Divine Character Comparison, Essay Example

The two main divine characters of the Bible specifically as it relates to Genesis and the Hindu text of the Bhagavada Gita, are Jesus Christ, the son of God, and Krishna the son of Vishnu. There are actually many similarities between these to divine characters as far as legends goes but when it comes down to narrowing the gap between legend and reality, as Robinson notes in his text, “there are many points of similarities between these two individuals, but most skeptics and religious liberals would rather accept that elements of Krishna’s life were incorporated into the stories associated with Jesus rather than vice-versa (Robinson, p1).” This means that most religious academics and anthropologist are willing to adopt the notion that the authors of The Bible borrowed some characteristics from the divine character of Krishna and applied them to the life of Jesus Christ, but they find it very difficult to believe the opposite.

Many of the similarities between the two texts are directly associated between the two main divine characters Jesus Christ and Krishna. The Bhagavad Gita, otherwise referred to as “Song of God,” is one of the most important Hindu texts.  Krishna is the teacher, or narrator of the Bhagavad Gita. Likewise, the Holy Bible is also recognized as the word of God told through apostles and documented words of the Son of God Jesus Christ. Some of the core similarities include:

(Robinson, p1)

In addition to these key aspects of the two the text, Jesus Christ and Krishna also have many direct similarities when it comes to their births. While many anthropologist have conflicted over the proper documentation of Christ’s existence in regards to his burial or resurrection the following similarities between Christ and Krishna in regards to their time of existence should be taken into account:  Krishna, the second person of the Hindu Trinity, is considered to be one of the incarnations of the God Vishnu. It is believed that he lived on Earth during the 2nd or 3rd century BCE (Robinson, p1). However, Scripture, as well as astrological calculations imply Krishna’s birth was 3228 BCE. Yeshua of Nazareth is recognized as being born in Palestine circa 4 to 7 BCE (Robinson, p1).

Some other similarities between the two texts that the author notes as specific similarities between the two include that Krishna was born while his foster father, who was named Nanda was in the city to pay his taxes, likewise Jesus was born while his foster father Joseph was being enumerated in a census for the world to be taxed. A specific textual example can be seen in the fact that Jesus was noted as saying,  “if you had faith as a mustard seed you would say to the mountain uproot yourself and be cast into the ocean”, like wise Krishna is reported as having uprooted a small mountain (Robinson, p2).

The major contrast between the two works stems from the core value of humility and respect towards one’s fellow man. As noted by the Saint Leo Core Value of Respect: Respect – Animated in the spirit of Jesus Christ, is the value all individuals as well as their talents.” This is very different from some of the themes demonstrated in the Bhagavad Gita , the text which claims to be the living words of god spoke in the same words as Krishna had said in Bhagvat Gita but all acts are he said everything at a once just to convey Arjun to fight against the Kaurvas, this is very different from Lord Jesus Christ who focused on love and forgiveness. In the bible there is an expressed respect for woman, family and household, by God saying that “You shall not commit Adultery,” but the Krinshna was famous for being polygamous. According to scripture of Hindus he had “more than 1000 Gopies,” which shows what was his character. The concept here was that if he was a god then had he had the right to do anything with the women.

In sum, the core difference between the Christian Bible and the Bhagavada Gita can be found in the Christian concept of humility, specifically those tenants that relate to Saint Leo’s Core values of respect for one’s fellow man ad their individuality.  There are moments throughout the Bhagavad Gita where war and vengeance appear to be more important that fairness, virtue or morality. While there are many similarities between the two text of the Bible and the Hindu work, specifically between the two main divine characters of Jesus and Krishna, the obvious difference seem to be shifted more towards some of the western values shared today in society, such as monogamy, respect and altruism.

Work Cited

Robinson, B. A. “Specific Similarities Betweenthe Lives of Jesus and Krishna.” Similarities between Two God-men Saviors: Jesus and Krishna. Consultants on Religious Tolerance, 2007. Web. 13 Aug. 2012. <http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_jckr1.htm>.