Author Topic: Jesus Christ was a Buddhist Monk  (Read 5853 times)

Klein

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Jesus Christ was a Buddhist Monk
« on: July 02, 2012, 07:31:52 PM »
The following is a BBC documentary about Jesus Christ. It talks about Jesus studying Buddhism and whether Jesus was really resurrected after he was crucified  on the cross. It's very interesting because they suggest that the 3 wise men were actually monks who went to look for their lama. Sounds like Jesus was a tulku. After studying Buddhism, Jesus went back to the West to teach. If this is true, then Jesus taught Buddhism. What do you think? And which tulku is Jesus?

Please watch the video
Jesus was a Buddhist Monk BBC Documentary Small | Large


I am sorry, if Jesus Christ taught Buddhism, does that mean that Christianity is largely a made up belief system? There are a lot of similarities between both faiths but there are also a lot of glaring differences. For example, Christianity has no mention of the theory of karma and the belief system is centered upon a creator being.

There are a lot of implications by suggesting that Jesus was Buddhist because we have to look at why did his teachings became so different from the rest of Buddhism? Although Buddhism swept through many East Asian countries and developed its own flavour, the core teachings of the 4 Noble Truths, karma and so forth, remains the same. So, my question would be what happened to the teachings of Jesus Christ? For me, it would seem that it was systematically fabricated to suit the political climate of the time. What do you guys think?
« Last Edit: July 03, 2012, 05:09:15 PM by Big Uncle »

Tammy

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Re: Jesus Christ was a Buddhist Monk
« Reply #1 on: July 03, 2012, 07:42:36 AM »
I ALWAYS believe Jesus is actually ONE of the Boddhisattvas!

Below are some points I found:

(1) The uncanny similarity between the story of three wise men coming from east to meet infant Jesus and the tradition of Tibetian Lamas where they send senior Lamas to find the newly born reincarnate kid Lama..

(2) There is a book devoted to study of Jesus being in Tibetan monastery.

(3) Mythological description of Jesus life (until enlightenment) is very similar to that of Buddha. I think that Jesus told his students the story about Buddha, and later they transferred this story to Jesus himself.

(4) Actually, all Jesus' teaching looks very similar to some mixture of Buddhism and Bhakti-yoga. But, because without serious yogic/meditation practice one cannot understand these concepts properly, and because the yogic roots of Christianity were quickly lost with time, people have got what they have today.

(5) Some says Jesus was in Tibet for maybe up to 18 years.

(6) Jesus' teachings & practices has similarities with Vajrayana: Tantra Diety Yoga, Chod

(7) Jesus' "Heaven" similar to Amitabha's "Pure Land"

Interesting, right ??
Down with the BAN!!!

yontenjamyang

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Re: Jesus Christ was a Buddhist Monk
« Reply #2 on: July 03, 2012, 08:35:09 AM »
I seen this documentary before and at first I was quite convinced. And it is such a romantic idea. Jesus the Boddhisattva. Tell that to the Christians. Hehe!

Anyway, recently I had a discussion with a friend and he told me to read the book "Jesus the Man". Just like to share with all on this forum below from Wikipedia. At the very least this version offers another perspective of Jesus' story. It must also be pointed out that the real founder of Christianity is St Paul  ie Paul the Apostle (c. AD 5 – c. AD 67; variously referred to as "the Apostle Paul" or "Saint Paul"). But I will leave that for another time/post.
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From Wikipedia:

Jesus the Man: New Interpretations from the Dead Sea Scrolls is a 1993 book written by the Australian biblical scholar and theologian Barbara Thiering. Using a technique that the author calls "pesher", she purports to have uncovered evidence that effectively contradicts the biblical story, which she calls the "surface meaning" ("for 'babes'"), regarding the nature of Jesus and his mission. The book has primarily received scepticism by the scholarly community.
The central thesis of the book is that "Jesus was the leader of a radical faction of Essene priests. He was not of virgin birth. He did not die on the Cross. He married Mary Magdalene, fathered a family, and later divorced. He died sometime after AD 64".
By applying her unique interpretive method to the New Testament gospels and Dead Sea Scrolls, Thiering reconstructs a new history of early Christianity which she contends was hidden in pesher coding. She sees Jesus as a prominent member of this movement, because of his descent from the Davidic kingship, as well as the efforts of his great grandfather, Hillel the Great, and his grandfather, Heli, to establish schools of religious instruction for Jews of the Diaspora. Being technically born out of wedlock, his fortunes changed depending on the views of inheritance of the high priest in power. Unlike Simon Magus, the second most important figure in the New Testament, Jesus was a pacifist and opposed the zealots, calling for a reform and renewal of religion leading to a Jewish empire which would overrule the Roman Empire by its appeal to reason and morality.

Thiering finds that the biography of Jesus hidden in the New Testament shows him to have been born in Qumran, an Essene community beside the Dead Sea, in March, 7 BC. His brother James was born (within wedlock) in September, 1 AD. In March, 17 AD, he was initiated at the age of 23, and took a political stance in favor of his (spiritual) "father", the Annas high priest, "who taught peace with Rome and the promotion of Gentiles".

Rebaptized by John the Baptist in March, 29 AD, he was soon involved in a schism from him, together with a party "called the Twelve Apostles",some of whom (including Judas Iscariot and Simon Magus) were zealots and others (including Jesus), pacifists.

Thiering examines each of the miracles in the New Testament and finds in them nothing miraculous, but rather events marking turning points in the history of "the Fig Tree", as the movement was called.

brian

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Re: Jesus Christ was a Buddhist Monk
« Reply #3 on: July 03, 2012, 06:12:59 PM »
i can't really tell if Jesus Christ was actually a Buddhist monk or a tulku here. obviously none of us can tell. But i do believe Jesus Christ is a Bodhisattva as He possess all the qualities of a Bodhisattva. He sacrificed himself for others, being selfless for the benefit of others and inspired many with His compassion. To sum it up, i can only assume He practices all the qualities of a Bodhisattva and maybe that is why people would think Jesus Christ was actually a Buddhist monk. Then again, how about Mother Theresa?