buddhism what is the truth???

Question

I study many religions and ways of life.
My question is why does
Theravada is atheistic and believes the Buddha himself was
a human and there is no god or gods?? while on the other hand
Mahayana and Vajrayana is more polytheistic and believes he was divine and many other gods are followed?? And some even Tibetan Buddhist believe that he was only a human and nothing more while others believe he was divine and many other gods real.
And if Karma decides what happens, Who is the one who judges
ones Karma and what they become in there next life??

also who was buddha's teacher??

I'm not asking who Siddartha is, I all ready know that and lot of it, not just read or studied watched lots and lots of documentaries.

Dr. DeLight, wow I could have told you that, I already said I know that, plus I'm from a South Asia. I know my history lol, I'm trying to get answer why are they so different from each other. I know the history yes, I also know the background but why is it so different from the each other and this is not a small difference this is big big difference.I have also read about the Fourth Buddhist council and how they separated.

Answer 1

Buddhism recognises two kinds of truth:conventional truth concerning mundane matters and the ultimate truth concerning the supramundane.
The ultimate truth can be realize only by developing the mind through meditation,and not by theorising or speculation.
The religion which we called Buddhism today is very different in its external practices from what the Buddha and his early followers carried out.Centuries of cultural and environmental influnce have made the Myanmar,Thai,Chinese,Tibetan,Sri Lankan,Japanese and Korean buddhist way of life different.But these practices are not in conflict,because the Buddha taught that while the truth remains absolute,the physical manifestation of this truth can differ according to the way of life of those who profess it.
Thus the modern religion we see in many countries is the product of normal human beings living in a country and adjusting to various social and cultural environments.In its process of evolution,many people slowly moved away from the original teachings of the founder and started different new school or sects.
A few hundred years after his passing away,the disciples of the Buddha organized a religion around his teachings.While organizing the religion,they incorporated,among other concepts and beliefs,various types of miracles,mysticism,fortune-telling,charms,talismans,mantras,prayers and many rites and rituals that were not found in the original teaching.
When these extraneous religious beliefs and practices were introduced,many people neglected to develop the most important practices found in the original teaching.Instead of practising the original teaching,they gave more attention and effort to protection from evil spirits and become more interested in discovering ways and means of getting rid of the so-called misfortunes or bad luck,black magic,and sickness.In other words,people started to abuse their human intelligence by following those beliefs and practices in the name of buddhism.They also polluted the purity of the sublime teaching of the Buddha.

Who is the judge of ones karma?

The doer is the creator and also the judge!
Hope this help.

Answer 2

Karma doesn't decide what happens, but Karma is conscious actions and the results. The way you have it worded makes it seem like Karma is fate or destiny, but it's kind of a record of what your conscious actions and thoughts are. No one judges Karma, it works itself out in this life, and some believe in the next.

Theravada is the oldest school of Buddhism, and they just revere Buddha as a person who became enlightened. He's a good role model! Perhaps Mahayana is polytheistic because of its inclusive nature, so it absorbed other traditions? Also, sometimes "rivaling" religions would include the Gods of other religions in narratives to show the superiority of their leader/God compared to the other religion. (Buddha is sometimes found in non-Buddhist stories.)

If you are interested in Tibetan Buddhism, get some books by the Dalai Lama; he is a very wise man! He says that their texts are not dogmatic, and reason and experience must be taken into consideration in regard to tradition and scripture.

As for Buddha's teacher, it seems to me that he made the discovery about the Middle Path on his own by trial and error. He grew up living a hedonistic life. His father didn't allow him to learn about suffering or religion (because his dad didn't want Buddha to be a religious leader). However, Buddha left his life of luxury and then he became an ascetic. He almost starved to death, and realized he needed to eat.

Answer 3

I don't know about the various Gods that you mentioned, however, I can answer the section on Karma. You asked "if Karma decides what happens, Who is the one who judges
ones Karma and what they become in there next life??"

You do

Answer 4

First I wish to say you oblivisiously no little about Buddhism or what Buddhism is. Gautama explained that anything and everything you experience through your 6 senses are nothing but your own 'concepts' of "WHAT IS".
Second I will give you an example of a Truth in the 3D realm.
The Law of Electricity is a Truth. It operates regardless of one's belief or programing.

Answer 5

One day, a teacher was conducting a meditation exercise, walking amongst his pupils, when one brought to his attention that a fellow student was sleeping.

The teacher replied, "Let him sleep. Buddha is Buddha whether he is asleep or awake."

Answer 6

only god knows

Answer 7

while there are many gods, there is only one true God, the creator.

Answer 8

ok, answer this...who was buddha's teacher?