Francois,
Personally I think that Budda need to get off his fat butt and do something about his weight.
Jesus and Buddha
by Bhagavad 36 Replies latest jw friends
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gsx1138
And Jesus looks like a pasty thin white guy made of plastic on my dashboard? You make the mistake of thinking that the image is the deity. This is common for christians since they like to assume things about other religions. If you didn't have the Bible would your beliefs be different? Is the Bible your God? Do you look at your Bible say, "God, I'm sorry I didn't dust your cover today."
People who have statues of Buddha do not think that that is Buddha but merely a representation. I would much rather have a fat happy guy in good spirits. Than a bleeding, suffering aingst ridden deity any day. By the way, there are many different representations of Buddha and not all are the fat guy Buddha. It seems you have the JW training on other religions where they give you just enough information to make you believe they are wrong and how you can find the easiest way to convert them.gsx1138
Edited by - gsx1138 on 15 June 2002 12:22:35
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Fredhall
1138,
Jesus, was the best looking man that ever walked on this planet. He had no defects on him. Gee, I can't amagine Jesus look like a Hindo god Yoda, who is a short green man that had big ears that was sticking of head and carrying a green sword.
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Introspection
However, too many people don't care about knowing the truth/way they just want to be closer to the way/truth than others.
Good point. First of all, it's important to understand that although buddhism is considered a religion, it is very different from how christianity is typically practiced. (even though some sects do look at it that way) But I guess what it comes down to is that even though you have some very simple principles, people tend to take comfort in knowledge or I should say mere data storage in their heads, rather than focusing on living them. It's been said that it's better to be a buddha than a buddhist, and that possibility is available to all, it's only a matter of being awake. The buddha isn't considered a god or anything, and there have been many buddhas according to buddhist teachings. I have to say, though, that what the two traditions have in common is this self imposed limit that people put on themselves. With buddhists, they'll have this attitude like ohhh it won't be many lifetimes until I can awaken, and with Christians it's this whole Jesus was perfect so we can't be like that and so we shouldn't even try for such high standards. (even though officially they would agree that you want to walk in Jesus footsteps) Now what is that kind of thinking good for?
"One MILLION dollars!" -Dr. Evil, holding up pinky finger to corner of mouth
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Valis
Taken from this website:
http://www.heartlandsangha.org/parallel-sayings.html
They also have soem info on people who are Buddist and Christian, which to me is a bit odd, but hey, everyone and everything is a Bodisatva right?
Parallel Sayings of Buddha and Christ
These parallel sayings of Buddha and Christ were shared with people at the joint Buddhist/Christian religious service held at Lake Street Church in Evanston, IL in May.
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.
Buddha: They agreed among themselves, friends, here comes the recluse, Gotama, who lives luxuriously, who gives up his striving and reverted to luxury. 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.
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seven006
Fred,
Just like every other JW you are going to believe exactly what you are told to believe. Here are some facts for you to try and ignore. The comparisons with Jesus and Krishna are equally as amazing and that is not even mentioning the Greek man-god Dionysus. All three individuals lived many years before Christ supposedly walked the earth.
Try reading something besides the JW propaganda and you will discover the real truth. But then you don't want the real truth about anything do ya Fred?
"Approximately five centuries older than Christianity, by the time of the birth of Christ, Buddhism had already spread through much of India and Ceylon and had penetrated into Central Asia and China." (Latourette, A History of Christianity (New York, 1975), p. 274.)
M. L'Abbe Huc, Nineteenth--Century Missionary Apostolic:"The miraculous births of Buddha, his life and instructions, contain a great number of the moral and dogmatic truths professed in Christianity." (Huc, Christianity in China, Tartary, and Thibet (London, 1857), p. 327.)
T. W. Doane, Nineteenth Century:...nothing now remains for the honest man to do but acknowledge the truth, which is that the history of Jesus of Nazareth[,] as related in the books of the New Testament, is simply a copy of that of Buddha, with a mixture of mythology borrowed from other nations." (T.W. Doane, "Bible Myths" (New York, 1882), p. 286)
Now for the really interesting part...the similarities between Buddha and Jesus...1. Both Buddha and Jesus were baptized in the presence of the "spirit" of G--d. (De Bunsen, p. 45; Matthew 3:16.)
2. Both went to their temples at the age of twelve, where they are said to have astonished all with their wisdom. (Ibid., p. 37; Luke 2:41--48.)
3. Both supposedly fasted in solitude for a long time: Buddha for forty--seven days and Jesus for forty. (Arthur Lillie, Buddha and Early Buddhism (London, 1881), p. 100, Matthew 4:2.)
4. At the conclusion of their fasts, they both wandered to a fig tree. (Hans Joachim Schoeps, An Intelligent Person's Guide to the Religions of Mankind (London, 1967), p. 167; Matthew 21:18--19.)
5. Both were about the same age when they began their public ministry:
* "When he [Buddha] went again to the garden he saw a monk who was calm, tranquil, self--possessed, serene, and dignified. The prince, determined to become such a monk, was led to make the great renunciation. At the time he was twenty--nine years of age...". (Encyclopedia Americana (New York: Rand McNally and Co., 1963), vol. 4, p. 672.)
* "Jesus, when he began his ministry, was about thirty years of age" (Luke 3:23).6. Both were tempted by the "devil" at the beginning of their ministry:
* To Buddha, he said: "Go not forth to adopt a religious life but return to your kingdom, and in seven days you shall become emperor of the world, riding over the four continents." (Moncure D. Conway, The Sacred Anthology (London, 1874), p. 173.)
* To Jesus, he said: "All these [kingdoms of the world] I will give you, if you fall down and worship me" (Matthew 4:9).7. Buddha answered the "devil": "Get you away from me." (De Bunsen, p.38)
* Jesus responded: "...begone, Satan!" (Matthew 4:10).8. Both experienced the "supernatural" after the "devil" left:
* For Buddha: "The skies rained flowers, and delicious odors prevailed [in] the air." (Ibid.)
* For Jesus: "angels came and ministered to him" (Matthew 4:11).9. The multitudes required a sign from both in order that they might believe. (Muller, Science, p. 27; Matthew 16:1.)
10. Both strove to establish a kingdom of heaven on earth. (Beal, p. x; Matthew 4:17.)
* Buddha "represented himself as a mere link in a long chain of enlightened teachers." (Muller, Science, p. 140.)11. Jesus said: "Think not that I have come to abolish the law, and the prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfill them" (Matthew 5:17).
12. According to the Somadeva (a Buddhist holy book), a Buddhist ascetic's eye once offended him, so he plucked it out and cast it away. (Ibid., p. 245)
* Jesus said: "If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out, and throw it away;" (Matthew 5:29).13. "Buddha taught that the motive of all our actions should be pity or love of our neighbor." (Ibid., p. 249)
* Jesus taught: "...love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew 5:44).14. Buddha said: "Hide your good deeds, and confess before the world the sins you have committed." (Ibid., p.28)
* Jesus said: "Beware of practicing your piety before men to be seen by them;" (Matthew 6:1) and "Therefore confess your sins one to another, and pray one for another, that you may be healed..." (James 5:16).15. Both are said to have known the thoughts of others:
* "By directing his mind to the thoughts of others, [Buddha] can know the thoughts of all beings." (R. Spence Hardy, The Legends and Theories of the Buddhists Compared with History and Science (London, 1866), p. 181.)
* "But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said: `Why do you think evil in your hearts?' " (Matthew 9:4).16. After "healing" a man born blind, Buddha said: "The disease of this man originates in his sinful actions in former times." (Prof. Max Muller, ed., Sacred Books of the East (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1879--1910), vol. 21, p. 129f.)
* "As [Jesus] passed by, he saw a man blind from his birth. And his disciples said to him: `Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?' " (John 9:1--2).17. Both were itinerant preachers with a close group of trustees within a larger group of disciples. (James Hastings, ed., Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics (New York: Edinburgh T. & T. Clark, 1918), vol. 6, p. 883; Matthew 26:20.)
18. Both demanded that their disciples renounce all worldly possessions. (Hardy, Monachism, p. 6; Luke 14:33.)
* "The number of the disciples rapidly increased, and Gautama sent forth his monks on missionary tours hither and thither, bidding them wander everywhere, preaching the doctrine, and teaching men to order their lives with self--restraint, simplicity, and charity." (Hastings, vol. 6, p.883)
* "And [Jesus] called to him the twelve [apostles], and began to send them out two by two.So they went out and preached that men should repent" (Mark 6:7, 12).19. Both had a disciple who "walked" on water:
* To convert skeptical villagers, Buddha showed them his disciple walking across a river without sinking. (Lillie, p. 140)
* "He said: `Come.' So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus, but when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out: `Lord, save me!' " (Matthew 14:29--30).20. "One day Ananda, the disciple of Buddha, after a long walk in the country, meets with Matangi, a woman of the low caste of the Kandalas, near a well, and asks her for some water. She tells him what she is, and that she must not come near him. But he replies: `My sister, I ask not for your caste or your family, I ask only for a drought of water. She afterwards became a disciple of Buddha." (Muller, Science, p. 243)
* "There came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said to her: `Give me a drink.' For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. The Samaritan woman said to him: `How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?' For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans" (John 4:7--9).21. Each repeated a question three times:
* "The Buddha next addressed the bhikkhus and requested them three times to ask him if they had any doubt or question that they wished clarified, but they all remained silent." (Encyclopedia Britannica (New York: William and Helen Benton, 1974), vol. 2, p. 373.)
* "[Jesus] said to him the third time: `Simon, son of John, do you love me?' Peter was grieved because he said to him the third time: `Do you love me?'" (John 21:17).22. Both received similar receptions:
* "The people swept the pathway, the gods strewed flowers on the pathway and branches of the coral tree, the men bore branches of all manner of trees, and the Bodhisattva Sumedha spread his garments in the mire, [and] men and gods shouted: `All hail.' " (Hardy, Legends, p.134)
* "And they brought the colt to Jesus, and threw their garments on it; and he sat on it. And many spread their garments on the road, and others spread leafy branches which they had cut from the fields" (Mark 11:7--8).23. Both had an archival:
* "[Buddha's] chief rival was Devadatta, a cousin of the Buddha, who is represented as being jealous of his influence and popularity, and as repeatedly seeking to compass his death." (Hastings, vol. 6, p.883)
* "While [Jesus] was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a great crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people. Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying: `The one I shall kiss is the man; seize him!' And he came up to Jesus at once, and said: `Hail, Master!' And he kissed him" (Matthew 26:47--49).24. Before his death, Buddha said to his disciple: "Ananda, when I am gone, you must not think there is no Buddha; the discourses I have delivered, and the precepts I have enjoined, must be my successors, or representatives, and be to you as Buddha." (Hardy, Eastern Monachism (London, 1860), p. 230.)
* Before his "ascension," Jesus said to his disciples: "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and, lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age" (Matthew 28:19--20).25. When Buddha died: "The coverings of [his] body unrolled themselves, and the lid of his coffin was opened by supernatural powers." (De Bunsen, p. 49.)
* When Jesus died: "And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the L--rd descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone, and sat upon it" (Matthew 28:2).26. "In the year 217 B.C. Buddhist missionaries were imprisoned for preaching; but an angel, genie or spirit came and opened the prison door, and liberated them." (Thomas Thornton, A History of China from the Earliest Records to the Treaty with Great Britain in 1842 (London, 1844), vol. 1, p. 341.)
* "They arrested the apostles and put them in the common prison. But at night an angel of the L--rd opened the prison doors and brought them out" (Acts 5:18--19).27. Both men's disciples are said to have been miracle workers. (Maria L. Child, The Progress of Religious Ideas Through Successive Ages (New York, 1855)vol. 1, p. 229, Acts 3:6--8.)
So...what do you all think? Pretty interesting...you've got to admit. Now please understand that I am NOT making any claims here...I'm just pointing it out and putting it up for discussion...
Your thoughts?
All the best,
Warren(Webmaster's Note: It is one of Buddha's senior students, Aniruddha, who lost his eyes sight - but he got a wisdom eye later aftre he attained arhatship)
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Re: Buddha vs. Jesus
Posted by Stoic on Tuesday, 25 January 2000, at 1:00 p.m., in response to Buddha vs. Jesus, posted by Warren on Tuesday, 25 January 2000, at 12:39 p.m.Buddha was just a philosopher who urged men to be selfless.
Jesus was just a philosopher who urged men to be selfless.
Love is just another word for selfless.------------------------------------------------------------------------
More Similarities re: Buddha vs. Jesus
Posted by Warren on Tuesday, 25 January 2000, at 1:35 p.m., in response to Buddha vs. Jesus, posted by Warren on Tuesday, 25 January 2000, at 12:39 p.m.
Hello all...
Here are some more fascinating similarities:1. Buddha and Jesus all claimed to be of royal descent:
* "The ancestry of Gautama Buddha is traced from his father, Sodhodana, through various individuals and races, all of royal dignity, to Maha Sammata, the first monarch of the world...." (Doane, p. 291.)
* Jesus' genealogy consists mostly of kings (Matthew 1:6--16), and he is traced back to Adam, the first man (Luke 3:38).2. Both are said to have been born of a virgin, and through the holy spirit. (Thomas Maurice, History of Hindostan (London 1798), vol. 2, p. 310; Matthew 1:18.)
3. Both were declared divine at birth:
* Following the Buddhist tradition, (Godfred Higgins, Anacalypsis: An Enquiry into the Origin of Languages, Nations and Religions (London, 1836) vol. 1, p. 157.), Matthew records that wise men proclaimed the infant Jesus divine. (Matthew 2:1, 11).4. "Celestial bodies" announced both men's births. (De Bunsen, pp. 22--23, 33; Matthew 2:2.)
5. When each was born, "angels" sang in heaven:
* For Buddha, they sang: "Today, Bodhisattva is born on earth, to give joy and peace to men and Devas [angels], to shed light on the dark places, and to give sight to the blind." (Beal, p. 56.)
* For Jesus, they sang: "Glory to G--d in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill among men" (Luke 2:14).6. Upon their births, they were supposedly presented with gifts:
* Buddha received gold, frankincense, and myrrh. (De Bunsen, p. 36; Amberly Viscount, An Analysis of Religious Belief (New York, 1879), p. 231.)
* Jesus received costly jewels and precious substances (Matthew 2:11).7. Both were supposedly miracle workers. (Muller, Science, p. 27; Matthew 4:23.)
8. Both were "transfigured" before witnesses:
* For Buddha and Jesus, this occurred on a mountain: "A flame of light encircled Buddha's head and shone as the sun or moon." (De Bunsen, p. 45; Beal, p. 177.)
* "And [Jesus] was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his garments became white as light" (Matthew 17:2).9. Both are said to be part of a trinity. (John Francis Davis, The Chinese (New York, 1836), vol. 2, p. 104; Matthew 28:19.)
10. They all "relieved" others of sins.
* Buddha said: "Let all the sins that were committed in this world fall on me, that the world may be delivered." (Prof. Max Muller, History of Sanskrit Literature (London, 1872), p. 80.)
* Of Jesus it was said: "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace which he lavished upon us" (Ephesians 1:7--8).11. Both were acclaimed as the Creator:
12. "Buddha, the Angel messiah, was regarded as the divinely chosen and incarnate messenger, the vicar of G--d, and God Himself on earth." (De Bunsen, p. 33.)
13. "[Jesus] is the image of the invisible G--d, the first born of all creation; for in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions, or principalities, or powers, all things were created through him and for him" (Colossians 1:15--16).
14. Both will "judge" the dead. (Mons Dupuis, trans., The Origin of All Religious Worship (New Orleans, 1872) p. 366; II Timothy 4:1.)
15. Buddha's titles were:
* Savior of the World (Child, vol. 1, p. 247.)
* God of Gods (Samuel Johnson, Oriental Religions and Their Relation to Universal Religion (India) (Boston, 1872), p. 604.)
* Anointed/Christ (De Bunsen, p. 18.)
* Messiah (Ibid.)
* and Only Begotten (Ibid.)16. Jesus' titles were:
* Christ (Matthew 11:2)
* Messiah (John 4:26)
* Son of G--d (Mark 1:1)
* Only Begotten (John 3:18)
* Lord (John 14:5). -
Francois
1138, I'm aware. Yes, it is chargeable to Paul's intolerance. I thought that was clear. Maybe not.
F
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singsongboi
thank you seven006 --- that's veri informative.....
thank you fred hall, for reminding me how dumb most of those in dub city really are!!!! sometimes i forget !!!
i visited thailand a couple of years ago -- went to a temple in bangkok, i sensed i was in the presence of a real spirituality - of the type you NEVER find in a kingdom hall.
i wonder why that is???? How can 6,000,000 religious people (studying the bible 3 times a week) produce hardly anyone with a spiritual presence????
guess, they have all been "hovaed" (heavied) into submission.....
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singsongboi
more about the fatuous** fred's comments on buddha!!!!!
fred, you do not even know what jesus looked like.... your descriptive comments about him, are straight out of a hollywood version of his life, but then what can we expect from you...??? even the WTS does not know what jesus looked like (and they have divine direction thru him, don't they???? )LOL!!!!
once they were absolutely sure the jesus was clean shaven, and so presented him as such, and said that "false" religion "wrongly " presented him with a beard.. and this was the subject of much discussion ......then came " new light ". the WTS "listened" to worldly experts and became convinced that Jesus would likely have worn a beard-- so the pix in the WT publications changed and jesus wore a nice, neatly trimmed (sanitised) beard -- well, you could not have him wearing a "taliban" beard, could you????
such shit!!!!
and what do you really know of buddha, and the presentation of him through images??? not much i suspect.
buddha is presented in many forms --- your focus on the representations that depict him as "fat", and your ensuing derogatory comments, is a bit rich, since you come from the fattest nation that the world has ever seen!!!!! (as the Awake once said - 4 asians can live on the food consumed by one american)
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** since this word is not often in the WT - we should define it for fred. it means silly, imbecile -- fatuousness - - unconscious stupidity.
which really does sum up the religious attitudes of jws. -- conceitedly sure of their so-called "faith" - they know so little of what the world "IS", they have locked themselves up in a little mental prison..
trying to reduce spiritual attitudes to a 10 second magazine presentation has produced the most fatuous religion the world has ever seen...
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Realist
two questions:
1. what exactly is the evidence that jesus actually existed? is there any real prove (files from the romans etc.) or is everything based on the stuff written 50 years after his supposed death (these reports must be pretty accurate by the way! 2. i red somewhere that most of the teachings in the new testament originated in a splinter group of samaritans. the christians copied most of their ideas. anyone heard that?