Was Buddhism a religion before Buddha was born?

Answer 1

I'm pretty sure the story of the Buddha indicates that he didn't believe in any religion but was seeking a way out of suffering. His realizations from that search then turned into what is Buddhism.

Answer:

In all probability Buddha was a Hindu to start with (before his enlightenment). He realized that aspects of Hinduism were not correct such as the Caste System and he reached his own conclusions on the route to enlightenment. So is safe to assume that, at that point, he no longer was a Hindu.

Answer 2

Gautam Buddha...his main religion before starting his 'Middle Path'was hinduism.He had taken Diksha-ascetism in the path of 23rd Tithankara(Ford maker),Lord Parshwanath.AS described by Buddha himself in Mazzim Nikaya,-"i wandered about naked, licked food from hands which i begged from the house which had not prepared it for me specially,plucked out my hair,fasted without water,i kept a sweeper in my hands and sweeped the place before i sat down"mazzim nikay.The above said conditions of ascetism r found only in Hinduism. and it becomes obvious that he followed the path of Lord Parshwanath coz during the time Gautama had not become Buddha and was a simple ascetic, Lord Mahavira (24th tirthankara)was still meditating towards his enlightenment....it was at a later stage that Gautam Buddha felt that enlightenment could even be gained through the Middle-path,as he neither found happiness in both the extreme ends,1 of material enjoyment which leads to sufferings and other of extreme asceticism..In Mazzim-Nikay Buddha even mentions to his deciples The Nirvana of Niggantha nattaputta [Mahavira] at Pava.

Edited: Actually, Jainism wasn't Buddha's main religion. That was a religion he took up after leaving the palace, yes, but his he was born and raised a Hindu. Jainism was merely a milestone in his quest for enlightenment, but he did not stay with that. He decided after a short while of practicing Jainism that it was not the correct path, and so he moved on. But the wanted answer to this question is Hinduism.

(Feel free to consolidate this into the above paragraph, as it is the truth.)

Answer 3

Siddhartha Gautma, the Buddha, was born about 563 BCE to King Suddhodana and his wife Queen Maha Maya, so he was a Prince. His mother died shortly after childbirth. the hermit seer Asita told his father, the King, that his son would either grow up to be a great ruler or a great holy man. The King didn't want his son to be a Holy man so he made it that the prince was only surrounded by luxury and beauty and hid from him sickness, old age and death. At 16 Siddhartha married his cousin of the same age named Yaśodharā. They had a child named Rāhula which means fetter (think ball and chain).

At the age of 29, Siddhartha left his palace to meet his subjects. Despite his father's efforts to hide from him the sick, aged and suffering, Siddhartha was said to have seen what the real world for the first time and was deeply troubled about the fact that so many people suffer. So he left his wife and child and renounced his throne to find out the answer to why there was suffering. Now it should be noted when Buddhists speak of suffering this includes dissatisfaction (unhappiness) with the way things are. Siddhartha went to study with various gurus to try to find the answer to his question. Theses gurus had him do various types of yoga and meditation to try to help him with his quest. None of them seem to have an answer to his question though.

Siddhartha left these various gurus and joined in with a group of ascetics. Asceticism is a path in which you deprive the body in order to conquer and control the mind. He practiced asceticism fiercely, almost to the point of death. At that point he realized that giving in to pleasure, as he did when he was a prince, nor trying to punish the body, was the proper path to finding the answer. So he sat down and meditated under a pi-pal tree. During this meditation he discovered the root of all suffering and the path to how to overcome suffering and became enlightened.

Answer 4

Siddartha Gautama was born a prince and lived a lavish life. His father wanted to shield him from the harsh realities of the world. He was very sheltered and only knew of the finest luxuries. It was foretold before his birth that he would either become a great and powerful king or a widely influencial religious figure. His father did not want him to become a religous leader, so he made every effort to ensure his son would love palace life. It wasn't until he went out into the world that he witnessed old age, sickness, and death. This sparked his drive to want to understand human suffering, and this drive led him to spread his teachings of Buddhism.

ANSWER 2:

To answer the question, his family raised the Gautama Buddha in Hinduism. He was a practicing Hindu before receiving his enlightenment.

Answer 5

No. Buddhism was created by Buddha, but it did not become a major religion until he died. Many major religions spread by the death of the creator, like the Muslim religion.

Answer 6

Buddhist/Buddhism - Actually Buddhism is a philosophy and the first Buddha was in fact Hindu.

Answer 7

Siddharta Gautama, the original Buddha, was a Hindu.

Answer 8

According to Buddhist writings, he practiced a form of Hindu asceticism before he came upon the middle path or the path of enlightenment.

Answer 9

He was born a Brahman Hindu

Answer 10

Hinduism