Asherman wrote:
You ask why there is so many Buddhist schools and sects. Right back at you dude ... why are there so many Christian schools and sects? The reason is, in both cases, that over time followers of the religion come to interpret the fundamental doctrines somewhat differently.
There have been a larger population of people attracted to the Christian Bible, whose writings are still in extent. This is why there is so much more of a drift. But that is exactly that, a drift. There are even Jewish writings that add to the drift, yet the Bible has remained unchanged. A simple reading of it is sometimes all one needs to see the drift.
I also mentioned that some people "study" the word and some just interpret it for their own purposes. This does not change the obvious meaning of the Biblical writings. This study could make someone a bit more knowledgeable about it. The Bible tells us to study it and to "rightly divide" it.
The problem is when people cling to religion or tradition over the written word. It is not a matter of the devil or whatever being... it is a matter of evil attacking that which is holy. The Bible is my personal guide to charity and peace.
I might add that all that Hesse did was compile the major events in Buddha's life and weave them into a novel. The historical story is the same in most Buddha stories. Hesse also got a Nobel Peace Prize for his writings.
It is not like Ben Hur where one vague name in a scripture was made into a an entire purely fictional story.
The story of Siddhartha was for the most part taken from the stories of Buddha.
Have you even read Siddhartha?
I have at least five times it is a beautiful story.
I am aware of what it says and I am also aware of some of the key events in "The Stories of Buddha". He did have a harem at one point... Now I was simply contrasting this to the life of Jesus and you brought up Gnostic texts... that is a typical response from a Buddhist.
Gnosticism is well known to have originated from Buddhism. Buddhism is the only religion of the world that bears resemblance to it. Gnosticism for the most part contradicts the written revelation of the Bible also.
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06592a.htm
I am not a Roman Catholic but I have learned much from their encyclopedia.