Comparing Buddhism And Taoism: A Religion

Buddhism is a religion, or philosophy that encompasses many traditions, beliefs, and spiritual practices based on the teachings attained by Siddhartha Gautama, also known as Buddha. Buddha means “the enlightened one” and it ties into Buddhism because Buddhist believe in a theory that life is full of suffering caused by desire, and the way to end this suffering is through enlightenment. Taoism means “the way” and it deals with learning from the past and appreciating the present. Both religions believe that there are no differences between a man and a woman and both are equal, their place of origin were both in China approximately 500 BCE, their Gods ae seen as higher life forms, and places of worship are both monasteries, temples, and shrines.

Buddhist and Taoism believed that women and men had no distinct differences between them, and that women were treated equal to other women in their country. In Taoism women are also seen as manifestations of the Tao. Women and men are allowed to worship together in the many buildings such as the monasteries, shrines, and temples. Both religions use the same place of worship, many of them have different views of how the religion is taught. In the movie it showed many of the students in

Buddhism uses the Tripitaka which is composed of three baskets; the Discourses, the Discipline and the Commentaries. The Discourse Basket contains records of Buddha’s teachings and sermons, as well as the theology and moral behaviors for Buddhists. The Discipline Basket sets the rules and guidelines for living the monastic life, and also sets guidelines for monks, and nuns. Lastly is the Commentary Basket which illustrates the stories and points of Dhamma that are attained from the suttas. The scriptures for Taoism is referred to as the Daozang, these readings have three sections as well including; the Tao Te Ching, Zhuang Zi, and I Ching. These scriptures are both different views, and thoughts upon God and the universe and how it works. As Rinpoche uses his teachings and views of Vajrayana Buddhist, he also gathers the works of the Tripitaka to help his students better understand his culture.

“If you want to know your past life, look into your present condition, if you want to know your future life, look at your present actions,” Rinpoche said. This quote caught my attention the most throughout the movie. We always seem to underestimate and be ungrateful for the things we have in our lives, and that bothers me. Buddhist and Taoism are religions that are peaceful and think of life as a privilege. Rinpoche’s quote can help you to see that your actions create your life as it will be what