Jesus and Buddha

Was Jesus Christ a Boddhisattva or a Monk?

Buddha, the World-honored One was born a prince, as the son of Suddhodana in Kapila castle. Upon his birth, he radiated light on the earth in ten directions, and as he walked for seven steps in each direction, golden lotus blossoms sprouted from the ground to carpet his feet: east, west, north, and south. Pointing one finger to heaven and one to earth, he opened his lips and roared out:

Upward, downward’ and in four directions, Nobody is more honored than I.

Also in another Sutra it says:

Above the earth and below the heaven only I am the most honored.

Shakyamuni, the World-honored One said, I am the most honored. The essence of this fragment is not easily understood, and many people have differing opinions regarding it. After all, Buddha was originally mortal like any other indigent-being; his body carried the blood vessels for a while and then went awry. At this time, his body has been decomposed for over two millennia and cannot be revived’ His physical body was not different from any other creature’s. Then what did he mean by this “I”?

The Self

Every creature, even an insect or a worm has the Self which in itself is the highest and the most honored above the Heaven and below the Heaven. Every creature possesses the “I,” and this “I” is one and. all. People don’t understand this, however, and instead say that the World-honored One came to this world to manifest truth of his teaching, which made him personally the only superior honorary being. Even in the Bible, (John L4:6),

Jesus said unto him (Thomas) “I am the way, the truth, and the life; no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”

Just as in the Sutra, this “I” cannot mean the physical body, such as Jesus carried for thirty years; rather it means the true “I” which everyone holds by God directly. Everyone (since God is the source of the human beings divine nature), as a child of God, is most honored, the best, and the most beloved. Because of this, when the disciple asked Jesus Christ, How should I go to the Father? Jesus said,

“No man cometh unto the Father, but by me”. When he answered, by me, he didn’t mean by his own physical body, nor our convenient interpretation of blindly depending upon the body of Jesus Christ, but rather to depend upon everyone’s original Self, divine nature itself. Everyone knows how to call himself “I,” which, as children of God, is the divine nature itself, and that is the holy “I” upon which Jesus meant that everyone should depend.

If one, as a child of God, does not see the “I” which is God’s own divine nature itself, then how can he possibly cometh unto the Father? When the Christians, however, are asked about this, some of them simply say, “Just follow Jesus Christ.” This means that their Selves were stolen by Jesus Christ. This is actually debasing and sacrificing Jesus and God’s divine providence, and becoming zombie-like followers.

When the World-honored One said, “Above the Earth and below the Heaven, only I am the most honored,” this also indicated everyone’s holy “I” which we all possess, just as Jesus meant when he said, … no man cometh unto the Father but by me. Is there a difference between the two statements? The true “I” yields no distinction between Christian and Buddhist, but only because of deluded thinking, has contrariety arisen. For this reason, Christian parents should respect Buddhist children and true Buddhists could not carry hatred toward Christian neighbors. Conflicts arise among those of faulty thinking.

True Self is the core-teaching of both the World-honored One and of Jesus Christ; divine Self-nature. Departed from this “I,” no thing can eat, no thing can sleep, and no thing can work. Without “I,” all does not exist. Because of this “I,” all is. Don’t depend upon form; it’s an apparition. Don’t hold the truth; it recedes. Holding the Koan very clearly in the eye in front, nothing will hinder. 56,000 days of one hundred years of your life; Who is this guy doing things regularly?

Because when the “I” is actualized externally, it discloses, and when the “I” is compacted internally, it conceals, one will respect others while he shines upon himself. When the inner nature of the “I” and the substantiality of the outer forms are in accord, true religion can be born.

Buddha Statue and the Cross

Only respecting the Buddha Statue or the Cross without reviewing the Self-nature is true idol-worship. If one really knows what the World-honored One and Jesus Christ spoke, this faith will not obstruct the love between parents and children, even of different choices of religion. The outer appearances seem different, but just as water cannot depart from wave and wave cannot depart from water, the truths of Buddhism and Christianity are also the same. Let me show you by analogy the oneness of all religions.

For instance, on a bright moonlit night, if you put water in various dishes, buckets, bowls, and cups, or in rivers and ponds, then every container will reflect the moon; it becomes the dish-moon, the bucket-moon, the bowl-moon, the cup-moon, the river-moon, or the pond-moon; but the moon is just one and the same. The distinction here is the same kind which we have in religion -this is Buddhism, this is Christianity, etc. Yet, everyone’s divine Self-nature is one and the same wherever it is. This must be very clearly understood with a pure mind.

Wisdom

By introverting upon the Self in such a way, one will be substantially fulfilled and then be able to conduct himself in the world without pursuing the outer appearances. This is what we call the True Faith. Socially people speak about the view of life and of the universe under the names of philosophy or psychology, etc., trying to figure out only in controversial thought while pursuing and depending upon others ideas. That is the imitating of others and the borrowing of someone else’s loud voice which is like empty-thunder. This is not the true voice from the Self after thorough re-examination. Without right understanding of the true “I,” no one can argue about the life and world.

Even if some ideas and opinions come which look good, it is just like one snowflake falling into the fire; it is useless. Word and utterance cannot solve the question of life; but even if one does not know letters, he should know clearly where he was before and where he will be. If one truly saw the place from where he had come, he would naturally know where he would go. For the first time, the right view of life would be settled, next would be true philosophy and true psychology; and finally men of character.

Buddha’s and Jesus Christ’s original face are crystal clear in front of everyone. It was buried in a shallow grave, no one knew a blue-eyed One abides in this body.

Zen Master Myo-Vong

Zen Order of Switzerland