Jesus In India — Page 104
104 J e s u s i n I n d i a considered superior to woman, so is a monk in the religion of the Buddha considered superior to a nun. The Buddha did, however, believe in the transmigration of souls, but his view of transmigration is not opposed to the teaching of the Gospels. According to the Buddha, transmigration is of three kinds: i. The conduct and courage of a man demands that after death he should be given some kind of a new body. ii. The kind of transmigration, which the Tibetans believe is peculiar to the Lamas. It means that part of the spirit of some Buddha or Buddha Satwas transmigrates into the Lama for the time being which means that his power, temper and spiritual qualities are transferred into the Lama and begin to animate the recipient. iii. That in this very life man goes through different creations until on account of his moral qualities he becomes an authentic human being. But before that a time may come when he is, figuratively speaking, a bull; when he grows in greed and evil, he becomes a veritable dog, the first existence giving place to the next, corresponding to the quality of his actions. All these ‘metamorphoses’, however, take place in this very life. This kind of creed is not opposed to the teaching of the Gospels. I have already stated that the Buddha also believes in the existence of the Devil; he also believes in heaven and hell, in angels and in the Day of Judgment. The charge that the Buddha did not believe in God, is a pure fabrication. However, he did not believe in Vedanta 53 and in the corporeal gods of the Hindus. He was an acute critic of the 53 The Vedic concept and philosophy of the Divine. (Translator)