I studied this religion really closely before I became a Christian and loved it. Shintoism mainly. As of now though I see what it lacks... A Savior. As always, like any other article I will first state the History of Buddhism and then go into debunking it... Let's start...
Buddhism was started by the philosophy of a man named Siddharta Guatama or, better known as Buddha, who created these teachings nearly 2,500 years ago in Northern India as an offshoot of Vedantic Hinduism. Buddhism name came from the word "Budhi" which means, "To wake up."
While Buddhism teaches morals such as avoiding killing any creature, stealing, adultery, lying, corrupt speech, greed, anger and ignorance... The morality is there, but where is God? Where is the need for forgiveness when humans fall short into these immoral acts? Romans 3:23. Buddha's grave can still be found in Kusinara at the foot of the Himalayan Mountains while in contrast Jesus Christ defeated the grave and rose from the dead. He is alive forevermore... Amen!
Not to knock Buddha, imaginations of man are wicked, but comparing his teachings to other false religions, he at least listened to the laws God had written on his heart and didn't lately ignore them like other False Prophets. Romans 2:15. He was only ignorant to who God really is and gave into his self-righteousness.
Siddhartha Gautama, estimated 563 BC-483 BC (80-years old.) Buddha was son of Suddhodana, ruler of a district in modern day Nepal. Buddha was raised like royalty. At age 16 Buddha married Bhaddakaccanna. At age 29 he saw the Four Signs... An old man, a sick man, a dead man, and a beggar. He questioned this and was unsatisfied with life. So he abandoned his wife and son, Rahula, to find the answer to life. Age 35 sitting under a Bodhi Tree meditating Buddha experienced the highest degree of "God-consciousness" or "Nirvana." He became known as the, "Enlightened One."
Buddha gave his first proclamation in Isipatana, (Near modern Benares north of Varanasi, Northern India,). It was here that he proclaimed the beginning of the "Wheel of Truth." This was Buddha's "Dharma" or teaching of the, "Basic law which upholds the universe." Buddha's teachings were passed orally for nearly 300 years, before being recorded in First Century BC, The Pali Cannon.
Buddha's 3 Basic Laws and 4 Noble Truths. 3 Basic Laws Signata...…
1.) Impermanence... Everything changes. Nothing is permanent.
2.) Unsatisfactoriness... There is no goodness or beauty.
3.) Insubstantiality... There is no permanent essence, self or soul (in contrast to the Hindu concept of the soul "atman.")
4 Noble Truths...
1). There is pain and suffering in life. To exist means there will be suffering, birth is painful and so is death.
2). Suffering is caused by desire, craving or lust.
3). Freedom from suffering comes when a person rids himself of all desires. Enlightened people do not cease to experience the pain of existence. They only stop creating illusions that amplify that pain and cause new suffering.
4). The way out of suffering is through the 8-fold Path. This path is designed to develop habits that release one from the suffering caused by ignorance and craving.
The 8 fold path is:
1.) Right Views. 2.) Right Intentions. 3.) Right Speech. 4.) Right Behavior. 5.) Right Occupation. 6.) Right Effort. 7.) Right Contemplation. 8.) Right Meditation.
So as we can see, Buddhism is a work-based faith, earning Salvation on your own means with no help from the World's Creator. This is what holds the Buddhist's soul, their one flaw of Arrogance.
Ephesians 2:8-10 - "8 For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them."
So we are saved through faith that does God-ordained works, but not of our own works that any man should boast in their self-righteousness.
Buddha supposedly ascended, but it is recorded that on his deathbed that he told his followers who asked him who they should follow as his replacement and Buddha's reply was, "Be ye a lamp (or island) unto yourselves; work out your own salvation with diligence."
Matthew 5:14-16 - "14 You are the light of the world. A city located on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. 16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."
See the difference? Unto yourselves versus unto others. Selfishness versus Selflessness. But this is what Eastern Philosophy promotes that you yourself are your only hope, rely on yourself, don't interfere with someone else's Karma... Christianity is the opposite to promote help from our Creator, and to interfere in your fellowman's life to try to help and save her/him physically and spiritually. Ezekiel 3:18-19 and Matthew 10:8.
Karma refers to the law of cause and effect in a person's life. Do bad and bad will happen to you. Do good and good will happen to you. This concept was originated in Hinduism; Buddha altered the idea of Karma into... You are what you are in the next life based on what you do in this life until you reach the state of Nirvana breaking the cycle of birth and rebirth. Hinduism supports a caste system in that you cannot progress from one rank to the next.
Samsara is the idea that only feelings, impressions, and the karma that is passed on goes through the birth and rebirth cycle. Reincarnation. Buddha did not believe in the soul or permanence thus there is no self to carry into the cycle of life. The new life is similar, but not the same person.
Nirvana is the "blowing out" of existence. Heaven, you could call it within Eastern Philosophy. It is an eternal state of being where karma and the life cycle or reincarnation stops. It is a place where desire and individual consciousness ends.
Galatians 6:7 - "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap."
The Bible tells us about the idea Karma, you reap what you sow... Though we as fellowman are to try and help an individual to make the right choices so he doesn't reap what he sows. If you are bad, you get bad... Hell. If you are good, you get good... Heaven. There is NO reincarnation loop... This life isn't a video game where you can re-spawn and get do-overs. Make your choices now. You choose... Heaven or Hell?
Hebrews 9:27 - "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:"
Meditation is used to cultivate calm tranquility and to cultivate insight. Enlighten the mind to be able to reach an Alpha or Delta state. The "lotus position" is used which is the classic yoga stance and begins with emphasis on concentration in breathing, then body, then mind through the 3 Basic Laws and the First of the Two Paths.
Joshua 1:8 - "This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success."
Psalm 46:10 - "Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth."
The Bible teaches us to meditate, but not to meditate to clear the mind as it teaches in Buddhism. When you constantly clear the mind, you are draining your energy, chi, soul. Creating a very Numb demeanor. You must focus, meditate on something... And that is God's Spirit since He is the original source of our soul which is energy, chi. Everything is energy, study Quantum Physics. Albert Einstein, Dr. Emoto, Dr. Robert Lanza. God is a conscious Spirit like us, except He is better than us, He is completely Holy, completely positive, righteous. When you focus on a His Spirit, you are focusing on Love... Because God is love… 1 John 4:16.
Buddha always said, "Come and see." When he died no one could "come and see" but had to put their faith in him that he was enlightened and knew the meaning of life. Jesus came and said to believe by faith and then He rose from the dead for all to come and see. God has been proven, He conquered death and rose from the grave... I trust the one who conquered death with my life, not the one still in the grave and most likely in Hell... Sorry Buddha, you didn't accept your Creator as God. You gave into self-righteousness and thought you could do it all on your own... Spiritually held back by arrogance.
Don't get me wrong, I love the spirituality within this religion; it's wonderful… But, but, but it's useless and in vain because this religion... LACKS CHRIST. Who is a fundamental to our Salvation. So without Christ I have to keep getting reincarnated over and over again because no one died for my sins. I don't want to come back to this life, this earth, this existence… I want to go to Heaven/Nirvana after just one lifetime. The only way to do that is through Christ.
You know you're not getting to Heaven/Nirvana on your own means after one lifetime because it is impossible for humans not to sin. No matter how enlightened you become, you will corrupt/damage your soul with a sin at least once in every lifetime.
A lot of you must be thinking, "But Christianity lacks spirituality," and you would be wrong...
Look at what we've learned so far... Christianity has a concept of Karma. Christianity believes in Meditation. Christianity believes in a Heaven or Hell. We do not believe in Reincarnation... This is the big deception within Eastern Philosophy.
The Bible tells us about Positive Manifestation...
Mark 11:23-24 ~ "I tell you the truth, if someone says to this mountain, 'Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it will be done for him. For this reason I tell you, whatever you pray and ask for, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours."
Matthew 14:31 ~ "Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?"
The Flood and what happened at Sodom and Gomorrah is the Earth just trying to purify itself from negative energy. Natural Disaster happens because of negative energy. Look at the studies of Dr. Emoto...
The Bible tells us about Chakras…
Ezekiel 1:21 ~ "When the creatures moved, they also moved; when the creatures stood still, they also stood still; and when the creatures rose from the ground, the wheels rose along with them, because the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels." (Remember: "Chakra" in ancient Sanskirt means, "Wheels of light". Chakras are inside of us and we're all God's Creatures.)
Revelation 5:1 ~ "Then I saw in the right hand of him who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals."
All over The Bible there is always speak of seven. It lines up with many spiritual concepts. Very enlightening to be a true, Spiritual Christian… Give it a try and get out of that reincarnation loop. Because sadly there is no reincarnation according to...
Hebrews 9:27 - "And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:"
Make sure your soul is insured with the Blood of the Lamb... I fell for the belief of Reincarnation, it is what brought me to believe in Eastern Philosophy because I was born with a disease called Charcot Marie Tooth Disease, as a young girl this disability would sometimes get me depressed because I couldn't be as active as other kids or pursue a life long hobby or career of drawing, which I used to love to do. I felt punished and if God was real... Why would He punish me from birth to have this disease... So I forsook God and believed in Reincarnation, that my disease was a punishment for my bad karma in my past life. I've come to learn that it is simply genetics and the sins of man that bring our own misery... There is NO reincarnation.
When Jesus calls John the Baptist, "Elijah," He is clearly speaking metaphorically. Luke 1:17 demonstrates that John was filling the office of Elijah, fulfilling the prophecy of Malachi 4:5-6. In fact, Elijah was seen with Jesus on the Mount in Matthew 17:1-3. The meaning of the resurrection is the opposite of reincarnation (Hebrews 9:27; 1 Cor. 15:12-28). If God is an impersonal force, then love and forgiveness are not possible. These are personal attributes as opposed to impersonal karmic law. Fundamentally, intercessory prayer is absolutely necessary. The battle for the souls of men is won through God's grace, God and His servants intervening and drawing them to Himself. Don't be fooled or you will be surprised when you end up in Hellfire. Accept Jesus to be saved... Your own works will not save you.
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