Acclaimed to be Christ's favorite student, the apostle Thomas is also said to be the very author of the gospel associated with his name. However, the work produced by Thomas has proven to be somewhat of a taboo within traditional Christian churches despite the fact that biblical scholars claim that the Gospel of Thomas is the work of Thomas himself, unlike the other gospels who's original authors are in dispute. Despite this, however, the church forefathers abandoned Thomas' writings from the early years of the founding of the Christian church.
I suspect this was done because the Christ, as described by Thomas, did not fit the nature/character of the Christ that was being formulated by the early church fathers.
Thomas' gospel is unique in that the author, who as I mentioned is said to be Christ's favorite student, has recorded various sayings of Christ and it does not attempt to get into the "biography" or the story of Christ's life in Palestine. Thomas' gospel is unique also for the fact that the work in question is clearly on a higher spiritual level; it is in a sense an esoteric work. Nevertheless, the work differs fundamentally from the other gospels, perhaps with the exception of Gospel of John.
Thomas' work feels quite odd when viewed from an traditional/orthodox Christian perspective. Modern readers would immediately recognize a "New Age" character of the wordage used and the imagery painted by Thomas, as well as unmistakable eastern influences. Thomas depicts Christ in abstract, almost extraterrestrial terms.
Relevant questions pertaining to Thomas: Why have the church fathers for centuries neglected his work, especially considering the fact that the work in question is considered to be the authentic work of Christ's favorite student? Why was the Gospel of Thomas not included within the New Testament? Does Thomas' work undermine the theological formula concerning Christ? Does it belittle Christ's essence?
The answer is, no.
Christ comes through as a divine being, albeit a bit unusual and esoteric. The only problem I sense is that the Christ, as described in the Gospel of Thomas, did not fit the image of the Christ that was being formulated by early church fathers, more specifically those associated with the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. Nonetheless, in order to better understand the real essence of Christ and Christianity I believe that Thomas' gospel has to be reexamined by Christ's faithful.
Arevordi
I suspect this was done because the Christ, as described by Thomas, did not fit the nature/character of the Christ that was being formulated by the early church fathers.
Thomas' gospel is unique in that the author, who as I mentioned is said to be Christ's favorite student, has recorded various sayings of Christ and it does not attempt to get into the "biography" or the story of Christ's life in Palestine. Thomas' gospel is unique also for the fact that the work in question is clearly on a higher spiritual level; it is in a sense an esoteric work. Nevertheless, the work differs fundamentally from the other gospels, perhaps with the exception of Gospel of John.
Thomas' work feels quite odd when viewed from an traditional/orthodox Christian perspective. Modern readers would immediately recognize a "New Age" character of the wordage used and the imagery painted by Thomas, as well as unmistakable eastern influences. Thomas depicts Christ in abstract, almost extraterrestrial terms.
Relevant questions pertaining to Thomas: Why have the church fathers for centuries neglected his work, especially considering the fact that the work in question is considered to be the authentic work of Christ's favorite student? Why was the Gospel of Thomas not included within the New Testament? Does Thomas' work undermine the theological formula concerning Christ? Does it belittle Christ's essence?
The answer is, no.
Christ comes through as a divine being, albeit a bit unusual and esoteric. The only problem I sense is that the Christ, as described in the Gospel of Thomas, did not fit the image of the Christ that was being formulated by early church fathers, more specifically those associated with the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. Nonetheless, in order to better understand the real essence of Christ and Christianity I believe that Thomas' gospel has to be reexamined by Christ's faithful.
Arevordi
***
GOSPEL OF THOMAS: THE BUDDHIST JESUS?
Lost for 1,600 years
In 1945, in an Egyptian cave near desert town of Nag Hammadi, 52 papyrus texts were discovered, some dating from the beginning of the Christian era, revealing a Jesus who teaching akin to a Shin myokonin, a Zen Master, or even Shakyamuni Buddha himself. Lost for 1,600 years, these are known as the Gnostic Gospels, from the Greek word "gnosis"...meaning "to know"...’to know oneself,” that is to have an insight into and awakened to oneself in an intuitive and non-dualistic sense.
Buddhist Influences
According to the New Testament (The Gospel of Matthew), Jesus spent his early childhood in Egypt which was at the end of the Silk Road. As a result, Egypt was prosperous and enriched with religious diversity. There was even a large Buddhist community known as the Therapeutae (Sons of the Elders) that existed in Alexandria. Today, some scholars believe that Jesus may have been inspired by the Buddhist religion and that the Gospel of Thomas and many Nag Hammadi texts reflect this possible influence. Books such as The Gnostic Gospels and Beyond Belief: the Secret Gospel of Thomas by Elaine Pagels and The Original Jesus by Gruber and Kersten examine the facts and fiction, and theories.
This is not to say that Jesus was a Buddhist disciple but just possibly he had been influenced by the Buddhist teachings. This is mere speculation. Obviously, he was a xxx and was influenced by the Hebrew religious tradition. However, for us, Jesus is our spiritual brother and our teacher as a mystic. We are one with all mystics whether they be called Shinran, Dogen, Rumi, Khan, Gandhi, Jesus, Nanak and Ramana, etc. Each mystical tradition speaks of the same experience but with different words; one may use the word "Pure Land" and the other as the "Kingdom of Heaven" but the experience is the same.
A Different Christian Tradition
Some scholars have observed that among these Nag Hammadi texts, The Gospel of Thomas includes teachings older than Gospels of the New Testament, such as Mark, Matthew, Luke or John, and also closer to the actual life of the historical Jesus. These scholars believe that the Gospel of Thomas was written around 62 C.E. because it commends James, the brother of Jesus, to be the legitimate heir to the early Christian movement and in addition makes no reference to the Roman sack of Jerusalem in 72 C.E. Moreover, of all of the Nag Hammadi texts, it is Thomas that has the most similarities with Pure Land Buddhism within it.
Enlightenment for All
Exploring the Gospel of Thomas, we discover that Jesus believed the self and the divine to be identical and one. Furthermore, the Kingdom of Heaven is not in the future but is “right here.” and one only needs to be awakened to this perfection. Jesus, in this gospel, speaks of enlightenment, the same type that is taught by Shakyamuni Buddha, Shin teachers and Zen Masters. In addition, Thomas does not have a narrative story line but just 114 sayings attributed to Jesus, many of which are akin to Zen koans. Here, Jesus is never presented as Lord or Savior, but rather as a spiritual guide who is equal to his students. In addition, the Gospel of Thomas does not contain a supernatural virgin birth or the doctrine of the Virgin Mary. It does not teach of original sin. It does not mention Jesus’ crucifixion or resurrection. It does not teach Jesus’ death as a payment of debt to “atone” for humanity's sins. It does not include any supernatural healings or miracles. It does not mention the so-called end-times or the wrath of God. It does not mention salvation through faith in Christ. It does not exclude women.
The Exclusion of Thomas
Why was the Gospel of Thomas disqualified from the Christian Bible and eventually outlawed? During the reign of Emperor Constantine around the 4th century C.E., the Roman Empire was looking to reconstitute and solidify its power. The Emperor and the existing power structure chose the Pauline sect of Christianity as the “official” religion, which include the epistles of Paul and the Gospels and books from his disciples that form the present-day New Testament. Teachings from the Gospel of Thomas and other Nag Hammadi texts were seen as a danger to the developing ecclesiastical and political structure because they rejected the authority of the bishops, priests and deacons. Roman Church father Ignatius warned the Christians to "honor and obey the bishop as you would God." It is quite easy to see why the church councils did not choose the Gospel of Thomas and other similar texts for their Bible. As a result, for political reasons these texts were banned and later destroyed for the good of Empire and Church. After all, bishops and priests would lose their power and influence with the common people, if the common people learned that Jesus taught they did not need such religious authority/intermediaries of the Church, bishops and priests, and that the Kingdom is within all and is directly accessible to everyone without them; we all are sons/daughters of God.
Why Study the Gospel of Thomas?
You might be wondering why Shin Buddhists should even bother to study the early teachings of Jesus? Our interest in learning about the early teachings of Jesus is not to discredit Christianity but because this Gospel shares similar mystical content with the Shin and Zen Buddhist traditions, we 21st century Buddhists can learn a lot from this ancient mystic, called Jesus of Nazareth. So, by studying the teachings of the Gospel of Thomas through the lenses of Buddhist thought and religious experience, we can further deepen our spiritual path and awaken to our True Nature, our universal Buddha-nature, which ultimately has no name but is experienced as faith, compassion and wisdom.
In addition, as Western Buddhists, we must deal with Christianity as a political, social and religious power. How shall we perceive the teachings of Jesus? Must we cave into the dogma of the traditional and evangelical Christian parlance? Or can we reinterpret the teachings (dharma) of Jesus? Must Jesus be an advesary or can he be a teacher for us? Just with a shift in interpretation, Jesus becomes not a judgemental and cosmic Christ but a Bodhisattva guiding beings like ourselves to the Kingdom that is there before us and within us. Perhaps in the future, due to its Buddhist inclinations, the Gospel of Thomas will be considered a genuine Buddhist sutra (scripture) thereby bridging the gap between Eastern and Western spirituality while helping seekers to awaken to the endowed Pure Land (Kingdom of God) within themselves. Maybe, even Jesus himself will someday be considered the Bodhisattva of the West.
Parallel Sayings and Teachings
The following web pages offer an open-minded presentation of some of the parallel mystical sayings and teachings from the Gospel of Thomas that may be related to but are certainly illuminated by the Buddhist teachings. This is a work in progress and in the near future more correlations will be added, including the parallel sayings from the Gospel of Philip, the Gospel of Mary, the Q Gospel and other Nag Hammadi texts. Regarding the Gospel of Thomas with Shin and Zen Buddhist teachings, some of the similiarities are disturbing. But did not Jesus say, "the seeker should not stop until he finds. When he does find, he will be disturbed. After being disturbed, he will be astonished" (Thomas 2). Please read on and judge for yourself.
Source: http://buddhistfaith.tripod.com/gospel/
Gospel of Thomas
1) And he said, "Whoever finds the inner meaning of these words will not taste death."
2) Jesus said, "Let him who seeks not cease seeking until he finds, and when he finds, he will be troubled. When he has been troubled, he will marvel, and he will reign over the All."
3) Jesus said, "If those who lead you say, 'See, the Kingdom is in heaven,' then the birds of the heaven will precede you. If they say to you, 'It is in the sea,' then the fish will precede you. Rather, the Kingdom is within you and it is without you. When you come to know yourselves, then you will become known, and you will realize that it is you who are the sons of the living Father. But if you will not know yourselves, you dwell in poverty and it is you who are that poverty."
4) Jesus said, "The man old in days will not hesitate to ask a small child of seven days about the place of Life, and he will live. For many who are first shall become last, and they shall become a single one."
5) Jesus said, "Know what is in the presence of your face, and what is hidden from you will be revealed to you. For there is nothing hidden which will not become manifest."
6) His disciples questioned him and said to him, "Do you want us to fast? How shall we pray? Shall we give alms? What diet shall we observe?" Jesus said, "Do not lie, and do not do what you hate, for all things are exposed in the presence of the sky. There is nothing hidden that will not be revealed, and nothing covered that will remain undiscovered."
7) Jesus said, "Blessed is the lion which the man consumes and the lion becomes man; and cursed is the man whom the lion consumes, and the lion becomes man."
8) And he said, "The man is like a wise fisherman who cast his net into the sea and drew it up from the sea full of small fish. Among them the wise fisherman found a fine large and good fish. He threw all the small fish back into the sea and chose the large fish without trouble. Whoever has ears to hear, let him hear."
9) Jesus said, "Now the sower went out, filled his hand with seeds, and cast. Some fell on the road; the birds came and gathered them up. Others fell on the rock, did not send roots down to the earth, and did not send ears rising to the sky. And others fell on thorns; they choked the seed and the worm ate them. And others fell on good earth and produced good fruit: it bore sixty per measure and a hundred and twenty per measure."
10) Jesus said, "I have cast fire upon the world, and behold, I watch over it until it is ablaze."
11) Jesus said, "This sky shall pass away, and the one above it shall pass away. The dead are not alive, and the living will not die. In the days when you consumed what is dead, you made it alive. When you come into the light, what will you do? On the day you were one you made two, but having become two, what will you do?"
12) The disciples said to Jesus, "We know that you will depart from us. Who is to be our rabbi?" Jesus said to them, "Wherever you are, you are to go to James the righteous, for whose sake heaven and earth came into being."
13) Jesus said to his disciples, "Make a comparison to me and tell me whom I resemble." Simon Peter said to Him, "You are like a righteous angel." Matthew said to Him, "You are like a wise philosopher." Thomas said to Him, "Master, my mouth is wholly incapable of saying whom you are like." Jesus said, "I am not your master. Because you have drunk, you have become intoxicated by the bubbling spring which I have measured out." And he took him and withdrew and spoke to him three words. When Thomas returned to his companions, they asked him, "What did Jesus say to you?" Thomas said to them, "If I tell you one of the words he has spoken to me, you will take stones and throw them at me; a fire will come out of the stones and burn you."
14) Jesus said to them, "If you fast, you will give rise to sin for yourselves; and if you pray, they will condemn you; and if you give alms, you will do harm to your spirits. When you go into any land and walk about in the districts, if they receive you, eat what they set before you, and heal the sick among them. For what goes into your mouth will not defile you, but that which issues from your mouth - it is that which will defile you."
15) Jesus said, "When you see one who was not born of woman, prostrate yourselves on your faces and worship him. That one is your Father."
[...]
Source: http://www.sophian.org/Gospel%20of%20Thomas.htm
Parallel Sayings of Buddha and Christ
Although the Buddha and Jesus lived hundreds of years and cultures apart, there are striking parallels to the sayings attributed to them. It is not that they said exactly the same things, it is rather that their distinctive and independent sayings pierce the veil of illusion, reminding us that God, or truth or whatever word that we choose to call that which is ultimate, binds us together in a timeless and infinite garment of mutuality. The parallel teachings of Buddha and Christ are from the book Jesus and Buddha, the Parallel Teachings by Marcus Borg, Jesus scholar and Buddhist writer, Jack Kornfield. The Buddha sayings are taken from the Dhammapada and the sutras of the Buddha. The Jesus sayings are taken from the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
Jesus: If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also.
Buddha: If anyone should give you a blow with his hand, with a stick, or with a knife, you should abandon any desires and utter no evil words.
Jesus: Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your neighbor, “Friend, let me take the speck out of your eye,” when you yourself do not see the log in your own eye? You, hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.
Buddha: The faults of others are easier to see than one’s own; the faults of others are easily seen, for they are sifted like chaff, but one’s own faults are hard to see. This is like the cheat who hides his dice and shows the dice of his opponent, calling attention to the other’s shortcomings, continually thinking of accusing him.
Jesus: Your father in heaven makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.
Buddha: The great cloud rains down on all whether their nature is superior or inferior. The light of the sun and the moon illuminates the whole world, both him who does well and him who does ill, both him who stands high and him who stands low.
Jesus: He said to them, “When I sent you out without a purse, bag, or sandals, did you lack anything?” They said, “No, not a thing.”
Buddha: Then the Lord addressed the monks, saying: “I am freed from all snares. And you, monks, you are freed from all snares.”
Jesus: The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
Buddha: If by giving up limited pleasures one sees far-reaching happiness, the wise one leaves aside limited pleasures, looking to far-reaching happiness.
Jesus: Those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it.
Buddha: With the relinquishing of all thought and egotism, the enlightened one is liberated through not clinging.
Jesus: If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also.
Buddha: If anyone should give you a blow with his hand, with a stick, or with a knife, you should abandon any desires and utter no evil words.
Jesus: Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your neighbor, “Friend, let me take the speck out of your eye,” when you yourself do not see the log in your own eye? You, hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.
Buddha: The faults of others are easier to see than one’s own; the faults of others are easily seen, for they are sifted like chaff, but one’s own faults are hard to see. This is like the cheat who hides his dice and shows the dice of his opponent, calling attention to the other’s shortcomings, continually thinking of accusing him.
Jesus: Your father in heaven makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.
Buddha: The great cloud rains down on all whether their nature is superior or inferior. The light of the sun and the moon illuminates the whole world, both him who does well and him who does ill, both him who stands high and him who stands low.
Jesus: He said to them, “When I sent you out without a purse, bag, or sandals, did you lack anything?” They said, “No, not a thing.”
Buddha: Then the Lord addressed the monks, saying: “I am freed from all snares. And you, monks, you are freed from all snares.”
Jesus: The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
Buddha: If by giving up limited pleasures one sees far-reaching happiness, the wise one leaves aside limited pleasures, looking to far-reaching happiness.
Jesus: Those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it.
Buddha: With the relinquishing of all thought and egotism, the enlightened one is liberated through not clinging.
- See more at: http://tomstine.com/jesus-and-buddha-parallel-sayings/#sthash.USDpwMoA.dpuf
Buddha: If anyone should give you a blow with his hand, with a stick, or with a knife, you should abandon any desires and utter no evil words.
Jesus: Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your neighbor, “Friend, let me take the speck out of your eye,” when you yourself do not see the log in your own eye? You, hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.
Buddha: The faults of others are easier to see than one’s own; the faults of others are easily seen, for they are sifted like chaff, but one’s own faults are hard to see. This is like the cheat who hides his dice and shows the dice of his opponent, calling attention to the other’s shortcomings, continually thinking of accusing him.
Jesus: Your father in heaven makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.
Buddha: The great cloud rains down on all whether their nature is superior or inferior. The light of the sun and the moon illuminates the whole world, both him who does well and him who does ill, both him who stands high and him who stands low.
Jesus: He said to them, “When I sent you out without a purse, bag, or sandals, did you lack anything?” They said, “No, not a thing.”
Buddha: Then the Lord addressed the monks, saying: “I am freed from all snares. And you, monks, you are freed from all snares.”
Jesus: The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
Buddha: If by giving up limited pleasures one sees far-reaching happiness, the wise one leaves aside limited pleasures, looking to far-reaching happiness.
Jesus: Those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it.
Buddha: With the relinquishing of all thought and egotism, the enlightened one is liberated through not clinging.
- See more at: http://tomstine.com/jesus-and-buddha-parallel-sayings/#sthash.USDpwMoA.dpuf
Jesus: If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also.
Buddha: If anyone should give you a blow with his hand, with a stick, or with a knife, you should abandon any desires and utter no evil words.
Jesus: Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your neighbor, “Friend, let me take the speck out of your eye,” when you yourself do not see the log in your own eye? You, hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.
Buddha: The faults of others are easier to see than one’s own; the faults of others are easily seen, for they are sifted like chaff, but one’s own faults are hard to see. This is like the cheat who hides his dice and shows the dice of his opponent, calling attention to the other’s shortcomings, continually thinking of accusing him.
Jesus: Your father in heaven makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.
Buddha: The great cloud rains down on all whether their nature is superior or inferior. The light of the sun and the moon illuminates the whole world, both him who does well and him who does ill, both him who stands high and him who stands low.
Jesus: He said to them, “When I sent you out without a purse, bag, or sandals, did you lack anything?” They said, “No, not a thing.”
Buddha: Then the Lord addressed the monks, saying: “I am freed from all snares. And you, monks, you are freed from all snares.”
Jesus: The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
Buddha: If by giving up limited pleasures one sees far-reaching happiness, the wise one leaves aside limited pleasures, looking to far-reaching happiness.
Jesus: Those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it.
Buddha: With the relinquishing of all thought and egotism, the enlightened one is liberated through not clinging.
- See more at: http://tomstine.com/jesus-and-buddha-parallel-sayings/#sthash.USDpwMoA.dpuf
Buddha:
They agreed among themselves, friends, here comes the recluse, Gotama,
who lives luxuriously, who gives up his striving and reverted to luxury.Buddha: If anyone should give you a blow with his hand, with a stick, or with a knife, you should abandon any desires and utter no evil words.
Jesus: Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your neighbor, “Friend, let me take the speck out of your eye,” when you yourself do not see the log in your own eye? You, hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.
Buddha: The faults of others are easier to see than one’s own; the faults of others are easily seen, for they are sifted like chaff, but one’s own faults are hard to see. This is like the cheat who hides his dice and shows the dice of his opponent, calling attention to the other’s shortcomings, continually thinking of accusing him.
Jesus: Your father in heaven makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.
Buddha: The great cloud rains down on all whether their nature is superior or inferior. The light of the sun and the moon illuminates the whole world, both him who does well and him who does ill, both him who stands high and him who stands low.
Jesus: He said to them, “When I sent you out without a purse, bag, or sandals, did you lack anything?” They said, “No, not a thing.”
Buddha: Then the Lord addressed the monks, saying: “I am freed from all snares. And you, monks, you are freed from all snares.”
Jesus: The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
Buddha: If by giving up limited pleasures one sees far-reaching happiness, the wise one leaves aside limited pleasures, looking to far-reaching happiness.
Jesus: Those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will save it.
Buddha: With the relinquishing of all thought and egotism, the enlightened one is liberated through not clinging.
- See more at: http://tomstine.com/jesus-and-buddha-parallel-sayings/#sthash.USDpwMoA.dpuf
Jesus: The son of humanity came eating and drinking and they said look a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.
Buddha: With the relinquishing of all thought and egotism, the enlightened one is liberated through not clinging.
Jesus: Those who want to save their life will loose it. Those who loose their live for my sake will save it.
Buddha: One is the way to gain, the other is the way to Nirvana, knowing this fact, students of the Buddha should not take pleasure in being honored, but, should practice detachment.
Jesus: No slave can serve two masters For a slave will either hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.
Buddha: Just as a mother would protect her only child at the risk of her own life, even so, cultivate a boundless heart towards all beings. Let your thoughts of boundless love pervade the whole world.
Jesus: This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one's life for one's friends.
Buddha: If you do not tend to one another then who is there to tend to you? Whoever who would tend me, he should tend the sick.
Jesus: Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these, so you have done it unto me.
Buddha: Consider others as yourself.
Jesus: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.
Buddha: One who acts on truth is happy, in this world and beyond.
Jesus: You will know the truth and the truth will make you free.
Buddha: Hatred do not ever cease in this world by hating, but by love; this is an eternal truth... Overcome anger by love, Overcome evil by good. overcome the miser by giving, overcome the liar by truth.
Jesus: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. From anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again.
Source: http://www.heartlandsangha.org/parallel-sayings.html
Jesus and Buddha: The Parallel Sayings
Revered as two of the greatest spiritual figures in the history of man, Jesus Christ and Buddha forged and articulated the precepts that would form the ideological foundations of the Christian and Buddhist religions. From what were austere beginnings, these visionary doctrines evolved over time into universal forces in their own right. Only a handful of other belief systems have influenced the lives of so vast a number of people throughout the world to the extent that these two great religions have.
In appreciating what Christianity and Buddhism stand for in the eyes of their followers, it is important to understand the doctrinal association that exists between the two faiths. Although Western scholarship has acknowledged the similarities that link some of the teachings and beliefs of Christianity with those of the two other monotheistic religions, Islam and Judaism, it has subordinated the notion of a fundamental relationship between those teachings and beliefs with their counterparts in Buddhism. Guilty perhaps, of what could be called shallow historiography or deliberate obscurantism, scholars in the West have channeled the gist of their attention and assent on the divisions that separate Buddhism and Christianity.
The book Jesus and Buddha: The Parallel Sayings however, runs against that scholarly tendency as it de-emphasizes the distinctions between Christianity and Buddhism and discerns a remarkable similitude in their teachings. Whereas previous scholarship attempted to minimize the amount of discourse on the subject, a meaningful correlation between the two religions is the essential proposition being tendered in Jesus and Buddha. Buddhist writer Jack Kornfield eloquently sums up this correspondence when he writes about the efficacy of Jesus’s and Buddha’s teachings in the book’s introduction: "When we listen deeply to their words, we find that in many ways, they speak with one heart."
Jesus and Buddha’s co-editor, Jesus scholar Marcus Borg, partitions the book—the main body of which is comprised of some of Jesus’s and Buddha’s most famous sayings—into twelve categories that conform with where the two prophets’ teachings appear to closely intersect. Borg maintains that the spiritual kinship shared between both men took shape before either one of them were even conceived to the world. In the Digha Nikaya (Collection of Long Discourses), one of the renowned texts of the Buddhist canon, some devas urge Queen Maya, after she had given birth to the infant Buddha, to celebrate for "a mighty son has been born to you." Along similar lines in the Gospel of Luke, the Angel Gabriel reveals to the Virgin Mary that she will give birth to the one "who will be called the Son of the Most High."
One of the categories in Jesus and Buddha is entitled "Materialism." We are reminded here of both men’s unwavering antipathy towards the material world. Gnostic in tone, the Buddha preached that an individual’s insatiable appetite for material wealth and physical pleasure must be purged before he or she can live a life of virtue, and therefore embark upon the path to nirvana. Buddha also says in the Jatakamala that "Riches make most people greedy, and so are like caravans lurching down the road to perdition." In an excerpt from the Udanavarga, Buddha cautions us to bear in mind that death is the great levelling force of the cosmos, as he declares that even "though one accumulates hundreds of thousands of worldly goods, one still succumbs to the spell of death."
Jesus’s sayings on materialism are certainly identical in spirit, if not in composition, with Buddha’s. As a champion of the poor, Jesus experienced firsthand what he perceived to be the hard-hearted, sacrilegious ethos of his time. Distressed by this cold reality, he formed an image of "personal enrichment" that was to be "found in heaven rather than in the marketplaces of the world." As written in the Gospel of Matthew and as indicated in Jesus and Buddha, Jesus taught that in order to become perfect, you must "sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven." These humanistic tenets—including the famous saying, "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God."—have great resonance in the world we live in today.
Both men also resemble each other a great deal in their respective teachings on love. Jesus and Buddha treats this category—entitled "Compassion"—as the most conspicuous area of convergence for Buddhist and Christian thought. As is written in the book, "Both teachers invoked the Golden Rule of treating others as you want them to treat you." Burnett Hillman Streeter, an Oxford scholar, is quoted in Jesus and Buddha as saying that "The moral teaching of Buddha…has a remarkable resemblance to the Sermon on the Mount."
The Sermon, a focal point in the life of the adult Jesus, is replete with sayings that appear to be a genuine reflection of what is put forth in Buddhism’s principal text, the Dhammapada ("Religious Sentences"). Jesus for example, is purported to have said in the Gospel of Luke to "Do to others as you would have them do to you." The comparison with the Dhammapada is extraordinary when we read that the Buddha, in like fashion, instructed his followers to "Consider others as yourself."
Although it is hardly Jesus and Buddha’s intent to do so, its proposition of a close doctrinal parallelism between Christianity and Buddhism gives rise to a hitherto devalued religio-historical controversy. The book directs us to a minority of scholars who posit that the doctrinal affinity between both religions is the result of "cultural borrowing." If any such borrowing truly took place, then, as Marcus Borg concedes, "the direction of borrowing would have been from the Buddha to Jesus," since the historical Buddha lived some five centuries before the birth of Christ.
To its editor’s credit (Borg after all, calls himself a "non-exclusivist Christian"), Jesus and Buddha makes several references to specific scholarly works that were written in defense of the idea that Jesus was influenced by what Thomas Cahill, the author of the bestselling How the Irish Saved Civilization, calls "the quiet refinements of Buddhism." Jesus and Buddha briefly discusses the theories broached in these scholarly works, which claim to resolve the question of how Jesus was exposed to an ideology that maturated thousands of miles away from his homeland of Palestine.
Curiously, Borg dismisses the concept of cultural borrowing as a viable explanation for the parallels in Christian and Buddhist thought. He chooses instead to attribute the parallels to a "commonality of religious experiences." By doing so, Borg conveniently sidesteps the possibility that Buddhist doctrines were transmitted to Palestine. That is to say, he rules out the possibility that Buddhist thought was physically conveyed across the great trans-continental distance that lies between Palestine and northern India, which is where Buddhism originated from. If true, it is more than likely that this transmission was conducted by various travelers who journeyed amidst the lands between the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent during ancient times, as well as during the time of Christ.
As an analogy, there is substantial evidence showing that the sources of some of Christianity’s most sacred beliefs, such as the Resurrection of Christ, are to be found in the pre-Islamic Persian religions of Mithraism and Zoroastrianism. It is believed that Mithraic and Zoroastrian doctrines were disseminated by wayfarers and traders from Persia in the Holy Land, where they were then incorporated into what was to become the Christian faith.
As much as the book Jesus and Buddha deals with issues that leave to chance how Christianity and Buddhism are rendered by the individual, collective, and historical imagination, it comes down to being a spiritual guide for those who seek moral instruction and inner strength from the best of what both religions have to offer. In coming together "in an encounter of the spirit in the West," as Jack Kornfield writes, Buddha’s and Jesus’s words are designed to lead the faithful on the same "path of liberation from our anxious grasping, resurrection into a new way of being, and transformation into the compassionate life."
Source: http://www.eclectica.org/v2n3/gaborro.html
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