Interbeing: Christian - Buddhist

Jesus said to him, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

If you know me, then you will also know my Father. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” 

-- John 14:6-7

 

Being a Christian, one of my major hurdles is the notion of exclusive salvation. Somehow there are many human traits projected onto the God of the Abrahamic religions. This to me seems to limit God as it contradicts the "infinity" of God which encompasses being eternal, omnipresent, omnipotent, and of infinite goodness. This limitation has also inadvertantly cast an invisible barrier on my own openness and spiritual growth.

I have long held a hope since teenage years for a deeper experience and understanding, that frees God from mere human dogma and notions. I would say this journey of discovery has reached an interesting juncture. 

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always, the Spirit of truth, which the world cannot accept, because it neither sees nor knows it. But you know it, because it remains with you, and will be in you.

-- John 14:16-17

 

With the energy of mindfulness, we can see deeply. With the Holy Spirit, we can see deeply. Mindfulness is the energy of the Buddha. The Holy Spirit is the energy of God. They both have the capacity to make us present, fully alive, deeply understanding, and loving. That is why in our daily life, we should live mindfully, we should live with the Holy Spirit so we can live every moment of our daily life deeply. If we do not live each moment deeply, there is no way we can touch the ultimate dimension, the dimension of the noumena.

-- "Going Home: Jesus and Buddha as Brothers" by Thich Nhat Hanh

To touch the ultimate dimension, to know God, this is possible through Jesus who tells us the Holy Spirit is already within us. Practicing mindfulness has helped unravel this buried treasure, by allowing me to let go the layers of notions accumulated through human history, the history of religions. It has become unnecessary to speak of God, indeed the name of God is "unspeakable".

Strangely, YHWH, the Hebrew proper name for God, is also known as the Breath of Life. Try pronouncing it purely without any vowels ... 

Breathing in, I know I am breathing in.
Breathing out, I know I am breathing out.

Breathing in, I see myself as a flower.
Breathing out, I feel fresh.

Breathing in, I see myself as a mountain
Breathing out, I feel solid.

Breathing in, I feel myself as still water.
Breathing out, I reflect things as they are.

Breathing in, I see myself as space.
Breathing out, I feel free.

Breathing in, I know that I am breathing in.
Breathing out, I know that I am breathing out.

As my in-breath grows deep,
My out breath grows slow.

Breathing in makes me calm.
Breathing out brings me ease.

With the in-breath, I smile,
With the out-breath I release.

Dwelling in the present moment,
I know this is a wonderful moment.

Feelings come and go, like clouds in a windy sky
Conscious breathing is my anchor. 

-- Basket of Plums: Songs in the Tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh