RELIGION & DHARMA

There often arises debate over Religion and (Buddha)Dharma. While there is no greater affinity between the two, the differences between the two are very great too. Let’s explore the nuances in brief: (for reasons to understand, ‘Religion’ referred hereunder is the one most widely followed in India)

1. Religion is said to be personal, keeping it to oneself and not let it be displayed in public. To the contrary, Dharma is social, essentially and fundamentally.

2. Religion is an indefinite word with no fixed meaning. The meaning has evolved differently over time. Dharma has a specific meaning which is ’path to cessation of suffering’.

3. Dharma is based on righteousness i.e. right relations between man and man in all spheres of life. Religion is based on man’s relation with God mostly for personal gains.

4. If one man exists there is no place for Dharma. Wherever two men exist finding a place for Dharma is a must. In other words, society cannot do without Dharma. Not so with Religion since it is based on man-God relation.

5. Religion based on belief in God is based on speculation and superstition. Dharma does not believe in God and therefore not in speculation, supernatural, or superstition.

6. Morality & Ethics is the root of Dharma. Without it there is no Dharma. Morality & Ethics in Dharma arises from direct need for man to love man. There is no place to please God or obtain his sanction for this. It is for one’s own good that man should love man & all other beings. In Religion morality comes as side wind to maintain peace & order. The content of Religion is God, soul, prayers, worship, sacrifices, rituals & ceremonies. There is no place in it for one’s relation with sentient beings. All religions preach morality & ethics but morality is not the root of religion.

7. Unlike Religion, belief in sacrifices for appeasement or otherwise is not Dharma.

8. Religion puts all emphasis on knowledge. Dharma puts emphasis on education and application of knowledge for alleviating suffering of every sentient being.

9. Unlike religion, belief in the books being infallible is not what Dharma professes.

10. Unlike religion, belief in soul is not Dharma.

11. Unlike religion, union with Brahma is not Dharma.

12. Unlike religion, God being the creator of the universe is a non-belief of Dharma.

13. Purity & Perfection of body speech & mind is Dharma.

14. Living in happiness is Dharma. Liberation of soul after death is Religion.

15. Belief of permanent soul is not Dharma. Soul is central assumption to Religion.

16. Unflinching belief in karma (deeds of body, mind & speech) is Dharma.

17. Release of passion & craving to attain liberation/nirvana is Dharma. Roads to liberation in Religion are different and unconvincing. (eg: Laukik (material centric), Yogic (temporary & leading ascetic life), Upanishadic & Brahmnic (both based on unification of soul with Brahma, a theory debunked by the Buddha convincingly )

18. Reading books on dharma is not Dharma. Practicing teachings in every day life is Dharma.

19. Infinity-Finity of universe, Eternalism, Nihilism is not the teaching of Dharma since it does not address the questions of cessation of suffering nor bring happiness and hence is considered irrelevant in Dharma.

20. Sila (Virtue), Maitri (Loving kindness) and Karuna (Compassion) and Pradnya (Understanding) are corner stones of Dharma. Proper understanding of these leaves no room for speculation. Without these society can neither live peacefully nor grow unitedly. Religion is based on speculations.

21. Dharma breaks down barriers between man & man, increases tolerance and acceptance. Religion tends to erect walls in between them, tending to reduce tolerance.

22. Dharma teaches that worth of man and not birth must be his measure. Religion lays emphasis on birth, caste etc

23. Dharma, by nature being Middle Path has no room for hardline fundamentalists. Religion has shown fundamentalist tendencies.

24. Religious texts (Vedas, Upanishads etc) are considered infallible and hence not open to questioning even with proof (thru perception or inference). The Dharma is open to questioning with proof (by perception or inference).

25. Dharma teaches equality. Religion classifies according to type of work (chaturvarna). Hence, Dharma is equalizing, Religion is classifying.

26. Religion is concerned with revealing the beginning of things, origin of the world, journey of the soul, constructing the universe. Dharma is not, since it brings no value to increasing happiness hence un-profitable. Dharma’s purpose is to reconstruct the world.

Such is the nature of Religion & Dharma.


Girish Deshpande
(The author is a student of Buddha Dharma. Extracts have been taken from various Buddhist publications)