Was Jesus Influenced By Buddhism?

Buddhism began and flourished half a millennium before Jesus was ever born. Five hundred years is a long time for a religion to grow, so Jesus could have easily been influenced by Buddhist teachings as proposed by this book. There were many years in the life of Jesus that remain unaccounted for. Goddard reveals evidence that the Essenes, of whom Jesus had contact with and may have been a member himself, had strong Buddhist influences. This book reveals, surprisingly at times, that the parallels between Jesus and the Buddha are more than just coincidence.