Comparing the Orthodox Hindu Traditions with the Heterodox Traditions of Buddhism and Janism in Ancient India
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Submitted By meluskya Words 649 Pages 3
Compare the orthodox Hindu tradition with the heterodox traditions of Buddhism and Jainism in ancient India. Traditionally, schools of Indian philosophy are identified as orthodox or non-orthodox depending on whether they regard to the Veda as a soul source of knowledge. During the Medieval period many Hindu intellectual traditions were classified into a standard list of six orthodox schools, all of which accept the testimony of the Vedas. These schools are often coupled into three groups for both historical and conceptual reasons: Nyaya-Vaishesiki, Samkhya-Yoga, and Mimamsa-Vedanta. These systems mentioned accept the authority of Vedas and are regarded as “Orthodox” schools of Hindu Philosophy. Schools that do not accept the authority of the Vedas are categorized by Brahmins as “Unorthodox” or “Heterodox” systems for example, Jainism and Buddhism. Hindu Tradition has always privileged diversity, discovering any form of orthodoxy in Hinduism may seem to be impossible. Nevertheless, there are ideas within Hinduism that fulfill the notion of orthodoxy, such as those designated by the word astika, or assenting to the authority of the Vedas. Almost all Hindus would acknowledge the singular importance and basic religious authority. Moreover, believers would probably insist that the most important marker of orthodoxy is religious activity and interpretation approved by the local Brahman. Scholars acknowledge that some rituals are not put forward in the Vedas, cremation for example, and may go beyond the Vedic record. Requirements found in writings such as the Laws of Manu, provide evidence that local customs can also be source of the true dharma. Also,even if orthodoxy is not enriched in any one particular group, it does not take a social form. An orthodox Hindu social form is represented mostly by the caste system. Jainism came into Formal being after Mahavira synthesized philosophies and advocates of the ancient Sramana philosophy, in northern India. This period marked an ideological renaissance, in which the Vedic dominance was challenged by various groups. Jainism is not considered as a part of the Vedic Religion. One of the main characteristics of Jain belief is the emphasis on the immediate consequences of one’s physical and mental behavior. Jainism is a religious tradition in which all life is considered to be worthy of respect and Jain reaching emphasizes this equality of all life advocating the non-harming of even the smallest creatures. The goal, as with other Indian religions, is “moksha” which in Jainism is realization of the soul’s true nature. Jainism encourages spiritual independence and self control which is considered vital for one’s spiritual development. From its inception, Buddhism has had a strong philosophical component and is founded on the rejection of certain orthodox Hindu philosophical concepts. The Buddha criticized all concepts of metaphysical being and non-being as misleading views caused by reification, and this critique is inextricable from the founding of Buddhism. Many philosophical views are shared with other Indian systems, such as belief in “karma.” A major departure from Hindu and Jain philosophy is the Buddhist rejection of a permanent, self existent soul. Jain thinkers rejected this view, arguing that if no continuing soul could be accepted then even the effort to attain any worldly objective would be useless. Therefore, the conviction in individuals that the doer is also the reaper of consequences establishes the existence of a continuing soul. Indian philosophy is distinctive and goes into very precise detail about the nature of reality, the structure, and function of the human psyche and how the relationship between the two have important implication for human salvation. The efforts by various schools were concentrated on explaining this order and the metaphysical entity at its source. The concept of natural law provided a basis for understanding questions of how life on earth should be lived.
