A Summary Of Martin Luther And Buddha Shakyamuni

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Buddhist Revolution and Protestant Reformation Despite being born more than two millennia apart, Martin Luther and Buddha Shakyamuni share many religious ideals. Their revolutionary actions to separate from the long held beliefs of those around them took many forms, specifically a shift in views of doctrine and scripture. Luther challenged the practices he saw in the Catholic Church after being a part of the monastic community by nailing his 95 Theses to the Wittenberg Church (Christianity IV, 3). Buddha rebelled against the longstanding Hindu practices in India, eventually living an ascetic lifestyle and sharing his wisdom with a select few followers. Both men significantly challenged the social order through their …show more content…

Born into Hindu India, the Buddha was surrounded by wealth, power, and luxury. After leaving his kingdom, the Buddha realized life was incomplete and filled with suffering. Instead of aiming to reform Hinduism much like his Augustinian counterpart, the Buddha focused on personal development and Nirvanic experience to obtain salvation. Nevertheless, Buddha was able to recognize the importance of capturing his ideas, sayings, dialogue, and realizations. According to “The Legend of the Buddha Shakyamuni” Buddha’s teachings were recorded and spread through his teachings or Dharma (The Legend, 49). Buddha took this Hindu idea of Dharma meaning personal duty (Hinduism III, 6) and changed it to describe his teachings. Therefore, the Buddha believed his duty was to spread his doctrine to as many loyal followers as possible. One example of this was the collection of sayings by Ananda and the five-hundred followers. Ananda lead the doctrinal movement in early Buddhism to collect the sayings and teachings of the Buddha after his death. Ananda was chosen to spearhead this literary endeavor because he spent more time with Buddha than any other devotee. Even from the beginnings of Buddhism, it was of utmost importance to record exactly what the Buddha said, without error. This example of doctrine …show more content…

Focusing mainly on scripture, faith, and works, Martin Luther’s reform had a significant impact on Western religious thought and practice. By challenging the long standing Catholic Church, Martin Luther established doctrine as the primary focus of Protestantism. Similarly, the Buddha Shakyamuni was able to effectively implement Ninian Smart’s doctrinal dimension. The Buddha recognized his power ad was able to capture it through literary writings and sayings, as well as enlisting his closest followers to collect his thoughts, conversations, and revelations. Both men have had a large impact on the religious thought in both the Western and Eastern Hemisphere. These important scholars continue to influence culture, politics, and religion to this day due to their effective use of Ninian Smart’s doctrinal dimension. Through doctrine, the Buddha and Martin Luther are the pinnacle of religious reform and

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