Buddhism and the six point att
Buddhism and the six point attIn explaining Buddhism, one must first understand Hinduism from which Buddhism grew. Buddhism is a reaction against Hinduism as protestant is against Catholicism. According to The World’s Religions by Houston Smith, there are six aspects of religion that appear so often that a suggestion can be implied that they are “seeds” that make up humanity. In constructing this paper, first I will outline and explain these six aspects. Then I will attempt to explain why Buddha found them to be obstacles for spiritual development, and why Hinduism and Christianity endorse the importance of these six elements.
Authority
The word authority as it pertains to the six elements of religion does not only pertain to God’s final authority, but to the authority given to the religious structure. Organized religion is important in that it gives people direction and guidance in their relationship to their God. This “authority” can be seen in the positions of leadership of any organized religion, where the leadership makes decisions that must be obeyed. Buddha preached his religion with an absence of authority. He attacked this authority on two fronts. First he wanted to end “monopolistic” hold of the Hindu Brahmins on religious teaching by making the faith accessible to the average person taking away the secrecy of the Brahmins.
Buddha said, “there is no such thing as closed-fistedness in the Buddha”. (The Worlds Religions pg. 94)
In other words the religious leadership did not hold all control on spiritual enlightenment. This first attack on authority was directed at an institution of Hinduism, most directly at the Brahmin caste. The second front was pointed toward individual people. The majority of the people relied on Brahmins to tell them what to do. Buddha challenged each person to seek his or her own religion. In comparison, true Christianity advocates authority in worship and in deed. For example,
“Hear therefore, O Israel, and observe to do it; that it may be well with thee, and that ye may increase mightily, as the LORD God of thy fathers hath promised thee, in the land that floweth with milk and honey. Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.” (The Bible, KJV, Deut 6:3-9)...
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