There are many things this Note might be saying, and each of you will have to decide for yourselves where its Wisdom leads … That having been said, it is important to state that these quotes are not meant to show that Jesus was a Buddhist or that Jesus learned from Buddhists during the “missing years”.  The Universal Truth of perfect, unconditional Love is just as deeply embedded in the ancient Hebrew texts of the “Old Testament” as it is in the ancient texts of the Buddhist tradition.

And THAT is one of the most important points to remember while reading these entries:  that Love without condition resides at the core of every major religion, and that it does so because WHEN LOVE IS PUT INTO PRACTICE, IT ALWAYS BEARS GREAT FRUIT — that whenever we have the courage to take these teachings and apply them to our everyday encounters, Peace & Harmony & Joy ensue — and that the more difficult it is to give that Love, the more potent Love becomes while it is given.

It is the Grace of all graces; the Gift of all gifts … It is the essence of life itself, and what gives living that life its Meaning & its Purpose.

So with that in mind (and faithfully, in Heart), please enjoy the following comparative quotes from Gautama Buddha & Jesus Christ … May they inspire you to go forth and become emissaries of the same.

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on TRANSCENDING TEMPTATION …

After Buddha had withdrawn to a forest hut at Kosala in the Himalayas for solitary reflection], Mara, The Evil One, knew the thoughts that had arisen in the Enlightened One, so he went to the Buddha: ‘O Lord, may the Enlightened One reign as King, may the Perfected One reign with justice, without killing or ordering killings, without being oppressive or serving oppression, without suffering form pain or causing pain to others.’  The Buddha answered: ‘What doest thou have in mind, O Evil One, that thou speakest thus with me?’  Mara responded: ‘The Enlightened One, O Lord, has assumed the fourfold might of miracles.  If the Enlightened One so wished, he could command the Himalayas, the king of mountains, to become gold, and the mountain would become gold.’  The Buddha turned him away: ‘What would it help the wise man to own a mountain of gold or silver?  Whosoever has recognized the cause of suffering, how should he succumb to desires?’  Then replied Mara, the Evil One: ‘The Enlightened One knows me, the Perfected One knows me,’ and, grieved and discontented, he went away. ~ Marasamyutta (from the Samyuttanikaya II 10)

“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. The tempter came and said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.’ But Jesus answered, ‘It is written, “One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”’ Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, “He will command his angels concerning you,” and “On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.”’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Again it is written, “Do not put the Lord your God to the test.”’ Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor; and he said to him, ‘All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Away with you, Satan! for it is written, “Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.”’ Then the devil left him, and angels came and waited on him.” ~ Matthew 4:1-11 (see also Luke 4:1-13)

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on THE LIGHT

“The wise man should renounce the way of darkness and follow the way of light.” ~ Buddha (Dhammapada 6:12).

“The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death light has dawned.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 4:16 (see also Matthew 5:14-16, Luke 16:8, John 3:19-21, John 12:35-36, Ephesians, 5:8-14, Romans 2:16, Thomas 61, et al)

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on RESPONDING TO AGGRESSION

“If anyone should give you a blow with his hand, with a stick, or with a knife, you should abandon any desires and utter no evil words.” ~ Buddha (Majjhima Nikaya 21.6)

“But I say to you, do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 5:39 (see also Luke 6:29)

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on RESPONDING TO EVIL

“Hatred do not ever cease in this world by hating, but by love; this is an eternal truth (Dhammapada 1:5) … Overcome anger by love, Overcome evil by good. overcome the miser by giving, overcome the liar by truth (Dhammapada 17:3) … Surmount hatred by not hating, surmount evil with good; surmount greed through generosity … do not succumb to anger, give when you are asked.  Through those steps you will come close to the Divine” (Gandhari Dharmapada 280-281) … The great cloud rains down on all whether their nature is superior or inferior. The light of the sun and the moon illuminates the whole world, both him who does well and him who does ill, both him who stands high and him who stands low. (Sadharmapundarika Sutra 5)”~ Buddha

“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 5:44-48 (see also Luke 6:27-30, Luke 10:29-37, Mark 12:31, Matthew 22:39, Luke 10:27, Romans 13:9, Galatians 5:14, James 2:8, et al)

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on REMAINING HUMBLE

“One is the way to gain, the other is the way to Nirvana, knowing this fact, students of the Buddha should not take pleasure in being honored, but rather, should practice detachment.” ~ Buddha (Dhammapada 5:16)

“Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in Heaven. So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others … But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others … But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 6:1-6 (see also Luke 14:8) …

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on REDEFINING WEALTH

“People must store up reserves of faith, since true merits cannot be taken away, and no one need fear thieves.” ~ Buddha (Udanavarga 10:11).

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, … but store up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 6:19-20 (see also Luke 11:42, Luke 18:22)

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on SEEING ANEW

“As a man with eyes who carries a lamp sees all objects, so too with one who has heard the Moral Law.  He will become deeply wise..” ~ Buddha (Udanavarga 22:4)

“The eye is the lamp of the body. So, if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 6:22 (see also Luke 11:34-36 & John 8:12)

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on DETACHING FROM POSSESSIONS

“Let us live most happily, possessing nothing; let us feed on joy, like radiant angels.” ~ Buddha (Dhammapada 15.4)

“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? … And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you–you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ … But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 6:25-33 (see also Matthew 4:4, Luke 12:33-34, Luke 6:20 & John 15:11)

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on JUDGING OTHERS

“Do not give your attention to what others do or fail to do; give it to what you do or fail to do (Dhammapada 4:50)  … The faults of others are more easily seen than one’s own, but seeing one’s own failings is difficult.  The failings of others are winnowed like chaff in the wind, but one conceals one’s own faults like a cheating gambler (Dhammapada 18:18) … The faults of others are easier to see than one’s own (Dhammapada 18:252) … Judge not the mistakes of others, neither what they do or leave undone, but rather judge your own deeds, the just and the unjust. (Gandhari Dharmapada 271-272)” ~ Buddha

“Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. For with the judgment you make you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get.  Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? Or how can you say to your neighbor, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 7:1-5 (see also Luke 6:37-42)

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on THE GOLDEN RULE

“Consider others as yourself.” ~ Buddha (Dhammapada 10:1)

“In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 7:12 (see also Luke 6:31, et al)

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on BECOMING UNTETHERED

“The only source of refuge for those who do not accumulate possessions and are careful about what they eat is unconditional freedom … Their way is challenging to follow, like that of birds in the sky (Dhammapada 7:2-3) … The thoughtful exert themselves; they do not delight in an abode.  Like swans who have left their lake they leave their house & home. (Majihima Nikaya)” ~ Buddha

“Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 8:20 (see also Luke 9:58)

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on HEALING THE SICK

“The blind saw and the deaf could hear…The ill were healed.  The hunger and thirst of the deprived were stilled.  Drunkenness was taken away from the drunken.  The mad regained reason.  The blind could see again, and the deaf hear.” ~ Buddha (Lalitavistara VII)

“Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 11:4-5 (see also Luke 7:22)

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on BEING DENIGRATED

“They agreed among themselves, friends, here comes the recluse, Gautama, who lives luxuriously, who gave up his striving and reverted to luxury.”  ~ Buddha (Ariyapariyesana Sutta 26)

“For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon’; the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 11:18-19

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on THE POWER OF KINDNESS

“No matter what a man does, whether his deeds serve virtue or vice, nothing lacks importance.  All actions bear a kind of fruit” ~ Buddha (Udanavarga 9:8).

“Either make the tree good, and its fruit good; or make the tree bad, and its fruit bad; for the tree is known by its fruit … The good person brings good things out of a good treasure, and the evil person brings evil things out of an evil treasure.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 12:33-35 (see also Matthew 7:19, James 5:7-11, John 15:8, Luke 13:6-9, John 15:1-5, Hebrews 12:5-11, Galatians 5:22-23)

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on THE POWER OF PERSISTENCE

“Do not underestimate good, thinking it will not affect you.  Dripping water can fill a pitcher, drop by drop; one who is wise is filled with good, even if one accumulates it little by little.” ~ Buddha (Dhammapada 9:7)

“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 13:31-32 (see also Luke 13:18-19)

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on THE BLINDNESS OF THE PIOUS

“Those brahmins who know the three Vedas are just like a line of blind men tied together, where the first sees nothing, the middle man nothing, and the last sees nothing.” ~ Buddha (Tevijja-Sutta, Dighanikaya 13:15).

“Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 15:14 (see also Luke 6:39)

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on THE POWER OF SPEECH

“The bad person speaks falsely, chained by his words.  He who speaks ill and rejects what is truly just is not wise (Udanavarga 8:9) … Evil is done through the self; man defiles himself through the self.  Evil is made good through the self; man purifies himself through the self. (Dhammapada 12:9)” ~ Buddha

“Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth enters the stomach, and goes out into the sewer? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles. For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 15:17-20 (see also Luke 6:43-45)

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on LETTING GO

“With the relinquishing of all thought and egotism, the enlightened one is liberated through not clinging.”  ~ Buddha (Majjhima Nikaya 72:15)

“For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 16:25 (see also Mark 8:35, Luke 9:24 & John 12:25-26)

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on THE SUPREMACY OF THE SELFLESS WAY

“Better than reigning supreme over the earth, better than ruling heaven, better than dominating all worlds … This is the reward of the flowing way.” ~ Buddha (Dhammapada 13:12).

“For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life?” ~ Jesus in Matthew 16:26 (see also Mark 8:36 & Luke 9:25)

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on MAKING GENEROSITY PURE

“The avaricious do not go to heaven, the foolish do not extol charity. The wise one, however, rejoicing in charity, becomes thereby happy in the beyond.” ~ Buddha (Dhammapada 13.11)

“If you wish to be perfect, go, sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 19:21 (see also Luke 18:22)

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on FREEDOM FROM CULTURAL TIES

“Whosoever has laid aside human ties, leaving behind the powers of attraction of the gods, free of all bonds, that man I call holy.” ~ Buddha (Udanavarga 33:52).

“And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields, for my name’s sake, will receive a hundredfold, and will inherit eternal life.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 19:29 (see also Luke 14:25-27 + Luke 9:62)

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on RE-PRIORITIZING THE SPIRITUAL LIFE

“Of what use is your matted hair … of what use your clothes made of animal hides?  Within yourself is a jungle, but outwardly you adorn yourself.” ~ Buddha (Dhammapada 26:12).

“You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup, so that the outside also may become clean.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 23:26 (see also Luke 11:39)

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on THE IMPERMANENCE OF OWNERSHIP (& LIFE)

“The law of humanity is that, even if people accumulate hundreds and thousands of earthly goods, they nevertheless succumb to the power of death.  All stores are scattered; what was built is torn down; everything that comes together must end in separation; and life must terminate in death.” ~ Buddha (Udanavarga 1:21-22).

“You see all these, do you not? Truly I tell you, not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 24:2 (see also Mark 13:1-2, Luke 19:44, Luke 18:29, & Luke 12:13-21)

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on CARING FOR THE DOWNTRODDEN

“If you do not tend to one another, then who is there to tend you? Whoever would tend me, he should tend the sick.” ~ Buddha (Vinaya, Mahavagga 8:26.3)

“Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me … Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 25:40+45 (see also Luke 6:29)

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on REMAINING PEACEFUL

“Gautama refrains from taking life, dwelling without stick or sword.” ~ Buddha (Digha Nikaya 1:1.8)

“Put your sword back into its place; for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 26:52

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on WITNESSING TO LOVE’S WAY

“Teach the dharma — which is lovely at the beginning, lovely in the middle, lovely at the end. Explain with the spirit and the letter in the fashion of Brahma. In this way you will be completely fulfilled and wholly pure.” ~ Buddha (Vinaya Mahavagga 1:11.1)

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.” ~ Jesus in Matthew 28:19 (et al)

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on THE POWER OF GIVING

“Giving is the noble expression of the benevolence of the mighty.  Even dust, given in childish innocence, is a good gift.  No gift that is given in good faith can be called small.” ~ Buddha (Jatakamala 3;23)

“He looked up and saw rich people putting their gifts into the treasury; he also saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. He said, ‘Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them; for all of them have contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.’” ~ Jesus in Luke 21:1-4 (see also Mark 12:41-44)

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on REFUSING TO CRITICIZE OR CONDEMN

“Do not look at the faults of others, or what others have done or not done.  Observe what you yourself have done and have not done.” ~ Buddha (Dhammapada 4:7)

“Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone.”” ~ Jesus in John 8:7 (see also Matthew 7:5 & Luke 6:41-46)

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on WALKING THE TALK

“Just as a flower which seems beautiful and has color but has no perfume, so are the fruitless words of the man who speaks them but does them not.” ~ Buddha (Dhammapada 4:51)

“If you understand these things, blessed are you while you do them.” ~ Jesus in John 13:17 (see also the Parable of the Sower – Matthew 13:18-23)

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on THE ALL-IMPORTANCE OF LOVE

“Just as a mother would protect her only child at the risk of her own life, even so, cultivate a boundless heart towards all beings. Let your thoughts of boundless love pervade the whole world.” ~ Buddha (Sutta Nipata 149-150)

“This is my lone commandment: that you Love one another as I have Loved you.” ~ Jesus in John 15:12

Filed under: Reconciling the Religions by Scaughdt