What About Buddhism Then?

Wattle

I've been noting the daily threads with people arguing for and against religion. Catholicism and Christianity get a particularly good kicking but nobody ever mentions Buddhism on here. It seems to have a pretty good rep in Ireland. Lots of people report that meditation has been good for them and it seems to lack the self hatred aspect of other religions. So is Buddhism as full of sh*t as other religions? What do you think?

squod

Buddhism is not a religion

3rdDegree

squod wrote: »

Buddhism is not a religion

Yes it is. Why would you say it isn't? Next you'll be having a go at Scientology!

Chucken

squod wrote: »

Buddhism is not a religion

Yes it is.

Buddhism is a religion indigenous to the Indian subcontinent that encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, who is commonly known as the Buddha...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhism


Buddhism is also a belief system which is tolerant of all other beliefs or religions. Buddhism agrees with the moral teachings of other religions but Buddhism goes further by providing a long term purpose within our existence, through wisdom and true understanding. Real Buddhism is very tolerant and not concerned with labels like 'Christian', 'Moslem', 'Hindu' or 'Buddhist'; that is why there have never been any wars fought in the name of Buddhism. That is why Buddhists do not preach and try to convert, only explain if an explanation is sought.

Could do with a bit of that around here!

galwayrush

I'm a Buddist Catholic.
Given all the guilt as a kid but i learned to rise above it.

Grayson

I once reached nirvana. Took fecking ages. But was worth it. Second best seed shop in Amsterdam. Moral, don't smoke before you start looking for somewhere in a strange city.

kraggy

Many people in Korea practice Christianity and Buddhism. They go to church and to the temple. They don't see anything strange in that.

That said, Buddhism is a religion. However, there is no higher being or entity claiming to be higher or anything like other religions. Buddha was human, not a god or mixture of both.

It's a beautiful thing.

lkionm

Thinly veiled what do I have to do to drink on Friday thread

squod

Chucken wrote: »

Yes it is.

Jaysus, there's always one.


http://www.buddhanet.net/nutshell03.htm

Pherekydes

Grayson wrote: »

I once reached nirvana.

The number 69 bus goes to Nirvana, doesn't it?

Thrill

squod wrote: »

Jaysus, there's always one.


http://www.buddhanet.net/nutshell03.htm

You say it isn't, Buddha say it is.

/grabs coat and runs.

Dwork

My next door neighbour is a Buddhist. Least I think he is. He's short, fat, has an earring and is always smiling. Or he could just be a hippie glutton. Never sure which is which.

Wattle

Wattle wrote: »

I've been noting the daily threads with people arguing for and against religion. Catholicism and Christianity get a particularly good kicking but nobody ever mentions Buddhism on here. It seems to have a pretty good rep in Ireland. Lots of people report that meditation has been good for them and it seems to lack the self hatred aspect of other religions. So is Buddhism as full of sh*t as other religions? What do you think?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-21873978

Wibbs

squod wrote: »

Jaysus, there's always one.


http://www.buddhanet.net/nutshell03.htm

Oh sure compared to the Abrahamic religions maybe not, but it also has quite a bit of magical thinking going on in the majority of it's teachings. The reincarnation bit for a start. Plus many Buddhist societies embrace all sorts of magical thinking stuff.

Nodin

Wattle wrote: »

I've been noting the daily threads with people arguing for and against religion. Catholicism and Christianity get a particularly good kicking but nobody ever mentions Buddhism on here. It seems to have a pretty good rep in Ireland. Lots of people report that meditation has been good for them and it seems to lack the self hatred aspect of other religions. So is Buddhism as full of sh*t as other religions? What do you think?

It's as full of shit (or shit heads) as other religions, yes. 'No one is innocent' as they say.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=83833614&postcount=3229

TheUsual

3rdDegree wrote: »

Yes it is. Why would you say it isn't? Next you'll be having a go at Scientology!

^^^^^^
The Thetan's are strong with this one.
Probably a psychiatrist or something.

Lando Griffin

Wibbs wrote: »

Oh sure compared to the Abrahamic religions maybe not, but it also has quite a bit of magical thinking going on in the majority of it's teachings. The reincarnation bit for a start. Plus many Buddhist societies embrace all sorts of magical thinking stuff.

You will like this; not a lot but you will like it.

shinkansen

Wattle wrote: »

I've been noting the daily threads with people arguing for and against religion. Catholicism and Christianity get a particularly good kicking but nobody ever mentions Buddhism on here. It seems to have a pretty good rep in Ireland. Lots of people report that meditation has been good for them and it seems to lack the self hatred aspect of other religions. So is Buddhism as full of sh*t as other religions? What do you think?

compared to Islam and the like Buddhism is a breath of fresh air.

TheUsual

Here are some typical Buddhists, obviously demon worshippers of some kind !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjQQhH6Jbok

StewartGriffin

Basically:

Man (Siddharta Gautamma) has mid life crisis.

Tries to find God through deprivation, living in a hairy vest ant infested wet cold cave (and still paid 150 euro property tax on it)

Says "**** this for a bag of calf-nuts"

Goes and sulks under a tree for a few nights.

Has a revelation:
1) - Life will ALWAYS involve some suffering
2) - This suffering is caused by craving for life to be different than it is
3) - When we let go of the craving for life to be better, like a tight fist releasing a slithering snake, that craving is released, and the suffering ceases.
4) - If we cultivate this path to ending suffering, keep working at releasing the craving until we are fluent at it, then we can access always.

These he called the 4 noble truths.

So people thought this was great and made a religion out of it. Complete with Dogma, Prayers, statues and all manner of utter bull**** nonsense.

Nowt as queer as folk.

Wattle

Wattle wrote: »

Lots of people report that meditation has been good for them and it seems to lack the self hatred aspect of other religions.

It is worth noting that Buddism <> Meditation in much the same way as Catholicism <> Eating crackers.

While in both cases the former has incorporated the latter into it's practices and/or fantasies - clearly they are seperate things entirely.

I for example practice Vipassana Mindfullness meditation a lot - and I teach a free class in it weekly to local people and students of the local colleges including - but not limited to - a priest in training in Maynooth and one actual full priest from the local area(s).

I have personally found much benefit in it. As have some of my students. The college students tell me it increases their attention span and relaxation for study. The trainee priest tells me it aids him in reflection on his learnings and faith. Some addicts (mostly alcohol) and some people with anger management issues have also reported to me great utility in meditation in dealing with their issues. The most common report I get from people in general is a great reduction in stress caused by every day life.

I have also noticed great increases in myself and them in common human empathy and self esteem.

Alas there are people who will build religions around such things. You will hear people telling you that meditation leads to higher forms of consciousness or access to the consciousness of god and such crap. You will hear phrases like "Biofeedback" designed to sound sciency while saying percisely nothing and how through meditation you learn that not just humans - but the universe itself is conscious and this consciousness is god - yadda yadda blah blah.

I heartily recommend meditation to all and sundry - and it is a path one can follow without subscribing to even a small part of this woo woo flim flam nonsense that all too often goes with it.

Wibbs

shinkansen wrote: »

compared to Islam and the like Buddhism is a breath of fresh air.

Depends on the type of Buddhism. Depends on the type of Islam too. EG some Islamic schools are monastic and philosophical in nature. Ditto for Christianity. But yeas it's certainly perfectly possible to practice Buddhism and be agnostic or atheist though. An option not found in other religions east or west.

Legs.Eleven

What's not to like?

conorhal

Pherekydes wrote: »

The number 69 bus goes to Nirvana, doesn't it?

No, it goes to 'effin Saggart.....

Via Clondalkin, which is about as far from Nirvana as you can get.

Snake Pliisken

Buddhism as it's reached the west is way more esoteric than what you'd find out East in general. There it's definitely a religion, based on the tenants of Buddhism, with a belief structure and hegemony of power with the general public basically using it as a social and cultural tool(or crutch).

Buddhism as you'll find it here gets down into the nitty-gritty mystery of it all, taught by intellectuals who'd been influenced by the greatest ideals of western civilization; they wanted democracy in the kingdom of Heaven, as someone once put it.

Here's my favourite Buddhist talking about the real stuff:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3hVc2hWYxg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d3x02dQTBjE

gobnaitolunacy

shinkansen wrote: »

compared to Islam and the like Buddhism is a breath of fresh air.

Oh yes? Buddhists are kicking the sh*t out of Muslim minorities in Burma.

It's not all peacefully sitting on yer ars* doing yoga.

BizzyC

Out of all the religions, it's the only one I don't have a problem with.

They teach Karma. Everything you do in life comes full circle, so the best way to enjoy good fortune and a happy life is to exude good feelings and perform acts of kindness.

Any "Buddhist" taking to violent action is actually as non-Buddhist as they come.

Shenshen

shinkansen wrote: »

compared to Islam and the like Buddhism is a breath of fresh air.

Well, it's breathing fire currently in Burma :

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/8bbca270-9526-11e2-a151-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2OpWlUjME

tony007

gobnaitolunacy wrote: »

Oh yes? Buddhists are kicking the sh*t out of Muslim minorities in Burma.

It's not all peacefully sitting on yer ars* doing yoga.

People who call themselves Buddhists are different to people who are Buddhists.

tony007

Shenshen wrote: »

Well, it's breathing fire currently in Burma :

No it's not. People who call themselves Buddhists are different from the Buddhist belief.

gobnaitolunacy

Ok, so religion is fine, just some people who practice it are a**holes.

Blisterman

I think the reason is fairly clear:
84.2% of the population is Catholic
0.19% is Buddhist.

sombaht

gobnaitolunacy wrote: »

Ok, so religion is fine, just some people who practice it are a**holes.

Think we allready established Buddhism is not a religion, it's a philosophy.

Cheers,
sombaht

Wibbs

BizzyC wrote: »

Any "Buddhist" taking to violent action is actually as non-Buddhist as they come.

You could argue similar about Christians.

sombaht

Wibbs wrote: »

You could argue similar about Christians.

And it would also be true in that instance as well.

Cheers,
sombaht

bnt

tony007 wrote: »

People who call themselves Buddhists are different to people who are Buddhists.

And as I expected, the No True Scotsman fallacy pops up in this thread. They walk like Buddhists, they quack like Buddhists, so they are Buddhists. Would you go up to one of those Buddhists and tell him (it's always a man) "you're not a true Buddhist"?

Next you're be telling us that Buddhist clergy are fundamentally different to Catholic clergy e.g. they would never abuse children. Right? :rolleyes:

Of course they're buddhists. They also sound like assholes.
There are unfortunately a lot of sexist hypocrite monks, which is a shame to see considering the original teachings. You can warp anything, I suppose.

Shenshen

tony007 wrote: »

People who call themselves Buddhists are different to people who are Buddhists.

No true Scotsman, eh?

Funkfield

Next they'll be saying it's a religion!

BizzyC

Wibbs wrote: »

You could argue similar about Christians.

Not quite.

Christianity does teach that people who are different are wrong and will burn in hell.
Buddhism doesn't, it has more of a "treat everyone nicely" gist to it.

BizzyC

sombaht wrote: »

Think we allready established Buddhism is not a religion, it's a philosophy.

Cheers,
sombaht

No we haven't, in fact it is a religion.

Snake Pliisken

BizzyC wrote: »

No we haven't, in fact it is a religion.

It's both really. There are parts of the world were it fulfills a role as a religion, with all the cultural trappings that come along with that and there is also a philosophical perspective.

sombaht

BizzyC wrote: »

No we haven't, in fact it is a religion.

Definition of religion
noun
[mass noun]
the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods.

Can you please tell me what God or gods did the Buddha teach about?

Regards,
cathal

Grayson

tony007 wrote: »

No it's not. People who call themselves Buddhists are different from the Buddhist belief.

But all muslims and christians are the are homogeneous??

There are aspects to Buddhism that are good. I'll grant that. Meditation helps calm the mind. However it's been found that meditation releases the same chemicals in the mind that prayer does. So you could get the same benefits from being a muslim who prays 5 times a day. Although at least an average person can practice meditation, separate from the religion,

Either way, Buddhists, Muslims, scientologists etc... are just different people drinking different cool aid.

BizzyC

It is recognised as a religion, in the same ways as chritianity, judaism, islam et al. are.
If you want to argue what the dictionary says, then call the government and have it re-classified.

Pull out any information on Religion in Ireland and Buddhism will be represented.
In Ireland, it is a religion, get over it.

Paddycrumlinman

https://www.youtube.com/feed/UC6M_EhnSSdTG_SXUp6IAWmQ

I've always had an Interest in Buddhism since I was a teenager. About 3 years ago I came across some Dharma Talks on YouTube by an English Monk living in Western Australia. Ajahn Brahm is his name. He is and English Monk of many living in Western Australia. Buddhist Society of Western Australia is what they call themselves.

The Monks stream their talks over the internet and pace them onto their you tube channel. One a week goes up generally.

Frankly, Buddhism has changed my outlook on life completely. Buddhism for me is a philosophy on how to live life, how to react to life and how to be in life. It's brought a peacefulness in my mind, myself worth and esteem has risen dramatically. Buddhism is also very induced with Science. The main monk in the talks I listen to has a vast arrange of Education. He was a teacher, studied science and Biology to name a few. Went to Cambridge UNI.

Before I studied Buddhism, my mind would constantly race. I mean, I’m a deep thinker always have been and always will be. I was constantly living in the future or dwelling on my past. Buddhism taught and teaches me to live in the moment because at this moment is where it's all happening. This simple teaching has helped me tremendously with controlling my thoughts or not controlling them would be the correct way to put it.

I Meditate any time I can. It took me a lot of practice but Meditation for me has brought some wonderful experiences. I always heard Monks' say Meditation is better than Sex. My response, whatever. This one day, while meditating, I found it very easy to settle my mind and thoughts while watching my breathing. After 15 minutes of this, a warmth I’ve never felt in my life glided all over my body. It was so intense and beautiful I had to pull myself out of it as I could not handle the intensity of the feeling. I also see beautiful lights and colors while meditating, it can be so tranquil and peaceful it’s a gift.

The only way I could describe this feeling would be a similar feeling to a Rush when you’re on XTC. It was simply beautiful but more pleasurable and natural. I've only ever been able to reach this point 2 times in 3 years of meditation.

I find Meditation helps reduce stress, helps clear my mind, helps me not to think and find peace within. It also help me learn more about myself. I've learned about my ego, I've learned to let go and most importantly, to be kind and to live in this present moment.

I’m forever grateful that I found Buddhism and look forward to new Dharma talks as they come along.

Grayson

It's very similar to stoicism. But the greeks aren't half as interesting as a wandering mendicant monk

bnt

sombaht wrote: »

Definition of religion
noun
[mass noun]
the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, especially a personal God or gods.

Can you please tell me what God or gods did the Buddha teach about?

Regards,
cathal

Do you really want this to come down to competing dictionary definitions? Dictionaries are written by people i.e. they are not perfect and authoritative. for a counter-example, try this from dictionary.com:

re·li·gion [ri-lij-uhn]
noun
1.
a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.
2.
a specific fundamental set of beliefs and practices generally agreed upon by a number of persons or sects: the Christian religion; the Buddhist religion.
3.
the body of persons adhering to a particular set of beliefs and practices: a world council of religions.
4.
the life or state of a monk, nun, etc.: to enter religion.
5.
the practice of religious beliefs; ritual observance of faith.

(emphasis added)
The "superhuman controlling power" from your definition doesn't have to be a god. If Karma controls everyone's lives, doesn't that qualify as a "superhuman controlling power"? We're not going to reach a consensus on this question by reaching for the dictionary, so I refer you back to what I said earlier: "if it walks like a duck ..."

Paddycrumlinman

As far as I know, Buddhism will call itself a Religion for Tax purposes. There is no super man in the sky, no super human, no God. So you can't define Buddhism as a Religion as per the Dictionary.

sombaht

BizzyC wrote: »

It is recognised as a religion, in the same ways as chritianity, judaism, islam et al. are.
If you want to argue what the dictionary says, then call the government and have it re-classified.

Pull out any information on Religion in Ireland and Buddhism will be represented.
In Ireland, it is a religion, get over it.

It may very well be (mistakenly) recognised as a religion and even mis-represented as such, but that still doesn't make it so. Continue referring to it incorrectly as a religion if you so wish but Buddhism at the end of the day is a philosophy, deal with it.

Cheers,
sombaht

Mardy Bum

Paddycrumlinman wrote: »

As far as I know, Buddhism will call itself a Religion for Tax purposes. There is no super man in the sky, no super human, no God. So you can't define Buddhism as a Religion as per the Dictionary.

There is karma though which is as good as a man in the sky and equally irrational.