Forums IMPORTANT: PLEASE READ PhotoReading, Memory Optimizer Photoreading IS occultic and new age.

Yep. My perspective (and this is just my perspective) is that Jesus was a Buddha. E pluribus unum. There have been many Buddhas and I hope there will be many more. They are the pinnacle of evolution.

There is a Buddhist saying, "Kill the Buddha". In other words, don't worship buddhist statues or read a Buddha's words as if they are the be all and end all of existence. Rather, ... become a buddha. To use the buddha (or in one case, Jesus) as the ultimate role model. Of all men who have ever lived in the history of histories, what man would be better to emulate than Jesus? I think we miss the point entirely when we see these holymen as father figures. Immature children can grow up to be fathers too. Let us grow up, and become fathers ourselves rather than remain forever spiritual children.

Have you had any more Kundalini experiences lately? Have you figure out how to induce them yet?

I'm on "maintenance" right now. Life intrudes. 50 page senior essay, must graduate, must ensure business success.

This is the most frustrating aspect of my existence. The stuck state of stuck states!! School, Business, Enlightenment, Fun. It is as if I stand in the center of 4 paths. Each path simultaneously beckons me. And I can only walk down one at a time.

My mind is such that I pursue whatever is in front of me with singular intensity. I feel... 'fractured' this past month. A mental paralysis, I would describe it as. I can no longer relegate academics to last priority. This will end come graduation.

Is that Zen philosophy?

quote:

---

Originally posted by Brian649:
It is as if I stand in the center of 4 paths. Each path simultaneously beckons me. And I can only walk down one at a time.

---

The trick is to align the paths so that they are parallel instead of divergent. This way you can not only travel each path without leaving the others behind, but also switch from one to another at will with confidence that you can easily switch back again.

quote:

---

Originally posted by jonah:
<<KILL THE BUDDHA>>

Is that Zen philosophy?

---

""Lin Chi Zen Master said, "If you meet the Buddha, kill the Buddha. If you meet a Patriarch, kill the Patriarch." Zen Master Seung Sahn says that in this life we must all kill three things: First we must kill our parents. Second, we must kill the Buddha. And lastly, we must kill ourselves! This kind of speech is sometimes perplexing to people raised in the Judaeo-Christian tradition since we would never say this about Jesus or one of the Prophets. But the meaning here is very interesting and goes far beyond the martial language of the metaphor. Buddhism is quite unique in that its founder never said, "Believe what I say." Buddhism means find out for yourself.. i.e., kill the Buddha.

At one time, the citizens of Kesaputta asked the Buddha what they should believe. They were very confused by the many religions in vogue at that time. The Buddha said, "Do not accept anything by mere tradition. Do not accept anything just because it accords with your scriptures. Do not accept anything because it agrees with your opinions or because it is socially acceptable. Do not accept anything because it comes from the mouth of a respected person. Rather, observe closely and if it is to the benefit of all, accept and abide by it." This Sutta - the Kalama Sutta - is the root of Zen-style inquiry into the true self.

The Buddha says in the Diamond Sutra that in his whole teaching career he never spoke a single word. In Zen, we are admonished that understanding cannot help us. The wind does not read. So, what are we left with? just before he died the Buddha said, "Life is very short, please investigate it closely." We are left with the great question: What am I? What is a human being? In his great compassion the Buddha leaves us only with footprints pointing the way... in the end he cannot help us; we must find the answer ourselves. Zen, too, asks the question but does not have the answer. But you do, if you look inside.
""

This is why uncorrupted eastern religions/philosophies aren't really religious or philosophical at all. They are purely spiritual--no BS, no faith required. They transcend all the culture-specific stuff, all the "mythology" and blind ritual. It's about YOUR PERSONAL JOURNEY toward the ultimate realization--christ consciousness/enlightenment.

Get there however you will. One person's path is just as good as another's. If traditional christianity works for you--go for it. If you do right, the outcome will ultimately be the same. (Just don't get caught up in "the words"!)

Is this not the Natural Brilliance way? Is this not pragmatic? Finding what works? Whatever works for you is best, whatever brings you to ultimate realization quickest and most efficiently is "the way" for you.

"Kill the Buddha; Be the Buddha"

Brian, trying to model one's life after Jesus is what being Christian is all about, being "Christ-like". I think the only time you'll get any flack from Christians on that is if you say that we can be fully like Jesus, i.e. God. As for Jesus having been a Buddha. That's one that I've heard from many people over the years, even the current Dalai Lama has said that. Does the view of Jesus that's used to make that judgement come from the Bible? Is there a different source of info on Jesus's life to come up with that assertion? The reason I'm asking is that from my view of the life of Jesus from the Bible, the idea of Jesus as a Buddha makes no sense, but admittedly I'm niave about what it takes to be a Buddha. The way I look at it, if Jesus is who he says he is, then he is the Son of God, who defeated death, and is our ONLY way to salvation, and by default not Buddha. If Jesus wasn't who he said he was, then he was pretty much a complete nut. He made some wild claims about who he was, if they weren't true, one would have to consider him delusional at best. Hard to imagine someone like that reaching the "pinnacle of evolution".

I'm not asking that question as a challenge or to be sarcastic. I've actually heard this from several Buddhists I've met, but when I asked to explain, they couldn't give me an answer, actually they babbled about for about 10 minutes saying absolutely nothing. I am really am interested in understanding the basis of that assertion.

Also, just for the record, I have no problems with anything in the PR course conflicting with my strong Christian views, at least not so far. As for some of the topics on this forum, that's a different story . But who knows, maybe I'm gonna go to hell too.

Michael

quote:

---

Originally posted by Michaelbe:
It appears from some recent responses to my post to youngprer that I may have been a little harsh in the tone of my statements. Youngprer, if I offended you, that was not my intent. I only wanted to offer constructive criticizm with the utmost respect. When I hear young people define themselves as Christians then speak in ways that may not be Christian, I feel compelled to offer guidence, just an annoying habit I have.

---

You didn't offend me. But TruthSpeaker does. :-P

It may be a stimulating intellectual exercise to equate Jesus with Buddha or any other spiritual leaders, but it can only be done by people who hear what Jesus said second-hand. If you take the time to study the New Testament and what Jesus actually had to say, you will find that He left no middle ground. Michaelbe is quite right. He was either who He said He was, or He was a complete nutcase. Gleaning pearls of wisdom from a nutcase borders on mental masterbation.

He said He was the son of God, not an enlightened man. He said He was the Messiah, not a buddha. He said that He was the ONLY path to God, not just another option on the path to nirvana.

Should we model Him? Sure. Can we achieve what He did? Not a chance. We can only do our best. Everyone should make their own decision about Jesus but they should do it based on their own research into what He said, not based on what some guru-wannabe has decided.

Is there a New Age aura to Photoreading? Absolutely. Is that dangerous? Perhaps, to the extent that you let it lead you deeper into the New Age pablum. Is there a direct problem with Photoreading? Doubtful. It's a technique for dealing with written material. If you pull the New Age hokum out of some of the descriptions, you do not lessen the value of the techniques.

TruthSpeaker thinks the devil is in his PR course.