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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Y2K" data-source="post: 10835117" data-attributes="member: 35049">Jesus: I'll just say that your espousal of an absence of self is the most unique and fearsome claim you made, a concept that cuts across virtually every major belief. You turned from Hinduism because it said there was an essential self, which they called the atman. And on that denial you hung everything else.At the heart of the Mosaic law were the commands to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself. These were God's greatest commandments, and on them hung all the Law and the prophets.My invitation to each person is to deny himself before he begins to follow me. But your response is that there is no self to deny.Buddha: And that when you realize this, all suffering ceases.Jesus: I would suggest to you, Gautama, that in looking for an answer to suffering, you haven't dealt with the problem of suffering at all-you've just tried to obliterate relationships. We think of ourselves as an "I," but you say there is no "I." Wasn't that the very reason your father pleaded that you not allow young people to follow you without parental permission-because he was going to lose his next son from the household too? He had a particular love for a particular life. He couldn't just dismiss it as mere consciousness.Isn't this the very reason Priya's parents grieve right now?Take her hand, Gautama, and see that you're not touching just skin and bones, but a person.Buddha: No, I cannot touch her.Jesus: That's the ultimate expression of her destitution.You heard what she said. Her parents gave her this cherished name because to them she wasn't just a stream of consciousness. Or must we tell them that if they weren't attached to her, they wouldn't grieve? What you've lost in denying the self as real is not the problem of pain but the essence of being.A group of Sadducees once came to me and asked me about a man who had married several times. They wanted to know which of those women would be his wife in heaven. They didn't believe in resurrection from the dead, and so by posing this question, they thought they were disproving the resurrection.You're in a similar situation. You seek to solve the problem of suffering, and in order to solve it, you say that the self doesn't exist. This attachment to detachment and the expulsion of the self only opens the door to further questions that are even more difficult to answer.Buddha: Yes, Jesus, there is a world of difference in our views on this matter. And I'm thinking even as I speak. You see, a lotus flower goes through several stages of development. In one it lies buried under the water as a young plant. It has not yet seen the sun. In another it lies half submerged in the water, caught between two worlds of water and air. In a third it rises well above the water and blossoms in the full light of day.That's the way we come to knowledge: in degrees. Someday you'll realize that the goodness of life is seen only when you break free from submersion in this doctrine of self.Jesus: A boat! A lotus flower! Your metaphors lose the person. But speaking of submersion... Driver, can you slow down a bit? You remind me of Jehu, the chariot driver in the narrative of the kings of Israel!Thank you, Wat.Boat Driver: I'm so sorry, Sir! I was preoccupied listening to this conversation. I certainly wouldn't want to risk the lives of such important people.... Oh, forgive me! Did I...did I say the wrong thing?Priya: I would say so. Risking the life of someone who says he is the author of life? And forgiveness? We don't even know what that means.Boat Driver: I guess I'd better stay quiet. And how did you know my name, Jesus?Jesus: I thought you said you were listening very carefully to the conversation.Boat Driver: I think I get it.Jesus: That's good. I haven't forgotten you, Wat.Gautama, I agree that there are stages we go through. I, too, had to wait before I filly disclosed who I was to my disciples. But that was because I knew what was in the hearts of men and women. They're fickle, and they follow for the wrong reason. I want to make this point very clear. I am like a shepherd who cares for his sheep, not wanting even one to be lost, because every one matters. Every one. This is so pivotal to my gospel.Love is particular. God loves the world so that the "whosoevers" who believe in Him will not perish but have everlasting life. God loves every man, woman, and child as an individual. That's why each one has a name. If there were no particularities, the death of one wouldn't be a loss-each could easily be replaced by the birth of another.But each one is unique, and it's only when they find me as their Savior that they are able to give fill expression to their uniqueness. The path of that person then begins like the first gleam of dawn, shining brighter to the full light of day.Boat Driver: That's a beautiful picture, Jesus, especially for a boatman who starts his day early.Buddha: Not just for boatmen, but for anyone in the dark... that's why I speak of enlightenment.Jesus: Ah, but there's the catch: You have to explain to this woman what you mean when you say that she's not an individual and that she burns from full candlelight to the "extinguishing of a candle." That's nirvana, at which point there will be no such person as Priya.But I say to her, "Come to me, you who struggle and are weighed down, and you will find rest in your very soul. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your soul. Before you were born I knew you and have loved you with an everlasting love. I came looking for you, to save you. Cast your cares upon me, Priya, for I care for you. In fact, if you were to die today, you could be with me in paradise."Gautama, I am the Light of the world-Priya will see life's purpose because of me. I am the Bread of Life-she will be full because of me. I am the Good Shepherd-she will be guided by me. Without me, nothing was ever made that was made-she is known because of me. I laid down my life for her-she will be forgiven because of me. There never was a time when I was not, and there will never be a time when I will not be-she will live because of me. These are credentials you have never claimed.Buddha: With all due respect, Jesus, how can you make such claims? And I repeat my objection: Why is God necessary for us to know who we are? I think I'm ready to start asking you the questions.Jesus: I would be pleased to answer them. I've obviously touched a nerve. But do you mind if we get off here for a few minutes? I see an enormous temple over there, and I think I can answer your questions as we walk through it.Here, Priya, let me give you a hand. You're very weak, and I will stay close to you.Buddha: I'm not sure I like everything I see here, Jesus, I must admit. These temples have become puzzling places for me. I didn't want to be deified or made into a statue. The gold, the precious stones, all on a carved idol...Jesus: Walking into the temple in Jerusalem and seeing what I saw was not my favorite moment, either.Priya: Did we lose our driver? I thought he was coming.Jesus: He stopped to light some incense. Can you see him? There he is ... chanting a prayer.Buddha: This is precisely what I mean. I don't understand how all this ritual and idolatry has come about. I told my followers not to be burdened with images and with worship, but they didn't listen. What I taught and what has become of what I taught are two different things.Jesus: That seems to be the inevitable result when someone assigns themselves authority over the intent of someone else's thoughts or words. My people also turned their backs on me and polluted the worship of the true God. But there's a difference between the two, even here.Priya: Please explain.</blockquote>

Verification: Winadiyakata thappara keeyak tibeda?

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