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alright, new here

edited April 2010 in Buddhism Basics
Hello, I am fairly new to buddhism and just wanted to say hi. Well, a little about my religious background and me...I was raised catholic and spent a few years as a penecostal before going back to the catholic church. I left the church a few years ago became a so called atheist. I dunno if atheist was the right word for me, it wasn't that I didn't believe, I just couldn't believe in a 'god' in the classic sense that most people think of, especially in the US. I am, I guess what most people would refer to, as goth. I love being part of that subculture and having people as friends with the same music and artistic and fashion tastes. But something was alway missing in my life that friends and all this stuff that people thought should make me happy didn't. I became interested in buddhism and have been doing the simple steps for a few months now. Meditating (which I have found to be a fundamental part of my day now), thinking about karma and how it affects me, and thinking about the dharma and how it seems to make sense to me. But the question is, can I be a buddhist without going to a temple or do I need to? I am pretty content with just being me and studying its teachings and the like. Also, since there are so many different sects of buddhism, can someone be a 'non-denominational' buddhist like how some christians are non-denominational, without leaning towards one form of teachings or another? I would like to go to a temple eventually, but for now I feel like I am still slowly gliding my way into this. I am more content and seem to be clear headed for the first time in years. But anyway, just wanted to say hi and ask a few questions and share a little. :)
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