Originally posted by dragon_stone:In another thread, I find it very difficult to answer what is my religion. For this thread, you have mentioned that Buddhism is not a religion. That is fine with me. I feel that there are many doors (84,000?) to be opened before we can say we understood and embraced the religion.
Perhaps you misunderstood what 84000 dharma doors means.Originally posted by dragon_stone:In another thread, I find it very difficult to answer what is my religion. For this thread, you have mentioned that Buddhism is not a religion. That is fine with me. I feel that there are many doors (84,000?) to be opened before we can say we understood and embraced the religion.
Originally posted by ceecookie:Since my mother so stubborn and wont bring me to suntec to buy the 360..
an eye for an eye...since she wont bring me to buy the 360 i wont go with her to the temple...this is the first time i didnt go....No Xbox 360=No Temple
and its too risky for me to take mrt there while carrying $660 by cash
what 84000 dharma doors means.one can apply the pinciple of jie1 (discipline of body and mind) , ting2 (concentration), hui4 (transcendence wisdom). discipline leads to concentration and eventually to wisdom opening.
Oh yes... http://www.buddhistinformation.com/ida_b_wells_memorial_sutra_library/vimalakirti_nirdesa_sutra.htmOriginally posted by sinweiy:one can apply the pinciple of jie1 (discipline of body and mind) , ting2 (concentration), hui4 (transcendence wisdom). discipline leads to concentration and eventually to wisdom opening.
that would mean discipline of body and mind can have infinite different form. Buddha recitation, focusing on the breath, koan, visualization etc etc.
but for saha world, the sharpest sense for us is still the hearing sense, as Bodhisattva Manjushri had picked Guan Yin's method of hearing in Shurangama Sutra.
note that there are other world systems that the sharpest sense can even be smell or taste. that mean if they were to smell or eat certain things, they would get a realization/enlightenment.
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Give to temple? Give to friend? Put at another place in your house? Sell it..?Originally posted by neutral_onliner:Hi to all Dharma Bros & Sisters,
While doing some painting 4 my parents hse the other day, saw tat my mum's Guanyin statue quite 'old'... thinking of replacing a new one.Any ideal wat shld i do to the 'old' one?![]()
thnksOriginally posted by An Eternal Now:Give to temple? Give to friend? Put at another place in your house? Sell it..?
I think better check with a monastery first.. see what they tell you..
Originally posted by markzz:can say so.
Bodhisattva = Trainee Buddha?
It is neither a religion in the sense in which that word is commonly understood, for it is not "a system of faith and worship owing any allegiance to a supernatural being."Originally posted by dragon_stone:In another thread, I find it very difficult to answer what is my religion. For this thread, you have mentioned that Buddhism is not a religion. That is fine with me. I feel that there are many doors (84,000?) to be opened before we can say we understood and embraced the religion.
Yes, I agree with you on this same understanding which I had discussed with my buddhist friends that Buddha give no such guarantee. This is the very first step towards understanding Buddhism.Originally posted by neutral_onliner:A Buddhist does not seek refuge in the Buddha with the hope that he will be saved by His personal purification. The Buddha gives no such guarantee. It is not within the power of a Buddha to wash away the impurities of others. One could neither purify nor defile another.
The Buddha, as Teacher, instructs us, but we ourselves are directly responsible for our purification.
Although a Buddhist seeks refuge in the Buddha, he does not make any self-surrender. Nor does a Buddhist sacrifice his freedom of thought by becoming a follower of the Buddha. He can exercise his own free will and develop his knowledge even to the extent of becoming a Buddha himself.
The starting point of Buddhism is reasoning or understanding, or, in other words, Samma-ditthi.
Yes by all means you can wish and pray, but dont be superstitious about it, and dont think offering three joss stick costing so little can earn you big fortune etc.. be more realisticOriginally posted by dragon_stone:Yes, I agree with you on this same understanding which I had discussed with my buddhist friends that Buddha give no such guarantee. This is the very first step towards understanding Buddhism.
But it seems that in every or other religions, it is usually the believer hope to seek favors from the respective gods to answer to their prayers.
The Buddha exhorts His disciples to depend on themselves for their deliverance, for both purity and defilement depend on oneself. Clarifying His relationship with His followers and emphasizing the importance of self-reliance and individual striving, the Buddha plainly states: "You should exert yourselves, the Tathagatas are only teachers."Originally posted by dragon_stone:Yes, I agree with you on this same understanding which I had discussed with my buddhist friends that Buddha give no such guarantee. This is the very first step towards understanding Buddhism.
But it seems that in every or other religions, it is usually the believer hope to seek favors from the respective gods to answer to their prayers.
There are something which I do not understand, there is the Guan Yin temple (buddhist?) at Middle Road, I see people offering joss sticks. I do not see any monks or nuns guiding the devotees except helpers handing out sweets and removing flowers.Originally posted by An Eternal Now:Yes by all means you can wish and pray, but dont be superstitious about it, and dont think offering three joss stick costing so little can earn you big fortune etc.. be more realistic
Originally posted by neutral_onliner:What I understand is that the word buddha means teacher. Somehow along the way that Buddhism becomes a religion. Just like Taoism, many years ago, it was not recognised as a religion. Some of my NS friends were unable to list on their metal tags.
The Buddha exhorts His disciples to depend on themselves for their deliverance, for both purity and defilement depend on oneself. Clarifying His relationship with His followers and emphasizing the importance of self-reliance and individual striving, the Buddha plainly states: [b]"You should exert yourselves, the Tathagatas are only teachers."
The Buddhas point out the path, and it is left for us to follow that path to obtain our purification.
"To depend on others for salvation is negative, but to depend on oneself is positive." Dependence on others means a surrender of one's effort.
In exhorting His disciples to be self-dependent the Buddha says in the Parinibbana Sutta: "Be ye islands unto yourselves, be ye a refuge unto yourselves, seek not for refuge in others." These significant words are self-elevating. They reveal how vital is self-exertion to accomplish one's object and, how superficial and futile it is to seek redemption through benignant saviors and to crave for illusory happiness in an after life through the propitiation of imaginary Gods or by irresponsive prayers and meaningless sacrifices
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Hi dragon_stone,Originally posted by dragon_stone:What I understand is that the word buddha means teacher. Somehow along the way that Buddhism becomes a religion. Just like Taoism, many years ago, it was not recognised as a religion. Some of my NS friends were unable to list on their metal tags.
Thanks and there are still many, many things to learnt and understand.
Hi, as I have replied with the same message just a few days ago on two places... Guan Yin temple is not really a Buddhist temple, although Guan Yin is from Buddhism.Originally posted by dragon_stone:There are something which I do not understand, there is the Guan Yin temple (buddhist?) at Middle Road, I see people offering joss sticks. I do not see any monks or nuns guiding the devotees except helpers handing out sweets and removing flowers.
Well, I learnt to pray only for family and personal safety and not for luck. As in another religion, it was preached that god help those who help themeselves.