After reading Guru Nanak’s story in Sikhism, what dawned upon me was the fact that how there are many similar elements in that story and the story of Lord Buddha. It is interesting how Nanak lost interest in the mundane world and gained an interest in the spiritual way of things. This is the same idea that occurred to Gautama Siddhartha when he was a young man. Also how Guru Nanak went into the stream and emerged “enlightened” is also interesting. This is similar to how Lord Buddha achieved the state of enlightenment under the fig tree, as a result of a solid effort. Also it is intriguing how Guru Nanak was opposed by the Muslim judge in Mecca. After Nanak performed the “miracles”, the judge, overwhelmed, “prostrated himself” against the floor. This is the same thing that happened when Lord Buddha was opposed by adversaries. One time, a famous Brahman challenged Lord Buddha for a debate. And Lord Buddha accepted the challenge kindly, without any malicious feelings. As a result, in the end, Lord Buddha was able to explain the dharma and the Brahman accepted Buddhism as his religion. And the other similar element that I found was how the ultimate goal of Sikhism is to reach Mukti (to achieve the release from the round of rebirths). This is the same goal that Buddhism introduces, except it is called achieving the state of Nirvana.
Moreover, Sikhism expounds the idea of an ultimate being (a god). This god is described as both immanent and transcendent. Although god is formless, he is described as personal. Further, it states that god is not wholly beyond human comprehension, and if the man worships him, he can come into a relationship of oneness with God. But in Buddhism, it completely negates these divine intervention concepts. What Buddhism explains is tha ...