The Buddha in Hinduism

The Buddha has been among the formative forces in the origins of Hinduism. Regional Hindu texts over the centuries have presented a spectrum of views on Buddhism, possibly reflecting the competition between Buddhism and the Brahmanical traditions. In contemporary Hinduism, the Buddha is revered by Hindus who usually consider "Buddhism to be another form of Hinduism." Other Hindus reject the identification of Gautama Buddha as an avatar of Vishnu, referring to the texts of the Puranas and identifying the two as different individuals.

Avatar of Vishnu

The Buddha was integrated into Vaishnavism through its legends and similar work in restoring the dhamma ('Dharma') in the Vaishnava Puranas, where the Buddha is considered as the ninth avatar of Vishnu. According to the Agni Purana, Vishnu assumed this incarnation on earth due to the daityas (a race of asuras) defeating the devas in their battles. In order to restore the natural order, he deluded the asuras with his teachings. This resulted in them abandoning the path established by the Vedas as they converted to Buddhism, in turn causing them to be devoid of dharma. This caused them to become dasyus at the end of the Kali Yuga. As a consequence, they were sent to Naraka, devoid of good conduct. Furthermore, the Buddha causes the age to be characterised by the intermixture of the varnas and domination by the Mlecchas (barbarian and foreign forces to Vedic cultures). Subsequently, according to tradition, it became the responsibility of Adi Shankaracharya and future Vaishnava acharyas to re-establish theism.

Chronology

The adoption of the Buddha in texts relating to Hindu gods and of Hindu gods in Buddhist texts is difficult to place chronologically. According to Doniger, the myth of the Buddha avatar first appeared in the pre-Gupta period, when orthodox brahmanistic Vedic traditions were threatened by the rise of Buddhism and Jainism (and by foreign invaders). According to Doniger, "Hindus came to regard the Buddha as an avatar of Vishnu between A.D. 450 and the sixth century," first appearing in the Vishnu Purana (400-500 CE). According to John Holt, "The replacement of the Buddha as the "cosmic person" within the mythic ideology of Indian kingship [...] occurred at about the same time the Buddha was incorporated and subordinated within the Brahmanical cult of Vishnu."

In literature

The Buddha is mentioned as an avatar of Vishnu in the Puranas and the epics such as:

• Harivamsa (1.41)
• Vishnu Purana (3.18)
• Bhagavata Purana (1.3.24, 2.7.37, 11.4.22)
• Garuda Purana (1.1, 2.30.37, 3.15.26)
• Agni Purana (16, 49.8)
• Naradiya Purana (2.72)
• Linga Purana (1.71)
• Padma Purana (3.252)

Another important scripture that mentions him as an avatar is Parashara's Brihat Parashara Hora Shastra (2:1-5/7).

Buddha as an avatar of Vishnu is part of a cosmic cycle, in which the dharma is destroyed in the Kali Yuga, and then restored again in the Satya Yuga, when Vishnu incarnates as Kalki. The Bhavishya Purana incorporates historical facts about dynastical lineages, stating the following:

At this time, reminded of the Kali Age, the god Vishnu became born as Gautama, the Shakyamuni, and taught the Buddhist dharma for ten years. Then Shuddodana ruled for twenty years, and Shakyasimha for twenty. At the first stage of the Kali Age, the path of the Vedas was destroyed and all men became Buddhists. Those who sought refuge with Vishnu were deluded.

Some Hindu texts, such as the Bhagavata Purana, prophesy the existence of Buddha, born to lead the atheists. Bhagavata Purana 1.3.24:

Then, in the beginning of Kali-yuga, for the purpose of deluding those who are envious of the faithful theist, [he] will appear as Buddha, the son of Añjanā, in the Kīkaṭas.

In the Skanda Purana, the Buddha is stated to be one of the incarnations of Vasudeva, and begin enchanting the universe, causing righteousness to dissipate and immorality to prevail:

By becoming Buddha, I shall delude by the use of fallacious reasoning and deceit the Asuras who adopting Vedic practices will harass the three worlds.

— Skanda Purana

Similarly, Acyuta will take up the next birth as Buddha. The Slayer of Madhu, the Lord of the chiefs of Devas, who is fond of the spring season, will be very quiescent. With Lord Parameṣṭhin in the form of Buddha the entire universe consisting of mobile and immobile beings will become enchanted. Ever since then, O descendant of Bharata, sons do not pay heed to the words of fathers, relatives do not pay heed to the words of elders, nor students to the words of preceptors. Everything will become topsy turvy. Dharma is defeated by Adharma, truthfulness by falsehood, kings by thieves, and men by women.

— Skanda Purana, Chapter 151

His father is usually called Śuddhodhana, which is consistent with the Buddhist tradition, while in a few places the Buddha's father is named Añjana or Jina. This is due to the fact that in some texts both Buddhism and Jainism are used by Vishnu to mislead the demons, and a confusion of names and doctrines appears, when the Buddha is called the son of Jina, mistakenly mimicking Buddhist texts which refer to the Buddha as Jina (conqueror), a term more often used in Jainism.

Other texts portray him in a more positive way, as born to stop all killing of animals. Only a few statements mention the worship of Buddha, e.g. the Varahapurana states that one desirous of beauty should worship him. Some pre-14th-century Hindu temples include Buddha reliefs with the same reverence they show for other avatars of Vishnu, but though an avatar of Vishnu, the Buddha is rarely worshipped like Krishna and Rama in Hinduism.

Assimilation of Buddhist influences

The adoption of the Buddha may also have been a way to assimilate aspects of Buddhism into the fold of Hinduism. According to Wendy Doniger, "Helmuth von Glasenapp attributed these developments to a Hindu desire to absorb Buddhism in a peaceful manner, both to win Buddhists to Vaishnavism and also to account for the fact that such a significant heresy could exist in India."

According to Donald Swearer, the understanding of the Buddha in Hinduism is a part of his wider and diverse influences. Even within Buddhism, states Swearer, the Buddha and his ideas are conceptualized differently between Theravada, Mahayana, Tibetan, Japanese and other traditions. Similarly, in various traditions of Hinduism (and elsewhere), the Buddha is accepted and interpreted in different ways.

Syncretism

Much like Hinduism's adoption of the Buddha as an avatar, Buddhism legends too adopted Krishna in their Jataka tales, claiming Krishna (Vishnu avatar) to be a character whom Buddha met and taught in his previous births. According to Alf Hiltebeitel and other scholars, some of the stories in Buddha-related Jataka tales found in Pali texts seem slanderous distortions of Hindu legends, but these may reflect the ancient local traditions and the complexities of early interaction between the two Indian religions.

While the Buddhist Jataka texts co-opt Krishna-Vasudeva and make him a student of the Buddha in his previous life, the Hindu texts co-opt the Buddha and make him an avatar of Vishnu. Similarly, in Dasaratha Jataka Buddha identifies himself as Rama.