. The Buddha will not only send people to hell, but also go to hell to save him! Therefore, Buddhism will never threaten people to say, "Don't offend the Buddha, or the Buddha will send you to hell when he gets angry." On the contrary, Buddhism encourages people to spend their lives in hell. It is the expression of this spirit that the Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha said, "If I don't go to hell, whoever goes to hell"! If we compare the moral character of the Buddha with other religious gods, we will know the superiority and greatness of the Buddha.
Fifth: Buddhism is democratic and rational; But most other religions are arbitrary and dictatorial.
Because the basic teachings of Buddhism are equality, tolerance and tolerance, in the history of Buddhism, it only shows the spirit of tolerance and democracy, which is in sharp contrast with the arbitrary and intolerant spirit of other religions. In the history of Buddhism, there are no stories of religious persecution and heresy trials. On the contrary, Buddhism and all factions have absolute freedom of speech, and they can freely express their opinions and criticize others. How thorough this spirit is! How bold! In which other religion can you find these manifestations! In other religions, what God or a leader says is sacred. Christians can only accept all the words of God, whether they are wrong or not. But Buddhism is not. What Buddhists say to the Buddha can be accepted or not. Because the truth said by the Buddha is often multifaceted because of the differences in the basic wisdom of Buddhists; Buddhists can accept some truths told by the Buddha, but not others. In Buddhist scriptures, we can often see Sakyamuni Buddha telling his disciples and audience: I am a real talker, a real talker, and I don't talk nonsense. I always convince the audience, study the truth, pay attention to rationality, and never use intimidation or coercion to make people listen. <<> clearly said that the Buddha was going to talk about excellent and incredible Buddhism, but 5,000 listeners thought they were free. They didn't want to attend the lecture, so they left. The Buddha didn't get angry, investigate or punish them, but said, "Their opportunity is not yet mature. Instead of listening and not believing, it will aggravate the guilt. It is better to let them leave. " How tolerant, democratic and great!
Sixth: the love for Buddhism is infinite; Love in other religions is limited.
The Christian Bible says, "You should love your neighbor" and "You should love your enemy". These instructions are great. Because the teachings of Christianity have transcended the country, the race, the human race and the present world, we can achieve today's achievements. However, although the teachings of general religions can transcend countries, races, human beings and this world, they cannot transcend religions. You can love your enemies, but never love infidels. Everything can be tolerated and forgiven, but when it comes to God and religion, the spirit of intolerance and unloving is immediately exposed. The fundamental question is: Aren't these so-called pagans human beings created by God? As God's "children", why did you create them for no reason and send them to hell to suffer forever? Where is his love? Buddhist love and compassion are infinite, absolute and unconditional. Buddhist love is not only love for all mankind, but also love for all living things. Buddhism not only makes people love their enemies, but also makes people love pagans. Hengsha (Ganges sand in India, which is often quoted in Buddhist scriptures to represent the vast majority of sand) sentient beings will never become Buddhas if they do not stop! Furthermore, from a philosophical point of view, Buddhist love transcends all stages. This kind of love transcends all phases, and is integrated with the incredible emptiness, so that all Buddhism can't be achieved, and there is no great sorrow, so it can rise. This philosophy of emptiness and sadness is the highest and most incredible part of Buddhist teachings, which is difficult to understand at once.
Farr easily gets all the laws and the emptiness of this mind. Compassion is extremely emotional and sufficient. When we realize the emptiness of all laws, the great compassion will be freed from affectation, which is a subtle and incredible thing! The Buddha will naturally feel extremely sad for all beings who are covered by foolish habits and cannot show the true Buddha nature. Therefore, the Buddha instinctively feels that the failure of all beings to become Buddhas is due to their own imperfections, so naturally they will try their best to make all beings mature and let them complete their Buddhist and Taoist undertakings. Those who study Buddhism can always have the realm of "I am one with all Buddhas", while the ten Buddhas can always have the realm of "I am one with all beings". Only from this profound realm of Farr can great compassion and fraternity rise.
Seventh, the pure land of past lives taught by Buddhism is completely different from the eternal paradise of other religions.
Generally speaking, people who don't know enough about Buddhism say that Christianity prays for God and goes to heaven after death, which is no different from Buddhism. On the surface, it seems good, but after careful study, we will know that there is a big difference.
Heaven and hell preached by other religions seem to be opposite to this world, including the whole universe. The world is a temporary testing ground, and heaven or hell is the end of real life. This is a limited and negative argument. The pure land mentioned by Buddhism is fundamentally different from this, but the Buddhist worldview is infinite. Mahayana Buddhism clearly shows the infinity of the universe when it reveals the vast and solemn dharma realm of the buddhas. The world of sand in the Ganges is just a drop in the ocean in the endless legal world. So other religions have only one paradise, but the pure land of Buddhism is incredible. The western paradise like Amitabha is just a piece of pure land in the boundless dharma world. Moreover, the pure land that has been renamed in Buddhism can be in the west or on earth. You can also be born in the south ... The Vimalakīrti Classic says, "A pure heart leads to a pure land." You can purify your heart, this land is pure land. Therefore, going to the pure land is essentially the same as joining the WTO, and it is definitely not the end of everything. The so-called eternal life in other religions is to be with God and enjoy yourself. According to the principle of causality, Buddhism believes that there can be no limited good cause. After you enjoy your good cause, you will still fall. Like an arrow falling from the sky, the arrow will fall again after you run out of strength. The pure land of Buddhism means that with your good cause, you can go to a good practice environment (pure land). Under the induction of the great wishes of the Buddhas, the whole environment can help you practice. If you achieve something in practice, you may not always follow your own wishes.
To sum up: going to heaven for pleasure is really a selfish and negative fantasy of a limited cosmologist; And then go to the pure land to practice, which is endless sorrow and the convenience and solemnity of wishing bodhisattva!
The reason why there are so many taboos (which can be said to be commandments) is that people always think of these things, study hard, and then do all kinds of evil, purify themselves, cut off all other thoughts and behaviors, and let go of everything. Then study Buddhism wholeheartedly, practice ten good deeds, prove Bodhi Tao, become a Buddha through nirvana, and transcend the three realms!
There is no amitabha in the south! Follow the merits of happiness!
There is no amitabha in the south! Purdue beings!
There is no amitabha in the south! There is no limit to merit!
Put your heads together.