Guru Jesus My Foot 3

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Jesus Goes for Robbery
Buddhist Teachings

Jesus Goes for Robbery

"To read and not to understand is to pursue and not take (German)." Wise hints can be got from relevant quotes that are carefully arrayed.

AN AWAKENING:
"Jesus goes for robbery and slavery!"

The better part of "Ali Baba and the Forty Robbers" is told first. The story takes slavery for granted, and so does the Bible, both the Old and New Testament. Good evidence is shown, along with the quotation where Jesus goes for robbery, which consists of violence and theft, suppressions of others and inflicting harm and sufferings on them, as on many slaves. Jesus did not bring slavery to a stop, and Paul advocated it. God the father instituted it - see? In contrast there are better teachings, and we highlight a few. First a slavery tale from Arabian Nights.

Ali Baba and His Woman Slave

LONG AGO there lived two brothers in a certain town in Persia. One was called Kasim and the other Ali Baba. After their father died, they divided the little wealth he left and lost no time in wasting and spending it.
Then the elder got himself a wife who was the daughter of a wealthy merchant. When his father-in-law died, he became owner of a large shop of rare goods and costly wares, and of a storehouse stocked with precious stuffs. He also inherited much gold that was buried underground ground. From now on he was known in the city as a man of worth and influence.
But the woman that Ali Baba wed, was poor and needy. Therefore Ali Baba eked out a scanty livelihood by selling fuel that he collected in the forest every day and carried to the bazaar in town on his three donkeys.
One day that Ali Baba had cut enough dead branches and dry fuel for his need, and had placed the load on his donkeys, he suddenly he became aware of a dust cloud. It rose high into the air to his right and moved rapidly toward him. He saw it stemmed from many horsemen that came towards the area wher he was. The sight made him much alarmed, for he feared they were robbers. If they were, they were likely to kill him and take his donkeys. He was so scared he began to run. But they were too near now, he could not get out of the forest for them. So he drove his animals with the fuel on their backs into bushes a little off from there, and found a good, stout tree to climb for himself. There he hid like a man. He sat on a branch whence he could see nearly everything beneath him, but he himself would not be seen. The branch he sat on, loomed over a giant rock wall.
Now all the forty men came close up to the rock face. He could see all were young, active, and doughty riders, and they were forty. All dismountedm so Ali Baba got a chance to take a good look at them. He was soon convinced by how they looked and behaved that they were a troop of bandits that had attacked a caravan and carried off the booty to this place. They had in mind to hide it safely somewhere around, he could guess. Ali Baba saw each robber unbridle his horse and hobble it. He also saw their saddlebags proved to he full of gold and silver.
The leader of the flock pushed forward through thorns and thickets with a load on shoulder till he came up to the giant rock. There he spoke:
"Open, Sesame."
All of a sudden a doorway opened in the face of the rock. The robbers went in. Then the portal shut of itself. They were in there for a long time, while Ali Baba had to perch on the tree as best he could. He thought about it; if he came down, he could be seized and slayed by the band of bandits if they came out at that moment. At last he decided to mount one of their horses and drive his donkeys homewards but then the rock portal suddenly flew open. The robber chief was first to come out through it. Standing at the entrance he counted his men as they came out, and lastly he said the magical words,
"Shut, Sesame."
At this the door closed of itself. The robbers saddled and bridled their horse and rode off, led by the leader, in the direction they came from. Ali Baba remained still and watched them ride away. He did not want to get down till the gang was out of sight, in case one of them turned around return so that Ali Baba was detected.
As soon has he had found his way down, Ali Baba thought to himself:
"I too will try the magical trick." He called out aloud, "Open, Sesame." At once the portal flew open and he entered it. He saw a large cave. Inside it was lighted up with light from air holes and bull's-eyes in the upper surface of the rock - its roof. He had expected to find nothing but gloom in the robbers' den, so he was surprised when he found the whole room was filled with bales of all sort of stuffs. It was heaped up from floor to ceiling with camelloads of silks and brocades and embroidered cloths and mounds on mounds of varicolored carpetings.
Besides he saw so many gold coins and silver coins that he could not count them at all. Some were piled on the ground and others were inside leather bags and sacks. When he saw this, Ali Baba concluded that thieves must have stored their gains and spoils for many generations in this place.
He decided to take as many sacks as he his donkeys could carr. He loaded the sacks of his choice on his animals and covered them with sticks and fuel, so none was likely to see the bags but would think he was carrying home such fuel as he usually did.
Lastly he called out, "Shut, Sesame." and the door closed. Now Ali Baba hurried home with his burdened donkeys. There he drove them into the yard and closed the outer door. He first took down the sticks and fuel and after that the bags of gold, which he carried in to his wife. She felt them, and suspected that Ali Baba had become a thief. She blamed him for doing such a bad thing.
Ali Baba calmed her down.
"I'm no robber, and here's our good fortune."

Saved by Morgiana, the Killing Slave Woman

The story could have ended well right here, but Ali Baba had a wife that messed things up.
Ali Baba managed to get rich anyhow, but it was his clever, dancing slave woman Morgiana that saw to it, not he himself or his wife. The couple did not mount up to things when things got really rough, frankly. But Morgiana did. She served her master by killing off 39 robbers in boiling oil, and stabbing the last. Thereby she ensured Ali Baba's gold, silver and future well-being by enjoying unrighteously had riches, robber riches with blood on them.

Standards of Robbery

AWAKENING: "The apostle Paul vouches for slavery!"

Jesus talks in one place of binding the strong one and taking his things. The hard, slave-taking God of the Old Testament got a son via an angel - going against the Mosaic Law. It says unmarried women with illegitimate children must be stoned, or something like that. The illegitimate child grew up to advocate robbery, which is violence and theft. Not all is against the Law of Moses, which Jesus vouches for by "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them [Matthew 5:17]." He definetely bit of more than he could chew there.

Jesus said: "How can anyone enter a strong man's house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can rob his house . . . [Matthew 12;29-30, 33].

Jesus does not tell it is wrong to use force to steal and grab and enrich oneself. Hope that normal guys tell it to you instead. After all stealing is bad and goes against that Law he said he would fulfill, a Law where slavery (bullying) is instituted and regulated [Exodus 21 ff etc].
Slavery was instituted by the Old Testament's God. But there are better options today. By the way, Jesus told someone who called him good, "Why do you call me good?" Considering him good was a miss, then.

"Good teacher," (someone) asked, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" "Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered."No one is good - except God alone. [Mark 10;17-8].

Earlier, proficiency in marauding with slave-taking brought Israelites a long way into the Promised Land. Holocausts were demanded by Jehovah at that time, as seen in the book of Joshua and others.

Joshua subdued the whole region, including the hill country, the Negev, the western foothills and the mountain slopes, together with all their kings. He left no survivors. He totally destroyed all who breathed, just as the Lord, the God of Israel, had commanded . . . All these kings and their lands Joshua conquered in one campaign, because the Lord, the God of Israel, fought for Israel. [Josh 10:40,42].

What an opus. God dropped fighting for them many times later, and decided to have them killed too. How successful was he? That is indeed the question.
Holocausts were admired at that time, and after all the commandment "You shall not kill" was not to benefit non-Jews. The Israelites of holocausts killed minor children and cattle, and destroyed many trees — Yes, there are some we do not like to encounter.

Bible Drudgery and Slavery

Slavery is not banned by Jesus and is okayed by the apostle Paul. Slavery in the Old Testament was instituted by Jehovah [Exodus 21 ff]. Example:

The Law: "If a man beats his male or female slave with a rod . . . he is not to be punished if the slave gets up after a day or two, since the slave is his property. [Exodus 21:20-21]
Jesus: "Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave - [Matt 20:26-27]
The apostle Paul: "Teach slaves to be subject to their masters in everything . . [Titus 2:9]

There is slavery in the Bible before Moses as well. Jesus did not ban slavery, nor did the church till recently.

It isn't the cow that lows the most that will milk the most (German).

Buddhist Food for Thought

Here is an alternative - a resume of another text: [LINK]

1: Power can be built up

Masters and slaves. We live in a world infected by "masters and slaves" and authoritarian humbug and channeling of resources into the hands of the privileged few once again. A tip: see where the money goes; and expect power and prestige to build up there.
Slavery used to be found almost everywhere earlier, as few found slavery to be unnatural or immoral. The marring slave taker may next be loved by his victim. It is one of the defence maneourvres that see to that mistreated dogs lick the feet that kick them, or makes a people hails their nobility while being unaware of severe injustice brought about the kings and nobles in the first place, and their custom-cemented and enforced advantages in an inherited tradition of snobs and boot-lickers and so on. The new and furtive masters do not have nobility titles, but are found in big business and commerce, probably.
Contrary to how much royalty gained power, Gautama Buddha does not advocate stealing and killing and robbery and pain and torture from groaning and suffering. (Nor does he advocate exploitation). He teaches attentiveness and contemplation as parts of the life-style instead, and that much good can be built up in a life by moral living where one abstains from lying; from tale-bearing; and from stealing (etc.).

"As I reveal it to you, so act!" [Buddha, attr.]
"Salvation is not obtained by harshness." [Paul Carus]

2. How to use one's assets and influence

Buddhist monks with honest and pure hearts are not to own male and female slaves. They are to avoid stealing, and abstain from taking what is not given to them, and from adornments and embellishments. They keep aloof from stabbing, beating, chaining, attacking, plundering and oppressing. Much that Buddha set up was largely democratic, his surroundings and tradition were also, and, as you can see, much from the way of life he set up, was far saner than what so much "nobility" has resorted to, while depending in our times on inherited gains and privileges. It is most often that way.
Lay members of Buddhism are to train their own minds and explore the better teachings and explain them in tune with Adi (the first) Buddha's sensible advice. Laying up wealth and funds is OK, Buddha teaches, but such things should be used for better things than empty and vain boasts.
How to control oneself? One is to be strictly honest and earnest in putting a wise teaching into practice. Follow up the five precepts for good behaviour: abstrain from harming any sentient life and stealing; live a pure [and sensible] life, abstaining from lying and deceiving, and from intoxicants. He is to use things basically in their relation to enlightenment and the Dharma; and learn teachings that help happiness and success. There ought to be no room for a life of depraved ceremony-and-party-infested glamour and rigmarole in it.

Literature

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First Page

E-MAIL

Ay: Yogananda, Paramahansa. Autobiography of a Yogi. 1st ed. New York: Theosophical, 1946. Online. [oaks.nvg.org/pv6bk12.html]
Ebu: Encyclopaedia Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica 2006 Ultimate Reference Suite DVD. London: Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2006.
Pa: Yogananda, Paramahansa. Autobiography of a Yogi. 11th ed. Los Angeles: Self-Realization Fellowship, 1971.

NOTE. Parts on the material in part 1 is from Paul Carus. Amitabha. A Story of Buddhist Theology, ch. 8. Chicago: The Open Court Publishing Company, 1906.

And much material in part 2 above is based on Dwight Goddard. The Teaching of Buddha, the Buddhist Bible. (1934). Ch 2, "Lay members".

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