Catholics, Christians, Muslims, whatever you are -- How Do You View Buddhism?

[franki_rulz]

I’m not arguing against his claim about muslims killing hindus. I know many muslims have been killed by hindu extremists and many hindus killed by muslim extremists in a vicious and sad cycle. If you re-read my posts you will see what I AM arguing over.
Just go back to the top of the last page. Maybe what I said was a bit rash at times but the fault is clearly not mine.

lol. Any thread that mentions “muslim” or “islam” eventually becomes a muslim-bashing thread—i thought you would have know that bro

wasalam

Zaki, ur again making a mistake here. I am a catholic in a deeply religious SECULAR,DEMOCRATIC hindu majority country.Ur sentence about hindus killing muslims is again a cooked up story by the muslims. I dont deny that some hindu extremists in recent years have killed muslim,however that is in reaction to the killings and bombings been carried out by muslim.
If you read the history of the indian subcontinent, muslims over centuries have been responsible for the massacre of some 80 millions innocent hindus.
Compared to that, the no of muslims killed by hindu extremist is around a 1000.

I do not have a problem with muslims Zaki but I do have a problem with the aggression that ur religion preaches… n I certainly dont have a problem with you .

 

[ZAKI]

A report on Dalit Budhists in the Asia Times online says : In contemporary India, while attacks by Hindu militant groups on the minority Muslim and Christian communities have drawn the attention of the Indian and international media, atrocities on Buddhists go unreported, mostly because they fall into the lowest rungs of the caste ladder. … - Over 50 years ago, the author of India’s constitution, B R Ambedkar, set in motion a Buddhist socio-political movement for the conversion of Dalits to Budhists.

“We(many) were converted into Buddhists in 1956, but we still face a lot of discrimination, injustice and violence,” said Devidas Ghodeshwar, talking to Inter Press Service in front of the impressive Deekshabhoomi Stupa built here to mark the site of Ambedkar’s historic conversion, along with thousands of his followers.

The monument is built after the famous Sanchi stupa built in the third century by emperor Ashoka who renounced Hinduism to become a Buddhist. Thereafter, Buddhism flourished in India until the seventh century when it went into a slow but steady decline, mostly owing to a powerful Hindu revival.

Even as Buddhism spread to Tibet, the Far East and Southeast Asia, its followers in India suffered persecution under the supporters of the caste ridden Hindu religion.For us in Australia the Indian religions may simply appear be based on and grown through intelectuals ancient text study, seeking truth in the ideas of 'The Bagahad Vida or The lotus sutra etc,But down on the ground ,is the dirty reality of class and caste and property interests , the actual social practice of the religions that is the everyday reality .

One problem for the Buddhists is that the Hindu establishment does not accept the fact of their conversions or even that Buddhism is a separate faith system. Officially, less than 1% of 1 billion Indians are listed as Buddhist, but most people agree that the majority of the 200 million Dalits of India follow the Buddhist faith.

"We have converted but still the Hindus aren’t accepting that we have been converted and they don’t understand that we belong to a separate group now. They refer to the Buddha as the ninth incarnation of the Hindu deity Vishnu and do not see Buddhism as a separate religion,’’ said Ghodeshwar.

"We are seen as part and parcel of Hinduism and this is also linked to our oppression and discrimination as Dalits,’'Ghodeshwar added. Background :
Hope for India’s ‘broken’ Buddhists

atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/KA16Df03.html

As there is no caste in Islamic religion becoming Muslim is a growing an attraction too.Christianity has had some appeal in the past though it is now said that some Christian sects are prepared to accept caste divisions ,even maintaining seperate churches for dalits.

It is this movement towards Islam a large sector of Indian society that is behind attempts by some Hindu nationalist parties to provoke trouble and promote inter-communal violence in India.An attempt to get the poor Dalits to fight Muslims ,so that the Brahmin sector of the ruling class can pose as protectors of the poor Hindu caste Dalits and Hindu India from Muslim “terrorism”.Dividing the poor and divide and rule is ever the tactic of the ruling class.Religious division is an important tool for that .

More background on the movement for the mass conversion of Dalits into Buddhists and Muslims to fight the oppression of the caste system of Hindu/Brahmanism that was preserved after Independence by the Mahatmas and Nehru Brahmins by preaching “non violence” and contemplation of the navel religions to the poor ,can be found at :

dalitvoice.org/about.htm

Where class and caste and religion intersect for the building unity of the Unity of poor in India by exposing and abolition of the caste system .

The web site claims the old communist party of the India and Marxist class analysis failed the poor by insisting on class as the dominant or even sole factor in oppression of the poor while not paying sufficient or real attention to the role of caste intersecting with class in Hindu religious dominated society

Dalit Voice claims to have become the sole spokesman for the entire deprived, de humanised lot in India. Besides the Dalits, it aims to “look after the interests of Backward Castes (35%) and the country’s three persecuted religious minorities — Muslims 15%, Christians 2.5%, and Sikhs 2.5% — all victims of the Aryan Brahminical racism. Plus the women of all sections including the Hindu women”

It claims that… “Only DV has diagnosed the disease of India which is an exception to all other countries in the world. If others have only “classes”, India has not only the “class” but the world’s most unique institution of caste system, which is the other word for racism. “

The Dalit voice says that Hitler learned his Aryan superior race nonsence from studying the Brahmins of India, with the Jews becoming the equivelant of the Untouchable caste in europe in the Nazi mythology.

Meanwhile the Maoist revolutionaries go from strength to strength in India in consolidating and expanding their revolutionary base areas through armed struggle and are well positioned for the expected coming downturn in the Indian economy preparing to build a unity of the poor in a practical way.

sydney.indymedia.org.au/story/india-untouchables-dalits-convert-budhism-and-islam-fight-hindu-brahminist-caste-and-class-opp

 

[ZAKI]

If the Indian Press in general is to be believed, the Hindu minority in Bangladesh, numbering over 10 million, suffers the most cruel oppression at the hands of so-called ‘Muslim Fanatics’ and ‘Islamic Fundamentalists’. Nothing could, however, be further from the truth, as I discovered during a recent two-month stay in Bangladesh. In general, minorities in Muslim majority Bangladesh lead a more secure and prosperous life than minorities in Hindu-majority India, though few in India would readily concede this, for it clearly contradicts the carefully-constructed myth of ‘Muslim intolerance.’ Unlike in India, where anti-Minority violence, abetted by politicians and the police, is a routine affair in which thousands upon thousands of Muslims and others have lost their lives since Independence, Bangladesh is remarkably free of communal violence. There have been no riots of the sort that India has seen ever since the country’s liberation in 1971. The only time that violence against the Hindus occurred was in the immediate aftermath of the destruction of the Babri Masjid at Ayodhya in 1992. Here, it is important to note that the violence was, in the first place, provoked by the large scale massacre of Muslims in India and, secondly, not more than half a dozen death were reported, compared with the many thousands who lost their lives in India.

Like all other religious groups in the country, the Hindus of Bangladesh enjoy full religious liberty. I was in Bangladesh during the Puja season and I saw for myself how the Hindus there celebrate their festivals free of any restriction. On the day of Durga Puja, I visited the Dhakeshwari temple, Dhaka’s principal Hindu shrine. The temple was packed with worshippers, mendicants and folk singers and the entrance to the shrine was lined with long rows of pavement stalls selling Hindu icons and literature. That evening I took the bus to Dinajpur, up in the north of the country. Almost every little village we passed by had a brightly-lit and gaudily decorated Puja Pandal.

In Dinajpur itself the local Hindus had arranged their Puja at the Rajbari, the enormous mansion of a Hindu landlord. The local Marwari Hindus, all very prosperous businessmen, had organized their own Puja Pandal separate from the Bengali Hindus. Caste is still a very important matter for Bangladeshi Hindus. All the priests officiating at temples and conducting the Pujas are Brahmins, although most of the worshippers belong to the so-called lower castes such as Namashudra, Pod, Rajbanshi and Chandal.

Prior to 1947, East Bengal, as Bangladesh was then known, was one of the most backward parts of British India. Although they were but a small minority, upper caste Hindus owned almost all the land in the province. Most of the agricultural workers and tenants who worked on the fields of the Hindu Zamindars were Muslims. The peasants seemed to have been subjected to the most brutal oppression at the hands of the Zamindars, as the long, blood-filled history of peasant revolts in East Bengal testifies. One has only to see the now crumbling ruins of the vast Zamindari mansions or rajbaris that still dot the Bangladeshi countryside and contrast it with the most abject poverty that most Bangladeshi peasants are still mired in to get a feel of how oppressive the conditions must have been for the largely Muslim peasantry of East Bengal prior to 1947. After East Bengal separated from India, the Zamindari estates, owned by a handful of Hindu landlords, were abolished. While this measure affected just a few Hindu families, the lower-caste Hindus, the vast majority of Bangladeshi Hindus, remained unaffected. They chose to stay on in Bangladesh instead of migrating to India. Today they form the bulk of the country’s Hindu population. Certain trades and crafts are monopolized by them, such as the making of musical instruments, iron-smithy and metal carving. Though there are few rich families among them, on the whole they are economically not worse off than the Muslims in general.

Traditionally the Hindus of Bengal have been far ahead of the Muslims in the field of education. Even today the Hindus of Bangladesh enjoy a comfortable representation in the teaching profession, particularly in the villages of outlying and backward districts, such as Noakhali in the Central-east and Dinajpur, in the north-west of the country. Dhaka University, meant to be the country’s premier institution of higher education (deplorable, though, I must say, even by Indian standards), has a special hostel for Hindu students, the Jaganath Hall. Well over a thousand students live here in sprawling blocks of flats and the hall’s vast compounds contain a large football field, a stadium and a Hindu temple.

I do not wish to paint an over-rosy picture of the conditions of the Hindus of Bangladesh. Like minorities elsewhere, they too have their share of insecurities and fears, problems and dilemmas. But to allege, as many in India do, that they are on the verge of mass-decimation or genocide or that they are brutally oppressed, being robbed of all civic rights, is a gross travesty of the truth. They may not be perfectly happy, it is true, but at least their lives are, on the whole, safe, I would confidently assert.

Here, then, lies a lesson we in India can profitably learn.

wasalam (enjoy reading)

 

[franki_rulz]

A report on Dalit Budhists in the Asia Times online says : In contemporary India, while attacks by Hindu militant groups on the minority Muslim and Christian communities have drawn the attention of the Indian and international media, atrocities on Buddhists go unreported, mostly because they fall into the lowest rungs of the caste ladder. … - Over 50 years ago, the author of India’s constitution, B R Ambedkar, set in motion a Buddhist socio-political movement for the conversion of Dalits to Budhists.

“We(many) were converted into Buddhists in 1956, but we still face a lot of discrimination, injustice and violence,” said Devidas Ghodeshwar, talking to Inter Press Service in front of the impressive Deekshabhoomi Stupa built here to mark the site of Ambedkar’s historic conversion, along with thousands of his followers.

The monument is built after the famous Sanchi stupa built in the third century by emperor Ashoka who renounced Hinduism to become a Buddhist. Thereafter, Buddhism flourished in India until the seventh century when it went into a slow but steady decline, mostly owing to a powerful Hindu revival.

Even as Buddhism spread to Tibet, the Far East and Southeast Asia, its followers in India suffered persecution under the supporters of the caste ridden Hindu religion.For us in Australia the Indian religions may simply appear be based on and grown through intelectuals ancient text study, seeking truth in the ideas of 'The Bagahad Vida or The lotus sutra etc,But down on the ground ,is the dirty reality of class and caste and property interests , the actual social practice of the religions that is the everyday reality .

One problem for the Buddhists is that the Hindu establishment does not accept the fact of their conversions or even that Buddhism is a separate faith system. Officially, less than 1% of 1 billion Indians are listed as Buddhist, but most people agree that the majority of the 200 million Dalits of India follow the Buddhist faith.

"We have converted but still the Hindus aren’t accepting that we have been converted and they don’t understand that we belong to a separate group now. They refer to the Buddha as the ninth incarnation of the Hindu deity Vishnu and do not see Buddhism as a separate religion,’’ said Ghodeshwar.

"We are seen as part and parcel of Hinduism and this is also linked to our oppression and discrimination as Dalits,’'Ghodeshwar added. Background :
Hope for India’s ‘broken’ Buddhists

atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/KA16Df03.html

As there is no caste in Islamic religion becoming Muslim is a growing an attraction too.Christianity has had some appeal in the past though it is now said that some Christian sects are prepared to accept caste divisions ,even maintaining seperate churches for dalits.

It is this movement towards Islam a large sector of Indian society that is behind attempts by some Hindu nationalist parties to provoke trouble and promote inter-communal violence in India.An attempt to get the poor Dalits to fight Muslims ,so that the Brahmin sector of the ruling class can pose as protectors of the poor Hindu caste Dalits and Hindu India from Muslim “terrorism”.Dividing the poor and divide and rule is ever the tactic of the ruling class.Religious division is an important tool for that .

More background on the movement for the mass conversion of Dalits into Buddhists and Muslims to fight the oppression of the caste system of Hindu/Brahmanism that was preserved after Independence by the Mahatmas and Nehru Brahmins by preaching “non violence” and contemplation of the navel religions to the poor ,can be found at :

dalitvoice.org/about.htm

Where class and caste and religion intersect for the building unity of the Unity of poor in India by exposing and abolition of the caste system .

The web site claims the old communist party of the India and Marxist class analysis failed the poor by insisting on class as the dominant or even sole factor in oppression of the poor while not paying sufficient or real attention to the role of caste intersecting with class in Hindu religious dominated society

Dalit Voice claims to have become the sole spokesman for the entire deprived, de humanised lot in India. Besides the Dalits, it aims to “look after the interests of Backward Castes (35%) and the country’s three persecuted religious minorities — Muslims 15%, Christians 2.5%, and Sikhs 2.5% — all victims of the Aryan Brahminical racism. Plus the women of all sections including the Hindu women”

It claims that… “Only DV has diagnosed the disease of India which is an exception to all other countries in the world. If others have only “classes”, India has not only the “class” but the world’s most unique institution of caste system, which is the other word for racism. “

The Dalit voice says that Hitler learned his Aryan superior race nonsence from studying the Brahmins of India, with the Jews becoming the equivelant of the Untouchable caste in europe in the Nazi mythology.

Meanwhile the Maoist revolutionaries go from strength to strength in India in consolidating and expanding their revolutionary base areas through armed struggle and are well positioned for the expected coming downturn in the Indian economy preparing to build a unity of the poor in a practical way.

sydney.indymedia.org.au/story/india-untouchables-dalits-convert-budhism-and-islam-fight-hindu-brahminist-caste-and-class-opp

n what my friend, are u trying to prove by this post?

…the caste system is a part of the aryan culture which is STILL prominent in India, however people ARE NOT KILLED for being dalits (backward caste)…!

INDIA IS A SECULAR DEMOCRATIC COUNTRY(HOW MANY MUSLIM COUNTRIES CAN BOAST OF THIS?)… the law of the land is supreme, no hindu laws are followed.You cannot use religion as an excuse for your crime… no barbaric shariah type laws are in use in India.

 

[franki_rulz]

If the Indian Press in general is to be believed, the Hindu minority in Bangladesh, numbering over 10 million, suffers the most cruel oppression at the hands of so-called ‘Muslim Fanatics’ and ‘Islamic Fundamentalists’.

Pls provide evidence, show me one article where the India press talks about the oppression of hindus in bangladesh. The India press like elswhere is too busy in majority (hindu) bashing,as they call it

Nothing could, however, be further from the truth, as I discovered during a recent two-month stay in Bangladesh. In general, minorities in Muslim majority Bangladesh lead a more secure and prosperous life than minorities in Hindu-majority India, though few in India would readily concede this, for it clearly contradicts the carefully-constructed myth of 'Muslim intolerance.

Muslim intolerance is widely practised in Pakistan, not so much in Bangladesh, google it up and you’ll know. Minorites in Pakistan are officially second class citizen and those stupid **prehistoric barbaric shariah laws **are used against them all the time. Visit the site of pakistans census and you’ll realise that the population of hindus has decreased by 30%since 1947 whereas in India muslims are baby producing factories!.. there is so much difference in the way India treats her minorities and the way the failed islamic state pakistan does it.Tell me how many muslim countries are democratic and secular?( I love asking this question to muslims ).We are the worlds largest democracy.The law of the land is supreme, no shariah type laws apply here.You cannot use God or religion to justify your crime.

’ Unlike in India, where anti-Minority violence, abetted by politicians and the police, is a routine affair in which thousands upon thousands of Muslims and others have lost their lives since Independence, Bangladesh is remarkably free of communal violence. There have been no riots of the sort that India has seen ever since the country’s liberation in 1971. The only time that violence against the Hindus occurred was in the immediate aftermath of the destruction of the Babri Masjid at Ayodhya in 1992. Here, it is important to note that the violence was, in the first place, provoked by the large scale massacre of Muslims in India and, secondly, not more than half a dozen death were reported, compared with the many thousands who lost their lives in India.

**
What **…!
The barbi masjid was built on the site of hinduism holiest site.they believe it is the birth place of Ram(one of the hindu gods),It is to the hindus what mecca and medina are to the muslims. The muslim invader, barbar, destroyed the temple and built the barbi mosque on it.muslims stopped praying at that site since 1922. It was being used.Some fanatic hindus brought down a wall of the so called mosque before the police could step in, in 1992(not a single muslim was harmed during the destruction).After that the muslims started attacking and killing innocent hindus(like they have done for centuries). This provoked some right wing hindu organisations and they started retaliating…so you see, the roots of the problem lie with the muslims…like always

and yes, your must read about how the now muslim bangladesh was converted from hindusim by force by the muslim invaders centuries ago…

lastly, posting how well treated hindus are in bangladesh DOES NOT WIPE OUT THE HISTORIC CRIMES MUSLIM INVADERS HAVE DONE FOR CENTURIES IN THE NAME OF THE SO CALLED RELIGION OF “PEACE”

 

[franki_rulz]

Yes, could we please keep this thread about Buddhism? Not every thread has to be about Islam.

Edwin

Point taken… I think the muslims on this thread should accept facts and stop trying to prove how “pure” their religion is.

 

[franki_rulz]

I assure you that this thread will not disparage your faith. I respect it very much. The catholics, not so much, but hopefully they can simmer down!

I just dont like it when some people try to act smart,especially when it comes to show how GREAT their religion is.If they can make a point so can we,why should we catholic listen to **** from everyone?

 

[franki_rulz]

I agree with you. However what annoys my about muslims is that they always distort history and try to deny all the wrong doings every done by their people…as if islam and muslims can do no wrong…haha!!

 

[humblelurker]

This thread started out very good.

Please more Buddhism.

 

[katy_kt]

If anything needs to be said further about Islam/Hinduism/Christianity in the subcontinent, please open a new thread.

Back to the topic. The Buddhism discussion is very interesting. I have little knowledge about the religion in its present form. The various different branches of Buddhism, is an interesting subject.

 

[AJTheMan]

Buddhist violence is pretty rare, I would say. The only Buddhists who do use violence are the ones who are just cultural Buddhists. Buddhism is so anti-violence that anyone who does such a thing probably is not Buddhist.

And for the allegations that Buddhism has a caste…that is simply untrue. Hinduism has castes. Buddhism does not.

 

[supreme]

Buddhism is a lovely, peaceful religion, although I view Buddhists as atheists rather than theists.

 

[AJTheMan]

Buddhism is a lovely, peaceful religion, although I view Buddhists as atheists rather than theists.

This is a correct statement, depending on which branch of Buddhism. Let me use an analogy. It would be like me saying “Well, I like Christianity, but they always follow that pope around like he’s the best leader ever!”

Is this a true statement? For some Christians it is. But for you, a protestant, it most likely is not. Likewise, Buddhism has had it’s “schisms” over the years.

The two main Branches are Theravada and Mahayana. Theravada, as you said correctly, follow the Buddha’s teachings about not clinging to a creator deity. A good bit of Mahayana, though, mix Buddhism with local deities and customs.

And to finalize my point, an interesting thing here: Mahayana Buddhist outnumber Theravada Buddhists. So I suppose that it would be correct to say that most Buddhists are theists.

 

[humblelurker]

I know very little about Buddhism, so I will ask some questions:
What about Buddhist Metaphysics? Are they uniformed, or do different branches believe different things? How do the gods fit into things? Are they seen as having their own realms that intersect this one, or is it just this one? What about spirits? Is reincarnation viewed as instant or not? What is karma, and can the gods influence it? Directly? Indirectly? How is Buddhism fairing in the east? In China? How do Buddhists view Christianity?
I will have to leave for the weekend, but I will check back.

 

[rossum]

What about Buddhist Metaphysics?

How many years do you have available?

Are they uniformed, or do different branches believe different things?

There is a core that is shared by all versions of Buddhism, there is a lot of non-core stuff that differs between groups. Much of the difference is due to the difficulty of describing the undescribable. Theravadins tend not to say a lot. Mahayanists say a great deal, most of it apparently contradictory (see my sig). Zen Buddhists will hit you with a stick and tell you to go back to meditating. All three approaches work for different people.

How do the gods fit into things?

The gods are living beings who, like us, need to become enlightened in order to attain nirvana. They live longer than us and are often happier. Buddhism is generally indifferent to them; their main function in scriptures is to ask the Buddha easy questions and to applaud at the right places.

Are they seen as having their own realms that intersect this one, or is it just this one?

There are about 26 heavens in the standard descriptions, some material, some fine-material and some immaterial. Few Western Buddhists take the descriptions literally. I cannot speak for Eastern Buddhists.

What about spirits?

Many and various. Again they are living beings who need to become enlightened in order to attain nirvana.

Is reincarnation viewed as instant or not?

This differs between schools. I have seen instant, 7 days delay and 49 days delay.

What is karma,

All conscious actions generate a reaction. The nature of the reaction depends on the nature of the action:Mind precedes all conditions,
mind is their chief, they are mind-made.
If you speak or act with an evil mind then suffering will follow you,
as the wheel follows the draught ox.

Mind precedes all conditions,
mind is their chief, they are mind-made.
If you speak or act with a pure mind then happiness will follow you,
as a shadow that never leaves.

Dhammapada 1:1-2
Karma is a force in the universe, somewhat like gravity. If you throw a rock straight up then it will hit you on the head as it comes down. If you don’t want to be hit on the head then don’t throw the rock. There is no sin in Buddhism so neither is there any forgiveness of sin. Actions have consequences. That is why mindfulness is emphasised in Buddhism; if you act unmindfully then you will suffer unwanted consequences.

and can the gods influence it? Directly? Indirectly?

No, all living beings including the gods are subject to karma. Even being enlightened does not free you from karma. You do not generate any new karma but you will still be subject to any remaining unresolved karma from before your enlightenment.

How is Buddhism fairing in the east? In China?

I am not sure. I suspect that Western-style commercialism is causing some problems, but hopefully those will only last a few hundred years.

How do Buddhists view Christianity?

The Buddha divided other religions into two groups, useful and useless. The useful religions make a connection between actions and results. On that criterion most forms of Christianity are useful; sin is punished and virtue rewarded. Extreme Calvinism where no action you can take can alter the result would be considered useless.

rossum

 

[franki_rulz]

@ all… apologies for deviating away from the main topic of this thread.
Let us keep this thread about buddhism…

zaki,bosnian muslim and all my fellow “muslims have done no wrong ever” thinkers, you might wanna start a new thread…n we can talk about how “peacefully” ur religion spread
God bless,
Franklin

 

[AJTheMan]

How many years do you have available?

There is a core that is shared by all versions of Buddhism, there is a lot of non-core stuff that differs between groups. Much of the difference is due to the difficulty of describing the undescribable. Theravadins tend not to say a lot. Mahayanists say a great deal, most of it apparently contradictory (see my sig). Zen Buddhists will hit you with a stick and tell you to go back to meditating. All three approaches work for different people.

The gods are living beings who, like us, need to become enlightened in order to attain nirvana. They live longer than us and are often happier. Buddhism is generally indifferent to them; their main function in scriptures is to ask the Buddha easy questions and to applaud at the right places.

There are about 26 heavens in the standard descriptions, some material, some fine-material and some immaterial. Few Western Buddhists take the descriptions literally. I cannot speak for Eastern Buddhists.

Many and various. Again they are living beings who need to become enlightened in order to attain nirvana.

This differs between schools. I have seen instant, 7 days delay and 49 days delay.

All conscious actions generate a reaction. The nature of the reaction depends on the nature of the action:Mind precedes all conditions,
mind is their chief, they are mind-made.
If you speak or act with an evil mind then suffering will follow you,
as the wheel follows the draught ox.

Mind precedes all conditions,
mind is their chief, they are mind-made.
If you speak or act with a pure mind then happiness will follow you,
as a shadow that never leaves.

Dhammapada 1:1-2
Karma is a force in the universe, somewhat like gravity. If you throw a rock straight up then it will hit you on the head as it comes down. If you don’t want to be hit on the head then don’t throw the rock. There is no sin in Buddhism so neither is there any forgiveness of sin. Actions have consequences. That is why mindfulness is emphasised in Buddhism; if you act unmindfully then you will suffer unwanted consequences.

No, all living beings including the gods are subject to karma. Even being enlightened does not free you from karma. You do not generate any new karma but you will still be subject to any remaining unresolved karma from before your enlightenment.

I am not sure. I suspect that Western-style commercialism is causing some problems, but hopefully those will only last a few hundred years.

The Buddha divided other religions into two groups, useful and useless. The useful religions make a connection between actions and results. On that criterion most forms of Christianity are useful; sin is punished and virtue rewarded. Extreme Calvinism where no action you can take can alter the result would be considered useless.

rossum

Not all Buddhists believe that there are gods, however. I just want to make that distinction so that the people here don’t get confused. Gods serve a symbolic purpose. It is said that as Sidhattha Gotama sat under the Bodhi tree, he was tempted by a demon named Mara. Some people take this account literally. I would bet, however, that a good bit of Theravada, especially western ones, see the symbolic nature of the Mara construct.

 

[ZAKI]

Buddhist violence is pretty rare, I would say. The only Buddhists who do use violence are the ones who are just cultural Buddhists. Buddhism is so anti-violence that anyone who does such a thing probably is not Buddhist.

And for the allegations that Buddhism has a caste…that is simply untrue. Hinduism has castes. Buddhism does not.

look up islam in burma

wasalam

 

[AJTheMan]

look up islam in burma

wasalam

Please elaborate? I’m not exactly sure what you are trying to say.

I’m not exactly sure what to look for. Maybe you could link me to something?

 

[Nine_Two]

Buddhist violence is pretty rare, I would say. The only Buddhists who do use violence are the ones who are just cultural Buddhists. Buddhism is so anti-violence that anyone who does such a thing probably is not Buddhist.

And for the allegations that Buddhism has a caste…that is simply untrue. Hinduism has castes. Buddhism does not.

Buddhism was quite violent upon its arrival in Japan, and played a major role in militant portions of its history. I’m not saying that proves Buddhism to be wrong, just that you can’t hold it aloof of other religions as somehow being less violent.