Can someone please answer my questions about Buddhism?
I'm an ex-Muslim who's very interested in Buddhism(particularly meditation) I don't want to convert, I'm just interested in some of the rituals that might help me. What is the difference between Asian(Indian like) Buddhism and new-pagan western Buddhism? I know the Asians wear orange cloths, shave their heads and never eat meat or have sex, but is that the only difference? What can Buddhism offer me? When I say offer me I mean in this life, not the afterlife. In other words, what are the benefits of the religion/philosophy?
If someone has an excellent link about the religion, that would be awesome.
dawned, Islam is a 3000 years old mythology, it stories and claims are pr oven wrong, There's no such thing as Adam or Hauah.
science has pr oven Islam wrong. go ogle Neanderthals, they are just one thing of many that prove Islam to be false. Another thing is evolution, Qur'an contradicts evolution, why would I stick with this false ancient book?
I'm very convinced that Allah was made up by some ancient Middle Eastern nation, I don't care about Buddhists converting to Islam, I'm not gullible to watch these useless videos, I got my own mind and life.
Your arrogance won't serve you or your unreal god.
There are different forms of Buddhism within Asia. The sects I can think of off the top of my head are Tibetan, Zen and Pure land. There's lots more though. If you like meditation, look into Zen Buddhism, which focuses on this sort of thing.
I also recommend reading any books written by or watch interviews of the Dalai Lama (the leader of Tibetan Buddhism). He is very wise.
Because there are so many forms of Buddhism in the east, there is only one difference between eastern Buddhism and western Buddhism, and that is that those in the east are more traditional and stick to their own form, while us westerners cherry pick. We look at what we like in the different sects and practice what we want. We don't have a tradition in Buddhism, so we do what we want.
First off there are many different sects of Buddhism and indeed more than one person who has been referred to as a Buddha (though when someone says the Buddha they almost always refer to same person, the term itself means 'enlightened one').
The people who wear orange and shave their heads are also not normal practitioners of Buddhism but rather they are monks. They have dedicated their entire life to devotion (similar to the catholic priests and nuns).
Believe it or not there are even some sects of Buddhism that do not look upon Buddha(s) as god(s) but rather as figures to emulate, guiders for the path of enlightenment if you will.
No matter which group you talk to however the goal is the same, inner tranquility (not necessarily peace a few groups are all about finding it through conflict), harmony, balance and through this enlightenment.
If you are expecting benefits in terms of world gain, Buddhism is going be the wrong path for you.
If you would like to feel what it is like freeing from world feelings, then Buddhism is the one you should give a try.
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Buddhism is a path of study and a choice of internal peace. When I became a Buddhist, I began to accept my former religion with a more open mind, as I was also doing with my new one. Now I'm free to love Mohamed, Buddha, and Jesus without having to engage in competitive thinking. Competition is for simple minds. Life is hard enough, we don't need to raise obstacles in our own path or the path of others. Life will win no matter who is the victor. Wisdom is found where truth is found and recognized as truth. Declaring things truth is reserved though for only that which is important. Who has which shoes, who has which hair, who has which beliefs, are all just opinions. Real truths are much more rare than that.
There are lots of schools of Buddhism, and not all of them wear orange robes. In fact, the color is not important at all, it's just a way for specific schools to identify themselves, like a school uniform in other nations. This too is supposed to be aimed at letting go of competition. If your fellow monks all have the same robes as you, you can't compete with them for who has the best clothing. Shaving heads, not eating meat, not having sex, not indulging in certain trades, are all ideals the Buddha set forth. There's no rules in Buddhism though, it's all just choices, all just that which the Buddha called skillful or unskillful. You either take it or you leave it, but it is your choice. He said that it was skillful to question all things, including him.
The benefits of Buddhism are all designed for now. It is always now, and it will always be now. Life may slip away from you, but the moment is always present. It's about learning to end stress, so that no matter what the world does to you, no matter what "god" does to you, you're always able to make your own peace. Have you ever made yourself feel happy? I mean just because you choose to. Not because you thought of anything happy, or had any experience, but just felt irrational, unconditional happiness? That is what the Buddha taught, the ending of stress, nothing more. He taught that conditioned experience is not satisfactory. He taught that all conditioned things are subject to impermanence, and that attachment and craving lead to suffering because of impermanence. He taught that positivity is it's own reward, and that negativity leads to stress and loss. He also taught that sharing positivity will only brighten the way.
"Thousands of candles may be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared" - Buddha Siddartha
I suggest you not waste your time hating Islam, or Christianity. Instead focus on the positivity in this moment and free yourself from pointless competition that will just weigh you down. Just study for yourself, choose for yourself, and give yourself the love and kindness you deserve. Then share it with the world to make the world a brighter place. Heaven is not a place you go, it's something that is built by patient and meticulous positive effort. Hell is something you can experience anywhere you go.
In this life, in the here-and-now, Buddhism can offer you the end of suffering, the unrivaled calm of Nibbaana (nirvana). It can offer you a path to a moral and happy life, give you guidance on how to interact well with others, and how to be at peace with yourself. If you care for such things, it can show you the end of your own hatred, your own ignorance, your own anger, your own greed, and the end of your own doubt. It can provide a practical blueprint for the development of compassion, equanimity, loving kindness, and joy in your own heart. Buddhism can show you how to be free of the limitations of your own conditioned responses to the world. Where you may have previously been burdened by attachment, Buddhism offers release. Where your understanding was obscured, Buddhism offers wisdom. And if you care for such things, it can offer you the truth of reality and the universe. Although the practical application of Buddhism are many and varied, the taste of Buddha's teachings is a single taste: the taste of freedom!
Rituals will not help you, this was taught by Lord Buddha. What will help you is the cultivation of your own mind, your own heart, which is the field of all merit and virtue. We cultivate the heart through effort in meditation, through effort in morality, and through generosity. Where we were previously heedless, we become restrained. Where we where previously agitated, we become calm. We give up our clinging and develop an attitude of love for others and ourselves.
Taking up Buddha's teachings, we stop looking for solutions for our problems externally. We stop looking to God, to food, to sex, to drink, to blind faith, to rituals, to superstition. Instead, we look inside our own hearts to our own capability in accordance with the truth for the end of our suffering. This is called 'Going for Refuge in the Triple Gem', the Triple Gem being the Buddha, his teachings, and his community.
If you want to know the real 'rituals' of Buddhism which will help, they are firstly the Five Precepts, which is the basic foundation of all human morality.They are:
1) No Killing
2) No Stealing
3) No Sexual misconduct
4) No Lying
5) No Drinking Alcohol (or other intoxicants or drugs)
Thus, Buddhism offers the gift of a perfectly clear conscience. There is no need to convert to follow what are the universal tenets of good human behavior!
Next, to calm the mind we practice meditation. Do this by focus sing your entire mind on an object without thinking, like the breath. Notice the breath and don't let your mind wander. If it does wander, just draw your attention back to the meditation object.
You should learn to treat all beings with kindness. You should adopt an attitude of universal and indiscriminate love. You should give to those in need from the bottom of your heart, and respect those deserving of respect. This is a particularly helpful Buddhist ritual.
To answer your question, it is the monks and nuns who shave their heads and are celibate, whether in India or in any other place. (Although for historical reasons, in Japan, many monks and nuns are not celibate). They are not necessarily vegetarian. Lay Buddhists generally wear ordinary clothes and don't shave their hair. There are many good and orthodox Buddhists in the West, as well as New-Age charlatans, just as one finds in Asia. You can know the difference in what they teach: the teachings of reputable Buddhist teachers will accord with the Ti-pit aka, which records the teachings of Lord Buddha. Reputable Buddhists won't ask for money or act in a morally reprehensible fashion. As you learn more about Buddhism, you should be able to tell the difference very quickly, as easily as one might discern rotten fruit from good fruit.
A good site to learn about Buddhism is: http://www.buddhanet.net
Can someone please answer my questions about Buddhism?
