Similarities between Buddhism and Christianity

[Noaidi]

Does anyone know / think about the similarities in the teachings of Buddha and Jesus? Could Jesus have been influenced by Buddhist teachings reaching the Middle East?

 

[LuisDantas]

Everything is possible, particularly since even biblical canon gives him decades of undocumented free time.

Myself, I don't think there are many similarities to begin with. If anything, there are some fairly basic religious themes that both addressed, but that is to be expected.

I'm not even willing to bet that either existed as actual people, personally.

 

[Noaidi]

Thanks LuisDantas

My reason for posing the question is because it's an idea I've heard, but never researched.
Both address the fundamental issues in life (treating others, living a 'good' life etc) and I thought this forum would be the ideal place to see if I can get some info.

 

[Engyo]

There is a point where the everyday practitioners of almost any major religion resemble each other in their daily lives, from the outside. They all live quiet, steady lives, taking care of their familes and their responsibilities, being productive members of their societies, and so forth.

 

[Noaidi]

There is a point where the everyday practitioners of almost any major religion resemble each other in their daily lives, from the outside. They all live quiet, steady lives, taking care of their familes and their responsibilities, being productive members of their societies, and so forth.

I agree, but I'm trying to find out if Jesus was possibly influenced by Buddhist teachings. Could Buddhist philosophy have reached him in the Middle East?

 

[LuisDantas]

It certainly could, but the odds of finding out with any certainty are slim at best.

For one thing, it can't ever be proved that it did not. One can't find proof that something that did not happen, at least under such ancient circunstances.

For another, what would constitute influence? Ideas can spread very fast, and religious ideas have a knack for being reinvented independently anyway.

And then again, the teachings aren't even very similar to begin with. The Christian Gospels have so much emphasis on the supposed Will of God, for instance, and show so much effort to keep a link to Judaic tradition, that what remains could have come from basically any other tradition, or from none at all. It could easily have Hindu or Jain influences, for instance. It most certainly had some Zoroastrian influence, albeit possibly only by way of Judaism.

 

[Engyo]

It is possible; I don't have specific dates, but I am aware of other indications of information & ideas exchange between Buddhist and Hebrew cultures in that general timeframe.

During one lecture a couple of years ago, it was mentioned that archaeologists studying Buddhist caves near the southern border of China found texts written in Hebrew in those caves, but I don't have any information about exactly how old the texts were, or their subjects.

 

[*Anne*]

This reminds me of a wonderful picture I found years ago:

(When I first tried to search "Jesus meditating" via Google, I ended up typing "Jesus medicating." That would have yielded some interesting results.)

 

[Rainbow Mage]

I know this is the Buddhist DIR, but yes, I think it highly likely Jesus was influenced by Lord Buddha, and after reading the Gnostic gospels and such, even likely that Jesus was a Buddha himself. He was certainly enlightened to some extent. I'm convinced of that

 

[LuisDantas]

The claim that Jesus was a Buddha is perhaps less extreme than the one that the teachings are similar or influenced each other. Buddha, after all, means simply "awakened".

 

[Noaidi]

And then again, the teachings aren't even very similar to begin with. The Christian Gospels have so much emphasis on the supposed Will of God, for instance, and show so much effort to keep a link to Judaic tradition...

But if we strip away the God stuff and look at the basic teachings of how to live a decent life and how to treat each other, then there may be more similarities than differences.
However, I'm willing to concede that Buddhist teachings never reached Jesus, and what he preached was basic common sense and decency (again, looking beyond the God references).

 

[Noaidi]

(When I first tried to search "Jesus meditating" via Google, I ended up typing "Jesus medicating." That would have yielded some interesting results.)

That made me laugh, but thinking about it, if I was charged with saving the souls of humanity, then I would be on meds too. Imagine the stress!

 

[Copernicus]

I think that Buddhism and Hinduism very probably did influence early Christianity. Let's not forget that the Greeks opened up contact with India, and trade persisted into Roman times, after the Romans superseded the Greeks in the Middle East. Hindu and Buddhist missionaries visited the Roman Empire. So their religious ideas and concepts leaked into the West. I have always wondered to what extent the concept of the Trinity may have been influenced by the Hindu Trimurti. Christians will be quick to point out dissimilarities, but religious influence is different from pure adoption of an idea.

 

[Noaidi]

Copernicus

Thanks for that. That's the sort of info I was looking for. Do you have any references?

 

[Rainbow Mage]

I'd suggest anyone read the Gnostic Gospels about Jesus, and see the similarities between them and the teachings of the Buddha for themselves.

 

[Copernicus]

Copernicus

Thanks for that. That's the sort of info I was looking for. Do you have any references?

Not off-hand. I have read that some of the early Christian theologians made reference to Hinduism and Buddhism, but you have to be very careful about the sources of such information. It is hard to find reliable information on early Christianity precisely because so many people have sought to influence the information that got transmitted to later generations. It is rare when we find unsuppressed documents such as the Nag Hammadi discoveries. In any case, I am obviously not the best source of information.

 

[Noaidi]

Senedjem and Copernicus

Thanks.