Sudden loss of faith may be a scary experience for some....but at the same time it's also a turning point, where one starts to relook at our old beliefs from a fresh perspective & gain new insights into our lives.Originally posted by oldbandit:I do not know if it is right for me to postit here. If there is any offence taken, my sincere apology..
My whole family are buddist, i was a buddist.. I offered prayer jossstick and visit temple.. But suddenly i lost my faith, i lost my direction. As mine was more to thai buddist, i stopped wearing my thai pendant. I do not know y, but just maybe i could not figure something out.
We are now living in a world and we only know abt the past from history..
How sure can we be that buddha did exist?
How sure can we be there is christ?
How sure can we be that those hidus gods exist?
I mean i used to believe in them in a sense i offer my respect. Wadever religion i make it a point to show my respect by not saying bad things so is now. But just that now, i lost the faith, i m not saying they are fake, juz that i cant convince myself that they do exist before. Is there any advise i can get from here to be sure of myself before i really go bonkers thinking of this.
My sincere apology again if i have offend anyone here..
Originally posted by oldbandit:Don't worry, this forum is very open and we do not easily take offence at any posts especially when the intention is good.
I do not know if it is right for me to postit here. If there is any offence taken, my sincere apology..
My whole family are buddist, i was a buddist.. I offered prayer jossstick and visit temple.. But suddenly i lost my faith, i lost my direction. As mine was more to thai buddist, i stopped wearing my thai pendant. I do not know y, but just maybe i could not figure something out.I think Wanderer already replied this part very well... that it might be time to re-look into our old beliefs to gain new perspectives and insights... to really find out what Buddhism is all about? Is it just a matter of praying to Buddha, wearing pendants, or even just having faith? How can Buddhism really help us and how we can benefit from practising Buddhism? By the way pendants are just a culture of Thai Buddhism, it's not the essential thing in Thai Buddhism or Buddhism, nor the teaching of the Buddha... such things are only things added to Buddhism due to cultural influences along times as Buddhism spread to different places from India.. so whether you wear the pendant is not a very crucial issue. The essential thing in Thai Buddhism, or any other traditions of Buddhism, is the dharma, the truths, the teachings of the Buddha.
We are now living in a world and we only know abt the past from history..Again as Wanderer said, Buddha and Jesus are both real people who lived on Earth 2000+ years ago, with historical proof backing their existence, and marks of their existence found all over the ancient civilisations till this day. Just like the ancient emperors of China, like Emperor Qin, etc, you cannot doubt that they existed 2000+ years ago. They are certainly not mythical beings or some tales. Another thing I want to state is that... Buddha is not a god. Buddha looks as ordinary as us (although he looks very magnificant with 32 major marks and 80 minor marks of a Buddha)... but he is in another sense extraordinary, even higher than gods, and the gods took him as their Teacher (because those gods themselves are not liberated from the sufferings of samsara and the cycle of rebirth). But the point of his teaching is that everyone of us has Buddha Nature that is already wholly complete just yet discovered, if he can get enlightened, so can we, if he can find liberation from sufferings and the highest lasting bliss of Nirvana, so can we. He does not ask people to worship him, but shows us the possibility for each of us to gain complete bliss, liberation, enlightenment.
How sure can we be that buddha did exist?
How sure can we be there is christ?
How sure can we be that those hidus gods exist?
I mean i used to believe in them in a sense i offer my respect. Wadever religion i make it a point to show my respect by not saying bad things so is now. But just that now, i lost the faith, i m not saying they are fake, juz that i cant convince myself that they do exist before. Is there any advise i can get from here to be sure of myself before i really go bonkers thinking of this.In Buddhism, faith is not just by blind following or belief. We have to practise the dharma and see ourselves... through practising the dharma, we will gain confidence in the teachings because we will see how it truly helps in our lives... and eventually we will attain Enlightenment! Lot's of people have attained enlightenment, almost countless in fact since the time Buddha taught the dharma... Even today there are a lot of enlightened people.. whether they are teachers or just practitioners of the dharma. Even in this forum, there is quite a number of people who are already enlightened to the ultimate nature of reality, to the truths that the Buddha taught... and they are just common practitioners of the dharma, not some great masters or reincarnated teachers. And of course when you are enlightened, you will certainly have no doubts about what the Buddha taught because you have truly seen them yourselves! It is truly possible... although I am just a beginner (started learning about buddhism about 4 years ago, currently just turned 17, so still quite a novice) and I'm not enlightened yet. But the thing is this... Once you have a taste of how practicing dharma results in, you will never be able to resist the path, you can't forget it, you can't discard it. There is a natural compulsion to continue practicing all the way to enlightenment.
Kalama Sutra
"Rely not on the teacher/person, but on the teaching. Rely not on the words of the teaching, but on the
spirit of the words. Rely not on theory, but on experience.Do not believe in anything simply because you
have heard it. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. Do
not believe anything because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything because it is
written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and
elders. But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything agrees with reason and is
conducive to the good and the benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it."
- the Buddha
Note: this is just a summary, please read the entire sutra here: http://buddhism.kalachakranet.org/resources/kalama_sutra.html
[quote]Originally posted by An Eternal Now:My sincere apology again if i have offend anyone here..[/quote]
There is no need to apologise. We can see that you have sincere intentions in posting here. Again if there is anything you would like to discuss you can always post..we'll be happy to discuss. Or if there is anything you would like to ask.. please feel free to ask as well.
Now more about the nature of the Buddha...http://www.jenchen.org.sg/vol7no4c.htmAll forms are illusions
Buddhism is truly detached from idols
It is stated in the Diamond Sutra, “He who sees me (Buddha) in forms or seeks me in sounds is on a heterodox path and cannot see the Tathagata (Buddha).” It further states that, “All forms are but illusions, in seeing that all forms are illusory, one sees the Tathagata”. It is only when we have attained a certain advanced level in the learning and practising of Buddhism that we will be able to understand the profound meaning of these verses. If you were to tell a person who has just started to learn Buddhism that learning Buddhism is like these verses, then he would find them too profound. He would not be able to make out what Buddha is like. Of course, he knows what human beings are like and quite naturally he will assume that only those who are similar in form to human beings are Buddhas. We can say that this is correct, but we can also say that this is wrong. For example, kindergarten teachers may use drawings of an old man and old woman when teaching the young children about grandfathers and grandmothers. Thereafter, when the children see other old folks in such resemblance they know that they are someone else’s grandparents. But, to university students it would be inappropriate for professors to use the same approach when talking about such blood relationships.
It is the same in learning Buddhism. When we encourage a new student of Buddhism to pay respect to the Buddha in the temple or monastery, he will not be frightened when he sees that the Buddha is the same as a human being. At the same time, when he sees that the Buddha and Bodhisattva images are so dignified and compassionate, it will give rise to a feeling of joy and reverence and lead him to learn Buddhism.
Often we come across people who have been learning Buddhism for a long time saying that they saw this Buddha or that Bodhisattva in their dreams. Initially, when we do not know about their level of understanding of Buddhism, we may praise them by saying, “Oh! You have such good affinity with Buddha and Bodhisattva that you can even see their images!” But it is wrong if we always praise them like this. If they report dreams like this for more then 3 times, you have to tell them, “The Mara is here, you have seen the Mara! All the Zen masters advise to obliterate the Buddha when the Buddha appears, and obliterate the Mara when the Mara appears [1].” We cannot praise them any more because they have already developed an attachment to forms.
In the same way, when we are dealing with people who are already advanced in Buddhism, we should use the method of the Diamond Sutra rather than the kindergarten method:
“He who sees me (Buddha) in forms or seeks me in sounds is on a heterodox path and cannot see the Tathagata (Buddha).”
“All forms are but illusions, in seeing that all forms are illusory, one sees the Tathagata.”
At this level, people will realize that Buddhism is the only religion that eradicates superstition and attachment to all forms.
Critics often say that the Buddha image is an idol. They criticize that Buddhism worships idols. In reality, the cross, the Jesus Christ image and Mother Mary, they are also idols. In this sense, is there a religion that does not worship idols? Therefore, we cannot say that Buddhism is the only religion that worships idols. The fact is that only Buddhism does not worship idols. The Diamond Sutra states, “All forms are but illusions, in seeing that all forms are illusory, one sees the Tathagata.”!
The essence of the Buddha, the Buddha Nature is omnipresent in the space of the Dharma realm, and the Dharma Nature is omnipresent in the space.
Notes:
1. To ignore and not to be attached to such forms;. Mara is the Evil One, described as a murderer, hinderer, disturber, destroyer, etc.
Originally posted by oldbandit:It is the correct path because not only has Buddha attained enlightenment and liberation, there are countless others (in sutras it is recorded that thousands of his students are Arhants) have attained enlightenment and liberation. After all Shakyamuni Buddha was not the only Buddha! He said he is not the first nor will he be the last. There were countless Buddhas before him and to appear in the future. Enlightened people exists. Of course that includes today... in fact there continue to be a large number practitioners who have become enlightened to the truth. But relatively speaking nowadays, it seems that there are less people interested in Buddhism due to lack of knowledge of what is the the right dharma teachings in the first place, and many people are very attached to material life and many things... Due to this, and due to the generally inferior karmic roots that sentient beings have in the dharma ending age, there are less enlightened people around than before. But if we have confidence (that Buddha can lead us to enlightenment) and practise the teachings of the Buddha, we can certainly attain liberation, nirvana, etc. Like I mentioned just now even in this forum, there are quite a number of people who are enlightened... and I'm not kidding.. serious
To me is not totally lost for not, i am sort of stuck in a 'grey area'.. We can deny the fact that they do exist in the past.. But can we be sure that the 'way' that is being pass down since thousands years ago did not stray from the correct way?
Assume it is in the correct path.. I dont understand that fact since budda or other religious figure pass their teaching down, and y is it that hteir follow is still one step below them and not able to attain the 'Buddhahood' still in the level or arahat?
If we follow christ teaching? y is that we are not able to reach christ lvl as a 'god'?I do not feel very much like commenting on the various other religions and teachings because I am not from their religions and if I comment too much, some of their followers may oppose my views... and also many teachings are distorted from the original words of their religious teachers... but basically if you go deep into them, you'll realise that many things are actually very similar... and that the religions' founders (I stress the founder, not necessarily the modern form of the religion) -- Jesus, some Indian sages, Lao Tzu and some other Taoist sages, etc etc, also taught that we can attain enlightenment although they way they put it may be different.. and their levels enlightenment may be different from the Buddha (after all Buddha is the one who has attained complete enlightenment, not just partial enlightenment) and many cases they are not very elaborate on 'how' to become enlightened like themselves, unlike the Buddha. Some of these teachers may be appearances of Bodhisattvas of different bhumi stages, and many times they teach the dharma in different ways as expedient/skillful means in accordance to the needs and situation of the people at that time. For example, many religious teachings stress on developing good qualities -- patience, love, generosity, doing good, avoiding evil, and so on.. but not so much on liberation and purification of the mind.
If we follow the teaching of hindu? Y we cant reach the lvl of thrie enlightenment?
is like all are 1 step below the 'sainthood'
maybe i am still noob to these thing, but from my understanding Mi le fuo ( laughing buddha ) is the next incoming 'buddha' y is it that they still have a replacement? Then wad will happen to the 'outgoing' buddha? Continue with his cycle? To come back to earth and go thru another enlightenment? people practise buddhism is to hope to have enuf merit to break this cycle of life and attain enternal enlightenment.. Isnt that a waste of time if even after attaining enlightening and u will have to go thru the cycle again?
Again, i apologise if i made any unintentional offensive remark..
If they are really what they are why do they disappear from this world?Originally posted by oldbandit:I do not know if it is right for me to postit here. If there is any offence taken, my sincere apology..
My whole family are buddist, i was a buddist.. I offered prayer jossstick and visit temple.. But suddenly i lost my faith, i lost my direction. As mine was more to thai buddist, i stopped wearing my thai pendant. I do not know y, but just maybe i could not figure something out.
We are now living in a world and we only know abt the past from history..
How sure can we be that buddha did exist?
How sure can we be there is christ?
How sure can we be that those hidus gods exist?
I mean i used to believe in them in a sense i offer my respect. Wadever religion i make it a point to show my respect by not saying bad things so is now. But just that now, i lost the faith, i m not saying they are fake, juz that i cant convince myself that they do exist before. Is there any advise i can get from here to be sure of myself before i really go bonkers thinking of this.
My sincere apology again if i have offend anyone here..
From a Buddhist perspective, of course the Buddha had to disappear from this Earth because impermanence is the reality of all compounded things, it is a characteristic of existence, a dharma seal, and furthermore because Birth, Ageing, Sickness and Death is a fact of life. We never preached immortality but instead, impermanence as the truth of reality. As such, the parinirvana of the Buddha is completely not in contradiction with his teachings. I have explained in the other thread how the teachings in Buddhism are completely consistent.Originally posted by maggot:If they are really what they are why do they disappear from this world?
Normal for a person to experience this
Based on what the person sees and thinks with logic
Welcome to the real world![]()
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Enjoy your readingOriginally posted by oldbandit:Thanks to An Enternal Now and _wanderer_ for the info.. i will look at the info u 2 provided and will come back here if i have any questions. Thanks.![]()
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