system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
Is Buddhism a philosophy or a religion?
gpt
In areas where Buddhism is traditionally prevalent, there is no idea of 'religion' and 'philosophy' as being different things. 

*Religion* as an analytical category is a Western invention. In Tibetan and Sanskrit, two languages traditionally used in Buddhism, there isn't really a word for religion. Buddhist writers refer to Buddhism with the equally untranslatable word *dharma*, which has connotations of law, practice, virtue, and teachings. In Japan, if you ask people if they're 'religious', almost all will say no, but if you ask if they practice Buddhist or Shinto rituals, almost all will say yes. 

All of the great Buddhist philosophers were also practitioners. From the Buddhist viewpoint, studying philosophy without also practicing the 'religious' aspects of Buddhism like meditation and ethics is a total waste of time. The purpose of Buddhist philosophy is to train your mind and progress towards enlightenment.