Buddha and Jesus

[Guest guest]

Why is it that similarities among the lives of avatars should lead one to

conclude that later events were borrowed and did not actually happen?

Such similarities could be divinely planned to point to the fundamental

unity of the truth of their teachings, it seems to me. I find it as impossible

to believe that Christianity appeared without Christ as to believe that

Buddhism appeared without Buddha, and even though one must look

farther back through the mists for the origins of Hinduism, could it have

appeared if Krsna were a fiction? I doubt it.

 

The perplexity of scholars may therefore be an unavoidable consequence

of the working out of a divine plan unbeholden to the workings of

human reason. Even human reason knows that "post hoc ergo propter

hoc" ("after this, therefore because of this") is a logical fallacy induced

by the mind's desire to assign a handy cause to any unexplained event.

 

Ron Philo

 

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Thu, 26 Jul 2001 05:00:42 -0000

Lodhe

Buddha and Jesus

 

Buddha and Jesus

 

<snip>

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.

 

Scholars have been profoundly struck and at times perplexed by the

remarkable similarities between the Gospel story and the life and

teachings of the Budhha, as told in the Latitavistara, and between

the Budhhist and Christian parables and miracles. Both the Buddha and

Christ are miraculously conceived and wondrously born and angels

rejoiced at both births. He was miraculously conceived and wondrously

born. His father was informed by angels about it and the queen -

mother Maya (Mary in case of Christ) was permitted to lead the life

of a virgin for thirty-two months. Christ was born in the royal tribe

of Judah, Buddha was born in a royal household. On the day of his

birth a Brahmin (Asita) priest predicts his future greatness. Asita

is the Buddhist Simeon. Early in his career, he was tempted by Mara

to give up his quest for truth with promises of world dominion. Both

reveal their unusual wisdom at about the same age, twelve.

 

Nothing is known of Jesus' life during the next seventeen years and

there have developed a variety of legends suggesting that he traveled

to India, lived with the Essenes at Qumran. The Gospels, however,

refute these suggestion by implication. Whether Jesus traveled abroad

or not, that he chose to remain unknown after having revealed himself

and his wisdom causes some surprise. As Jesus claimed to be God, it

could not have been a period of preparation. In contrast, more is

known of Buddha's life his childhood, youth, marriage, increasing

discontent with the world, renunciation, quest of Enlightenment, and

finally his attainment of the Buddhahood, followed by a long period

of missionary activity until he died.