Theory of Government in Ancient India (Post-Vedic) c11.9

c11.9

Buddhism branched off into the southern Hinayâna and northern Mahâyâna paths and later still into Mûlasarvâstivâda and other sects, but it need hardly be added that Buddhists of all schools and particularly of the northern Sanskrit took over many Brahmanic ideas on society but, as rebels against Brahmanism, they recast their heritage and in several respects furnish a welcome antidote to the old tradition. Buddhists did not believe in a creator and could not call his interference to explain every earthly phenomenon. They indulge in fancy and mythology, but reason necessarily plays a greater part in their speculations than in those of Brâhmaṇas. In their political theory, human initiative and enterprise replace the divine hand and, altogether, count for more in social philosophy.