The Buddhist Teachings of Jesus

The sublime promises of the Sermon on the Mount have always been the crowning moment and the heart of the Christian message. But now, scholars have accepted the Sermon on the Mount message as the teachings of the Buddha spoken some 500 years before the birth of Christ.

A beatitude is a declaration of happiness or promised blessing resulting from an individuals virtue or good deeds. They describe the qualities of perfection and the promise of future blessings rather than current material or physical rewards.

The Beatitudes of Christ represent eight upward steps toward attaining the blessedness of a divine Life. They are expressed in Matthew 5 in the New Testament, and Lection XXV of the Gospel of the Nazarenes, as an important part of His Sermon on the Mount.

These are the words as spoken by Jesus in Matthew Ch.5, v.3-12.

Blessed in spirit are the poor: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.

"Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you."

These teachings were also used in the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs. It was a great favorite among the early Christians and is much used and quoted by St Paul. The Gospels also quote liberally from this source.


Origins of the Beatitudes
The original beatitudes were actually spoken by the Buddha some five centuries before Christ, when the Buddha delivered the first "sermon on a mountain."

The heart of man, Buddha said, was a burning fire, and so were the objects in the three worlds, the objects that could be seen, felt, heard, or touched. This fire was the fire of lust, of anger and of ignorance. It was due to the shortcomings of a life posed to rebirth, sickness, old age and mortal anxieties.

Only disciples of Buddha could escape the torments of this fiery furnace. Freed from lust and human passion, they had acquired the wisdom that leads to the Perfect Man.

This sermon was delivered on Elephant's Head Mountain near Buddha Gayâ. The Suffanspita, U. Sutra reads as follows:

The Blessed One was once living at the monastery of Anithapic ika in Jeta's grove, near Savatthi. Now when the night was far advanced, a certain deity, whose surpassing splendour illuminated the entire Jeta Grove, came into the presence of the Blessed One, and, drawing near, respectfully saluted Him and stood on one side. Standing thus, he addressed the Blessed One in verse:

(The Deity)
Many angels and men have held various things a blessing when they were yearning for inner wisdom. Lord Buddha, do declare to us the greatest blessing.

(Buddha)
Not to serve the foolish, But to serve the spiritual;
To honour those worthy of honour,— This is the greatest blessing.

To dwell in a spot that befits one's condition, To think of the effect of one's deeds, To guide the behaviour aright,— This is the greatest blessing.

Much insight and education, Self-control and pleasant speech,
And whatever word be well spoken,— This is the greatest blessing.

To support father and mother, To cherish wife and child,
To follow a peaceful calling,— This is the greatest blessing.

To bestow alms and live righteously, To give help to kindred,
Deeds which cannot be blamed, These are the greatest blessing.

To abhor and cease from sin, Abstinence from strong drink,
Not to be weary in well-doing, These are the greatest blessing.

Reverence and lowliness, Contentment and gratitude,
The hearing of the Law at due seasons,— This is the greatest blessing.

To be long suffering and meek, To associate with the tranquil,
Religious talk at due seasons,— This is the greatest blessing.

Self-restraint and purity, The knowledge of the noble truths,
The attainment of Nirvana, This is the greatest blessing.

In the midst of the eight world miseries, Like the man of pure life,
Be calm and unconcerned,— This is the greatest blessing.

Listener, if you keep this Law, The Law of the spiritual world,
You will know its ineffable joy,— This is the greatest blessing.

When we begin to compare the literatures contemporaneous with the New Testament, such as the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Nag Hammadi Codices, and Early Christian and Jewish Pseudepigraphical materials and compare them with other spiritual or mystical traditions, we begin to find much to digest, much to ponder, and discover the understanding of universal truth.


http://www.thenazareneway.com/beatitudes_of_christ.htm

LadyVal...

I salute your search for the answers outside of that which is common here... and suppressing...

Now why would anyone want to delete this?

Who would? ...Hmmmm... perhaps someone who is disturbed by the material held within...

What type of person could that be?

I vote to keep this freedom of speech...ALL speech!!!

creativesoul,

You said it!!!

To 'LadyValkyrie37', you replied :

'... I salute your search for the answers outside of that which is common here... and suppressing...You said it!!!'

LadyValkyrie37 you are a 'sun filled breath of fresh light' !!!

Captivating!!!