Buddhist scriptures have defined the characteristics of Buddhas. We shall consider some of these:-
"It is only a human being"(Warren pp.14-15) that can be a Buddha, "a deity cannot." (Ibid.)
A Buddhist can consider the claims of Mohammed as the Buddha Maitreya, for he was a human being. The Koran, like the Buddhist scriptures, declares that apostles of God, peace be on them all, were human beings:-
"We have not sent (any) before thee (as Our apostles), other than men, unto whom We spake by revelation. Enquire therefore of those who have the custody of scriptures if ye know not (this to be truth)." (XVI. P. 260.)
The Koran very clearly gives out that Mohammed was a human being:-
(1) "Say, Verily I am only a man like unto you." (XLI. P. 463)
(2) "And now is an apostle come unto the (inhabitants of Mecca) from among themselves." (XVI. P. 269)
(3) "Now hath God been gracious unto the believers when He raised up among them an apostle of their own nation." (III.P. 65.)
(4) "Now hath an apostle come unto you of your own nation." (IX. P. 198.)
(5) "It is a strange thing unto the men (of Mecca), that We have revealed (Our will) unto a man from among them." (X. P. 199.)
(6) "Say, Verily I am only a man as ye are." (XVIII. P. 296.)
(7) "Answer, My Lord be praised! Am I other than a man?" (XVII.P.281.)
By same of the Hindus Shankaracharya is not considered a human being on. account of his birth which was without the agency of a male:-
(1) "The writer of Manimanjari states........that a young widow once went to the temple of Siva, along with the girls of her own age. and that, as some among them prayed for children, she also did so, that the Lord granted her request and that she bore Sankara in consequence........." (Sri Shankarcharya by C. N. Krishna Swami Aiyer and S. N. Tattvabhusan. P. 14.)
(2) ".........the wife continued for a long time to serve the Lord of Chidambaram, and that as a reward of her devotion, the Lord was pleased to make her conceive in some mysterious and miraculous manner......" (Ibid. P. 13.)
Jesus, too, is not considered a human being by majority of Christians on account of his birth which was without the agency of a male:-
"Now the birth of Jesus was on this wise: When his mother, Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away, privily. But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee, Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost." (Matt. 1 :18-20.)
A section of the Hindus have deified Shankaracharya:-
"........his followers like those of Jesus Christ, invented the story of his having been born without a human father, in order to establish his divinity on a miraculous basis" (Sankaracharya by S. N. Dutta. pp. 2-3.)
Majority of Christians claim divinity for Jesus. The idea is based on some such passages of the scripture:-
(1) "Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us." (Matt. 1: 23)
(2) "In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, and the Word was God" (John 1:1). By this verse a large number of Christian divines understand that Jesus was, "the very and eternal God." (The four Gospels by W.W. How D.D.)
(3) "I and My Father are one" (John 10:30)
(4) "Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, yet hast thou not known Me, Philip? He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father?" (John. 14: 9)
According to some divines Jesus was acceptd as God by his disciples:-
"Thomas answered and said unto him (Christ),My Lord and my God."(John.20: 28)
Some of the contemporary Jews of Jesus conIdered that Jesus claimed divinity for himself:-
(1) "Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God." (John. 5: 18)
(2) "The Jews answered him (Christ), saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; because thou, being a man, makest thyself God." (John. 10: 33)
The doctors of the Jewish religion declared Jesus "guilty of death"(Matt. 26: 66.) because he claimed divinity for himself. "The divinity of Christ", writes Eadie,(The Bible Ency. P. 135) "is the corner-stone of our faith". "Some in the early ages doubted or denied Christ's humanity." (ibid)
Hence from the Buddhist point of. view neither Jesus nor Shankaracharya can be the Buddha Maitreya, for they were deities, and not human beings. On the other hand, a Buddhist can consider the claim of Mohammed as the Buddha Maitreya, for he was a human being.
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