Buddhism?

[Pensive]

Just out of curiousity, is anyone here interested in Buddhism besides me?

My interest is more in Buddhism as a philosophy rather than the more religious aspects that it has taken on in many places (my relationship with religion is on edge these days), but a lot of it seems to make sense philosophically (specifically the idea that the reason people suffer is because they desire things, and that if you get rid of desire you get rid of suffering). Although, my views are probably a lot more liberal and Western than most Buddhists - I'd say eliminating desire in human beings is unrealistic, and it's more likely that if you learn to control what you desire, you can largely eliminate suffering. Anyways, just curious what other people think.

If this thread bothers you in some way, just ignore it. I've got no desire to start an arguement.

[DiamondDog]

yes I'm interested in Buddhism.
Mainly the metaphysics of it and the universe, life, and everything.

I think that Kerouac says it best:


She always asks: "Why are you so sad??- 'Muy dolorosa'" and as though to mean "You are very full of pain, for pain means dolor-"I am sad because all la vida es dolorosa," I keep replying, hoping to teacher her Number One of the Four Great Truths,-Besides what could be truer?[...]

I wish I could communicate to all these creatures and people, in the flush of my moonshine goodtimes, the cloudy mystery of the magic milk to be seen in Mind's Deep Imagery where we learn that everything is nothing-in which case they wouldnt worry anymore, except after the instant they think to worry again-All of us are trembling in our mortality boots, bornt to die, BORN TO DIE I could write it on the wall and on Walls all over America [...]

Living to die, here we wait on this shelf, and up in heaven is all that gold open caramel, ope my door-Diamond Sutra is the sky.

[Huey_durden]

I'm a Buddhist. Jodo Shinshu: pureland. Well the funny thing is that gettign rid of the desires , the way i interpret it, I s getting rid of the desire not the material thing. For instance, someone may overeat because they are covering up their problems with food. The desire may not be food but for a different reason. acceptance from peers, or a recent break up , work, just things that you stress over. BTW the same can go for any vice from beer to cigarettes, to video games.

Even though it does sound similar to controlling the desire it isn't. identifying the cause of the desire and dealing with it so that u can enjoy it without using a semi struggling effort to stop doing certain things each and every time.
:2cents:

[warm heart]

hey hun,

Buddhist thru and thru......no other religion captures me..............buddhist makes the most sense out of every religion....and i have so explored them all


Love, light and kisses
Warm
:bipride:

[smokey]

For a throughly modern (and at the same time throughly traditional) approach to Buddhism I cannot recommend enough the writings of Thich Nhat Hanh... the Vietnamese Buddhist monk (who headed the Buddhist delegation to the Vietnamese peace talks in Paris) that Martin Luther King Jr. nominated for the Nobel Peace prize.

In my humble opinion if there is a living Buddha today it is he.

His writings are readily available and has an extensive catalog.

[elian]

My faith reads more like a recipe than any specific profession of creed or dogma.

As a person growing up questioning my gender I have to admit that I never really felt welcome in conservative faith - it took me a little while to realize that the "problem" I had with mainstream Christianity was that I was jealous of the simplicity of the faith. My feelings seemed rather "complex" and yet here was this faith with a supposedly all-loving God .. all you had to do was live by "his" rules..

Funny thing to be told that humans were made in the image of God, that he loves all of us but "those faggots" are going to burn in hell - it's not something that I could reconcile.

The beauty thing about having to question is that it gave me an open mind - so I started reading books and questioning EVERYTHING .. not necessarily to disprove with malice - but to try and gauge whether the concepts rang true with my personal being.

The Belief-O-Matic rates Mahayana Buddhism as #5 in my top preferences.

http://www.beliefnet.com/story/76/story_7665_1.html

I don't strictly adhere to the tenets of ANY religion - but I encapsulate elements of ALL of them. One of my favorite things to do is listen to people describe what it means personally to them to be a member of X faith.

The big deal for me is that:

a) Faith shared with others should be inclusive - not exclusive - they have "Country Clubs" for people who think they are better than everyone else because they all drive the same car and think the same way.

b) I don't like a great deal of "institutionalized faith" - e.g. .. where there is an extreme discrepancy of perceived power between the clerical staff and the lay-persons. I want to be as close to the spiritual experience as possible. I don't need some guy in silver embroidered robes waving a bunch of incense around speaking from a solid gold podium telling me that Jesus was a poor carpenter. The community makes the church - not just "the minister".

c) Run like hell from any place that says "What you think is wrong, but don't worry - we'll change you". Any place that guilts you into compliance or questions the degree of your faith because you ask simple questions is bad..these are cult tactics.

-E

[littlemissdancer]

i am apparently a unitarian universalist or a liberal quaker. either that or a secular humanist. yay for u u's!

[diamond_tether]

I like Buddhism, it's a good philosophical paradigm to be working with. But, like most faiths its riddled with its issues. Personally, I consider myself a practicing Taoist - but I don't feel that anyone of eastern faith inclinations should disregard the original source of the ideology. I've approached Buddhism and have found the places I like to take it from, but it still feels far too rigid to me for it to ever be my primary faith.

However, I'm most bothered by the fact that as Buddhism has grown over the millenia, it has succumb to the same problems as every spiritual idea - by being turned into Religion (including infighting based on 'demonination', a litany of text that will teach one the 'subtle natures', a laundry list of Gods/Buddhas to memorize, religious practice of the ideology). I'm bothered because Buddha specifically told people not to do that sort of thing with what he had to say. So, the followers really have no excuse for doing it in my opinion. It colors my perceptions and the followers who take it to too much of a religious place. And, since it's existed for so long with a religious bend - I wonder how that's colored its progress through the ages.

The same can be said for Lao Tzu and Taoism, too, but I feel the tempering of Buddhist ideology with Chinese sociological thought helped adjust some of the more esoteric elements of Buddhism into a more clearly grasped/practiced path; essentially, by taking away some of the more rigid definitions/ideologies Buddhism has.

[Dagni]

I hate buddhism and every other religion because it doesn't left enough space for individual expression. I had chance to read a lot about that religion and met some buddhist, a real Asian buddhist and i was mad. I just saw slavery in that religion like in any other religion on this planet.

Every religion is same, it's just a different package of belief.

In opposite, and normal terms, i'm not atheist too. I'm Satanist, on well known Black Metal way and people always get me wrong when i talk about it.
Because Satan is just a symbol and nothing else, it's not ay religion or whatever, it's completely different and individual approach apricienting extreme individuality in person.

I do believe in what Euronymous started back in 1984.

[TaylorMade]

Heh....

I got Conservtive to Mainline Christian/Protestant.

Will I be banned for this?

;)

*Taylor*

[mistymockingbird]

My spirituality is very important to me, always has been. I don't attend church because I have some issues with organized religion generally speaking. I do consider myself to be a Christian but for several years I've been reading and studying other religions. Primarily because I think there is truth outside of the King James Bible and because I think it is healthy and beneficial to question. To seek knowledge. To understand your own belief system. I've felt for a while now that the two biggest influences on my spiritual life were Christianity and Buddhism. May sound like an odd mix to some, but it works for me. I know that I am on a path to enlightenment. A path of growing closer to God. It is a journey that grounds me, keeps me centered, and gives me strength.

That being said, I took the quiz, just for fun. Here's how it came out.
1. Liberal Quakers (100%)
2. Unitarian Universalism (94%)
3. Reform Judaism (91%)
4. Neo-Pagan (85%)
5. Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (84%)

Mahayana Buddhism and Theravada Buddhism popped up lower on the list. So did Taoism, Hindusim, Islam, and New Age.

[darkeyes]

I hate buddhism and every other religion because it doesn't left enough space for individual expression. I had chance to read a lot about that religion and met some buddhist, a real Asian buddhist and i was mad. I just saw slavery in that religion like in any other religion on this planet.

Every religion is same, it's just a different package of belief.

In opposite, and normal terms, i'm not atheist too. I'm Satanist, on well known Black Metal way and people always get me wrong when i talk about it.
Because Satan is just a symbol and nothing else, it's not ay religion or whatever, it's completely different and individual approach apricienting extreme individuality in person.

I do believe in what Euronymous started back in 1984.
Dagni..me agrees wiv ya in the main...don actually hate religion, but hate an loathe the way it bends peeps 2 its will an deprives them of true freedom of thought an of ther individuality...respect wot peeps believe, but don respect the belief itself. No doubt a few religies will cum outa woodwork an say ther religion gives them true freedom (under God prob), but its bollox innit??? Belief in a religion, b it christianity, buddhism, hinduism, Islam or owt else straightjackets thought an tends 2 create intolernace. Will give it a miss ta! Will keep me own mind free....

[flexuality]

Dagni..me agrees wiv ya in the main...don actually hate religion, but hate an loathe the way it bends peeps 2 its will an deprives them of true freedom of thought an of ther individuality...respect wot peeps believe, but don respect the belief itself. No doubt a few religies will cum outa woodwork an say ther religion gives them true freedom (under God prob), but its bollox innit??? Belief in a religion, b it christianity, buddhism, hinduism, Islam or owt else straightjackets thought an tends 2 create intolernace. Will give it a miss ta! Will keep me own mind free....

I agree with you on the aspect of "religion" whereby religion is defined as a set of practices that revolve around what one believes.

I have no use for religion in and of itself.

But I don't dismiss all the beliefs either, as far as principles and wisdom go, particularily in a lot of the older writings. But I DO NOT interpret those writings as RULES. I'll keep my free mind too.

Truth is truth, regardless of the source.....but it cannot be found through man in the way that religions tend to try and teach. One cannot learn a "rule" and *poof* they've got understanding or wisdom, or simply behave a certain way and pass some imaginary test.

[jcorlando]

Hello! I have been interested in buddhism for yrs. Did nothing about it when I was younger, as organized religion had me (catholic first then converted to judaism, now i really dont care).

When I about 18 was introduced to nichiren shoshu buddhism, it was very interesting and spiritual in a very different way, however it was wasted on me at the time.

I think it is a good quest, if you have a feeling for the infinite but are not satisfied with organized religion. Even within buddhism one has to be careful not to get caught in the ritual, dont lose sight of the forrest for the trees. But is is a worthy quest.

Joe
JCA1999

[biwords]

Hello! I have been interested in buddhism for yrs. Did nothing about it when I was younger, as organized religion had me (catholic first then converted to judaism, now i really dont care).


Funny -- for me, Jewish first (reform), then converted to Catholicism, now I don't really care.

[elian]

I hope I don't offend anybody by saying this but Dagni - after much (probably too much) thought about the subject I've come to the conclusion that "Satanism" is basically "the religion of human nature".

"Satan" appears in my view to be the anthropomorphic personification of all the things that supposedly "good" folks wish they could change about themselves. As if by naming those "bad" parts of their own behavior they could draw the qualities they do not want out of themselves.

The strange thing is - no matter how "good" we want to be - human is human - the human soul is capable of BOTH wonderfully generous acts of kindness AND possibly deep malevolence at times.

So yeah - I think that "The Devil" exists .. but an idea only has as much power over your life as you choose to give it. For example .. my "incarnation" of "The Devil" happens to be Jack Nicholson from "Witches of Eastwick" .. and we all know what happens to good ol' Jack in the end.

-E

[mindfinding]

Theological studies and led me to conclude that Buddhism is not the "it" religion.

On this note though off topic a little:

Re-incarnation: The human population would not grow if everybody was coming back. The population would stay the same forever.

[Pensive]

Wow - I took that Belief-O-Matic quiz and came out 100% Neo-Pagan. Too bad I personally can't buy into most of the supernatural stuff they believe in.

I'd just like to clarify that when I say I'm interested in Buddhism, I mean I think Buddhism has some cool ideas, not that I'm going to swallow everything (or even most of the things) that Buddhists believe. Speaking as someone who has largely left conservative Christianity, I'm glad to be free to question and I don't plan on ever becoming heavily involved in a religion again.

[flexuality]

Wow - I took that Belief-O-Matic quiz and came out 100% Neo-Pagan. Too bad I personally can't buy into most of the supernatural stuff they believe in.

I'd just like to clarify that when I say I'm interested in Buddhism, I mean I think Buddhism has some cool ideas, not that I'm going to swallow everything (or even most of the things) that Buddhists believe. Speaking as someone who has largely left conservative Christianity, I'm glad to be free to question and I don't plan on ever becoming heavily involved in a religion again.
I came up 100% Neo Pagan too....whatever that means! hehehe! :tong:

I started out being completely athiest....then became a born-again Christian sorta...then a more relaxed Christian...never did go to church regularily...then I read the bible... not all yet...but a LOT of it... and looked around at organized religion and wondered what bible THEY read! lol!

Since then I've been sorta studing on my own...well, me and Sol....and have learned WAY more than I ever did from any religion.

Read a lot about Pagan, Egyptian, Gnostic, some Buddhism, Jesus' teachings, lots of other stuff too....none of it from the "religious" standpoint though...if that makes sense.....I haven't learned any of it from a teacher or pastor or whatever their called in the various groups.

It's amazing how many similarities there are between the different beliefs though...it's quite fascinating.

[Solomon]

Dagni.... have ya read Memnoch the Devil, by Anne Rice?

is that close to how satanism works?

i am curious because i have heard that it's not as it's propogandized to be

[elian]

Sometimes trying to put a label on a human is like trying to wrangle a herd of cats.

Although I do remember this one lady in a trailer park where I used to live .. she had like five kittens .. and they would ALL follow her around in single file walking tip-to-tail like a row of baby ducks.

[littlemissdancer]

i think there is a very big distinction to be made between religion and faith. uno momento, and i will explain.

philosophically, i don't know how there could be one god that fits everyone's experiences. it would be hard just to find one that fits all my own experiences. as i look around globally, we use different words to explain what is sacred and sometimes what is divine. but for each of us, what is sacred and/or divine is completely different. For all practical philosophical purposes, I don't believe in a single global god.

theologically, i don't know how a traditional Christian god could exist (think Jonathon Edwards' "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." ) Nor do I see how a very involved god could exist. So far I am a progressive, ecofeminist, panantheistic christian.

personally, i have experiences i can't explain, like the way i experience music or dance or the touch of someone. why i didn't die when i overdosed on tylenol as a teenager when things got out of hand at home. why i survived til adulthood after sexual abuse....things like this i can't explain, and so i shelve them with the other "sacred" things. there is a divine there, i think.

however, i know enough to know that i can't push off on someone the god of the experiences i have had. nor can i reject or take on the experiences of someone else. i think we can bind with others that have similar experiences and thus commune with each other. i think this can lead to religion, a formal statement of beliefs that can exclude other experiences from entering in. and this belief system can rule the activities of the community.

but faith is the knowledge that the experiences we have mean something, and it is our duty to figure out why those experiences happened.

[Pensive]

So far I am a progressive, ecofeminist, panantheistic christian.

Heh, that's quite the mouthful. I think my experiences are similar to yours; I have had times when things have happened to me which seem to be improbable beyond mere chance, and there are questions out there which science and reason alone cannot explain, but if there is anything supernatural out there ite seems to me it would have to be pretty rare, since it's not easily and readily observable. And it certainly, in my opinion, doesn't line up with what conservative Christianity believes about the world. Or, for that matter, Islam, Judaism, neo-Paganism, or any other codified set of beliefs. It seems to me humans still have a long way to go when it comes to unraveling the secrets of the universe.

Oh, as a side note, I like panentheism quite a bit as philosophical outlook. Kudos to you for bringing it up. :)