I would like to know a little more about the buddhist faith.?

Question

I would like to know how Buddhists view other religions, specifically how tolerant they are of them. I would also like a clearer view of their view on war and their involvement in wars. If anyone could help me with this, that would be great. If there are any sites out there that can answers these questions besides Buddhanet.net, I would like to know about them as well.

I am aware they are peaceful, I would like specific Buddhist teachings that could support that statement.

Would it be incorrect to say Buddhists have never engaged in holy war, war has never been fought in the name of Buddhism?

Answer 1

Buddhism is not a religion.
Buddhism is the philosophy of life, and the understanding of the true self.
It is for this very reason that they can stay distant from religious conflict.
Buddha did not teach humans religion, his entire focus was on how to settle the issue of the monkey mind of man.
His focus was on how to still the human mind and bring it to a state of peaceful rest.
Only if the mind of man is brought to a settled state of peaceful rest can man come to understand the true nature of man.

"If the mind of man is not at peace, man will never find peace within himself."


"Peace be always with you."

Answer 2

Buddhists are very tolerant of all religions and worldviews, as it is a very individualized practice. We don't rely upon divine power, i.e. praying for something; we believe we must make our lives on our own. We are very much nonviolent, but understand that on occasion violence may be the only solution.

There are many schools of Buddhist thought. As it spread from India through China, Asia, and Japan, native thoughts and practices were blended with it. The Buddha is not considered a god, but merely a teacher who was enlightened with the knowledge of the nature of suffering, and how to stop it. If you've been to buddhanet.net, you've probably read the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. Thich Nhat Hahn has a book published called "The Heart of Buddha's Teachings." There are so many books on the subject I can't list them all; they even have a "Buddhism for Dummies" book.



EDIT: Specific teachings about tolerance etc are the Four Noble Truths which include the Eightfold Path, the 5 aggregates, the 12 steps of Dependent Origination, the Three Dharma Seals, etc.

Answer 3

Buddhist's view other religions as mere "beliefs." Buddhism isn't so much a "belief," itself. "Belief is the illusory mind of the ordinary person" - Buddhist quote. Buddhism is a living theory, meant to be tested by each individual and never simply "believed" like some dogmatic religions (dogma is not part of Buddhism)

They are very tolerant of all faiths and all races and all sexes (gays, lesbians).

Their is a "heaven" but it's best described as "Nirvana." Their "Heaven" is merely another "existence," which makes it a bit different then Nirvana.

Hell does exist, however, again, it is just another form of existence (in other words, you can escape it/die).

View on war would be based on logics. Peace is always the best but logically, one cannot always have such a desirable way of life when those around you fight - the best is lead by example.

Meditation is the main ingredient and the ability to look by everything you know. Some truths will hurt.

Buddhism incorporates "rebirth," similar to reincarnation.

In short, Buddhism is about letting go, about not being attached, and seeing the world as an illusion or "empty."

Answer 4

Buddhism teaches tolerance of other belief systems. However it doesn't teach that they're all the same or that they're all correct.

Buddhists have been involved in wars. Notably, the Japanese Zen Buddhists in WWII and the long standing conflicts in SE Asia. However, there is no justification for war or violence to be found in the teachings of the Buddha.

http://www.budsas.org/
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/

Answer 5

Lord Buddha is an incarnation of Lord Vishnu and Buddhist are really tolerant and Lord Krishna is the supreme Hindu god from which Lord Vishnu comes and from Lord Vishnu comes Lord Buddha and they are a really peaceful people and they respect other people's belief and Lord Buddha is not a god according to Buddhist he was a really enlighten man

Answer 6

I'm sorry but I do not know all of thier beliefs. I do know that it is a very Peaceful religion. They are very tolerent of other religions and beliefs, and strive to have no involvement in war, as thier mission is peace.

Answer 7

http://www.religioustolerance.org/buddhism.htm




religioustolerance.org is one of my most favorite sites.