Attachment to Buddhism???

300hj

In a lot of traditionally Buddhist countries for example Korea, Japan, etc., Buddhism is slowly dying out in favor of other religions such as Christianity, or completely no religion at all. That got me thinking, is attachment to Buddhism itself a detriment to Buddhism? I don't want to see these traditions die out, but on the other hand, things change and it is unavoidable. Is there a thin line between preservation and attachment of buddhism?

Jeffrey

what do you mean by attachment? buddhism is the practice of those who follow buddha's teachings. Buddha taught that craving brought suffering.

So if you follow buddha's teachings of course you are on the path to release craving. In that light buddhism treats craving as opposed to craving being detrimental to buddhism.

There would be no need for buddhism if there was no craving.

Chiisai_Pholcidae68

I think that 300hj means that sometimes, we look at Buddhism as a concept and not a practice, and therefore become attached to it.

Mountains

It's entirely possible (and I think quite common) to become attached to the concept of Buddhism, just like anything else in life.

300hj

Can someone explain what concept and practice is because it would seem that one would be more inclined to be attached to the practice like meditation or chanting more than the concept of buddhism.

ddrishi

Hinduism and Buddhism both have meditation as the foundation of religious practice. And, now, meditation is a tough horse to ride. Consequently there is dwindling popularity of these religions. But, meditation is getting greater acceptability as a stand-alone practice for those who may not believe in religion per se.

Jeffrey

Could you please explain what you mean by attachment?

300hj

I mean the attachment to see Buddhism continue for later generations to come, the attachment to see the tradition continue not only in Asia but in the entire world. In short, the attachment to keeping buddhism alive.

Kundo

It's entirely possible (and I think quite common) to become attached to the concept of Buddhism, just like anything else in life.

Totally agree with this.

In metta,
Raven

Floating_Abu

In a lot of traditionally Buddhist countries for example Korea, Japan, etc., Buddhism is slowly dying out in favor of other religions such as Christianity, or completely no religion at all. That got me thinking, is attachment to Buddhism itself a detriment to Buddhism? I don't want to see these traditions die out, but on the other hand, things change and it is unavoidable. Is there a thin line between preservation and attachment of buddhism?

Buddha, I believe, called it a raft. Once the other shore is 'reached' so to speak, the raft is let go of. Nothing to say we don't see the value of said raft though IMO

Floating_Abu

I mean the attachment to see Buddhism continue for later generations to come, the attachment to see the tradition continue not only in Asia but in the entire world. In short, the attachment to keeping buddhism alive.

We keep it alive if we practice it.

Namaste,
Abu

Jeffrey

I would define 'buddhism' as the letting go of attachments. So it would be a paradox to attach to letting go. Either we are attached or we are buddhas. There is no in between.

So if we are attached to buddhism then we are not buddhas. We may be buddhists however.

So yes. We can be attached as buddhists. But not as buddhas.

wondering

You’ve probably heard the saying, ‘Before enlightenment a mountain is a mountain, during enlightenment a mountain is not a mountain, and after enlightenment a mountain is a mountain again.’

During the middle stage people can become quite attached to Buddhism. It is a time when people practice all kinds of ritual and believe in the Buddhist way. They follow a teacher' teaching, and try not to forget for a moment that they need to be practicing Buddhism. They are awakening. When they have crossed the "great ocean" of personal self improvement and self-betterment, then the raft can be discarded and the person now sees things as they really are without any interpretation, and with much appreciation.

zombiegirl

In a lot of traditionally Buddhist countries for example Korea, Japan, etc., Buddhism is slowly dying out in favor of other religions such as Christianity, or completely no religion at all. That got me thinking, is attachment to Buddhism itself a detriment to Buddhism? I don't want to see these traditions die out, but on the other hand, things change and it is unavoidable. Is there a thin line between preservation and attachment of buddhism?

i don't think it's exactly "dying out" but perhaps diversifying would be a better word. i think if you compared the percentages of christians in america from today and a hundred or two hundred years ago, you'd find a great deal of diversifying as well. one could also note that the percentage of americans practicing buddhism has risen significantly from a hundred years ago. so i don't know, is it a bad thing? i think the world is just a lot more connected than it used to be. you could look at something like "the dropping rates of practicing buddhists" in a traditionally buddhist country as a negative, but i don't think that you can have progress without diversity.

Mountains

i don't think that you can have progress without diversity.

Well said. And I might add, you can't have diversity without progress

Ada_B

On a BBC program the other day, they said that Buddhism is booming in Mongolia and China, now that the government has relaxed its ban on religious practice. It is also one of the fastest growing religions in the West. It is certainly not in danger of dying out, although its form may change and evolve.

Mountains

Mormonism is *the* fastest growing religion in the west, and I'm sure Islam is giving it a run for its money elsewhere.