Living Buddha, Living Christ

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Makes you relax - Rated
I read this book and relaxed more instantly. After growing up in the USA in a crazy Christian environment that spouted thoughts that didn't make sense, I knew, after reading this book what I felt deep down inside was true. There is NO one way. I think Jesus' teachings have been twisted and interpreted wrongly by many people and the author's thoughts are more correct than anything I've read before. Buy this book, it's thought provoking and gives you a peaceful feeling.

Pearls of wisdom on every page - Rated
All religions have as their common thread the Golden Rule expressed in Buddhism as: "Hurt not others with that which pains yourself" and in Christianity as: "Do unto others as you would have others do unto you". Almost certainly, if Jesus and Buddha were to meet today they would embrace each other and tell us that we have misinterpreted their teachings by permitting or perhaps even advocating religious intolerance, religious rivalry, religious hatred, religious fanaticism and religious war. It was therefore like a breath of fresh air to discover a Buddhist monk from Vietnam who thinks, speaks and acts the Golden Rule - a man about whom Martin Luther King wrote: "I Know Thich Nhat Hanh and am privileged to call him my friend. He is a holy man, for he is humble and devout. He is a scholar of immense intellectual capacity. His ideas for peace, if applied, would build a monument to ecumenism, to world brotherhood, to humanity". In 1947 in Egypt early Christian documents were discovered, believed to have been hidden after orders to destroy them as heretical were given by the archbishop of Alexandria. The Gospel of Thomas resonates with the Buddhist tradition. These long-hidden sources show that the early Christian movement contained much more diversity of viewpoint and practice than later Christians acknowledged or even imagined. Because these teachings were smothered, many Christians today are adamant that the only path to God is via Christianity. Shortly after Buddha died there were two schools of Buddhism; after 400 years there were 20 schools; and today there are many more. Each is an attempt to keep the Buddhist teachings alive under new circumstances. Likewise Christianity has splintered into many groups. It is only by respecting the differences within our own church and seeing how these differences enrich one another, that we can be open to appreciating the richness and diversity of other traditions.

Thich Nhat Hanh is not a monk who lives in a hermitage and runs away from the world. For more than 30 years he has been active in combating poverty, ignorance and disease; rescuing boat people; evacuating the wounded from combat zones; resettling refugees; helping the hungry and orphans; opposing wars; training peace and social workers; and rebuilding villages destroyed by bombs. But he has only been able to do this because of the practice of meditation - stopping, calming and looking deeply. It is only through the practice of deep looking and deep listening, that we become free, able to see the beauty and values in our own and others' tradition and that we know what we should be doing in the world.

This book is about interfaith dialogue. "In a true dialogue, both sides are willing to change. We have to appreciate that truth can be received from outside of - not only within - our own group. If we do not believe that, entering into dialogue would be a waste of time. If we think we monopolize the truth and we still organize a dialogue, it is not authentic. We have to believe that by engaging in dialogue with the other person, we have the possibility of making a change within ourselves, that we can become deeper. Dialogue is not a means for assimilation in the sense that one side expands and incorporates the other into its 'self.' Dialogue must be practiced on the basis of 'non-self.' We have to allow what is good, beautiful, and meaningful in the other's tradition to transform us. But the most basic principle of interfaith dialogue is that the dialogue must begin, first of all, within oneself. Our capacity to make peace with another person and with the world depends very much on our capacity to make peace with ourselves."

This book is about seeking peace. "Until there is peace between religions, there can be no peace in the world. People kill and are killed because they cling too tightly to their own beliefs and ideologies. When we believe that ours is the only faith that contains the truth, violence and suffering will surely be the result." And "When there are wars within us, it will not be long before we are at war with others, even those we love. The violence, hatred, discrimination, and fear in society water the seeds of the violence, hatred, discrimination, and fear in us."

This book is about mindfulness: "In Buddhism, our effort is to practice mindfulness in each moment - to know what is going on within and all around us. When the Buddha was asked, 'Sir, what do your monks practice?' he replied, 'We sit, we walk, we eat.' The questioner continued, 'But sir, everyone sits and walks, and eats.' And the Buddha told him, 'When we sit, we know we are sitting. When we walk, we know we are walking. When we eat, we know we are eating.' Most of the time, we are lost in the past or carried away by future projects and concerns."

This book is about being there for others: "The most precious gift we can offer others is our presence. When our mindfulness embraces those we love, they will bloom like flowers." This book is about meditation. This book is about the common ground between Christianity and Buddhism - for the author there is no conflict in having images of both Jesus and Buddha on his hermitage altar. He worships them both; he touches them both as his spiritual ancestors. This book is wisdom. There are pearls of wisdom on every page of this book for seekers of the truth.

Thought provoking and inspiring - Rated
This book is, like all of Thich Nhat Hanh's writing, deceptively simple and repays reading several times to allow the significance of his thinking to permeate. I suspect that some Christians may not appreciate Christ being seen as a brother to the Buddha, nor some of Christ's teachings re-interpreted from a Zen point of view. But for myself, I found that the establishing of a common ground between Christ's message and the Buddha's, to be refreshing and uplifting.

A way to peace between not just Christians and Buddhists... - Rated
This book is A way to peace between not just Christians and Buddhists but to people of all faiths. I am buddhist, but was raised Roman Catholic. This book helped me to look at my roots and what not only Jesus's techings have to offer but also his life. Though I may not return to my roots I have a better understanding of them and will use what I have learned from this amazing book by an amazing being to help impprove my life.

ENLIGHTENING and PEACEFUL!! - Rated
Being a Roman Catholic, I was afraid I was betraying my religion by starting to study Buddhism. After reading this book, I now see that Buddhism is more of a practice and way to live, then a strict religion. I also realize that Christ and Buddha had so much in common in their teachings. I highly recommend this book and any other books by this great writer for those seeking information on how to live a better peaceful and fulfilling life. It does not interfere with any other religion and I find it helps me understand,we all need to live as the Buddha and Christ have asked us to through their teaching.