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The religious philosopher Siddhartha Gautama (The Buddha) was said to have lived 500 years before JC. Do you think that JC stole his best 'lines' from the buddha?
e.g.
Buddha: "The avaricious do not go to heaven, the foolish to not extol charity. The wise one, however, rejoicing in charity, becomes thereby happy in the beyond." (Dhammapada 13.11) JC: "If you wish to be perfect, go, sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven." (Matthew 19.21)
Buddha: "Consider others as yourself." (Dhammapada 10.1) JC: "Do to others as you would have them do to you." (Luke 6.31)
Buddha: "Let us live most happily, possessing nothing; let us feed on joy, like radiant gods." (Dhammapada 15.4) JC: "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God." (Luke 6.20)
Buddha: "If anyone should give you a blow with his hand, with a stick, or with a knife, you should abandon any desires and utter no evil words." (Majjhima Nikaya 21.6) Jesus: "If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also." (Luke 6.29)
Buddha: "During the six years that the Bodhisattva practiced austerities, the demon followed behind him step by step, seeking an opportunity to harm him. But he found no opportunity whatsoever and went away discouraged and discontent." (Lalitavistara Sutra 18) Jesus: "When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time." (Luke 4.13)
The religious philosopher Siddhartha Gautama (The Buddha) was said to have lived 500 years before JC. Do you think that JC stole his best 'lines' from the buddha?
Truth is truth, no matter who is speaking. If two men on opposite sides of the world both say that the sky is blue, it hardly makes the younger man a thief. Just shows that they both have their eyes open.
Truth is truth, no matter who is speaking. If two men on opposite sides of the world both say that the sky is blue, it hardly makes the younger man a thief. Just shows that they both have their eyes open.
very good, MarkS!
Plad - I suppose you're going to suggest next that Jesus is a reincarnation of Buddha. you might even go farther, and suggest that, therefore, it's really Buddha who died for us.
Hmmmm. I have a question: can we take what Siddhartha Gautama said to be completely accurate? After all, there are many people who do not believe the Bible to be accurate. Just a thought.
That is an interesting question because of the similarities. I'm just not sure that the societies of Jesus and the Buddah would have come into contact at that point in history although I guess it's possible. Much of the world was completely unaware of the existence of other cultures due to their geographical separation. It's possible that these thoughts by both men are just a logical extension of their thinking and they were both lead to similar conclusions. However, it seems highly likely that the mythology of the great flood of Noah's arc was directly taken from earlier writings because the story is just so unique and the similarities are so many so you could be on to something.
That is an interesting question because of the similarities. I'm just not sure that the societies of Jesus and the Buddah would have come into contact at that point in history although I guess it's possible. Much of the world was completely unaware of the existence of other cultures due to their geographical separation. It's possible that these thoughts by both men are just a logical extension of their thinking and they were both lead to similar conclusions. However, it seems highly likely that the mythology of the great flood of Noah's arc was directly taken from earlier writings because the story is just so unique and the similarities are so many so you could be on to something.
The Sumerian myth of Ziusudra also builds a boat for his wife and some animals. It was the Sumerian god Enlil who initiated the Flood.
A lot of things that have been attributed to JC have been adopted from other religions. If you compare JC and Krishna you get some 29 identical or similar incidents in their lives. There are also many similarities between Buddhist stories and those in the New Testament. The Buddha’s mother was a virgin, he fasted for 49 days and was tempted by Satan. He performed healing miracles and fed 500 persons with one small cake. Yet these stories about Buddha preceded JC by over 5oo years.
That is an interesting question because of the similarities. I'm just not sure that the societies of Jesus and the Buddah would have come into contact at that point in history although I guess it's possible. Much of the world was completely unaware of the existence of other cultures due to their geographical separation.
Of course they were in contact. Trade between the Indus region and the Mediterranean was going on for thousands of years. It is indeed almost certain that scholars, theologians, etc. in the Middle East and Mediterranean would have been aware of eastern religions such as Buddhism.
Well, first you have to adjust your worldview. According to biblical history, all people decended from Adam and Eve and therefore all people through those generations were introduced to the biblical God and his teachings. A lot of those generations turned from the truth and invented their own beliefs, but the God of the bible was still first.
Then the flood of Noah came and wiped out everyone except Noah and his three sons and their wives. They began to repopulate the earth. Again, the first generations were taught of the God of the bible and His laws and teachings. But again, you had those that decided they would turn from the truth and start their own religions.
At the Tower of Babal, when the languages got scrambled because of man's disobedience, people then dispersed across the globe, grouped according to their language. These different people groups started their own religions and actually, a lot of them borrowed from the teachings they had learned of the God of the Bible. That's also why, for example, many cultures around the world have a 'flood story' very similar to the Noachian Flood. But Noah's was the true flood and their's was the variation of that.
So from my worldview, these other religions already borrowed from the God of the bible to base their beiefs on. And as Jesus is one with God, they borrowed from him. He just came to set the record straight once and for all.
Blessings to all
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you might even go farther, and suggest that, therefore, it's really Buddha who died for us. 
