Jesus Christ lived in India

[niranjan]

It is noteworthy that the Bible makes no mention of Jesus Christ between the ages of 18 to 30 . Jesus Christ lived in India between the ages of 18 to 30 . After crucifixion , he returned back to India where he lived in Kashmir till his death . This has been said by the Indian spiritual masters Paramahamsa Yogananda , Satya Sai Baba and Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. Jesus's teaching of chastity, non-violence, and renunciation were derived from Hinduism, Buddhism and Yoga.

The proof for this can be obtained from the books 'Jesus lived in India' , written by a team of Western scholars and archaeologists and 'Hinduism and Christianity' by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar( the founder of the Art of Living Foundation).

[Guest guest]

If he lived in India, then the Bible would have said he lived in India for 12 years. If the bible says nothing about the period, why should it mean that he was out of town? The most likely reason is there was nothing eventful during that period to report and hence the bible is silent.

 

It is amusing to hear scholars and archaeologists decided Jesus was in India when people are having enough trouble just to establish that a person named Jesus was not a fictional character created from Paul's letters .

[niranjan]

 

If he lived in India, then the Bible would have said he lived in India for 12 years.

.

 

The bible does not at all mention where he was during this period. The bible is focussed more on his teachings , then on his whereabouts during the unknown years.

 

 

If the bible says nothing about the period, why should it mean that he was out of town? The most likely reason is there was nothing eventful during that period to report and hence the bible is silent. .

 

Nothing to report of Jesus for 12 years after he questioned the priests at the jewish temple !!!! I don't think such a restless youth would sit in a place for 12 years doing nothing.

 

 

 

It is amusing to hear scholars and archaeologists decided Jesus was in India when people are having enough trouble just to establish that a person named Jesus was not a fictional character created from Paul's letters .

 

Check out the proofs given below.

[niranjan]

I would recommend looking at the creation of the roman silk road to the east and the activities of missionaries of Ashoka the Great (the first buddhist emperor of India). The foundations are clear and span hundreds of years prior to jesus' teachings.

 

Ashoka the great sent buddhist missionaries into the west in about 300bc. The expansion of the roman silk road allowed for unprecidented mixtures of cultures and alexander's conquest into the east further drove the cultural mixing.

 

Jesus is just the most obvious focal point for the hybridization of these two cultures.

 

 

 

For example, Jesus quotes "Love thy neighbour".

 

The Buddha himself , in the Lalitavistaras, states, "Through love alone can hate be vanquished; through perfect love evil may be overcome … Speak no harsh words to your neighbour, and he will respond to you in like terms."

 

It should be mentioned that the term 'neighbour' is clearly used by the Buddha.

 

Another similarity of Jesus with the Buddha is that both had stated that one should reciprocate evil or injury with good and love.

 

As Swami Vivekananda said, Jesus ,Buddha and LaoTse are the only prophets in the world who have stated that one should reciprocate evil or injury with love and good.

 

This above teaching of Jesus is far removed from the ' eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth' teaching of Judaism , in which he was born .

 

The teachings of chastity and renunciation too by Christ , is not found in Judaism, but are found in Buddhism and Hinduism.

 

Also , Jesus's teaching of " I and my Father are one " is similar to the Upanishadic teachings of monism or pantheism. An example of this is the verse in the Upanishads ," Aham Brahmasmi ", which means " I am He".

 

There are much more of these striking similarities in the books I have mentioned that are more than mere coincidences.

[Sephiroth]

 

If he lived in India, then the Bible would have said he lived in India for 12 years. If the bible says nothing about the period, why should it mean that he was out of town? The most likely reason is there was nothing eventful during that period to report and hence the bible is silent.

 

It is amusing to hear scholars and archaeologists decided Jesus was in India when people are having enough trouble just to establish that a person named Jesus was not a fictional character created from Paul's letters .

 

First thing Christians must do is establish proof of Jesus's existence. So far, there have not been ANY proof whatsoever of such person existing.

 

IF they managed to proof his existence, then they can say where he went to or where he had lived and so on.

 

In my opinion, this "rumors" of Jesus being in India is created just to reel unexpecting Hindus into Christianity by linking Jesus to India. Right now, Christianity is still considered to be a foreign influence in India.

[Eternity]

Maybe Jesus proofs in India have been erased by the Catholics. It is also to be noticed that Christians during history have erased past evidences of anything related to other cultures, or polytheist civilizations. That's why Jesus could have been in India between 12 and 30 and it is not mentionned in the bible... (isn't it between 12 and 30 and not 18-30.. ?)..

 

Anyway I, myself, don't believe very much that Jesus was in India. People maybe think that because Saint Thomas, who was his disciple, is said to have come to India and converted some Indians to Christianity.

 

eternity

[sopatel]

To enlightened souls, the whole world belongs to them. People want proof but don't want substance. They will do anything to be right including archeological expeditions, crusades, holy wars, bribery, etc. As believer in Sanatan dharma, we should focus on the substance of our enlightened teachers and not dwell on where they were and what they did.

Think of it this way, whoever Jesus was and whereever he was from atleast he tried to spread love. That's my opinion, I would rather spend my energy discovering the divine in me through positive discussion and examples then dwell on who went where, why and for what.

 

Jay Shri Krishna

[Sephiroth]

 

Maybe Jesus proofs in India have been erased by the Catholics. It is also to be noticed that Christians during history have erased past evidences of anything related to other cultures, or polytheist civilizations. That's why Jesus could have been in India between 12 and 30 and it is not mentionned in the bible... (isn't it between 12 and 30 and not 18-30.. ?)..

 

Anyway I, myself, don't believe very much that Jesus was in India. People maybe think that because Saint Thomas, who was his disciple, is said to have come to India and converted some Indians to Christianity.

 

eternity

 

And why could Christians erase proof of Jesus being in India? It could actually work for them in converting Hindus to Christianity if they could show the Hindus that Jesus was in India and studied the same thing as the Sages did.

 

Frankly speaking, I don't think Jesus was anywhere, simply because he never existed.

[Prabhu]

Another possibiliy expressed by some of the the Indian philosophers is that Christianity is a derivative of Buddhism. Many of the legends and miracles as mentioned in the Bible appear similar to miracles attributed to Buddha. Buddha existed at least 500 years before Jesus and it has been proven that many of the Buddhist monk preached before Jesus's existence in the areas of the middle-east, Egypt, Iran and hence the possible connection.

[matarisvan]

Mithra the powerful Sun God worshipped in that region before Christianity was born to a virgin and his birthday was celebrated on December 25th. Sounds familiar?

 

There is no independent evidence for Jesus outside the Bible. In Paul's letters he never mentions Jesus as someone who lived on earth and died recently. His Jesus is a spiritual figure with whom he communicates at a spiritual level. Fast forward a little bit and what have we? Suddenly a Jesus is created who lived as a human and was killed by Romans.

 

The authors of the new testament took Paul's spiritual Jesus and modeled a human out of existing stories such as Mithra and other unknown prophets of that time.

[sopatel]

no offense to anyone trying to educate us about other faiths but it almost seems like you are trying to justify something that is totally worthless. Proof of the Lord or his people are secondary to his teaching and we get too caught up in self righteousness. Go talk to a devout Christian and he will find millions of things wrong and even deny the existence of KRishna, similary in all other faiths they think they are right and everyone else wrong. Strenghen the Lord's faith in yourself, you won't need to proove other theories.

 

Jai Shri Krishna

 

p.s. I apologise if I hurt anyone's feelings.

[matarisvan]

There is no evidence for Krishna either.

 

You say proof is secondary to teaching...but what is the value of the teaching if the source is spurious?

[sopatel]

if you put it that way then there is no such thing as religion because Science wants proof but not miracles. Right? Many believers in Krishna feel his presence and many believers of Christ feel his presence and subsequently we also here of miracles as well. My meaning was that if we try to find proofs, we loose the essence because instead of philosophical discussion it is going to be a history lecture whenever we talk about faith.

 

Jai Shri Krishna

[HerServant]

 

if you put it that way then there is no such thing as religion because Science wants proof but not miracles. Right? Many believers in Krishna feel his presence and many believers of Christ feel his presence and subsequently we also here of miracles as well. My meaning was that if we try to find proofs, we loose the essence because instead of philosophical discussion it is going to be a history lecture whenever we talk about faith.

Jai Shri Krishna

Hare Krsna! Jesu Ki Jaya!

Sopatel is wise. Any number of arguments can be made easily without proof. While I think it is possible that Jesus was in India, it does not mean that the Savior is any less than Savior of this World and All the Worlds of the entire cosmic manifestation.

Regarding which religion came from which religion. We should not be biased one way or another. There is merit in accepting cultural expression of the Truth coming from various perspectives.

However, there is more historical documentation regarding western tradition than there exists in the east. Therefore there is actually much more historical evidence that Hinduism came from Judeo Christian traditions. I don't believe either came from either but rather, there existed in ancient times ONE global bhakti tradition based on the worship of Radha Krsna (known in the west as Rhoda Kouros and other variants)

The reader should take the following as an example :

This site, http://www.archaeologyonline.net/artifacts/heliodorus-column.html claims that Heliodorus, a greek, worshipped Vasudeva and hence westerners were influenced by Vaisnavas.

The same site does not mention that a "Heliodorus" of the same rank and same time period IS MENTIONED IN THE BIBLE, and in fact, this Heliodorus takes a solemn vow at the Temple of Jerusalem to proclaim the Lord's Glories, after Krsna Balarama appear to him.

The Heliodorus Column

An archaeological discovery proves that there were western followers of Vedic principles twenty-two centuries ago

By Jack Hebner & Steven Rosen

A reproduction of the inscription, along with the transliteration and translation of the ancient Brahmi text, is given here as it appeared in the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society.

1) Devadevasu Va[sude]vasa Garudadhvajo ayam

2) Karito ia Heliodorena bhaga

3) Vatena Diyasa putrena Takhasilakena

4) Yonadatena agatena maharajasa

5) Amtalikitasa upa[m]ta samkasam-rano

6) Kasiput[r]asa [bh]agabhadrasa tratarasa

7) Vasena [chatu]dasena rajena vadhamanasa

" This Garuda-column of Vasudeva (Visnu), the god of gods, was erected here by Heliodorus, a worshipper of Vishnu, the son of Dion, and an inhabitant of Taxila, who came as Greek ambassador from the Great King Antialkidas to King Kasiputra Bhagabhadra, the Savior, then reigning prosperously in the fourteenth year of his kingship."

1) Trini amutapadani-[su] anuthitani

2) nayamti svaga damo chago apramado

"Three immortal precepts (footsteps)..when practiced lead to heaven-self restraint, charity, conscientiousness."

From the inscriptions it is seems clear Heliodorus was influenced by Vedic principles that he could be considered to be a Vaisnava, a follower or worshipper of Visnu. Professor Kunja Govinda Goswami of Calcutta University concludes that Heliodorus " was well acquainted with the texts dealing with the Bhagavat [Vaisnava] relgion." (6)

To our knowledge, Heliodorus is the earliest Westerner on record to adopt Vedic principles. But some scholars, most notably A.L. Basham (7) and Thomas Hopkins, are of the opinion that Heliodorus was not the only Greek to adopt such principles. Hopkins, chairman of the department of religious studies at Franklin and Marshall College, has said " Heliodorus was presumably not the only foreigner who converted to Vaisnava devotional practices -- although he might have been the only one who erected a column, at least one that is still extant. Certainly there must have been many others." (8)

As you can see above, Mr. Rosen and Mr. Hebner conclude (to the best of their knowledge) that Heliodorus was 1st westerner to adopt Vedic principles. That is an honest conclusion. But the Hebrew scriptures held sacred by Catholic and Orthodox Christians, indicate that Heliodorus was "converted" by GOD to Vedic principles, when GOD appeared at the Temple of Jerusalem! The description of God seems to be that of Krsna and Balarama with Kalki!

Read the following story in the bible:

2 Machabees Chapter 3

 

 

Therefore, when the holy city was inhabited with all peace, and the laws as yet were very well kept, because of the godliness of Onias, the high priest and the hatred his soul had of evil,

 

It came to pass that even the kings themselves and the princes esteemed the place worthy of the highest honour, and glorified the temple with very great gifts:

 

So that Seleucus, king of Asia, allowed out of his revenues all the charges belonging to the ministry of the sacrifices.

 

But one Simon, of the tribe of Benjamin, who was appointed overseer of the temple, strove in opposition to the high priest, to bring about some unjust thing in the city.

 

And when he could not overcome Onias, he went to Apollonius, the son of Tharseas, who at that time was governor of Celesyria, and Phenicia:

 

And told him, that the treasury in Jerusalem was full of immense sums of money, and the common store was infinite, which did not belong to the account of the sacrifices: and that it was possible to bring all into the king's hands.

 

Now when Apollonius had given the king notice concerning the money that he was told of, he called for Heliodorus, who had the charge over his affairs, and sent him with commission to bring him the foresaid money.

 

So Heliodorus forthwith began his journey, under a colour of visiting the cities of Celesyria and Phenicia, but indeed to fulfil the king's purpose.

 

And when he was come to Jerusalem, and had been courteously received in the city by the high priest, he told him what information had been given concerning the money: and declared the cause for which he was come: and asked if these things were so indeed.

 

Then the high priest told him that these were sums deposited, and provisions for the subsistence of the widows and the fatherless:

 

And that some part of that which wicked Simon had given intelligence of belonged to Hircanus, son of Tobias, a man of great dignity; and that the whole was four hundred talents of silver, and two hundred of gold.

 

But that to deceive them who had trusted to the place and temple which is honoured throughout the whole world, for the reverence and holiness of it, was a thing which could not by any means be done.

 

But he, by reason of the orders he had received from the king, said, that by all means the money must be carried to the king.

 

So on the day he had appointed, Heliodorus entered in to order this matter. But there was no small terror throughout the whole city.

 

And the priests prostrated themselves before the altar in their priests' vestments, and called upon him from heaven, who made the law concerning things given to be kept, that he would preserve them safe, for them that had deposited them.

 

Now whosoever saw the countenance of the high priest, was wounded in heart: for his face, and the changing of his colour, declared the inward sorrow of his mind.

 

For the man was so compassed with sadness and horror of the body, that it was manifest to them that beheld him, what sorrow he had in his heart.

 

Others also came flocking together out of their houses, praying and making public supplication, because the place was like to come into contempt.

 

And the women, girded with haircloth about their breasts, came together in the streets. And the virgins also that were shut up, came forth, some to Onias, and some to the walls, and others looked out of the windows.

 

And all holding up their hands towards heaven made supplication.

 

For the expectation of the mixed multitude, and of the high priest, who was in an agony, would have moved any one to pity.

 

And these indeed called upon almighty God, to preserve the things that had been committed to them safe and sure for those that had committed them.

 

But Heliodorus executed that which he had resolved on, himself being present in the same place with his guard about the treasury.

 

But the spirit of the Almighty God gave a great evidence of his presence, so that all that had presumed to obey him, falling down by the power of God, were struck with fainting and dread.

 

For there appeared to them a horse, with a terrible rider upon him, adorned with a very rich covering: and he ran fiercely and struck Heliodorus with his fore feet, and he that sat upon him seemed to have armour of gold.

Moreover there appeared two other young men, beautiful and strong, bright and glorious, and in comely apparel: who stood by him, on either side, and scourged him without ceasing with many stripes.

And Heliodorus suddenly fell to the ground, and they took him up, covered with great darkness, and having put him into a litter, they carried him out.

So he that came with many servants, and all his guard, into the aforesaid treasury, was carried out, no one being able to help him, the manifest power of God being known.

And he indeed, by the power of God, lay speechless, and without all hope of recovery.

But they praised the Lord, because he had glorified his place: and the temple, that a little before was full of fear and trouble, when the Almighty Lord appeared, was filled with joy and gladness.

Then some of the friends of Heliodorus forthwith begged of Onias, that he would call upon the Most High to grant him his life, who was ready to give up the ghost.

So the high priest, considering that the king might perhaps suspect that some mischief had been done to Heliodorus by the Jews, offered a sacrifice of health for the recovery of the man.

And when the high priest was praying, the same young men in the same clothing stood by Heliodorus, and said to him: Give thanks to Onias the priest: because for his sake the Lord hath granted thee life.

And thou having been scourged by God, declare unto all men the great works and the power of God. And having spoken thus, they appeared no more.

So Heliodorus, after he had offered a sacrifice to God, and made great vows to him, that had granted him life, and given thanks to Onias, taking his troops with him, returned to the king.

And he testified to all men the works of the great God, which he had seen with his own eyes.

 

The above BIBLE record can be authenticated as one of the oldest scriptures in existence. AND it can be claimed it is the oldest historical reference of GOD appearing as two beautiful youthful men!!!

 

Peace,

HerServant and yours.

[chaitrakrishna]

reason creates boundaries and therefore debate is the outcome. believe what u want to.

"religion should exist between u and ur god. any third person between it is the source of all evil" - swami vivekananda

[Eternity]

I don't know Sopatel. It seems my mind will be in peace and restful when I will get knowledge... I am looking for another world, with beautiful trees, birds singing and cute ladies lying naked on the beach in front of me ; I'm kidding...

 

Regarding Jesus in India, I agree Sephiroth there is no proof that Jesus really existed but on the other side there is also no proof that he did not exist. Perhaps he benefitted from a super media coverage worldwide thanks to Paul and later on, but that doesn't mean he did not exist...

 

Has anybody got reference also that Jesus came to France ? Some people are saying that he could have been here in France and it is true that there are strange historical facts and cults, like Virgin Mary in South France, lots of churches and miracles ("apparitions") ; the holy cross supposed to be brought in Orléans etc... Also in France, to say "I am", we say "Je suis". Which is very close to "Jesus". This is weird. Lots of our people think we are descendant from Jesus Christ. Which could also be a fact because our old celtic civilization is said to have anchor in a Indo-European civilization... does anyone have clue about that ?

 

Thanks,

 

Eternity

[lisagee]

 

If he lived in India, then the Bible would have said he lived in India for 12 years. If the bible says nothing about the period, why should it mean that he was out of town? The most likely reason is there was nothing eventful during that period to report and hence the bible is silent.

 

It is amusing to hear scholars and archaeologists decided Jesus was in India when people are having enough trouble just to establish that a person named Jesus was not a fictional character created from Paul's letters .

 

Before we reply with such IGNORANCE, one must first do his homework. To learn more about the missing years of Jesus and of The Bible, please look at the History Channel. I have learned that Jesus went to India to study with Lord Buddah...his teachings of peace...meditation...etc...

 

Religion is man made, therefore, if we all just live with love, kindness, being compassionate to our fellow man, treat them as we would like to be treated, then we can say we are GODLY!

[lisagee]

Religion is also mind control. It enables the priest's to fill their pockets with monies and control people's lives. Look at Creflo Dollar with the Rolls Royce parked in his yard, JoycecMeyers with her $23,000.00, gold toilet, Benny Hing, I do not know if his name is spelt correctly. They all use the people's money to live out their fantasies. Give charity yourselves, with your own hands, to those you see with your own eyes that are needy. If you can afford it go to the places where the poor dwells and give with your own hands. I will never give money to someone else to do my good deed. I do it myself. When you see with your own eyes, and give with your own hands, then you can say that your money was put to good use. Take a page out of Brad Pitt's book.

[krishnaleela]

Yes there are some convincing arguments that Jesus (if a real personality) could have been in India. The more important point (even if Jesus is rejected as mythical) is that there is a very good possibility that the development of Chrisitanity and its higher spirituality/mysticism as found in the Catholic or Orthodox churches may have its roots in Hinduism. There was also an important school of Christianity known as Gnosticism (note: Gno ~ gnya for gnyana) which resembled our philosophies to a great extent and which was apparently suppressed away as the cultish tendencies became strong.

 

We need not fear this connection. We can embrace it, but we must know that our religion is complete unto itself. If these religions don't advertise themselves, the Hindus are not going to care one way or other. Since they are so keen on talking Jesus to those who don't care to hear, let us be aware that the saner points of Christianity are well within Hinduism and at best, they are the byproducts of Hindu/Indian influence. Yes, the ignorant can be duped; but let us not be ignorant of our religion, that's all !!

 

PS. for fun,

 

"Jesus" came from "Isha"

"Adam and Eve" came from "Atman and Jiva"

The opening five verses in the Gospel of John exhibit direct influence from Upanishadic/Vedic thought. For instance, from a nice website on this topic (which I can't quote here due to low post-count):

 

 

the opening verse of the Gospel of John, which has been cited through the centuries as proof of the unique character and mission of Jesus, is really a paraphrase of the Vedic verse: "In the beginning was Prajapati, with Him was the Word, and the Word was truly the Supreme Brahman."

 

 

 

 

An Indian Christian scholar once sent me a detailed article; it contained the following for starters.

 

 

The Development of Early Christianity

Christianity in its early days was a product of the time and circumstance in which it was born and nurtured. It is the commonly held view of scholars that despite its Jewish flavor, Christianity was considerably influenced by both Hinduism and Buddhism in many aspects of its core teachings. Based on study and historical evidence, scholars maintain that a constant flow of communication existed in terms of trade and knowledge between the Mediterranean and the East, especially India, as far back as several centuries before Christ.

The meeting place of East and West, according to many historical studies, was Alexandria in Egypt, where commerce and learning were freely exchanged. Many ancient philosophers such as Pythagoras, Plato, and Plotinus, among others, are believed to have been influenced by Indian insights. Pythagoras traveled to India where he studied the philosophy of Kapila, according to historical evidence. Kapila, an ancient sage and author of the Sankhya philosophy, is considered the Father of philosophy. Pythagoras took his learning to the Alexandrian circle from which it spread gradually to the West through Plato, Plotinus, and others.

Plato is also believed to have been considerably influenced by Indian thought. Plato’s philosophic views have a great deal in common with Indian philosophic thought, as we shall see later in the discussion of Plato. In a famous work titled Life After Life, Dr. Raymond A. Moody writes: “Plato admits that he derived some of his insights partly from the religious mysticism of the East.” Dr. Moody continues: “The ideas of Greek philosophy, in turn, influenced certain New Testament writers, and so it could be argued that Paul’s discussion of the spiritual body has some of its roots in Plato.”

A.L.. Basham, a twentieth-century Oxford scholar, observes:

We can only say that there was always some contact between the Hellenic World and India, mediated first by the Achaemenid empire, then by that of Seleucids, and finally, under the Romans, by the traders of the Indian ocean. Christianity began to spread at the time when this contact was closest. We know that Indian ascetics occasionally visited the West, and that there was a colony of Indian merchants at Alexandria. The possibility of Indian influence on Neo-Platonism and early Christianity cannot be ruled out.

Upon close scrutiny of the synoptic Gospels and the life and teachings of Buddha, one cannot help but notice many striking resemblances between the teachings of the two masters—in addition to the similarities of stories surrounding their births. Many of the parables used in the Gospels are also found in Buddhist texts. Commenting upon the chronology of these occurrences, Professor Max Muller observes: “In these cases, our natural inclination would be to suppose that the Buddhist stories were borrowed from our Christian sources and not vice versa. But here the conscience of the scholar comes in. Some of these stories are found in the Hinayana Buddhist Canon and date, therefore, before the Christian era.”

 

It is natural to suppose that ideas traveled from the older to the younger system, although we cannot establish this with certainty. “The facts of religious origin and growth,” writes Dr. S. Radhakrishnan, “are most important though most uncertain, and one’s views can be stated only with great reserve. Most probably Indian religious ideas and legends were well known in the circles in which the accounts of the Gospels originated.”

What makes the Indian influence on early Christianity the stronger possibility is the fact that there are many elements in its doctrines which are obviously not of Palestinian origin. Again to quote Dr. Radhakrishnan,

Jesus, as we have seen, enlarges and transforms the Jewish conceptions in the light of His own personal experience. In this process He was helped considerably by His religious environment, which included Indian influences, as the tenets of the Essenes and the Book of Enoch show. In His teaching of the Kingdom of God, life eternal, ascetic emphasis, and even future life, He breaks away from the Jewish tradition and approximates Hindu and Buddhist thought.

These Indian insights showed up in a more pronounced form in the teachings of early Christianity.

Over the years of its long development, Christianity has assumed a Western spin, so to speak, on account of its close affiliation with Greco-Roman culture. Christianity, as we know it today, is no longer the simple teaching given to the simple folks on the green pastures of Palestine; it is rather a distorted set of teachings which Christ himself would find it hard to recognize, let alone Nietzche, Dostoevsky, or Emerson. Today’s Christianity is historical, authoritarian, and dogmatic at the expense of principles. In the words of Ralph Waldo Emerson, “Historical Christianity has fallen into the error that corrupts all attempts to communicate religion. As it appears to us, and as it has appeared for ages, it is not the doctrine of the soul, but an exaggeration of the personal, the positive, the ritual. It has dwelt, it dwells, with noxious exaggeration about the ‘person’ of Jesus.”

In contrast to this, as Christianity was taking root, there were a wide range of divergent religious thoughts flourishing in Alexandrian circles. The essential elements of all these religious thoughts are believed to have come from the East. Not surprisingly, mysticism was the common denominator running through all forms of Alexandrian religious thought. One of the major forms of thought which subsequently exerted enormous influence upon the views and teachings of early Christianity is known as Gnosticism. Let us, therefore, briefly consider the history and teachings of Gnosticism.

 

[krishnaleela]

 

For instance, from a nice website on this topic (which I can't quote here due to low post-count).

 

Now I should:

 

Check out: http://atmajyoti.org/spirwrit-christianity.asp