Is Buddhism a religion?
Albert Einstein once said this of Buddhism,
"The religion of the future
will be a cosmic religion.
It should
transcend a personal God and
avoid dogmas and theology.
Covering both
natural and spiritual,
it should be based on
a religious sense arising
from
the experience of all things,
natural and spiritual
and a
meaningful unity.
Buddhism answers this description.
If there is any
religion that
would cope with modern scientific needs,
it would be
Buddhism."
But is Buddhism a religion? Buddhism may qualify as a religion, depending on ones point of view. If you define religion as "a system of worship or devotion to a deity," than no, it would not be a religion; however, if you define religion as "a system of spiritual beliefs, rituals, and morals," then Buddhism would be a religion.
There is no messiah, no prophet, and no deity in Buddhism. The basic premise of Buddhism is about a prince who lived a hedonistic life, then became enlightened and decided to live an ascetic life.
Since there is no deity, messiah or prophet in Buddhism, you can be a Christian and a Buddhist, Muslim and Buddhist or Jew and Buddhist. And there would be no conflict.
