“I love your writing, but do you read any thinker other than Nietzsche?”
It is not rare that I receive this sort of comment on one of my posts.
And although it is no secret that I am strongly influenced by Friedrich Nietzsche, I do read other thinkers and I do study different schools of thought. If that wasn’t obvious, I thought that this time I could talk about some parallels between two figures whose teachings I appreciate, even though they may be seen as polar opposite of Nietzsche’s: Jesus and the Buddha.
Couple of things worth nothing before I start:
Since I started this essay by contrasting Jesus and the Buddha with Nietzsche, it is fair to say that Nietzsche was a critic of Christianity and Buddhism, not of Jesus and the Buddha. If the difference seems unclear, I would be willing to explore it in the future through another essay.
I am far from an expert on either Christianity or Buddhism and their founding figures. On the other hand, I have studied these two traditions more than one would expect when reading my work. Therefore, the purpose of this essay is not to make a scholarly argument for the similarity between Jesus and the Buddha. It is to invite you to join me in reflecting on two figures who have shaped much of the world as we know it today. Especially, and, in my opinion, more importantly, the inner world of the people arounds us, and perhaps your own.
The Way
“Way” or “path” imagery is central to both teachings of Jesus and the Buddha. The way of the Buddha is laid out in the four noble truths of Buddhism, the forth one being “the eightfold path.” Jesus regularly mentioned “the way.” In fact, according to the book of Acts, the earliest name for the Jesus’ movement was “the Way,” as his early followers referred to themselves as followers of “the Way.”
What Jesus and the Buddha said about “the way” is strikingly similar. We will explore it through next points.
Seeing
In both cases, “the way” involves a new way of seeing.
Sayings about seeing, sight, and light are central to the teaching of Jesus. His teaching often invited listeners to a new way of seeing.
The same goes for the Buddha. The most common description of him is as “the enlightened one.” The be enlightened is to see things differently.
Both Jesus and the Buddha bring about in their followers a new way of seeing life.
A line from John 9:25 could be used to express the centrality of seeing in both Jesus’ and Buddha’s teachings:
“I once was blind, but now I see.”
Transformation
Both ways or paths involve a spiritual process of transformation.
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