The first thing you notice about JESUS AND BUDDHA: THE PARALLEL SAYINGS is that the book itself is very attractive. The sayings of Jesus are on the left page with the sayings of Buddha on the right, and the paper is deckle edged. Jack Kornfield, both a Buddhist monk and Buddhist scholar, has written the introduction; Marcus Borg, a progressive Christian and Jesus scholar and the editor of the book, has provided a thoughtful Preface. Both of these scholars come to the same conclusion: there are many similarities between both these great teachers’ lives and their sayings. Dr. Borg, however, in his preface and elsewhere in the book gives a more thorough analysis of what they have in common. His purpose in collecting the parallels in this book is not, he says, to make a scholarly case for the similarities. It is rather to provide for “reflection and meditation.”
The book is divided into several sections some of which are “Compassion,” “Wisdom,” “Inner Life,” “Temptation,” “The Future” and “Discipleship” with the parallels listed for each of these topics. Since I know practically nothing about the teaching of Buddha, I read the sayings of Jesus first and then those of Buddha. The similarities for many of them are so obvious that I was completely taken aback. Here are just a few of the hundred or more examples:
Do to others as you would have them do to you. (Luke 6.31) Consider others as yourself. (Dhammapada 10.1)
This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. John 15.12-13) 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. (Sutta Nipata 149-150)
Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. (Luke 6.20) Let us live most happily, possessing nothing; let us feed on joy, like the radiant gods. (Dhammapada 15.4)
Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. (John 14.27) May fear and dread not conquer me. (Majjhima Nikaya 6.8)
Dr. Borg says that he inherited the belief from childhood that Christianity was the only way, “the only true religion.” He, however, came to appreciate “religious pluralism.” If you have similar feelings, you will find this book to your liking.
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Top reviews from other countries
Claudette Rochon-Kennedy
Compare similarities in different religions and philosophy
Reviewed in Canada on December 23, 2018
Lee K. Freeman
Just what the doctor ordered
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 28, 2013
Margaret Whelan Huckle
They teach the same and think alike.
Reviewed in Canada on November 14, 2023
MR P S MEEK
Couldn't recommend it enough
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 14, 2016