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One day Prince Siddhartha, while on a chariot ride through the city, saw three sights — of an old man, a sick man and a dead body being carried by mourners. This disturbed and distressed him. Then he saw an ascetic who was serene and calm. No sorrow or worldly miseries affected him. These are the Four Great Sights that changed his life and he renounced the world.

1. Renunciation— At the ‘four great sights’ Gautam decided to renounce worldly life and go out in search for answers to the mysteries of life and death. He became an ascetic. 

2. Enlightenments— One day Gautam Buddha sat down under a pipal tree in Bodh Gaya and began to meditate. On the 49th day, true light dawned on him. He became the enlightened one. He had at last found the cause of human suffering and knew how to overcome it.

Compared to Jainism, Buddhism was moderate in its stress on the doctrine of nonviolence. Buddhism emphasised on following the middle path whereas Jainism laid stress on extreme austerity. While the Buddha was silent about the existence of God, Mahavira denied his existence.

Jainism is still popular in Rajasthan, Gujarat, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

Religious texts of Buddhism — Vinay Pitaka, Sutta Pitaka and Abhidhamma Pitaka

Religious texts of Jainism — Angas and Purvas

Buddhism spread so rapidly because of following causes.

1. The Simplicity of Gautam Buddha’s teachings and principle of equality greatly appealed to the common people.

2. Buddhism was spread far and wide by monks and nuns.

3. Buddhist universities established by king Ashoka (like Nalanda) were also other important reasons for rapid spread of Buddhism.

The four noble truths of Buddhism are following.

1. The world is full of suffering.

2. The cause of suffering is human desire.

3. Suffering can be ended by overcoming desires.

4. Desires can be overcome and freedom from the cycle of birth, death and rebirth can be achieved by nirvana. The eight fold path leads to nirvana.

Buddhism is called middle path because Buddha did not believe in extremes. Buddhism Emphasised on follwing the middle

Buddhism became a victim to the evils of Brahmanism against which it had fought initially. The Buddhist monks were gradually cut off from the mainstream of the people’s life. They gave up Pali, the language of people and took to Sanskrit, the language of intellectuals. They also started practicing idol worship on a large scale and received material offerings from devotees. The rich offerings and generous royal grants made the life of monks luxurious. By the 7th century AD the Buddhist monasteries became centers of corrupt practices which Buddha had strictly prohibited. Undue emphasis on non-violence in Jainism checked its spread among the farming community as their profession necessarily involved killing insects and pests. Moreover, Mahavira’s ideas were not acceptable to those artisans and craftsmen whose occupation endangered the life of other creatures. Strict Jaina limitation of private property was interpreted as a ban on possession of landed property. All these factors led to the gradual decline of Jainism.

Buddhism gradually declined in India for the following reasons.

1. Hinduism was reformed and purified.

2. The Gupta kings patronized Hinduism.

3. India was invaded by the Huns who destroyed Buddhist viharas.

By the 6th century BC the Vedic religion had become very complicated. There was a great deal of emphasis on rituals, yajnas and sacrifice. The Brahmanas had become very powerful and all the rituals had become too costly for the common man. Animal sacrifices affected the economy because it was based upon agriculture and animal husbandry. The language used for all rituals was Sanskrit and the common man could not understand it. The use of coins facilitated trade and commerce which added to the importance of the Vaishyas. They were ranked third in the society, the first two being Brahmanas and Kshatriyas. Naturally, they looked for a religion which would improve their position. Hence, new religions — Buddhism and Jainism — rose in India in the 6th century BC.

1. True

2. False.

3. True.

4. False.

5. True.

6. True.

7. True

Mount Abu (Rajasthan)

The five legendary marble temples of Dilwara are a sacred pilgrimage place of the Jains. Many scholars consider them to be one of the most beautiful Jain pilgrimage sites in the world.

1. Many evil customs crept into Hindu society. 

2. The shudras were denied the right to study religious texts. 

3. In the 6th century BCE two great religious reformers, Vardhamana Mahavira and Gautam a Buddhawere bom. 

4. Two famous followers of Jainism were Bimbisara and Mahayana. 

5. The religious literature of the Buddhists is contained in the Tripitakas and Jatakas. 

6. Buddhism was divided into two sects, Hinayana and Mahayana 

7. Jainism was divided into two sects, Digambaras and Svetambaras.