Curious Christian

I finally finished reading the Dhammapada this evening, and to be honest, I wasn’t overly impressed. It felt repetitive—mostly variations of “do bad and you’ll be damned, do good and you’ll be blessed.” In some ways, it reminded me of the Book of Proverbs, but without the essential grace that runs through Christian scripture. Compared to something like Nāgārjuna’s Mūlamadhyamakakārikā, it didn’t quite hold my interest.

Reflecting on this, I realize it says something interesting about myself. Even though I embraced Christianity some time ago, I still find Zen deeply fascinating. And I have to wonder how much of that is due to its Taoist influences rather than its Buddhist roots. I’m consistently drawn to the works of Lao Tzu, Chuang Tzu, and Sun Tzu—their playfulness and paradoxes keep me engaged. But my eyes tend to glaze over with certain Mahayana texts, and even more so with Theravada writings. They just don’t have that same spark of playful, mind-bending wisdom.

I suppose that’s why teachings that challenge and unsettle me resonate the most. It’s why I’m drawn to Jesus as well. His words, like those found in Taoist philosophy, disrupt easy thinking and open up new, unexpected ways of seeing the world.