Bow to your brother’s and sister’s
Bow to the homeless
Bow to the sick and mentally ill
Bow to animals and the planet
Bow to your enemies
Bow to the entire cosmos
Bow to your last breathe
And God will bow to you
And fill you with his spirit of love and peace
If we want to be close to God
We must only strive for perfect humility
To me Buddhism is studying how Jesus became Jesus and how we can become like him too through the holy spirit, similar to enlightenment or nirvana in Buddhism. It’s core belief is that we all can awaken and become a Buddha; actually we already are a Buddha but are lost in our attachments to worldly things and are consumed by our fear, greed, and hatred (sin in Christianity).
Buddha just means awakened one, similar to the title Christ in Christianity. We should not be scared of other spiritual traditions but our own fear, hatred and religious dogma that can blind us from seeing the truth and goodness in all religions. Be curious and open minded. This type of mindset is what Jesus and Buddha had in their times. This is not to assimilate or convert but to build brotherhood and sisterhood.
I found Jesus through a Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh who wrote a book called “Living Buddha, Living Christ” that changed my life 10 years ago.
He dedicated a lot of his life trying to bridge the two religions and fostering brotherhood and sisterhood.
The world seems to be upside down but do not be distressed.
True love will always overcome hatred, fear, and violence like water smoothing out sharp rocks.
True love does not shape the world by force but through persistence, compassion, grace, and patience.
The light will always transform darkness.
Love will always transform fear.
Do not let this world drag you into the darkness. Focus on the light within you and be the lighthouse shining into the darkness.
🙏🏻
-Johnny Hoffman
At our core
We are holy
We are divine
We are one with God
One with love
At our core
We are Buddha’s
Born in the image of God
Even the harshest, violent and mean spirited people have love at their core
This is why we love our enemies and pray for them
This is why we turn the other cheek to violence and hatred
This is why we show grace, compassion and unconditional love to those lost in hatred and fear.
Your brother,
Johnny
When you realize that everything is holy
That everyone deep down is divine
You will not steal
You will not lie
You will not cause harm to others
When you realize through meditation that all is born in the image of God, divinity, and love
You will be truly blessed
Many parts of us forget this noble truth and stray us away towards greed, hatred, and fear
Causing much necessary suffering and pain in the world
Jesus & Buddha live with us
They represent the best qualities of humankind
They live within us like a seed that we can water each moment
A source of love within our heart and soul
Mercy and compassion for the sick
Love for those filled with hatred
Peace for those consumed by violence
They show us a way out of suffering and help us enjoy our one precious life
I found Jesus through a Zen Buddhist monk named Thich Nhat Hanh 10 years ago. After a challenging break up, I picked up a book called “No Mud, No Lotus” by Thich Nhat Hanh which led me to reading “Living Buddha, Living Christ” by him as well. This book touched me deeply and changed the trajectory of my life. Thich is one of my most influential Buddhists of the 20th century but also had a picture of Jesus in his meditation and prayer room at his monetary in the south of France, Plum Village. He loved both the Buddha and Jesus with all his heart and wrote another book called “Going Home: Jesus and Buddha are Brothers”. He was heavily influenced by Martin Luther King Jr. in the 1960’s when he toured the United States to try to peacefully end the Vietnam war. Vietnam was Thich’s home country and he was exiled from Vietnam because he wouldn’t choose a side in the war. He firmly was on the side of peace which upset both sides. Thich was almost killed by a bomb in the war and many of his disciples were killed in the war.
Many Christian’s and Buddhists are shocked that I can both be a Buddhist and a Christian. You might call me a Taoist as well or a Sufi Muslim. I’m many things yet none of them define me. To me it is very simple, I follow the path of unconditional love to the best of my abilities. God to me has touched every spiritual man or woman of all spiritual traditions. Some might call this mysterious force that heals us from within as God, Allah, Emptiness or The Dao. Jesus said that “ I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.” John 10:16. This is my spiritual path in one verse. There are many spiritual traditions all around the world hearing the same voice. A voice of unconditional love and compassion for all beings. How do you hear this voice? Be still and open your heart with humility.
In Christianity they speak of the Holy Spirit and how it can transform us. The Holy Spirit is how God touches people deeply and changes their heart from stone to flesh. How he shapes them by love into more and more like Jesus. In Buddhism this is enlightenment and at the deepest level it would be described as Nirvana. When God touches you so deeply that all concepts of greed, hatred and fear dissipate. All suffering dissipates in these moments and you are fully liberated from all notions that enslave you. Only unconditional love is left for all beings and in this moment you feel deeply connected to the entire Universe. In Buddhism, emptiness is how they describe God. God is empty of all notions of greed, hatred, and fear that cause us so much suffering on this planet.
Jesus said in Mark 12:32 “Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.” In my experience, Jesus is saying that those with an open heart will know God no matter what spiritual tradition they follow. A Buddhist with an open heart will know God deeper than a Christian who has a closed heart to love. Even an atheist who follows the spiritual principles of Jesus will know God deeper than an evangelical Christian who has a closed heart.
One of my favorite Zen masters said to never be attached to one religion or philosophy, even Zen. To keep a beginners mind open to all ideas and ready for the infinite possibilities of life. All religious wars began with arrogance that their one spiritual tradition is the only truth while all spiritual teachers emphasize humility and the brotherhood and sisterhood of all beings. Below is a link to the free audio book of “Living Buddha, Living Christ” by Thich Nhat Hanh.
Your brother,
Johnny
If you look for God in the sky above you
You will only dream
If you look for God within your heart and soul
You will awaken and heal from within
The kingdom of God is a seed of unconditional love within you
Water this seed and it will transform you
From fearful to an embodiment of love
From greedy to selflessness
All your worries will vanish
All your suffering will be transformed
Keep looking within yourself each moment of the day
Keep watering this seed of love within your heart and soul till your last breath
With love,
Johnny
No matter how strong the storm is
There is a blue sky above
The sun shining light into the darkness
On the surface of life all we see is suffering but if we look deeper we can see an ultimate dimension
Behind the dark storm of fear, hatred, attachments, and greed
Behind the suffering on the surface
There is a mysterious source of unconditional love
Infinitely compassionate and healing
This mysterious source of unconditional love goes by many names
Some call this God(holy spirit), Buddha nature, or the Dao
Every sage, guru, Buddha or prophet experienced this deeply and helped others so the same
We must develop deep faith is mysterious source of love to keep going on this path
With this faith our fears will vanish and we can help others see the light
This is the way of transformation and healing
This is the path of the peaceful warrior
Surrender everything and you will be liberated
Come Christian, Buddhist, and Muslim
Come atheist and agnostic
Come here
Look within yourself first
There is a jewel within you
A Kingdom of unconditional love
A sanctuary within your own heart
Come dive into the depths of it’s healing water
Bask in it’s unconditional love that transforms us to our core
Abandon everything to this
Abandon all selfishness, hatred, greed and fear
Abandon all your attachments
Letting go can be painful but once we have the courage to abandon ourselves, the light of love brings us everlasting joy
With love,
Johnny
The Narrow Path 