Merry Christmas!

[Guest guest]

We continue to be born

 

--- Thich Nhat Hanh

 

When we celebrate Christmas or the birth of the Buddha,

we celebrate the coming into the world of a very special child.

The birth of Jesus and the Buddha were pivotal events in human

history.

 

A few days the Buddha was born, many people in his

country of Kapilavastu came to pay their respects, including an

old sage named Asita. After contemplating the baby Buddha,

Asita began to cry. The king, the Buddha's father, was alarmed.

"Holy man, why are you crying? Will some misfortune overtake

my child?" The holy man replied, "No, your majesty. The birth of

prince Siddhartha is a wondrous event. Your child will become

an important world teacher. But I am too old and I will not be there.

That is the only reason I am crying."

 

A similar story appears in the Bible. Eight days after His birth,

the baby Jesus was brought to the temple for circumcision. When

a man named Simeon looked at Him, he was able to see that Jesus

would bring about a profound change in the life of humankind:

"When the time came for the purification according to the law of

Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the

Lord... and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in

the law of the Lord, a pair of turtle doves, or two young pigeons.

Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon.

This man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation

of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. It had been revealed to him

by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the

Lord's Messiah. Guided by the spirit, Simeon came into the temple

and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what was

customary under the law, Simeon took him in his arms and praised God,

saying 'Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace according

to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation which you have

prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the

gentiles and for glory to your people, Israel.' And the child's father

and mother were amazed at what was being said about him."

 

Whenever I read the stories of Asita and Simeon, I have the wish

that every one of us could have been visited by a sage when we were

born. The birth of every child is important, not less than the birth of a

Buddha. We, too, are a Buddha, a Buddha to be, and we continue to

be born every minute. We, too, are sons and daughters of God and

the children of our parents. We have to take special care of each birth.

 

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Living Buddha, Living Christ

Thich Nhat Hanh

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[Guest guest]

Vicki:

 

Merry Christmas for you and your family.

Domingos