Find Your Self – Kill the Imposter
Ego Death and the Way of Two Immortal Masters
The concept of “ego death” has gained the attention of a relatively recent East-meets-West brand of spirituality in Western culture. Authors’ views on the subject are varied but they typically attribute the concept to Eastern religions, Buddhism and Hinduism primarily (Rindfleish). In the current religious atmosphere, this may be true; however, in a different context, Christianity reflects an equal amount of elements that signify ego death. The elements can be found in the teachings of Jesus and in other supporting scriptures that expound upon his teachings and discuss the early church. In this same context, Hinduism at the time of Buddha did not support the concept of ego death, and its current presence is a more recent addition.
Some scholars would point out that any two religions could be shown as similar; one only needs to choose a position of interpretation among the many positions of each (Eckel 43). I agree, and yet, teasing meanings out of texts in order for them to fit current ideologies and agendas is business as usual for most scholars and religious leaders alike. It is only when others with opposing views do it that they point it out. Let me be clear in saying that I am no different; my purpose, however, is not to lay claim to a truth but only offer a possibility of a truth that is as equally valid as any that would oppose it. The importance of viewing Christianity and Buddhism in this context is not only to show the similarities these two religions share at their core but primarily to give a richer interpretation of ego death and the resulting implications of its philosophy.
Upon first inspection it would appear that the teachings of Jesus and Buddha are fundamentally different. Buddha taught a doctrine of no-self, or no eternal self, and Jesus spoke of eternal life (Eckel 43-44). Buddha preached that liberation from suffering can only be achieved by one’s own means without the help of friend or deity, and Christians teach salvation can only come from a savior (Eckel 44). I disagree with these arguments but will return to it later. First, one has to consider the audience. Jesus and Buddha spoke in terms that were relevant to the people they were addressing; people who spoke different languages, had different customs, and radically different religious backgrounds – Judaic and Hindu, respectively (Amore 41-42). It was their own religious backgrounds that offered the largest hurdles when teaching their doctrines; and, at the same time, controlled how they would have to shape their teachings in order to construct a model of ego death that was ascertainable to their current and prospective followers.
Buddha was confronted with a tradition rich in metaphysical philosophy and ritual (Appleton 28). One story tells of a man concerned with the nature of his soul. He asked Buddha whether his soul was permanent or impermanent, along with other questions of a similarly difficult nature. Buddha compared him to a man who has been shot with an arrow but wishes to know who shot it before he will allow the surgeon to remove it and relieve his suffering. Jesus was constantly confronted with the legalistic nature of Judaism. When he healed a man on the Sabbath he was criticized by the religious leaders for not following the law. He pointed out the illogical nature of their criticism by making reference to an analogy of an ox that has fallen into a ditch on the Sabbath and must be relieved of its suffering immediately, regardless of the law.
Both were confronted with a “slavish adherence to authority and tradition” that in the context of Hinduism “had justified and perpetuated the privilege and dominance of the ruling Brahman class” and in the context of Judaism had elevated the priestly classes of the Sadducees and Pharisees (Rubin 16). The result was a “sterile substitute for authentic religious experience” that neither Jesus nor Buddha agreed with (Rubin 16). Buddha approached religion in a therapeutic and practical way (Rubin 16). Jesus, in the eyes of Paul, showed that followers did not have to be bound by the laws of Judaism; they could follow the “lead of the spirit of God.” (Molloy 364)
What is garnered from these comparisons is that Jesus is often many things to many people (Gilkey 193). No less can be said of Buddhism. Buddhist teachings give multiple views, sometimes contradictory (Gomez 144). Nonetheless, according to the 14th Dalai Lama, ‘when we speak of religion we need not refer to deeper philosophical issues. Compassion is the real essence of religion.’ (Lopez 215) It is from this spirit of universal love, taught by both Jesus and Buddha, that I will hinge the concept of ego death (Molloy 357-358).
A transcendence of ego, however, cannot be understood or experienced without first defining it (Ulanov 124). The core idea is that there is a Self (a true nature) and there is an ego (an illusory self). We are born only with a Self and a potential ego. The Self is more than the sum of our experiences; it is made up of something inherited as well, something “transpersonal” (Edinger 3). The Self is the part where God and man meet, the totality prior to ego, a necessary paradox (Edinger 3-5). The ego, on the other hand, evolves. It is made by the Self; it is the creation, not the creator. As man is created in the image of God, so ego is created in the image of Self (Edinger 38).
Ego manifests itself in conscious thought. It is “the ‘you’ that you usually think you are.” (Gunaratana 30) The “ego is nothing more than a set of reactions and mental images that are artificially pasted to the flowing process of pure awareness.” (Gunaratana 30) Pure awareness is realized by destroying ego (Gunaratana 31). According to Theravada Buddhism, pure awareness is achieved through vipassana meditation. Over time, the practitioner can discern true reality. They realize the self they believed was real is only a mental construct, not an eternal being (Gunaratana 37). Once they see through this illusion of self, they are no longer controlled by it (Gunaratana 38). This is the no-self taught by Buddha.
The ego may not be Self, and in theory does not exist in reality; nevertheless, it can sometimes inflate to the point that it makes itself larger than Self (Edinger 7). Inflation of the ego equals sin in Christianity. The beatitudes, for example, illustrate the importance of the non-inflated ego (Edinger 34). Saint Augustine relates the concept of sin to aspirations of deification (Edinger 34). He says, “Grief pines away at the loss of things in which the desire delighted; this is because it would like nothing to be taken away, just as nothing can be taken away from you (God).” (Saint Augustine 34) Augustine is pointing out that the cause of grief, or suffering, is the result of a desire for permanence, a permanence that can only be experienced by an eternal God (Edinger 34). Relate this to the teaching of Buddha that says there is no eternal self, and that suffering comes from the belief in a permanent self. Desiring a permanent self is then equivalent to inflating the ego to God-size proportions (Edinger 34-35). Augustine says, “So all men who put themselves far from you (God) and set themselves up against you (God) are in fact attempting awkwardly to be like you (God).” (Saint Augustine 34)
The ego then is not only something to be aware of but something which one must deflate. The demands of the ego-reality – security, achievements, etc. – can utterly dominate an individual (Ulanov 125). But a natural cycle of inflation then deflation occurs without awareness. Deflation can mirror death. “In disappointments we come close to the experience of death, the non-recognition of our ego; yet we do not actually die but learn that real death does not destroy us.” (Grote) The cycle of ego inflation then deflation bears a resemblance to the philosophy of birth and re-birth in Buddhism (Edinger 41-42). “Once the ego has reached a certain level of development, it does not have to continue this repetitious cycle, at least not in the same way. The cycle is then replaced by a more or less conscious dialogue between ego and Self.” (Edinger 42) It is not unlike enlightenment in Buddhism where an individual is liberated from the cycle of re-birth.
Buddha taught “the idea of self is an imaginary, false belief which has no corresponding reality, and it produces harmful thoughts of ‘me’ and ‘mine’, selfish desire, craving, attachment, hatred, ill-will, conceit, pride, egoism…” (Appleton 55-56) On the other hand, Jesus did not teach no-self or ego death explicitly. He did, however, make statements such as the kingdom of God is within, alluding to a higher or truer reality (Appleton 43). He also made other statements that have a “no-self” ring to them; for example – the most powerful is powerless, self-realization comes from self-denial, to be free you must be a slave, to find life you must lose it (Lopez 10). To Nicodemus, he said that a person must be born again if he wants to see or enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Until this death of the old self and birth of the new takes place, a man cannot experience his true nature (Appleton 85). Jesus expresses this sentiment again when he says, ‘If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.’ (Appleton 69) To experience Self, you must destroy the self.
This “self-destruction” is not a literal self-abuse or self-defilement. It does not consist of asceticism, self-mortification, over-indulgence or abuse of intoxicants. The primary tool of ego killing is love. Buddha taught that you must rid yourself of all “hatred, resentment, or even anger.” (Amore 61) To even judge someone as having done a wrong to you shows your mind is setting itself up to hate. Hatred, Buddha said, only ceases with love (Amore 61). Likewise, Jesus said, ‘But I say unto you that hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you…’ (Amore 62)
The connection between love and ego death is an elusive but simple one. Seeing through ego requires pure awareness. In order to mobilize pure awareness, ego cannot be in charge. That is why it is important to weaken ego from the start by attacking its primary operating systems – hatred and greed. This is accomplished by canceling them with their opposites – love and charity (Gunaratana 89-90). The reason it is necessary to love one’s enemies and wish good things for them is that hate, even when justified, clouds the mind and poisons the body (Gunaratana 94-95). Enemies in this sense are valued. In spite of their intentions, they are useful in that they teach tolerance and patience, traits necessary for yet another aspect of ego death – pure mind (Gyatso 223).
Jesus and Buddha both called for a mind so composed that it did not anger (Amore 63). Both taught using a parable of a well-built house not affected by outside forces. In this way there is no “breaking in of anger, violence, lust, slander, evil-doing, or other manifestations of spiritual darkness.” (Amore 80) This same mind is content with whatever happens. Jesus said to not be anxious about what you will eat or wear; both Jesus and Buddha said to look to the birds in the air and study their lack of concern (Amore 68). An anxious person is “attached.” Birds are free.
Freedom from a life of discontent, filled with suffering, is achieved through enlightenment — a “permanent transformation of consciousness.” (Rubin 84) Enlightenment “promises to eliminate the egoism, desire, and fear that most people feel mired in.” (Rubin 85) It is accomplished through meditation (Rubin 85). Though Jesus never explicitly mentions meditation, meditation is not limited in practice to Buddhism. One form of meditation used by some Christians has been around since the time of the Apostles; it is called centering prayer. According to modern day practitioners, ‘…it’s like taking a vacation from the false self.’ (Molloy 428) A recent study of vipassana meditation (primarily practiced by Theravada Buddhist) showed it is a viable tool for deconstructing the ego. The results demonstrated that “self-centered cravings are relinquished … efforts to correct personal shortcomings were enhanced and self-criticism decreased.” The psychological changes were “similar to those reported following conversion or involvement in theistic religions.” (Emavarahana)
This is not to say that Jesus and Buddha were mere psychologist or that ego is only determined within the context of the self; society plays a part, and Buddha and Jesus realized a religious support system was necessary. For Christians it is the church, for Buddhist it is the Sangha. The principle function of all religious communities (excluding those of a corrupted nature) is to “keep the individual (ego) related to the deity (Self),” and it is the “best collective protection available against both inflation and alienation.” (Edinger 64) Every society has had some type of religious system in place to provide for these needs and it is unlikely one could survive without it (Edinger 64). When these systems are not in place “the ego is likely to think of itself as everything or as nothing.” (Edinger 64) It will then focus its energy into other aspects of life or other institutions, such as career, politics, or social movements. The results are racism, Nazism, communism and workaholic-consumerism (Edinger 64-65). These outlets become charged with religious meaning (Edinger 65).
While religious institutions were in place during the time of Jesus and Buddha, they failed to provide a balance between ego and Self. The existing religions were overcome with ego inflation. The symptoms expressed themselves in the form of legalism in the Judaic faith, with Sadducees to preside over the people; and the caste system in the Hindu faith, with Brahmin priest to preside over them. The two Masters provided what the religious institutions of their day had not; a personal relationship with Self (God), and a community to support it (Edinger 65).
The role of a religious community cannot be underestimated in regards to ego death. Ego-Self interaction, in reality, would be better represented as ego-Self-others. ‘The ego is your self-image; it is your social mask; it is the role you are playing. Your social mask thrives on approval. It wants control, and it is sustained by power, because it lives in fear.’ (Rindfleish 70) It is a “…fragile and dependent presence, dependent on the approval of others.” It is precisely those “others” that one surrounds him/herself with that can affect whether an ego is inflated, deflated, destroyed or centered. Consider our own society as an example. Conduct is guided by “individualistic and … self-centered needs and attitudes” which has led to “self-absorption and a sense of personal alienation” (Rubin 28); alienation that is caused not by suffering but by the act of trying to eliminate or ignore suffering. The suffering has to be felt first and made real before it can be healed (Ulanov 128-129). One must come to know their Self before he or she can know the divine. In the words of Buddha and Saint Paul, you must ‘work out your own salvation…’ (Appleton 37)
Some scholars would point out that any two religions could be shown as similar; one only needs to choose a position of interpretation among the many positions of each (Eckel 43). I agree, and yet, teasing meanings out of texts in order for them to fit current ideologies and agendas is business as usual for most scholars and religious leaders alike. It is only when others with opposing views do it that they point it out. Let me be clear in saying that I am no different; my purpose, however, is not to lay claim to a truth but only offer a possibility of a truth that is as equally valid as any that would oppose it. The importance of viewing Christianity and Buddhism in this context is not only to show the similarities these two religions share at their core but primarily to give a richer interpretation of ego death and the resulting implications of its philosophy.
Upon first inspection it would appear that the teachings of Jesus and Buddha are fundamentally different. Buddha taught a doctrine of no-self, or no eternal self, and Jesus spoke of eternal life (Eckel 43-44). Buddha preached that liberation from suffering can only be achieved by one’s own means without the help of friend or deity, and Christians teach salvation can only come from a savior (Eckel 44). I disagree with these arguments but will return to it later. First, one has to consider the audience. Jesus and Buddha spoke in terms that were relevant to the people they were addressing; people who spoke different languages, had different customs, and radically different religious backgrounds – Judaic and Hindu, respectively (Amore 41-42). It was their own religious backgrounds that offered the largest hurdles when teaching their doctrines; and, at the same time, controlled how they would have to shape their teachings in order to construct a model of ego death that was ascertainable to their current and prospective followers.
Buddha was confronted with a tradition rich in metaphysical philosophy and ritual (Appleton 28). One story tells of a man concerned with the nature of his soul. He asked Buddha whether his soul was permanent or impermanent, along with other questions of a similarly difficult nature. Buddha compared him to a man who has been shot with an arrow but wishes to know who shot it before he will allow the surgeon to remove it and relieve his suffering. Jesus was constantly confronted with the legalistic nature of Judaism. When he healed a man on the Sabbath he was criticized by the religious leaders for not following the law. He pointed out the illogical nature of their criticism by making reference to an analogy of an ox that has fallen into a ditch on the Sabbath and must be relieved of its suffering immediately, regardless of the law.
Both were confronted with a “slavish adherence to authority and tradition” that in the context of Hinduism “had justified and perpetuated the privilege and dominance of the ruling Brahman class” and in the context of Judaism had elevated the priestly classes of the Sadducees and Pharisees (Rubin 16). The result was a “sterile substitute for authentic religious experience” that neither Jesus nor Buddha agreed with (Rubin 16). Buddha approached religion in a therapeutic and practical way (Rubin 16). Jesus, in the eyes of Paul, showed that followers did not have to be bound by the laws of Judaism; they could follow the “lead of the spirit of God.” (Molloy 364)
What is garnered from these comparisons is that Jesus is often many things to many people (Gilkey 193). No less can be said of Buddhism. Buddhist teachings give multiple views, sometimes contradictory (Gomez 144). Nonetheless, according to the 14th Dalai Lama, ‘when we speak of religion we need not refer to deeper philosophical issues. Compassion is the real essence of religion.’ (Lopez 215) It is from this spirit of universal love, taught by both Jesus and Buddha, that I will hinge the concept of ego death (Molloy 357-358).
A transcendence of ego, however, cannot be understood or experienced without first defining it (Ulanov 124). The core idea is that there is a Self (a true nature) and there is an ego (an illusory self). We are born only with a Self and a potential ego. The Self is more than the sum of our experiences; it is made up of something inherited as well, something “transpersonal” (Edinger 3). The Self is the part where God and man meet, the totality prior to ego, a necessary paradox (Edinger 3-5). The ego, on the other hand, evolves. It is made by the Self; it is the creation, not the creator. As man is created in the image of God, so ego is created in the image of Self (Edinger 38).
Ego manifests itself in conscious thought. It is “the ‘you’ that you usually think you are.” (Gunaratana 30) The “ego is nothing more than a set of reactions and mental images that are artificially pasted to the flowing process of pure awareness.” (Gunaratana 30) Pure awareness is realized by destroying ego (Gunaratana 31). According to Theravada Buddhism, pure awareness is achieved through vipassana meditation. Over time, the practitioner can discern true reality. They realize the self they believed was real is only a mental construct, not an eternal being (Gunaratana 37). Once they see through this illusion of self, they are no longer controlled by it (Gunaratana 38). This is the no-self taught by Buddha.
The ego may not be Self, and in theory does not exist in reality; nevertheless, it can sometimes inflate to the point that it makes itself larger than Self (Edinger 7). Inflation of the ego equals sin in Christianity. The beatitudes, for example, illustrate the importance of the non-inflated ego (Edinger 34). Saint Augustine relates the concept of sin to aspirations of deification (Edinger 34). He says, “Grief pines away at the loss of things in which the desire delighted; this is because it would like nothing to be taken away, just as nothing can be taken away from you (God).” (Saint Augustine 34) Augustine is pointing out that the cause of grief, or suffering, is the result of a desire for permanence, a permanence that can only be experienced by an eternal God (Edinger 34). Relate this to the teaching of Buddha that says there is no eternal self, and that suffering comes from the belief in a permanent self. Desiring a permanent self is then equivalent to inflating the ego to God-size proportions (Edinger 34-35). Augustine says, “So all men who put themselves far from you (God) and set themselves up against you (God) are in fact attempting awkwardly to be like you (God).” (Saint Augustine 34)
The ego then is not only something to be aware of but something which one must deflate. The demands of the ego-reality – security, achievements, etc. – can utterly dominate an individual (Ulanov 125). But a natural cycle of inflation then deflation occurs without awareness. Deflation can mirror death. “In disappointments we come close to the experience of death, the non-recognition of our ego; yet we do not actually die but learn that real death does not destroy us.” (Grote) The cycle of ego inflation then deflation bears a resemblance to the philosophy of birth and re-birth in Buddhism (Edinger 41-42). “Once the ego has reached a certain level of development, it does not have to continue this repetitious cycle, at least not in the same way. The cycle is then replaced by a more or less conscious dialogue between ego and Self.” (Edinger 42) It is not unlike enlightenment in Buddhism where an individual is liberated from the cycle of re-birth.
Buddha taught “the idea of self is an imaginary, false belief which has no corresponding reality, and it produces harmful thoughts of ‘me’ and ‘mine’, selfish desire, craving, attachment, hatred, ill-will, conceit, pride, egoism…” (Appleton 55-56) On the other hand, Jesus did not teach no-self or ego death explicitly. He did, however, make statements such as the kingdom of God is within, alluding to a higher or truer reality (Appleton 43). He also made other statements that have a “no-self” ring to them; for example – the most powerful is powerless, self-realization comes from self-denial, to be free you must be a slave, to find life you must lose it (Lopez 10). To Nicodemus, he said that a person must be born again if he wants to see or enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Until this death of the old self and birth of the new takes place, a man cannot experience his true nature (Appleton 85). Jesus expresses this sentiment again when he says, ‘If any man would come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.’ (Appleton 69) To experience Self, you must destroy the self.
This “self-destruction” is not a literal self-abuse or self-defilement. It does not consist of asceticism, self-mortification, over-indulgence or abuse of intoxicants. The primary tool of ego killing is love. Buddha taught that you must rid yourself of all “hatred, resentment, or even anger.” (Amore 61) To even judge someone as having done a wrong to you shows your mind is setting itself up to hate. Hatred, Buddha said, only ceases with love (Amore 61). Likewise, Jesus said, ‘But I say unto you that hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you…’ (Amore 62)
The connection between love and ego death is an elusive but simple one. Seeing through ego requires pure awareness. In order to mobilize pure awareness, ego cannot be in charge. That is why it is important to weaken ego from the start by attacking its primary operating systems – hatred and greed. This is accomplished by canceling them with their opposites – love and charity (Gunaratana 89-90). The reason it is necessary to love one’s enemies and wish good things for them is that hate, even when justified, clouds the mind and poisons the body (Gunaratana 94-95). Enemies in this sense are valued. In spite of their intentions, they are useful in that they teach tolerance and patience, traits necessary for yet another aspect of ego death – pure mind (Gyatso 223).
Jesus and Buddha both called for a mind so composed that it did not anger (Amore 63). Both taught using a parable of a well-built house not affected by outside forces. In this way there is no “breaking in of anger, violence, lust, slander, evil-doing, or other manifestations of spiritual darkness.” (Amore 80) This same mind is content with whatever happens. Jesus said to not be anxious about what you will eat or wear; both Jesus and Buddha said to look to the birds in the air and study their lack of concern (Amore 68). An anxious person is “attached.” Birds are free.
Freedom from a life of discontent, filled with suffering, is achieved through enlightenment — a “permanent transformation of consciousness.” (Rubin 84) Enlightenment “promises to eliminate the egoism, desire, and fear that most people feel mired in.” (Rubin 85) It is accomplished through meditation (Rubin 85). Though Jesus never explicitly mentions meditation, meditation is not limited in practice to Buddhism. One form of meditation used by some Christians has been around since the time of the Apostles; it is called centering prayer. According to modern day practitioners, ‘…it’s like taking a vacation from the false self.’ (Molloy 428) A recent study of vipassana meditation (primarily practiced by Theravada Buddhist) showed it is a viable tool for deconstructing the ego. The results demonstrated that “self-centered cravings are relinquished … efforts to correct personal shortcomings were enhanced and self-criticism decreased.” The psychological changes were “similar to those reported following conversion or involvement in theistic religions.” (Emavarahana)
This is not to say that Jesus and Buddha were mere psychologist or that ego is only determined within the context of the self; society plays a part, and Buddha and Jesus realized a religious support system was necessary. For Christians it is the church, for Buddhist it is the Sangha. The principle function of all religious communities (excluding those of a corrupted nature) is to “keep the individual (ego) related to the deity (Self),” and it is the “best collective protection available against both inflation and alienation.” (Edinger 64) Every society has had some type of religious system in place to provide for these needs and it is unlikely one could survive without it (Edinger 64). When these systems are not in place “the ego is likely to think of itself as everything or as nothing.” (Edinger 64) It will then focus its energy into other aspects of life or other institutions, such as career, politics, or social movements. The results are racism, Nazism, communism and workaholic-consumerism (Edinger 64-65). These outlets become charged with religious meaning (Edinger 65).
While religious institutions were in place during the time of Jesus and Buddha, they failed to provide a balance between ego and Self. The existing religions were overcome with ego inflation. The symptoms expressed themselves in the form of legalism in the Judaic faith, with Sadducees to preside over the people; and the caste system in the Hindu faith, with Brahmin priest to preside over them. The two Masters provided what the religious institutions of their day had not; a personal relationship with Self (God), and a community to support it (Edinger 65).
The role of a religious community cannot be underestimated in regards to ego death. Ego-Self interaction, in reality, would be better represented as ego-Self-others. ‘The ego is your self-image; it is your social mask; it is the role you are playing. Your social mask thrives on approval. It wants control, and it is sustained by power, because it lives in fear.’ (Rindfleish 70) It is a “…fragile and dependent presence, dependent on the approval of others.” It is precisely those “others” that one surrounds him/herself with that can affect whether an ego is inflated, deflated, destroyed or centered. Consider our own society as an example. Conduct is guided by “individualistic and … self-centered needs and attitudes” which has led to “self-absorption and a sense of personal alienation” (Rubin 28); alienation that is caused not by suffering but by the act of trying to eliminate or ignore suffering. The suffering has to be felt first and made real before it can be healed (Ulanov 128-129). One must come to know their Self before he or she can know the divine. In the words of Buddha and Saint Paul, you must ‘work out your own salvation…’ (Appleton 37)
Works Cited
Amore, Roy C. Two Masters, One Message. Nashville: Parthenon Press, 1978.
Appleton, George. On the Eightfold Path: Christian Presence Amid Buddhism. New
York: Oxford UP, 1961.
Eckel, Malcom David. “Perspectives on the Buddhist-Christian Dialogue.” Lopez and
Rockefeller 43-62.
Edinger, Edward F. The Ego and Archetype: Individuation and the Religious Function
of the Psyche. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1972.
Emavardhana, Tipawadee, and Christopher D. Tori.. "Changes in Self-Concept, Ego Defense Mechanism, and Religiosity Following Seven-day Vipassana Meditation Retreats." Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 36.2 (June 1997): 194. Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection. EBSCO. Lander University, Greenwood, SC. 20 Oct. 2008 <http://0-search.ebscohost.com.library.lander.edu:80/login.aspx?direct=true&db=pbh&AN=9709173213&site=ehost-live>.
Gilkey, Langdon. “The Meaning of Jesus the Christ.” Lopez and Rockefeller 193-207.
Gomez, Luis O. “From the Extraordinary to the Ordinary: Images of the Bodhisattva in
East Asia.” Lopez and Rockefeller 141-191.
Grote, James. “Death and the Heresy of Success.” Spirituality Today. Vol. 37. (Spring
1985): 27-32. 21 Nov. 2008 <http://www.spiritualitytoday.org/spir2day/85371
3grote.html>
Gunaratana, Bhante Henepola. Mindfulness in Plain English. Boston: Wisdom
Publications, 2002.
Gyatso, Tenzin His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama. “The Practices of Bodhisattvas.”
Trans. Jeffrey Hopkins. Lopez and Rockefeller 217-227.
Lopez, Donald S. Jr. , and Steven S. Rockefeller, eds. The Christ and The Bodhisattva.
New York: State University of NY Press , 1987.
Lopez, Donald S. Jr. “The Dalai Lama of Tibet.” Lopez and Rockefeller 209-216.
Molloy, Michael. Experiencing the World’s Religions: Tradition, Challenge, and Change.
4th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2008.
Rindfleish, Jennifer. "THE “DEATH OF THE EGO” IN EAST-MEETS-WEST
SPIRITUALITY: DIVERSE VIEWS FROM PROMINENT AUTHORS." Zygon: Journal of Religion & Science 42.1 (Mar. 2007): 65-76. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Lander University, Greenwood, SC. 4 Nov. 2008 <http://0-search.ebscohost.com.library.lander.edu/login.aspx?
direct=true&db=aph&AN=24165513&site=ehost-live>.
Rubin, Jeffrey B. Psychotherapy and Buddhism: Toward an Integration. New York:
Plenum Press, 1996.
Saint Augustine. The Confessions of Saint Augustine. Trans. Rex Warner. New York:
Penguin Group, 1963.
Ulanov, Ann Belford. “The God You Touch.” Lopez and Rockefeller 117-139.
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