Please don’t freak out sisters and other people who actually know me. I’m not shaving my head anytime soon, but the title of this post is a serious question.
Buddhism presents a very good perspective on life. It also is a wise view of death, or rather no death, and the day to day existence. I’m curious as to why it isn’t a more widely known and accepted way to see the world. So tell me in the comments please. Why aren’t you a Buddhist?
I do have some thoughts but I want to see where this goes first
How dare you!
I’ll be surprised if I get many comments. I scared most of my good commenters off long ago.
when and why?
A couple of years ago. The why is a really long story. It sucks.
I miss them.
it’s possible to achieve happiness and well being
studying and practicing the dharma
and not be a card-carrying Buddhist!
Buddhism, like everything else
is empty
made up of non-Buddhist elements!
Wishing you success in your practice 🙂
Thank you, that makes perfect sense. I’m an exploring and practicing non-Buddhist. Non everythingist is a better classification of what I’m becoming. It’s a beautiful way to live, free from concepts.
Buddha shared his enlightenment
while telling students
don’t believe these teachings
try it out for yourself.
How wonderful to be free from concepts & wrong views.
May you be free from the greed, hatred and delusion
which cause suffering in most of humanity 🙂
I hope so. Freedom is something very important. I think hopes, dreams, and plans can cause as much if not more suffering. I want to be free from those as well, and am becoming so. Mindful living is exhilarating.
Estimates say there are 376 million Buddhists in the world. Perhaps your real question is why are there not more of you where you live?
Good point! Even here in the US there’s temples, etc. all around. I guess what I don’t understand is why the practices of meditation and living in the moment, aka living in the kingdom of God, are not encouraged by mainstream “Christian” theologies.
From what I’ve read, Buddhist and Christian values could co-exist quite nicely in an open-minded world.
I think more people are Buddhists…
Yeah, someone pointed that out. It’s a good way of thinking.
I went through a Buddhist phase
Tell me more!
Like I said to the hot dog vendor… make me one… with everything…
That’s funny!
yay
I’m not sure there’s a true definition of being a Buddhist. I consider myself a Buddhist, but I don’t belong to any groups nor have I taken the precepts. I consider myself a Buddhist because I read books written by Buddhists and try to gain insight into life through this and meditation. I think being a Buddhist requires asking a lot of questions and finding answers through meditation. Buddhism is all about self inspection, not proselytizing.