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From: kde@heawk1.gsfc.nasa.gov ( Keith Evans)
Newsgroups: soc.religion.eastern
Subject: Re: Questions on Buddhism and Hinduism
Message-ID: <1991Feb2.012649.20319@nas.nasa.gov>
Date: 2 Feb 91 01:26:49 GMT
References: <1991Jan30.005829.590@nas.nasa.gov>
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In <1991Jan30.005829.590@nas.nasa.gov> looi@sutro.SFSU.EDU (Wan W. Looi) writes:

>I came across this article on soc.culture.asean and would like to know
>more about Buddhism and its concept of omipotent/omniscient. Can someone
>help, please?

>>Confucianism is a social philosophy -- there is really no theological content
>>in it.  It is NOT a religion.  While Buddhism is generally classified as a
>>religion, the concept of an omnipotent and omniscient GOD is absent from it.

>Hmm... interesting. Could you (other) explain how Buddhist views Budha ?
>Is he viewed as a prophet ? I'd like to know this.

Buddha (as he himself says) has always been in this world and appeared
as Shakyamuni to make all human beings equal to him. Even though historically
his is the first one to appear, he is only a provisional Buddha because
he did not provide the way to attain Buddhahood, because he knew the
time was not right and that teaching would become lost and/or corrupt
as his teachings are. 

He did make some predictions about the next 2500
years after his death that have come true. One of the predictions was a
Buddha greater than himself would appear in the Latter Day of the Law
in an small country northeast of India (Nichiren Daishonin (1222-1282)


--
   Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.
            Respectfully,
  	         Keith Evans		kde@heawk1.gsfc.nasa.gov