Karma is a central part of Buddhist teachings. It is commonly understood as a term to denote the entire cycle of cause and effect as described in the philosophies of a number of cosmologies, including those of Buddhism and Hinduism. Karma ( Sanskrit: कर्म from the root kṛ, 'to do') is a word meaning action or activity and often implies its subsequent results (also called karma-phala, 'the fruits of action'). The true 'three knowledges' are said to be constituted by the process of achieving enlightenment, which is what the Buddha is said to have achieved in the three watches of the night of his enlightenment. For example, in the Samaññaphala Sutta, the Buddha is depicted presenting a notion of the 'three knowledges' ( tevijja) – a term also used in the Vedic tradition to describe knowledge of the Vedas – as being not texts, but things that he had experienced. The Buddha approved many of the terms already used in philosophical discussions of his era however, many of these terms carry a different meaning in the Buddhist tradition. By the eighth century, Shiva and Vishnu had replaced Buddha in pujas of royalty. Kalidas' work shows the ascension of Hinduism at the expense of Buddhism. Buddhist kings continued to revere Hindu deities and teachers and many Buddhist temples were built under the patronage of Hindu rulers. In later years, there is significant evidence that both Buddhism and Hinduism were supported by Indian rulers, regardless of the rulers' own religious identities. Later schools of Indian religious thought were influenced by this interpretation and novel ideas of the Buddhist tradition of beliefs. In Buddhist texts, the Buddha is presented as rejecting avenues of salvation -as 'pernicious views'. īuddhism may have been influenced by some Upanishadic ideas, it however discarded their orthodox tendencies.

While Radhakrishnan, Oldenberg and Neumann were convinced of Upanishadic influence on the Buddhist canon, Eliot and Thomas highlighted the points where Buddhism was opposed to Upanishads. The influence of Upanishads, the earliest philosophical texts of Hindus, on Buddhism has been a subject of debate among scholars. Certain Buddhist teachings appear to have been formulated in response to ideas presented in the early Upanishads - some cases concurring with them, and in other cases criticizing or re-interpreting them.

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