Notes on the Dissimilarities between Buddhism and Jainism

If there were resemblances between the two in many respects, there also were differences. The Jainas extolled the virtues of penance and self-mortification whereas the Buddhists favoured the middle path, avoiding extremes of penance. The Jainas carried their theory of non-injury and non-violence to an extreme. The Buddhists did not go to that extent. Similarly, the Buddhist attitude towards caste was one of more pronounced opposition than that of the Jainas who stood for equality rather than complete condemnation of caste system.

The Nirvana of the Buddhists differed fundamentally from that of the Jainas. The Nirvana for the Buddhists was escape from rebirth where as for the Jainas it meant escape from the body. The Buddhists did not favour the extreme form of asceticism and practices like going naked. The Buddhist followed the golden mean in all matters.

Buddha showed the way to self-restraint and right action, not the self-mortification and inactivity of Mahavira.

There was, however, a great deal of rivalry between the two sects. The two preachers condemned each other in no uncertain terms.

The two religions enjoyed an equal footing in the country for quite sometime. But in their later developments differences occurred. Buddhism became a world religion whereas Jainism could not spread beyond the boundaries of India. On the other hand, while Buddhism practically vanished from India, Jainism is still a living force with a large number of followers.