Editing The Buddha (section)

== In other religions ==
{{Main|Gautama Buddha in world religions}}

=== Hinduism ===
[[File:Buddha incarnation of Vishnu, from Sunari, Medieval period.jpg|thumb|Buddha incarnation of [[Vishnu]], from [[Sunari]], Medieval period. [[Gujari Mahal Archaeological Museum]]]]{{Npov|date=October 2024}}{{Main|Gautama Buddha in Hinduism}}
After the lifetime of the Buddha the [[Hindu synthesis]] emerged, between 500{{sfn|Hiltebeitel|2013|p=12}}–200{{sfn|Larson|1995}}&nbsp;BCE and {{Circa|300&nbsp;CE|lk=no}},{{sfn|Hiltebeitel|2013|p=12}} under the pressure of the success of Buddhism and Jainism.{{sfn|Vijay Nath|2001|p=21}} In response to the success of Buddhism, Gautama was incorporated into Vaishnavism as the 9th [[avatar]] of [[Vishnu]].<ref name="google260" />{{sfnp|Gopal|1990|p=73}}{{sfnp|Doniger|1993|p=243}}{{efn|name="balarama"|This belief is not universally held as Krishna is held to be the ninth avatar in some traditions and his half-brother Balarama the eight.<ref name=britannica-balarama>{{citation|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|title=Balaram|date=19 February 2015|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Balarama|access-date=17 April 2022|quote=Balarama, in Hindu mythology, the elder half brother of Krishna, with whom he shared many adventures. Sometimes Balarama is considered one of the 10 avatars (incarnations) of the god Vishnu, particularly among those members of Vaishnava sects who elevate Krishna to the rank of a principal god.|archive-date=26 May 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220526204320/https://www.britannica.com/topic/Balarama|url-status=live}}</ref>}} The adoption of the Buddha as an incarnation began at approximately the same time as Hinduism began to predominate and Buddhism to decline in India, and the inclusion is ambiguous, as the co-option into a list of avatars may be seen as an aspect of Hindu efforts to decisively weaken Buddhist power and appeal in India. While his inclusion has been [[Gautama_Buddha_in_Hinduism#Rejection|rejected by some traditionalists]], many [[Neo-Vedanta|modern Hindus]] include the Buddha in their conception of Hinduism.<ref name=varieties-religious>{{citation|title=Varieties of Religious Invention: Founders and Their Functions in History|editor-last=Gray|editor-first=Patrick|last=Muesse|first=Mark W.|chapter=Crossing Boundaries:When Founders of Faith Appear in Other Traditions|publisher=Oxford University Press|location=New York|isbn=978-0-19-935971-4|year=2016|page=184|quote=Although orthodox Hinduism regards Buddhism as a ''nastika darshana'', a heterodox (sometimes translated as "atheistic") philosophy, many modern Hindus nevertheless wish to include Gotama as part of the Hindu traditions. Gandhi, for example, insisted that the Buddha was a Hindu, a claim that many Hindus today affirm. The traditional belief that the Buddha was the ninth avatar of the god Vishnu, one of the cosmic deities of Hinduism, is often cied in support of this view. Many Hindus who claim the Buddha as one of their own, however, fail to recognize the ambivalence of this tradition. ... The adoption of Buddha as an incarnation of Vishnu seems to have commenced at roughly the same time Hinduism gained in ascendancy in India and Buddhism began to decline. Thus, the Hindu inclusion of the Buddha in this traditional list of Vishnu's ten avatars may in fact represent a part of Hindu efforts to eviscerate Buddhist power and appeal.}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Doniger |first1=Wendy |title=The Hindus: An Alternative History |date=30 September 2010 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-959334-7 |pages=481–484 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nNsXZkdHvXUC&pg=PA484 |access-date=16 April 2022}}</ref>

Buddha's teachings deny the authority of the [[Vedas]] and the concepts of [[Brahman]]-[[Ātman (Hinduism)|Atman]].<ref name="sep">{{cite encyclopedia|title=Buddha|url=http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/buddha/|encyclopedia=Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy|access-date=13 July 2015|archive-date=3 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150903184503/http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/buddha/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>Sushil Mittal & Gene Thursby (2004), ''The Hindu World'', Routledge, {{ISBN|978-0-415-77227-3}}, pp. 729–730</ref><ref>C. Sharma (2013), ''A Critical Survey of Indian Philosophy'', Motilal Banarsidass, {{ISBN|978-81-208-0365-7}}, p. 66</ref> Consequently, Buddhism is generally classified as a ''[[Nastika|nāstika]]'' school (heterodox, literally "It is not so"{{efn|"in Sanskrit philosophical literature, 'āstika' means 'one who believes in the authority of the Vedas', 'soul', 'Brahman'. ('nāstika' means the opposite of these).<ref>Andrew J. Nicholson (2013), [[Unifying Hinduism|Unifying Hinduism: Philosophy and Identity in Indian Intellectual History]], Columbia University Press, {{ISBN|978-0-231-14987-7}}, Chapter 9</ref><ref>{{cite book |author-link=G. S. Ghurye |last=Ghurye |first=G. S. |title=Indian Sociology Through Ghurye, a Dictionary |editor-first=S. Devadas |editor-last=Pillai |year=2011 |isbn=978-81-7154-807-1 |page=354 |publisher=Popular Prakashan |oclc=38215769}}</ref>}}) in contrast to the six orthodox schools of Hinduism.<ref>{{cite web |work=The Buddha and his Dharma |last=Ambedkar |first=B. R. |url=http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00ambedkar/ambedkar_buddha/01_5.html |title=Book One, Part V – The Buddha and His Predecessors |access-date=18 May 2015 |archive-date=2 May 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150502231847/http://www.columbia.edu/itc/mealac/pritchett/00ambedkar/ambedkar_buddha/01_5.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first1=Paul |last1=Williams |first2=Anthony |last2=Tribe |title=Buddhist thought a complete introduction to the Indian tradition |date=2000 |publisher=Taylor & Francis |location=London |isbn=0-203-18593-5 |pages=1–10 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BVvFBQAAQBAJ&pg=PT18 |access-date=16 May 2016 |archive-date=11 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230111053957/https://books.google.com/books?id=BVvFBQAAQBAJ&pg=PT18 |url-status=live }}</ref>{{sfnp|Flood|1996|pp=231–232}}

=== Islam ===
Buddhist ideas in Muslim culture can be traced to the presence of Buddhism in [[Transoxiana]] and [[Greater Khorasan|K̲h̲urāsān]].<ref>Monnot, G. (2012). Sumaniyya. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_7186</ref> Buddhism lasted from the 2nd century B.C. to the 8th century, there, until it dwindled in the face of [[Zoroastrianism]], the [[Sassanid Empire|Sassanide state religion]].<ref>Monnot, G. (2012). Sumaniyya. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_7186</ref> Remnants of Buddhism remains until the 9th century<ref>Brack, J. Z. (2023). An afterlife for the Khan: Muslims, Buddhists, and sacred kingship in Mongol Iran and Eurasia. Univ of California Press. p. 27</ref> and the lasting impact of Buddhist influence is reflected in Muslim arts and poetry of [[Islam in Iran|Islamic Persia]].<ref>Monnot, G. (2012). Sumaniyya. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_7186</ref> However, in the 9th century, the intellectual distance between Buddhism and Islam increased drastically.<ref>Brack, J. Z. (2023). An afterlife for the Khan: Muslims, Buddhists, and sacred kingship in Mongol Iran and Eurasia. Univ of California Press. p. 27</ref> Only centuries later, during [[Turco-Mongol tradition|Turco-Mongol]] governance, the attention of Muslim scholars shifted towards Buddhism again.<ref>Monnot, G. (2012). Sumaniyya. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_7186</ref>

In Islamic sources, Buddha is called ''Budd'' (Persian: ''but'')<ref>Carra de Vaux, B. (2012). Budd. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_1489</ref> or Shakyamuni. The former term is used in the writings of [[al-Jahiz]], [[al-Mas'udi]], [[al-Biruni]], and [[al-Shahrastani]].<ref>Carra de Vaux, B. (2012). Budd. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_1489</ref> The term further denotes a temple or an idol,<ref>Carra de Vaux, B. (2012). Budd. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_1489</ref> as many authors believed that Buddhists were idolaters.<ref>Scott, D. (1995). Buddhism and Islam: Past to Present Encounters and Interfaith Lessons. Numen, 42(2), 144. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3270172
</ref><ref>Monnot, G. (2012). Sumaniyya. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_7186</ref> They are described further as believing in the eternity of the world, the retributation of actions after life, and the appearance of Buddha in various forms.<ref>Carra de Vaux, B. (2012). Budd. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_1489</ref> Buddhists were referred to as ''sumaniyya''.<ref>Monnot, G. (2012). Sumaniyya. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_7186</ref>

Although Muslims had only rudimentary knowledge about Buddhism, they attempted to integrate the Buddha into their own religious history.<ref>Carra de Vaux, B. (2012). Budd. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_1489</ref> [[Ibn Hazm]] defines the Buddha as a person who is not born, does not eat or drink, and does not die.<ref>Carra de Vaux, B. (2012). Budd. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_1489</ref> The Buddha is compared to various Islamic figures by Muslim heresiologists. In his ''Fihrist'', [[ibn al-Nadim]] reiterates three opinions from among the scholars, that the Buddha is either an [[Angels in Islam|angel]], an [[Ifrit|''ʿifrīt'']] (demon), or a [[Prophets and messengers in Islam|Prophet]].<ref>Brack, J. Z. (2023). An afterlife for the Khan: Muslims, Buddhists, and sacred kingship in Mongol Iran and Eurasia. Univ of California Press. p. 31</ref><ref>{{cite conference |author1=Ahmad Faizuddin Ramli|author2=Jaffary Awang|author3=Zaizul Ab Rahman|date=2018|title=Muslim scholar's discourse on Buddhism: a literature on Buddha's position|conference=International Conference on Humanities and Social Sciences (ICHSS 2018)|volume=53|issue=4001|pages=6–7|doi=10.1051/shsconf/20185304001|doi-access=free |journal=SHS Web of Conferences}}</ref> Al-Shahrastani identified Buddha with the legendary [[Khidr|al-Khizr]].<ref>Brack, J. Z. (2023). An afterlife for the Khan: Muslims, Buddhists, and sacred kingship in Mongol Iran and Eurasia. Univ of California Press. p. 31</ref><ref>{{cite conference |author1=Ahmad Faizuddin Ramli|author2=Jaffary Awang|author3=Zaizul Ab Rahman|date=2018|title=Muslim scholar's discourse on Buddhism: a literature on Buddha's position|conference=International Conference on Humanities and Social Sciences (ICHSS 2018)|volume=53|issue=4001|pages=6–7|doi=10.1051/shsconf/20185304001|doi-access=free |journal=SHS Web of Conferences}}</ref><ref>Carra de Vaux, B. (2012). Budd. In P. Bearman (ed.), Encyclopaedia of Islam New Edition Online (EI-2 English). Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_1489</ref>

[[Rashid al-Din Hamadani]]'s (1247–1318) ''[[Jāmiʿ al-Tawārīkh]]'' dedicates an entire chapter on describing Buddhist beliefs to the [[Ilkhanate]] from a Muslim viewpoint. He identifies Buddha (Shakyamuni) as a monotheistic prophet.<ref>Millward, J. A. (2013). The Silk Road: A very short introduction. Oxford University Press. pp. 154-156</ref><ref>Brack, J. Z. (2023). An afterlife for the Khan: Muslims, Buddhists, and sacred kingship in Mongol Iran and Eurasia. Univ of California Press. p. 30</ref> He integrates the cyclical reappearance of the Buddha into the lineage of Islamic prophets, who likewise raise whenever a community yielded into decay and violence.<ref>Brack, J. Z. (2023). An afterlife for the Khan: Muslims, Buddhists, and sacred kingship in Mongol Iran and Eurasia. Univ of California Press. p. 32</ref> In line with Islamic prophetology, Rashid al-Din emphazizes the finality of [[Muhammad in Islam|Muhammad]].<ref>Brack, J. Z. (2023). An afterlife for the Khan: Muslims, Buddhists, and sacred kingship in Mongol Iran and Eurasia. Univ of California Press. p. 33</ref> In order to establish Buddha's monotheism, the author retells a story from the ''[[Lalitavistara Sūtra]]'' within an Islamic framework: Accordingly, the Indian deities, [[Vishnu]], [[Brahma]], [[Shiva]], and [[Indra]] are prophets or angels who claim divinity for themselves and thus identified with the "people of [[Iblis]]" (''ahl-i iblīs'').<ref>Millward, J. A. (2013). The Silk Road: A very short introduction. Oxford University Press. p. 156</ref><ref>Brack, J. Z. (2023). An afterlife for the Khan: Muslims, Buddhists, and sacred kingship in Mongol Iran and Eurasia. Univ of California Press. p. 34</ref> When Buddha is brought to the idols and ordered to worship them, the idols bow down before Buddha instead, an idea linked to the Quranic story of angels prostrating before Adam, and the superiority of prophets over angels in Islamic theology (''[[Kalām]]'').<ref>Brack, J. Z. (2023). An afterlife for the Khan: Muslims, Buddhists, and sacred kingship in Mongol Iran and Eurasia. Univ of California Press. p. 33</ref>

[[Muhammad Hamidullah]] (1908 – December 2002) identifies Buddha as a prophet based on the [[Quran]] [[Surah]] 95:1. The verse takes an oath by a fig-tree, followed by Mount Sinai. Since [[Moses in Islam|Moses]] received his revelation on [[Mount Sinai]], the fig-tree features as the location of revelation for another prophet, identified with Buddha, since Buddha reached enlightenment under a fig-tree.{{sfnp|Yusuf|2009|pp=376}} He is further identified with the prophet [[Dhu al-Kifl]], supposedly related to his birthplace in Kapila-Vastu.{{sfnp|Yusuf|2009|pp=376}}<ref>Ramli, A. F., Awang, J., & Ab Rahman, Z. (2018). Muslim scholar’s discourse on Buddhism: a literature on Buddha’s position. In SHS Web of Conferences (Vol. 53, p. 04001). EDP Sciences.</ref> He furthermore compares Buddha's teachings with that of Muhammad: The teaching of the omnipresence of [[dukkha]], as formulated in the [[Four Noble Truths]], is compared to 90:04, stating that "humans are created in "pain toil and trial"".{{sfnp|Yusuf|2009|pp=377}} Similarly, by receiving his revelation, Muhammad would have entered into a state of peace (salam) and, as per [[hadith]], his [[Qareen|devilish nature]] surrendered to islam (''aslama shayṭānī'').{{sfnp|Yusuf|2009|pp=376}}

=== Christianity ===
{{main|Buddhism and Christianity|Buddhist influences on Christianity|Comparison of Buddhism and Christianity}}
[[File:Christ_et_Buddha_by_Paul_Ranson_1880.JPG|right|thumb|''Christ and Buddha'' by [[Paul Ranson]], 1880]]
The Christian saint [[Barlaam and Josaphat|Josaphat]] is based on the Buddha. The name comes from the Sanskrit ''[[Bodhisattva]]'' via Arabic ''Būdhasaf'' and Georgian ''Iodasaph''.{{sfnp|Macdonnel|1900}} The only story in which St. Josaphat appears, ''Barlaam and Josaphat'', is based on the life of the Buddha.{{sfnp|Mershman|1907}} Josaphat was included in earlier editions of the Roman Martyrology (feast-day 27 November)—though not in the Roman Missal—and in the Eastern Orthodox Church liturgical calendar (26 August).

=== Other religions ===
In the [[Baháʼí Faith]], Buddha is regarded as one of the [[Manifestation of God (Baháʼí Faith)|Manifestations of God]].<ref name="q800">{{cite book | last=Smith | first=P. | title=An Introduction to the Baha'i Faith | publisher=Cambridge University Press | series=Introduction to Religion | year=2008 | isbn=978-0-521-86251-6 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z7zdDFTzNr0C&pg=PA130 | access-date=2024-10-29 | page=130}}</ref>

Some early Chinese [[Taoist]]-Buddhists thought the Buddha to be a reincarnation of [[Laozi]].{{sfnp|Twitchett|1986}}

In the ancient [[Gnosticism|Gnostic]] sect of [[Manichaeism]], the Buddha is listed among the prophets who preached the word of God before [[Mani (prophet)|Mani]].<ref>Barnstone W & Meyer M (2009). ''The Gnostic Bible: Gnostic texts of mystical wisdom from the ancient and medieval worlds''. Shambhala Publications: Boston & London.</ref>

In [[Sikhism]], Buddha is mentioned as the 23rd avatar of Vishnu in the [[Chaubis Avtar]], a composition in Dasam Granth traditionally and historically attributed to [[Guru Gobind Singh]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.info-sikh.com/VVPage1.html |title=Chaubis Avtar |website=www.info-sikh.com |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20030601112350/http://www.info-sikh.com/VVPage1.html |archive-date=1 June 2003 |url-status=usurped}}</ref>