Gautama Buddha

::Siddhartha redirects here. For other meanings, see Siddhartha (disambiguation).

The Buddha in other religions

Hinduism

It is said in Srimad-Bhagavatam, an important Purana, that the Buddha is the ninth Lila avatar of Lord Vishnu, and that he took form as Siddhartha Gautama to guide the people of India away from ritual animal sacrifice, which was prevalent at the time. To this end he advocated Ahimsa, or non-violence toward sentient beings, a principle first found in the Upanishads.

Related Topics:
Srimad-Bhagavatam - Purana - Lila - Lord Vishnu - Animal sacrifice - Ahimsa - Upanishads

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Buddhists in general do not consider the Buddha to be God or an avatar of any god, and view such notions as Hinduism's (largely successful) attempt to "absorb" Buddhism. The general decline of Buddhism in India has been attributed to this "absorption" not only of the Buddha as a religious figure but of development in parallel Vedanta philosophy which began challenging Buddhism's logical and philosophically strong image.

Related Topics:
God - Avatar - Hinduism's - Vedanta

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Islam

Some Muslims believe that Siddharta Gautama is the same person who is referred to in the Koran as Dhul-Kifl, and that he was therefore a prophet of Islam. The meaning of Dhul-Kifl is unclear, but, according to this view, it means "the man from Kifl", where Kifl is the Arabic pronunciation of Kapilavastu, where the Buddha spent thirty years of his life. More common views, however, hold that Dhul-Kifl was a different person and not a prophet at all, or that he was the prophet called Ezekiel in the Bible.

Related Topics:
Muslims - Koran - Dhul-Kifl - Prophet of Islam - Arabic - Kapilavastu - Ezekiel - Bible

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Christianity

In the traditional Catholic calendar of saints, there is listed a Saint Iodasaph (also known as Ioasaph), son of a king of fourth century India. Iodasaph supposedly converted to Christianity, then lived a life of penance and meditation. Scholars have known for some time that Iodasaph is merely the Buddha's story re-told in Christianity.

Related Topics:
Catholic - Saint Iodasaph

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