New to meditation

Ikiryo

Hi guys,

I'm new to Buddhist meditation, and after read about it for nearly ten years, feel that it's time to do something about it!

I was a Nichiren Buddhist (Soka Gakkai) for a short period, but felt its teachings were too far removed from what I understood to be Buddhism that I stopped practicing.

I am looking to ask your advice as to which would be, in your opinion, the best meditation practice for a beginner? There are two groups in my city, one Zen and one Karma Kagyu. There is actually also a Theravada group, but my heart on this matter lies with the Mahayana and my beliefs are more in keeping with the ideals of this school.

The Zen group meets up to three times a week and it is a mixture of both zazen and walking meditation. The Karma Kagyu group meets once a week for a beginners meditation, however, other classes are available once you have progressed further along the path.

Your thoughts would be most welcome.

In peace

upalabhava

I'd jump at any opportunity to study Mahamudra and (especially) the Six Yogas of Naropa, so that's a vote for Kagyu from me.

Ada_B

Kagyu is great for me. It is quite practical and down to earth, and they practice a variety of meditation styles which I find helpful as I was getting stuck in rather a rut.

I have been doing 'beginner' classes for about 2 years now (maybe more) so I'm now back to the beginning and going through it again. But so-called "more advanced" classes only build on that foundation, and even the lamas constantly come back to the "beginner" lessons to reinforce their practice. I can't often get to the sangha house for other teaching, so I read books to learn more. It's all good

I've also practiced Zen (Ch'an) and it has many wonderful things to recommend it, but similar to your experience with Nichiren, I found it difficult to incorporate the lessons into my everyday life, being a disabled woman with children, who couldn't go on retreats or meditate for hours.

It's truly horses for courses, but provided you find a way to practice that you can do, and a teacher to guide you, I don't really think it matters.

Ikiryo

Thanks guys!

Kagyu has always held a fascination for me, but at times I can be attracted to the simplicity of Zen, depending on how I feel that particular day lol

I am though leaning more to the Kagyu side myself at the moment

Ada_B

@Ikiryo I am told that the more you practice the dharma and study it, the more the traditions converge until you see that they are all simply difference facets of the same jewel.

zenff

Try different groups, different traditions.
No one can decide for you, not even you can.
See where this path of practice takes you.
Good luck!

jinzang

I think it depends most on the qualities of the person leading the group.

buddhajunkie

Wow, I envy your choices.

Whatever you choose, I think you should check out the Theravada group as well. They could have good teachers there and you don't want to pass that up if they do. It's not like you have to commit to joining their sangha.

bodhipunk

Wow, I envy your choices....It's not like you have to commit to joining their sangha.

Exactly. Just see what each of them offer.

@Ikiryo - You stopped practicing Soka Gakkai for a reason. You should check out all of your choices, and find which one you feel most comfortable with. That is the reason there are so many choices in the first place - something that works for one person may not actually benefit another. I could go on about the benefits of one or the other, but you should probably try to expose yourself to what's out there to find what actually helps you.

zombiegirl

I was a Nichiren Buddhist (Soka Gakkai) for a short period, but felt its teachings were too far removed from what I understood to be Buddhism that I stopped practicing.

hey hey welcome ikiryo
i actually don't have an answer to your question (other than to repeat what others have said and check them both out and see what resonates!), but i had to comment to say it's nice to see someone else who had a similar experience. i studied nichiren buddhism for several years, but once i became involved with the sgi and received my gohonzon and all that jazz, it pretty much started to go downhill from there. for me personally, i found it helpful to read books from buddhists of different traditions and figure it out from there. i'm currently leaning more toward zen, but who knows.

Ikiryo

Thanks everyone for the advice.

@buddhajunkie The Theravada group itself only meets once a month, so there wouldn'y really be the opportunity to practice group meditation that often.

@Zombiegirl/@Bodhipunk For me the SGI was too much about Daisaku Ikeda than about Buddhism. Also, their beliefs re rebirth, etc, were completely at odds with what I believe Buddhism to teach. Also, the lack of a belief in Nirvana, or at least the concept of it, worried me too.

zombiegirl

@Zombiegirl/@Bodhipunk For me the SGI was too much about Daisaku Ikeda than about Buddhism. Also, their beliefs re rebirth, etc, were completely at odds with what I believe Buddhism to teach. Also, the lack of a belief in Nirvana, or at least the concept of it, worried me too.

i think it was the bit about daisaku ikeda that bothered me so much as well. when i was told that i could not have images/statues of buddha around my altar, but was encouraged to have images of daisaku ikeda, i started to understand why people say the things they do about the sgi.
i also think it was my involvement with other buddhists that encouraged me to leave. i had read many books on nichiren buddhism, including the gosho, but when i talked with those of other buddhist sects, i had no idea what they were talking about, lol. i had never been taught even the basic stuff like the four noble truths.

good luck on your search i hope you find it to be very fruitful

buddhajunkie

@buddhajunkie The Theravada group itself only meets once a month, so there wouldn'y really be the opportunity to practice group meditation that often.

If they have a good teacher then a dharma talk and Q&A session, even if once a month, would be useful.