Acts of Apostle Thomas

XV CHRISTIAN INFLUENCE ON BUDDHISM: M. M. NINAN
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XV
CHRISTIAN INFLUENCE ON BUDDHISM
Buddhism was started by Siddhārtha Gautama a prince of Nepal. The earliest full biography, is an epic
poem written by the poet Aśvaghoṣa, dating around the beginning of the 2nd century AD. (Next
biography Lalitavistara Sūtra, a Mahāyāna/ Sarvāstivāda date 3rd century AD. And Mahāvastu from the
Mahāsāṃghika Lokottaravāda sect date 4th century AD.) The character of the Buddha in these traditional
biographies is often remniscent of the birth and life of Jesus. This is not the picture painted by the earliest
canonical sources. These were obviously written after 2 nd C AD and therefore shows the influence of the
presence of Christianity in India. This influence is seen not only in the stories but also in the doctrines as
the history of buddhism show. Buddhism changed over from Atheistic to Theistic under the influence of
Christianity.
Buddhism did not start as a religion, but as a reaction to the rise of Brahminic dominance and superstition
in Vedism. Buddhi actually means “Rational Thinking”. It started as part of scientific approach to realities
known as nastika darsanas; or atheistic view point. This then was one of the earliest Rationalistic
Movements based on the then known science. Rationalist movement is a philosophical doctrine that asserts
that the truth can best be discovered by reason and factual analysis, rather than faith, dogma or religious
teaching. Seeing that Buddah lived 200 years before Aristotle, Buddhism was the beginning of modern
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