Attempt To Bridge Buddhist With Christian Principles

[LifeandDeath]

I'm not trying to enter into right or wrong debate here, or enter into any religious dogmatic talk whatsoever, but I wanted to take a spirituality dimension to connecting my Christian upbringing to the new Buddhist principles I'm reading. 

Could the two teachings be mapped like this? 

Nonduality = spirit 

Consciousness = mind 

Emptiness/Awareness = body 

Absolute Truth = God 

Attachment to ego = sin 

I know they are different religions, but I'm trying to see the overlapping similarities between the two so I can integrate what I'm learning together. 

Let me know what you think 

Please be mindful and respect Leo's guidelines in this is not a forum to assert religious dogma 

[Leo Gura]

Consciousness != mind

Emptiness != body

The rest is more or less okay. Here's an idea of how to map it:

Buddha = Jesus = God = you

Consciousness = Awareness = Emptiness = Fullness = Divine Love

Nothingness = No Self = God

Ego = Mind = Sin = Devil = Hell

Awareness = Holy Spirit

Meditation = Prayer

Reality = God

Nirvana = Illumination = Kingdom Of Heaven = Bliss = Ecstasy

[Bodhi123]

17 minutes ago, Leo Gura said:

Ego = Mind = Devil = Sin

I disagree. How can you honestly assert that Ego and Devil are the same thing?

Please elaborate.

[Leo Gura]

@Bodhi123 That's exactly what all the Christian Lucifer stories are pointing to. Devil = ego.

I'll shoot a video about it in the future.

Devil = what which separates itself from God by proclaiming itself to be its own God. And isn't that exactly what ego does? It acts like God, without recognizing any higher power. Isn't that exactly your current predicament?

You little devil! Denying your own devilry!

How devilish of you

The holy light of God will burn your devil eyes when it shines forth upon thee. Hallelujah!

The reason you can't see God, is because you already think you are God.

[Progress]

I actually made a script about this(For a potential video), but it functions as an essay fairly well. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1f-_t9slavMSJnDiR2Y5AKW0fhCwkLC_evKJkFwKHMPQ/edit?usp=sharing 

[Bodhi123]

10 minutes ago, Leo Gura said:

The holy light of God will burn your devil eyes when it shines forth upon thee. Hallelujah!

You're a funny guy

[The Universe]

@I_Like_ThingThe Ego is the manifestation of our human limitation but also of our human "nature". It goes good and it goes bad. But it also can be good ( if it's a tool and not a master )

 

Edited February 25, 2017 by The Universe

[Primeval]

Gnostic Christianity is the Bridge

And May Be ther Origins of Both

The Trinity of Gnostic Christianity is This:

God the Father is The Universe

The Holy Spirit is Consciousness

The Christ is the Individual

And All Three are One

Edited February 25, 2017 by Lha Bho
Because Dragons

[Bodhi123]

31 minutes ago, Leo Gura said:

Devil = what which separates itself from God by proclaiming itself to be its own God. And isn't that exactly what ego does? It acts like God, without recognizing any higher power. Isn't that exactly your current predicament?

Now for my serious response. I understand what you mean by the ego separates you from God. On this point I agree.

My concern stems from all of the negative connotations attached to the word Devil… evil, wicked, horrible, malicious.

If people misunderstand what you mean by “Ego = Devil” than can lead to serious self-hatred.

I feel like the word “ego” is throwing a lot of people off.

 

[poimandres]

@LifeandDeath

I'll leave this here

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/73184.Living_Buddha_Living_Christ

[Leo Gura]

2 hours ago, Bodhi123 said:

My concern stems from all of the negative connotations attached to the word Devil… evil, wicked, horrible, malicious.

If people misunderstand what you mean by “Ego = Devil” than can lead to serious self-hatred.

I feel like the word “ego” is throwing a lot of people off.

Well... just look at the havoc ego creates. Case in point.

Self-hatred is big steaming pile of ego.

Yes, the devil likes to use words to deepen his separation from God.

[Bodhi123]

25 minutes ago, Leo Gura said:

Yes, the devil like to use words to deepen his separation from God.

My takeaway... words are limited symbols used to express meaning. Lets seek to understand the meaning behind words.

[Leo Gura]

If one is going to use any religious or mystical tradition's teachings, one needs to become good at deciphering metaphor and symbolism, almost in a poetic way.

The problem that all exoteric religious teachings has been that the rational, materialistic mind likes to be literalist. Which is where fundamentalism goes wrong. It takes the teachings too literally while missing their spirit. Hence God becomes: old bearded man in the sky.

[LifeandDeath]

10 hours ago, Bodhi123 said:

If people misunderstand what you mean by “Ego = Devil” than can lead to serious self-hatred.

I feel like the word “ego” is throwing a lot of people off.

 

I think Ego is a complex beast to define and touch on as so many people define it in very different ways. 

I see it as similar to our sensory perception. In one hand, we need it to view the world, however on the other hand, we become so attached to our sense that we can think that is 'all' there is. When really, any sensory perception is a subjective projection created by our own mind, and its only a limited perspective re-created symbol to us as a reflection of reality. So, we rely on our senses for survival, to navigate around etc. But we can get so enchanted by senses that they delude us into a false separation out of the present moment and into our own arrogant introverted perspective of the object. It can also cause additional separation as our nervous system and sensory organs are designed for conditional response and so we add layers through repeated experience on objects in perception, getting lost and entangled in our own additional layers of meaning on to of objects themselves. 

Ego is very similar to sensory perception. Its a eddy in a river of reality that is self-serving, self-referential, and about self-survival at all costs. On one hand we need it to ensure we apply relevant knowledge frameworks in place for us to live in the conventional world, however, we get lost in it if we don't understand the bigger picture. If we can't see it as only self-serving properties, we get lost in it's primordial power, and we identify with it. It can cause us to then cling to, or avoid, our egoic agenda and then lead to delusion. This is such a deep rooted powerful construct we have created, that we actually can't see out of it, unless we apply a lot of concentration and force (or a life circumstance gives us an existential crisis) to break free of our subjective point of ego centricity. 

So I believe, ego is in the process of our sensory perception and the way we are hard wired in our bodies to function. I believe we can never drop ego all together, as it's a self created illusionary construct anyhow, so doesn't exist to drop in the first place! However, it's the clinging to and avoidance that then turns us into selfish creatures, and then we will then protect this egoic agenda to the grave if we have to, overriding anything that confronts the validity of our egoic agenda. This belief that our self centeredness and ownership over things is "real" and we then place our selves (and extensions of ourselves - i.e. others/family and objects) and our beliefs as priority, which is then what directly gets in the way of seeing other people's point of view, and being selfless or accepting, sharing, forgiving, kind, generous, etc. Our ego will go to the extent and create a belief that we own our thoughts, feelings, body, life, objects, and even then create a fictitious internal private world we assume is ours too.  

We think this self-serving behaviour and the creation of 'self' is normal, and in some cases it's encouraged and embedded in our social structure. But I see the delusion of ego and it's creation of self as true evil as it stands in the way of love and Absolute Truth. 

 

[Guivs]

In addition:

The accomplishment of the body of resurrection of Jesus Christ= accomplishment of rainbow body for advanced dzogchen practioners (where the body either shrinks significantly or totally disappears in the days after death with many signs such as weird rainbows and so on)?

 

Father Tiso has done plenty of research about it : 

 

[Bodhi123]

@LifeandDeath I respect your honest effort to reconcile Christian and Buddhist teachings. I’ve been carrying out a similar process for myself.

I think it is important to realize that all religious doctrines point to a Universal Truth. All religious doctrines have also added many layers of “fiction” on top of this Universal Truth. In my opinion it is wise to take the Truth and leave the rest behind.

I hope your efforts bring you peace and understanding.

 

[LifeandDeath]

@Bodhi123 thanks! I too wish you and everyone happiness and a higher ability to transform pain & suffering into happiness. 

[LifeandDeath]

20 hours ago, Progress said:

I actually made a script about this(For a potential video), but it functions as an essay fairly well. https://docs.google.com/document/d/1f-_t9slavMSJnDiR2Y5AKW0fhCwkLC_evKJkFwKHMPQ/edit?usp=sharing 

thanks, I'll order and read, it looks interesting!

[LifeandDeath]

@poimandres thanks looks like an interesting book - i'll certainly add this to my list of books to read

[Nahm]

22 hours ago, LifeandDeath said:

I'm not trying to enter into right or wrong debate here, or enter into any religious dogmatic talk whatsoever, but I wanted to take a spirituality dimension to connecting my Christian upbringing to the new Buddhist principles I'm reading. 

Could the two teachings be mapped like this? 

Nonduality = spirit 

Consciousness = mind 

Emptiness/Awareness = body 

Absolute Truth = God 

Attachment to ego = sin 

I know they are different religions, but I'm trying to see the overlapping similarities between the two so I can integrate what I'm learning together. 

Let me know what you think 

Please be mindful and respect Leo's guidelines in this is not a forum to assert religious dogma 

There's the simplicity of the unique experience of you being you and taking what helps you on your path from either religion, so the bridge between is actually you.    

another rando- just focus on the many similarities from the words of Jesus and Buddha.  Leave the more obvious conjecture, the dogmas. you won't be able to reconsile the two dogmas, that is inherent in their creation and design.   

there is only a hell for people to judge others.