•Of course, Buddhism’s denial of ātman was the most significant divergence from the orthodox Brahmanical tradition.•Brahmanism (Hinduism) itself had been undergoing a transformation since the days of the earliest Vedas (Ṛg Veda). •In those early days, the prevailing idea was that humans are in a different realm from the divine, hence they needed to offer sacrifices to negotiate with the divine for favors