Enlightenment as Sanctification
In an article called “The Lotus and the Cross”, my friend Jon explores Buddhist and Christian parallels. It is a really great article, and I would check it out if I were you. In it, he states that salvation in Christianity is paralleled to enlightenment/awakening in Buddhism. It just so happens that I have been thinking about this a lot recently, and wanted to see what other people thought about this idea.
I can see this in some ways, but I am not sure I totally agree with this. In my mind, I think enlightenment could better be compared to sanctification, the process of becoming holy. Some would argue that when a person is “saved” he or she is also santified instantly. While this is true in some regards, and the saved individual is holy from that point on in God’s eyes, it makes sense to say that, as we are still imperfect and make mistakes we are not truly sanctified at that point.
The concept of enlightenment can furthur explain this. Everyone has the seed of enlightenment in them, but not everyone realizes it. Even those that realize that they do have the seed and cultivate it, still do not fully understand it. When a person fully realizes his or her enlightenment and embraces it fully, they are one with the Buddha inside him or her. When a person is completely sanctified, he or she become s one with the Holy Spirit (God) inside of him or her.
The comparison seems to be accurate furthur still when comparing the two religions historically. In Buddhism, there has been one Buddha in this age. He was the only one who was completely awakened and enlightened. Similarly, in Christianity, Jesus Christ was the only sanctified (some may argue that he was not really sanctified since he was always completely holy, but I do not really care to go into a debate on that topic today) human in this age. There have been many who have been saved, but only one that has been sanctified. There have been many who have realized that they are enlightened, but only one that has been fully enlightened.
I am still thinking this through and would love to hear what other people have to say. Please leave a comment and let me know your take on the topic!
May 3rd, 2006 at 13:52
Bingo! That is something I need to correct. The parallel is with Theosis, the “ultimate salvation,” not salvation in the sense of “justification.”
I need to fix that.
Right away!
May 3rd, 2006 at 13:57
Great! I thought I could just tell you about my thoughts about the parallel, but then I thought that since it has been a topic on my mind lately, I would think it through out loud in the form of a post.
Thanks!