Buddhism and Christianity
-
-
http://www.hindunet.org/alt_hindu/1995_May_2/msg00015.html
There is a good likelihood that Jesus' ideas were influenced by Buddhism, since Judea was on the crossroads of world trade routes between the eastern Mediterranean and India, and some Buddhist ideas reportedly made it to Greece and Egypt.
-
http://www.sgforums.com/?action=thread_display&thread_id=189756
sorry repeated post...u can view it here:
-
http://www.religioustolerance.org/buddhism4.htm
Beliefs not shared: Buddhists do not share most of the core beliefs of historical Christianity. These include:
An original golden era in the Garden of Eden, and a subsequent fall of humanity.
Original sin shared by all present-day humans, derived from Adam and Eve.
A world-wide flood in the time of Adam, causing the greatest human genocide in history.
The need for a personal savior whose death enabled individual salvation.
A god-man savior who was born of a virgin, executed, resurrected and ascended to heaven.
Salvation achieved through good works, specific beliefs and/or sacraments.
Eternal life spent in either a heaven or hell after death.
Return of the savior to earth at some time in the future.
An end of the world as we know it in the near future. -
-deleted-
-
http://www.age-of-the-sage.org/buddhism/buddhism_christianity.html
To some people Buddhism appeals because of its promises of calm and enlightenment where traditional Christianity has been seen as having been discredited by the challenge by Darwinism. -
http://www.leaderu.com/orgs/probe/docs/buddhism.html
The concept of a personal God does not fit into the Buddhist system of religion. Today there are many sects of Buddhism. Many differ in their concept of the divine and of Buddha. In general, Buddhists are pantheistic in their view of God. Many view God as an impersonal force which is made up of all living things and holds the universe together. -
http://www.letusreason.org/Buddh1.htm
Although the Buddha did not deny the existence of gods, he taught that the worship of gods obstructed one's quest for nirvana. To him the gods inhabit the cosmos and are impermanent like all other living beings. There is no God as an eternal deity. Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, did not claim to be divine. He claimed to be the one to point the way to Nirvana. an ultimate state in the afterlife, but it was up to each individual to find his own way there. Each has their own path to walk on to discovery. -
http://www.watthai.net/talon/wheel/wheel16_1.htm
The biographies of Buddha and Christ show many similar features. Both were born in a miraculous way. Soon after their birth, their future greatness is proclaimed by a sage (Asita, Simeon). Both astonish their teachers through the knowledge they possess, though still in their early childhood. Both are tempted by the devil before they start upon their public career. Both walk over the water (//Jataka//, 190; //Matth.//, 14, 26). Both feed 500 and 5,000 persons, respectively (//Jataka//, 78; //Mark//, 14, 16ff.) by multiplying miraculously the food available. The death of both is accompanied by great natural phenomena. Also the parables ascribed to them show some similarities as, for instance, the story of the sower (//Samyutta//, 42, 7; //Matth.// 13,3), of the prodigal son (//Lotus of the Good Law//, Chap. IV; //Lk.//, 14), of the widow's mite (//Kalpanamanditika//; //Mark// 12). -
http://web.singnet.com.sg/~cswoon/questions.html
As we have seen, Buddhist do not believe that the Buddha was a god, so how could they possibly believe that a piece of wood or metal is a god? All religions use symbols to express various concepts. In Taoism, the ying-yang is used to symbolise the harmony between opposites. In Sikhism, the sword is used to symbolise spiritual struggle. In Christianity, the fish is used to symbolise his sacrifice. And in Buddhism, the statue of the Buddha also reminds us of the human dimension in Buddhist teaching, the fact that Buddhism is man-centred, not god-centred, that we must look within not without to find perfection and understanding. So to say that Buddhist worship idols is not correct. -
From laoda99's website:
In what respect is Buddhism, which has looked on at all the Asiatic fighting for four thousand years, any more successful than Christianity, that has barely looked on for two thousand?
But it is a Fact that Buddhism is the only religion that is devoid of religious wars in history.Originally posted by An Eternal Now:
No fanaticism
Of Buddhism alone can it be affirmed it is free from all fanaticism. Its aim being to produce in every man a thorough internal transforming by self-conquest, how can it have recourse to might or money or even persuasion for effecting conversion? The Buddha has only shown the way to salvation, and it is left to each individual to decide for himself if he would follow it.
- Prof. Lakshmi Narasu, "The Essence of Buddhism" -
http://www.buddhistinformation.com/buddhist_attitude_to_god.htm
Buddhism is unique amongst the religions of the world because it does not have any place for God in its soteriology. Indeed most Asian religions (with the possible exception of some extremely devotional forms of Hinduism) are essentially non-theistic, in that God does not occupy the central place that is accorded to him in monotheistic religious traditions. But Buddhism goes beyond most of these other religions in that it is positively anti-theistic because the very notion of God conflicts with some principles which are fundamental to the Buddhist view of the world and the role of humans in it. -
Err...tat's not my websiteOriginally posted by An Eternal Now:From laoda99's website:
hmm...I thought during Tang Dynasty there was a war between Daoists and Buddhists? And Thailand/Burma, both are Buddhist countries, but still go to war?
and this: http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/ethics/war/buddhism.shtml
It says:"In Sri Lanka the 20th century civil war between the mostly Buddhist Sinhalese majority and the Hindu Tamil minority has cost 50000 lives..."
But i do agree Buddhism perhaps has the best record of all religions for non-violence. -
http://hinduwebsite.com/buddhism/buddhaongod.asp
1. If God is indeed the creator of all living things, then all things here should submit to His power unquestioningly. Like the vessels produced by a potter, they should remain without any individuality of their own. If that is so, how can there be an opportunity for any one to practice virtue?
2. If this world is indeed created by God, then there should be no sorrow or calamity or evil in this world, for all deeds, both pure and impure, must come from Him.
3. If it is not so, then there must be some other cause besides God which is behind Him, in which case He would not be self-existent.
4. It is not convincing that the Absolute has created us, because that which is absolute cannot be a cause. All things here arise from different causes. Then can we can say that the Absolute is the cause of all things alike? If the Absolute is pervading them, then certainly It is not their creator.
5. If we consider the Self as the maker, why did it not make things pleasant? Why and how should it create so much sorrow and suffering for itself?
6. It is neither God nor the self nor some causeless chance which creates us. It is our our deeds which produce both good and bad results according to the law of causation.
7. We should therefore "abandon the heresy of worshipping God and of praying to him. We should stops all speculation and vain talk about such matters and practice good so that good may result from our good deeds. -
But some at least of the disciples of the great Gautama interpret his ideal, so far as I can understand them, as one of absolute liberation from all desire or effort or anything that human beings commonly call hope. In that sense, the philosophy would only mean the abandonment of arms because it would mean the abandonment of almost everything. It would not discourage war any more than it would discourage work. It would not discourage work any more than it would discourage pleasure. It would certainly tell the warrior that disappointment awaited him when he became the conqueror, and that his war was not worth winning. But it would also presumably tell the lover that his love was not worth winning; and that the rose would wither like the laurel. It would presumably tell the poet that his poem was not worth writing; which may (in certain cases needless to name) be indeed the case. But it can hardly be called an inspiring philosophy for the production of good poems any more than bad
This kind of interpretation is more like Nihilism, which is absolutely against what Buddhism teaches.
What does Buddhism teach?
Pls read: http://www.jenchen.org.sg/vol6no2a.htm
Seize The Day
In the Noble Eight-fold Path[1] taught by Buddha, the Right Action[1] advocates practitioners of Buddhism to pursue all that are virtuous with zeal and a commitment to progress. Such should be the correct attitude whether in our career or in pursuit of the ultimate truth. The following short story may help to illustrate Buddha's teaching more clearly.
Early one morning Buddha and one of his chief disciples, Ananda, set out from Jetavana to seek alms. They came to the city of Sravasti. As they entered the city gate and were walking along a path by the city wall, they saw an aged couple.
Their backs were crooked and they could neither straighten themselves nor move about. They were dressed in rags, appearing unhygienic and well worn with age: frail, toothless, grey hair, hard of hearing and poor eyesight. They lived next to a pile of rubbish by the derelict wall of a sleazy alley. They crouched close to each other, facing a small fire for warmth. With eyes only for each other, they resembled a pair of old swans that cannot bear to part.
The Buddha turned his head and asked Ananda, "Did you see that aged couple by the wall and the warmth of the burning cow dung?"
Ananda replied, "World Honoured One, I see them."
The Buddha continued, "If this old couple had been determined and diligent when they were young and strong, regardless of the nature of their work as long as it is legitimate, perhaps at this age they are already amongst the wealthiest class of people in Sravasti. On the other hand, if they had chosen to renounce their worldly life to learn and cultivate the right path with diligence, perhaps they would have already attained the Arhat [2] by now.
Even if they were not that determined when they were young, but are ambitious and diligent only at a later age and they work with the Right Action, perhaps they are already amongst the second wealthiest class of people in Sravasti. Similarly, if on the other hand, they had chosen to renounce their worldly life to learn and cultivate the right path with diligence, perhaps they would have already attained the Anagami [2].
Worse still, should they only realise about diligence and progress when they are already at their middle age, and only then began to work with the Right Action, perhaps they are already amongst the third wealthiest class of people in Sravasti. If they had chosen to renounce their worldly life to learn and cultivate the right path with diligence, perhaps they would have already attained the Sakrdagamin [2].
However, they did none of the above. Instead, they spent their life times loving and possessing each other, and wasted the most useful time of their lives. That is why today they are helpless and have no way out of their predicament. They live in poor conditions, are penniless and there is nothing that they can do. For them it is a living death, having to face the retribution of their own doing, and nobody took any pity on them. What meaning is there in a life like this?"
In order to encourage people not to fall into the same predicament, the Buddha said, "Ananda, always remember to advise and guide people:
In youth, be determined, diligent, and thrifty and strive to acquire knowledge.
Maintain a mind that is distant and unchained from desire and be focused on building a career during the prime of life.
In middle age, realise a stable career that is based on diligence, zeal, progress and Right Action.
Always use the wealth meaningfully to benefit self and others.
Do not wait till old age and rely on the people's benevolence like the aged swan."
The above incident demonstrates the compassion of the Buddha in caring for sentient beings and encouraging people to be determined in striving for progress, regardless of whether one is concerned with building a career, or one who has renounced the worldly life to learn and cultivate the right path. His only wish was for all sentient beings to be distant from suffering and attain happiness in life.
Notes:
[1] Noble Eight-fold Path:
1. Right Speech
2. Right Action
3. Right Livelihood
4. Right Effort
5. Right Mindfulness
6. Right Concentration
7. Right Views
8. Right Thought
[2] The four stages in Hinayana sanctity:
- 1st stage - srota-apanna
- 2nd stage - sakrdagamin
- 3rd stage - anagami-phala
- 4th stage - arhat, the highest stage -
Absolutely the author of the website has no real knowledge about Buddhism - just as most of the other apologetic articles on Buddhism coming from Christianity which I have seen so far.
-
http://www.urbandharma.org/udharma3/budgod.html
The Buddha was born 500 years before Christ, in India. His dad was a king, his mom was a queen, and his dad wanted him to take over the family business (the kingdom) when he got older. -
http://wongkk.com/answers/sp-issues/god.html
Due to our ignorance and arrogance, we think, and often insist, that this puny portion of energy is the only objective reality. It is indeed a great irony that not only this so-call objective world is just a spec in the universe, it also has no objective reality. Its appearance is subjected to our given sets of conditions, like how our eyes and brain interpret electromagnetic waves. When the conditions change, the appearance also changes, but the changes are usually too fine for our gross perception to realize. We also usually do not realize that what we perceive is less that 0.01 per cent of the known world. -
can the BBC website be trusted? It says:
Buddhism and violence
But Buddhism, like the other great faiths, has not always lived up to its principles - there are numerous examples of Buddhists engaging in violence and even war.
in the 14th century Buddhist fighters led the uprising that evicted the Mongols from China
in Japan, Buddhist monks trained Samurai warriors in meditation that made them better fighters
In the twentieth century Japanese Zen masters wrote in support of Japan's wars of aggression. For example, Sawaki Kodo (1880–1965) wrote this in 1942:
"It is just to punish those who disturb the public order. Whether one kills or does not kill, the precept forbidding killing [is preserved]. It is the precept forbidding killing that wields the sword. It is the precept that throws the bomb."
In Sri Lanka the 20th century civil war between the mostly Buddhist Sinhalese majority and the Hindu Tamil minority has cost 50,000 lives. -
http://religion-cults.com/Eastern/Buddhism/budis2.htm
Gautama Buddha did not even mentioned the word God, nor priests, not rituals, nor prayers... but now many Mahayana Buddhists have many gods-like, many bodhisattvas, and, of course, Gautama Buddha is the first one ("have faith in Buddha an you will be saved", they say after Christ in Pure Land)... they use millions of candles and incense to adore and honor their gods, specially Buddha, and his mother, the goddess Tara... -
http://www.kwanumzen.com/primarypoint/v09n2-1992-summer-dssn-truegodtruebuddha.html
Christianity says God made everything -- good and bad, heaven and earth, human beings and animals and so on. He worked for six days, then rested.
But in Buddhism, there is no original cause or creator; there is no coming, no going, no existence, no nonexistence; all of these are opposites thinking. Sun and moon, light and dark, day and night -- all these are names; the world of names is opposites thinking. "God" is also a name; it's also opposite thinking. True God has no name, no form. In no name/no form, there is no coming, no going -- no opposite thinking. That which is beyond all names and forms is always bright. That is True God.
The purpose of Buddhism is to find primary point. What is the primary point of this universe? The Bible says, "God made everything." But what is the primary point of God? Where does God come from? -
.....comes from samsara and lives in samsara? god is made out of human beings and not human beings made out of god? there is actually no true or false. many different cultures have different depiction of god - some as formless, some with forms, some say there is only one true god, some say there are many. sometimes i look into the sky and watch the clouds.... why the cloud higher is white and the cloud lower is dark........ but which one is true cloud then? well, there is no true or false.... they are clouds after all and it depends how your mind sees the "cloud"......Originally posted by OldMan:Where does God come from? -
Originally posted by laoda99:
All those are not religious wars but violence caused by some Buddhists.
[b]can the BBC website be trusted? It says:
Buddhism and violence
But Buddhism, like the other great faiths, has not always lived up to its principles - there are numerous examples of Buddhists engaging in violence and even war.
in the 14th century Buddhist fighters led the uprising that evicted the Mongols from China
in Japan, Buddhist monks trained Samurai warriors in meditation that made them better fighters
In the twentieth century Japanese Zen masters wrote in support of Japan's wars of aggression. For example, Sawaki Kodo (1880–1965) wrote this in 1942:
"It is just to punish those who disturb the public order. Whether one kills or does not kill, the precept forbidding killing [is preserved]. It is the precept forbidding killing that wields the sword. It is the precept that throws the bomb."
In Sri Lanka the 20th century civil war between the mostly Buddhist Sinhalese majority and the Hindu Tamil minority has cost 50,000 lives.[/b] -
i concur with you, the christian god is just but one of the many gods, he has not and will not attain nirvana.Originally posted by paperflower:.....comes from samsara and lives in samsara? god is made out of human beings and not human beings made out of god? there is actually no true or false. many different cultures have different depiction of god - some as formless, some with forms, some say there is only one true god, some say there are many. sometimes i look into the sky and watch the clouds.... why the cloud higher is white and the cloud lower is dark........ but which one is true cloud then? well, there is no true or false.... they are clouds after all and it depends how your mind sees the "cloud"...... -
Originally posted by An Eternal Now:
Yes I agree with Eternal Now. There is a difference between adherents of a religion starting wars inspite of that religion's teachings, versus adherents of a religion starting wars in the name of that religion, and quoting that religion's sacred texts.
All those are not [b]religious wars but violence caused by some Buddhists.[/b]