Jesus's reappearance after death and Buddhist rainbow light body
 

Looking into Tibetan Buddhism, there seems to often enough be some similarity drawn between full attainment of rainbow light body and Jesus's reappearance after death. Buddhists seem to see these two events as the same, and both are seen as ultimate achievements. Any thoughts on this?

I wonder if that is the same thing as the astral body. I've heard one theory that Jesus was in his astral body when he returned and when he stopped a storm and walked on water.

But if that's the case, how did Peter walk on water? Were they all having a shared experience in the astral plane? If so, that could explain how he stopped a storm and how they walked on water. The astral plane is a thought responsive plane.

If you've ever heard of the spiritual group Eckankar, I've heard that they make journeys to the astral plane together, so it's apparently possible.

Jesus was a teacher and the apostles were his students. And Jesus, who was a human being and spiritual master, taught his students spiritual techniques including astral travel. Every human being has the capacity to consciously develop these astral abilities. There are a number of occult clues in the Bible describing astral travel and telepathic communication between Jesus and his students. "Come at him at night" -- night referencing the meditative-trance state -- is one example.

FYI, the Bible describes Peter as failing at it because he was "afraid". In other words, his fear caused him to lose that astral connection and return to his body. I've had the same happen when I astral travelled. I was flying about my neighbourhood, 100 feet in the air, when I suddenly feared I might fall. In that moment of doubt I was instantly transported back into my body -- zzzzzap! (Actually made that same sort of sound when it happened, like an electrical current.)

It's difficult for Westerners to believe and understand that Christianity is simply one unique, belief-specific telling of the exact same human-enlightenment story described in many other religions that both pre-date and come after Christianity.

All the various religions tell the same story: the human being, via the inner meditative path and the opening of the third eye, comes to enlightenment and union with the Cosmic Consciousness of Creation. This is the wisdom every human being will eventually come to; the path every human being will one day travel. It is written in the stars: benevolent Spirit's eternal promise to humankind is that no human soul will be left behind. We will all attain that self-realized state and ascend as Jesus, Buddha, Mohammed, Krishna and many other masters have already.

So is the rainbow body just another name for the astral body?

I've been thinking about this on and off during the day, and one major difference between the recounting of Jesus returning and a light body is that Jesus was apparently quite physical when he returned, and this is a major difference that can't be explained by concepts of astral bodies.

The book series "Masters of the Far East" discusses bi-location: yogis who appear in another location while their body remains elsewere in a trance state. The yogi who bi-locates appears in a body that is fully physical. So that would answer your question: astral projection is one spiritual ability; and bi-location another.

Plus I would assume a soul who has attained enlightenment and who has escaped the wheel of life, is fully capable of returning to earth in physical form, any old time s/he desires. I've read books on that too; "Where Eagles Gather" was one.

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat... whole new perspective, eh?

Bi-location sounds reasonable, but there is no reference to him being somewhere else at the same time, and his body that had been in the tomb wasn't there anymore.

Nonetheless, bi-location does indicate that a body can be seen which isn't 'really' there. But then there is also the fact that he ate and let them touch him, so it still seems like something more extraordinary than other explanations.