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Is Buddhism a religion? And what makes a person a Buddhist?
I ask because I have observed very contradictory statements about Buddhism, some people have said Buddhism is a religion and others have said not, some even have gone as far as saying Buddhism is not even a belief system but is about "SEEING". One man I spoke to said that some people make Buddhism into a religion, implying that it can be both and that putting a label on something isn't right.
To be a Buddhist do you need to believe or follow all the Buddhas teachings? Or most of them? If you choose to accept or practice only the aspects you agree with or like are you still Buddhist? Is there any essential Buddhist beliefs?
A man (who claims to be a Buddhist for 25 years) said there is no essential Buddhist beliefs but if there is none, then Buddhism is nothing?
Please help!
To be a Buddhist do you need to believe or follow all the Buddhas teachings? Or most of them? If you choose to accept or practice only the aspects you agree with or like are you still Buddhist? Is there any essential Buddhist beliefs?
A man (who claims to be a Buddhist for 25 years) said there is no essential Buddhist beliefs but if there is none, then Buddhism is nothing?
Please help!
0
Comments
Dharma is truth without any Buddha.
Buddhism is religion based on Dharma:)
Perhaps There are no essential Buddhist beliefs,
just the self evident truths of dharma.
Good luck theres plenty of upchucking to groove to if thats what your supposed to do?!
I thought that even if something is true that it is still a belief, even if you are 100% sure something is true, there is likely to be others that disagree.
The expression seeing is believing implies that a belief can be self evidently true. Not just a conjecture or guess.
Try to doubt dharma and you will see how true it is.
well wishes
Mat
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Major_religious_groups
Of course it is ALSO a practice, and a philosophy, AND ... many other things.
Traditionally, to be a Buddhist you must take refuge.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Refuge_(Buddhism)
There are people who like the search for truths and believe that Buddhism holds some kernels of truth, but do not care for the bulk of Buddhist teachings. These people call themselves Buddhists.
There are people who like the search for truths and believe that Buddhism is the path to discovering these truths. They read books and ask questions, and practice in a solitary manner. These people call themselves Buddhists.
There are people who like the search for truths and believe that a particular teacher holds the keys to the way to discover these truths. These teachers may be trained in a particular school/lineage of Eastern Buddhism, or they may be "wild cards" (maybe people from the first group above). Regardless, these people (who follow teachers) call themselves Buddhists.
This is why you will find contradictions. If you want to know what Buddhism teaches, you are probably best to ask a teacher trained in one of the Eastern schools or lineages. If you ask a teacher from each of the various lineages, you will find that their replies may have some superficial contraditions, but basically they will agree with each other. However, if you ask here, you will get answers from all three "groups" outlined above, and each of us will answer that which is right, for ourselves.
is Buddhism a religion? I think it depends on how you define religion. For example, here is one definition of a religion:
a strong belief in a supernatural power or powers that control human destiny;
an institution to express belief in a divine power; wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
Under this definition, Buddhism would not be a religion, since belief in a divine power is not relevant to the practice.
Here is another definition of religion:
A collection of practices, based on beliefs and teachings that are highly valued or sacred; Any practice that someone or some group is seriously devoted to; Any ongoing practice one engages in, in order to shape their character or improve traits of their personality; ...en.wiktionary.org/wiki/religion
This definition of religion describes Buddhism very well, so yes, Buddhism is a religion.
It is not nothing. It is a set of practices for waking up to the direct experience of life.
I think that's a great summary
I consider it a philosophy, not a religion. The main difference between religions and Buddhism is that religions typically hold a set of external beliefs that one must adopt or have faith in, in order to 'belong' to it (that's my subjective defining of religion anyway.) In Buddhism, its not about shifting belief toward a new set of norms, but shifting the mind and eyes to view the wonder in the present moment. There are some tricks to do this, which sometimes get confused with traditional faith/religious dogmas.
ww,m
It is fair to say it's empirical, though.
even in the realm of Buddha Dharma/ Buddhism , there is a distinction between a practitioner and a believer
Indeed
One concluded it is a flower
Another claimed it's not a flower, but merely a growth from the earth
The third person rejected either views, and 'set the others straight' and said it was a multi-celled organism
You say tomattah, I say tomottah, let's call the whole thing off
Mtns
Buddhism is two things:
1) A conceptual representation of reality to the best of the Buddha's, and his followers', ability to describe
2) The way to know the truth for yourself, through understanding of the teachings and practicing/following the Noble Eightfold Path
The entire objective is to go from understanding the concepts to actually "knowing" the truth for yourself. The mind can find self-evident truth in Buddhism with the same conviction you would have that someone was just shot right in front of you. The process whereby the mind goes from conceptual knowledge (which is more or less "belief") to self-knowledge ("wisdom") is called Realization. When the mind realizes the truth, it changes on a fundamental level; what you believed before is replaced with knowledge born of direct experience/insight, and that insight becomes the new foundation. If you have other beliefs that are not supported by this foundation, they fall away; they do not have the support to remain.
These are, I would say, the core concepts of Buddhism:
The Four Noble Truths
The Noble Eightfold Path
Impermanence
Non-Self or Selflessness
Dependent Origination (or Dependent Arising, Co-Arising, etc.)
Dukkha
Kamma/Karma
Rebirth, either metaphorical or literal
Samsara
Nibbana/Nirvana
Many call themselves Buddhists, and that's their choice. What really makes a person a Buddhist though is that they apply effort toward understanding the teachings and practicing the path rightly. That is the ultimate intention of the teachings: to help people awaken to reality. That is not to say that people don't use Buddhism for other goals, but Buddhism's true goal has always been one of liberation.