Is it alright for a Buddhist to pray to lord Jesus?

[markings]

To return to the original question. Why would a Buddhist even want to pay to Jesus when there are many Buddhist saint, beings and personalities which one could pray to? What would make praying to Jesus superior or more effective than e.g. praying to Quan Yn? And if anyone thinks that it would be more effective the leave Buddhism and become a Christian.

[sky]

Originally Posted by markings

To return to the original question. Why would a Buddhist even want to pay to Jesus when there are many Buddhist saint, beings and personalities which one could pray to? What would make praying to Jesus superior or more effective than e.g. praying to Quan Yn? And if anyone thinks that it would be more effective the leave Buddhism and become a Christian.

It isn't about who is more superior or effective, you are missing the point.
It's about connecting to Christ consciouness or Buddha Nature, not comparing.

[markings]

Originally Posted by sky123

It isn't about who is more superior or effective, you are missing the point.
It's about connecting to Christ consciouness or Buddha Nature, not comparing.

Are they the same?
If yes then I ask again why even invoke Jesus?
If not what is the difference? Why and when would connecting to Christ consciousness be better, or more beneficial than connecting with Buddha nature and vice versa?

[sky]

Originally Posted by markings

Are they the same?
If yes then I ask again why even invoke Jesus?
If not what is the difference? Why and when would connecting to Christ consciousness be better, or more beneficial than connecting with Buddha nature and vice versa?

I surpose they invoke Jesus because they want to, he was an enlightened being as was Buddha.
It isn't about better, superior or more beneficial ( this is how you are getting stuck )

[markings]

Originally Posted by sky123

I surpose they invoke Jesus because they want to, he was an enlightened being as was Buddha.
It isn't about better, superior or more beneficial ( this is how you are getting stuck )

If one want to pray to Jesus as a Christian then pray to him. If one is a Buddhist then pray to the Buddhist gods, saints, dakinis, etc.

The question is why one would want to cross a clear and definitive boundary to pray to an entity from another tradition?

You repeat that is is not about better, superior or more beneficial. If this is true then why switch?

I am suggesting that switching back and forth from one tradition to another is a recipe for confusion and non-progress. Commit to one or the other. Don't sit on the fence, today it is this and tomorrow something else.
As a Buddhist to pray to Jesus is abandoning Buddhism. It shows a lack of faith in the Buddhist path. It is something to avoid, let alone to recommend and find acceptable.

[Jeremy Bong]

Maybe the thread question has concern about my situation. I've Jesus and Buddha Sakyamuni as my two mentors. They've with different religions practice. For me it's simple to handle, I never learned from them ---- two in once. I only learn my Bible and communicate with Jesus for a long time time and seldom talk to Buddha Sakyamuni. Buddha Sakyamuni teaching me silently or unaware by me and he never intervene in my daily life.

My heart or focus is only on Jesus's teaching, after I've success in my dharma basic techniques of using Jesus's dharma energy, then the last three or four years Buddha is more related or interacting with me. I learnt from one mentor first and then with another mentor. I never mix them up ..... So my suggestion is to learn from one mentor and then to others.

When God Jehovah is with me , it's still the same, I still not learning from Buddha Sakyamuni. Then the many other mentors came and teaching me..... I learn from one mentor at anytime they're with me. That's why I advised Frankie earlier in my post that don't do mix learning of different Gods at once. Or like my case , they teach their and l learn mine.

Most of the times if you shift from one God to another God, the first God won't teach much to you and this is common sense to realize that situation. But my case is different, they never left me alone. That's why I'm grateful for they love me as their own son.

[sky]

Originally Posted by markings

If one want to pray to Jesus as a Christian then pray to him. If one is a Buddhist then pray to the Buddhist gods, saints, dakinis, etc.

The question is why one would want to cross a clear and definitive boundary to pray to an entity from another tradition?

You repeat that is is not about better, superior or more beneficial. If this is true then why switch?

I am suggesting that switching back and forth from one tradition to another is a recipe for confusion and non-progress. Commit to one or the other. Don't sit on the fence, today it is this and tomorrow something else.
As a Buddhist to pray to Jesus is abandoning Buddhism. It shows a lack of faith in the Buddhist path. It is something to avoid, let alone to recommend and find acceptable.

You find it confusing because you are so against it, that clouds your views.
The practitoners obviously feel it's right for them and it enhances their lives and the lives of other sentient beings otherwise they wouldn't feel comfortable in what they are doing.
Finding it unacceptable or not recommended is just your view, others will have different ideas, it wouldn't work for you and thats ok but it does work for others. It isn't about ' switching from one to the other ' it's about joining the two together which is possible.
It's obvious that Jesus studied Buddhism why shouldn't others....

[markings]

Originally Posted by sky123

Y
It's obvious that Jesus studied Buddhism why shouldn't others....

Your evidence for this is what?

[Bohdiyana]

Originally Posted by markings

The question is why one would want to cross a clear and definitive boundary to pray to an entity from another tradition?

I would guess it is caused by conditioning. Now days, one can go to youtube and watch teachers of pretty much any religion that exists. That is something new. Imagine life before the internet. Where could one go see a lecture by a Buddhist monk or a Christian monk? It was very rare in many parts of the United States and UK and the world actually. In fact, before the internet, monks did not go around giving lectures. So now days with the internet, people are being exposed to all kinds of new stuff. A lot of it is random. A Buddhist can search on how to find peace and have 10 Christian videos pop up and the reverse as well. Also one can study religion online which means one's studies can branch off in all kinds of random directions. So somebody who would do that has been exposed to things that conditioned them to do it. The ancient Greeks believed in and prayed to Apollo and Zeus. That's what they were conditioned to do. Today in the USA, less than 50% of people believe in God and only around 18% attend a temple or church. So most people don't have an interest in a formal religion here.

[Bohdiyana]

Originally Posted by markings

The question is why one would want to cross a clear and definitive boundary to pray to an entity from another tradition?

I would guess it is caused by conditioning. Now days, one can go to youtube and watch teachers of pretty much any religion that exists. That is something new. Imagine life before the internet. Where could one go see a lecture by a Buddhist monk or a Christian monk? It was very rare in many parts of the United States and UK and the world actually. In fact, before the internet, monks did not go around giving lectures. So now days with the internet, people are being exposed to all kinds of new stuff. A lot of it is random. A Buddhist can search on how to find peace and have 10 Christian videos pop up and the reverse as well. Also one can study religion online which means one's studies can branch off in all kinds of random directions. So somebody who would do that has been exposed to things that conditioned them to do it. The ancient Greeks believed in and prayed to Apollo and Zeus. That's what they were conditioned to do. Today in the USA, less than 50% of people believe in God and only around 18% attend a temple or church. So most people don't have an interest in a formal religion here.