DOI: 10.62125/2303-6826.2025.28.101-102.107
UDK 28-1
Author
Šejh Hamza yusuf
Summary
When Buddhism and Islam are considered together, some see the comparison as that of apples and oranges. Upon closer examination, the two religions have much in common, such as being two delicious fruits that grow on trees, with seeds in the flesh. Buddhism sees itself as a reformist movement that emerged from the previous Hindu tradition. Similarly, Islam sees itself as a reformist movement, a movement that emerged from the previous Abrahamic traditions, and as a response to perceived Jewish and Christian spiritual prodigality.Perhaps the most significant classical Muslim description of Buddhism is found in the comprehensive survey by Imam Muhammad b. ‘Abd al–Karim al-Shahrastānī (d. 1153) entitled Religions and Sects (Al-Milal wa al-nihal). Imam Al-Shahrastānī was a prominent Shafi’i jurist, Ash’arī theologian, and author of the most celebrated and widely cited work on comparative religion in the pre-modern Islamic tradition.In this work, he also makes a rather startling — and intriguing — statement by associating the Buddha with a character from the Qur’an.