Eastern Faiths

From earliest times, spiritual values were given great importance in India and other countries of the East, and religions have played an indispensable role both in the spiritual life of the people and the social realm. Ascetics and scholars were respected and supported by a society which fulfilled their material needs, and discussions on philosophy and spiritual values were the norm, supported by the rulers and the elites of society. As a result, in the sixth century BCE, when Mahavira and Buddha emerged, hundred of schools of thought were extant, of which the most prominent were the Vedic and the Sramanic. Hinduism developed from Vedism, and Jainism and Buddhism from the Sramanic tradition. We will discuss the main Indian religious traditions, which have affected one another in their development, and note the major traditions of China and Japan and the affect of Buddhism on them.