Historically Buddhism arose in India at the time when the Aryan civilization
flourished. Whereas the main concern of the founders of Judaism,
Christianity, and Islam was politically oriented, the main concern
of religious leaders and philosophers of Buddhism during the time of
the founder was not political liberation due to the social conditions at
the time, but rather personal liberation from human psychological suffering
arising from the physical cycle of birth, old age, sickness, and
death. Although the Buddha also taught social ethics concerning the
social, economic, and political well-being of people, the main theme
in Buddhism was personal liberation from psychological suffering.
Today, as social and political conditions have changed tremendously,
Buddhism needs a structural vision and a new emphasis on social liberation,
hence the need for a Buddhist liberation theology.