EC-Article of the Month #9

Buddhism: a Religion or a Philosophy?

By Nadya W

A long time typical heated debate among individuals in present-day times, particularly among westerners, is whether Buddhism a religion or a philosophy of life. Many argue that Buddhism isn’t a religion but a philosophy or way of life or science of mind. Obviously, this is something individuals are separated on and indeed rely upon different details by the way one characterizes religion. 

Buddhism, like every other religion, involves the components of belief, faith, self-transformation, monastics, temples, sacred texts, rituals, congregations, etc. By description, it’s a religion. Unless one defines faith as having a centralized belief system based on believing in God or Creator, which isn’t the definition used by everybody, Buddhism does not. There are plenty of examples of metaphysical ideology within the teachings, which are typically associated with religion and are a part of Buddhist teachings. One of the most significant classifications of Buddhist literature is the Buddha’s discussions of the afterlife and the various realms of existence. The Buddha mentions the thirty-one realms of existence that one can be reborn in after death as Buddhists have faith in the presence of domains other than this world, possessed by creatures with unobtrusive bodies invisible to the physical eye. During the cycles of existence (samsara), one can be born (and reborn) a god, demigod, human, animal, ghost, or denizen of hell. Displaying charity during your life makes it more likely to be reborn a God, some of which have no physical form but exist only at the consciousness level.

Moreover, it discussed invisible beings, such as Devas and Brahmas. It can be seen in the first Buddhism and most famous discourse, the Dhammacakkappavattanasutta, which can be translated as the Exposition of the Establishment of Wisdom. On the other hand, some scholars don’t recognize Buddhism as an organized religion, but rather as a “way of life”. It’s mainly because of The Buddha’s teachings referred to as the Dhamma (or Dharma in Sanskrit), which literally means the ultimate truth or reality regarding the real world; Buddha encourages the followers to examine his teaching by themselves.

One of the six qualities of the Dhamma is known as “Ehipassiko”. This term is derived from the Sanskrit phrase “ehi, paśya”. Ehipassiko is loosely translated as “come and see for yourself”. In the Kalama Sutta, the Buddha affirms that one should not believe in things simply because they hear it, not accept things based on what you hear. It is asking you to come and see for yourself. It is an invitation to go to the source and test things out empirically – to check out the nature of reality for yourself. Most of The Buddha’s teachings are dedicated to the pursuit of truth and emphasize personal practice. The Buddha doesn’t describe itself as divine laws; therefore, if it were found that someone the Buddhist teachings were incorrect, the teachings and philosophies would have to change. It’s not a rigid system by any means, but it’s a practical guideline to follow for one’s own happiness in this life and the following. This means while it’s true the majority of Buddhist practitioners believe in reincarnation, many do not. They’re allowed to believe in whatever they wish while they practice the teachings. No one is forced to do anything. 

In conclusion, each side has their own point with a solid argument, and the answer is truly about how you define religion.

Liusuwan, N 2016, Is Buddhism a Philosophy or a Region? https://www.huffpost.com/entry/is-buddhism-a-philosophy-_b_10176992