Self and No-Self

Comparing the Bible's putting off the old self with Buddhism's no-self (無我, anatta). Exploring both traditions' fundamental reflections on the self and the path of transformation.

The True Self

Bible

Χριστῷ συνεσταύρωμαι· ζῶ δὲ οὐκέτι ἐγώ, ζῇ δὲ ἐν ἐμοὶ Χριστός· ὃ δὲ νῦν ζῶ ἐν σαρκί, ἐν πίστει ζῶ τῇ τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ ἀγαπήσαντός με καὶ παραδόντος ἑαυτὸν ὑπὲρ ἐμοῦ

“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Sutra

自己為自依，他人何可依，自己善調御，證難得所依

“Make yourself your own refuge. How can another be your refuge? One who has well tamed oneself will attain a refuge that is difficult to find.”

Comparison

Paul's 'not I but Christ lives' and the Dhammapada's 'make yourself your own refuge' may seem opposed at first glance, but they meet at a deeper level. The 'I' Paul negates is the old self governed by sin; the 'self' the Dhammapada establishes is the self tamed through practice. Both traditions problematize the worldly self accepted uncritically, and both present a path — discovering the true self through transformation and practice, or gaining a new identity in Christ.

The Illusion of the Self

Bible

ὃς γὰρ ἐὰν θέλῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ σῴζειν ἀπολέσει αὐτήν· ὃς δ' ἂν ἀπολέσῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ ἕνεκεν ἐμοῦ εὑρήσει αὐτήν

“For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”

Sutra

若菩薩有我相、人相、衆生相、壽者相，即非菩薩

“If a bodhisattva has the mark of self, the mark of other, the mark of sentient beings, or the mark of a life span, he is not a bodhisattva.”

Comparison

Jesus' paradox 'one must lose life to find it' and the Diamond Sutra's declaration 'if there is the mark of self, one is not a bodhisattva' both commonly point out that attachment to the self is the greatest obstacle to spiritual growth. In Christianity, letting go of self is in order to discover the true self in Christ; in Buddhism, releasing the mark of self is in order to become a being of infinite compassion within the wisdom of emptiness. Both traditions teach that grasping the self paradoxically causes one to lose it.

The New Being

Bible

ἀποθέσθαι ὑμᾶς κατὰ τὴν προτέραν ἀναστροφὴν τὸν παλαιὸν ἄνθρωπον τὸν φθειρόμενον κατὰ τὰς ἐπιθυμίας τῆς ἀπάτης, ἀνανεοῦσθαι δὲ τῷ πνεύματι τοῦ νοὸς ὑμῶν, καὶ ἐνδύσασθαι τὸν καινὸν ἄνθρωπον τὸν κατὰ θεὸν κτισθέντα ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ καὶ ὁσιότητι τῆς ἀληθείας

“Put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.”

Sutra

照見五蘊皆空，度一切苦厄

“He perceived that all five aggregates are empty, and was saved from all suffering and distress.”

Comparison

Ephesians' 'put off the old self and put on the new self' and the Heart Sutra's 'perceive that all five aggregates are empty' both speak of a transition that transcends the present self. In Christianity, this transition is being newly created in the image of God; in Buddhism, this transition is being freed from attachment by perceiving the emptiness of the self's nature. Christianity emphasizes the 'putting on (creation)' of the new self; Buddhism emphasizes the 'perceiving (insight)' of the fixed self. Yet both traditions refuse to remain in the self prior to transformation.