Buddhism and Confucianism: Major Eastern Religions
Confucianism and Buddhism are two of the major Eastern religions today. Both incorporate a very strong ethical code according to which adherents are expected to live. In striving to keep the principles of these codes, the respective founders of these religions or ways of life propose that society will function in a peaceful and effective manner. While there are several similarities between Confucianism and Buddhism, there are also differences, as will be seen below. According to Pat Zukeran (1996-2008), Confucianism is not a religion in the traditional sense of the word. The reason for this is the emphasis upon the practical. Even in the ethical code of Confucianism, the basic premise of conduct is promoting harmony among people and in this way creating a society that functions peacefully and effectively. The focus is therefore ethics in inter-human relationships rather than spirituality or the relationship between human and divine. Confucius, according to Zukeran, believed in spirits, but was not interested in them and did not believe that they had much to offer humanity in any practical, social sense. He furthermore held that humanity had the solutions to their social and cultural problems within themselves, and sh
The Buddhist philosophy on the other hand held that harmony needs to be promoted on a wider scale, among all living beings. The philosopher strongly believed that the good in humanity could be stimulated in this way. The focus for Buddhism is Enlightenment for the individual. Because Confucius believed that the seed of all human goodness lay within humanity itself, he promoted education as primarily important in ultimately attaining harmony among the living. 4) Elders should be humane and considerate while younger people should be different, and 5) Rulers should be benevolent, while ministers and subjects are loyal to their leaders. Dealing in weapons and dealing in toxic substances such as drugs or alcohol for example harm human beings. For Confucius, the most important relationship occurs within the family, which is the basic unit upon which all of humanity is built. 2) In the relationship between brothers, the elder should display gentility and the younger respect. The final section again focuses on the individual, but with the combination of individual and collective lessons and actions from the previous sections. Everything that is done within the Eight paths therefore focuses on the individual Enlightenment and eventual Nirvana at the end. This is the premise upon which the Confucian morality is built: Human goodness is manifest in acting appropriately within the boundaries of human relationship. There also appears to be a discrepancy between what Confucius envisions and reality. All sentient beings are therefore not to be harmed, according to the Buddhist philosophy. It is a fundamentally horizontal rather than vertical principle. Like the ethical path of Confucius, that of Buddhism is also delineated in very specific terms.
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