Greetings all!

[Buddhish]

Hi All
this is my first post, having just discovered the forum a week ago. I count myself among the Richard Dawkins God Delusion converts to athiesm. I have travelled the path from a christian childhood, through a strong interest in buddhism (hence my username - could never quite call myself buddhist, but still happy to acknowledge the influence of these ideas on my development) to the point that I can now happily tell the weekend door knockers (evidently they have a solution to making it rain they tell me) that I am athiest.

I find many of the ideas that i encountered in buddhism to be great guidelines for living (impermenance, kindness and many more) but found the 'religion' trappings just didn't fit me. So I have now finally accepted that I am athiest, and can even say that without a furtive glance over my shoulder.

So hi all, and I hope to learn much from you all. Have patience with a beginner though, who is still honing my logic and reasoning.

[Fiery]

Howdy Buddhish and welcome to the forum. We're a lively bunch full of fun and irreverence. Hope you enjoy your time here!!!

[Duffy]

Hi Buddish, welcome. I look forward to reading your insight in buddism. I like to learn about what each religion thinks and teaches. Everyone here has something good to contribute

[davo]

Hiya Buddish,

From what I know and have read, buddhism doesn't believe in a god :

1. There is no almighty God in Buddhism. There is no one to hand out rewards or punishments on a supposedly Judgement Day.

2. Buddhism is strictly not a religion in the context of being a faith and worship owing allegiance to a supernatural being.

3. No saviour concept in Buddhism. A Buddha is not a saviour who saves others by his personal salvation. Although a Buddhist seeks refuge in the Buddha as his incomparable guide who indicates the path of purity, he makes no servile surrender. A Buddhist does not think that he can gain purity merely by seeking refuge in the Buddha or by mere faith in Him. It is not within the power of a Buddha to wash away the impurities of others

4. A Buddha is not an incarnation of a god/God (as claimed by some Hindu followers). The relationship between a Buddha and his disciples and followers is that of a teacher and student.

5. The liberation of self is the responsibility of one's own self. Buddhism does not call for an unquestionable blind faith by all Buddhist followers. It places heavy emphasis on self-reliance, self discipline and individual striving.

ref http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/snapshot01.htm

What would you define as the 'religion trappings'?

[Buddhish]

HI again and thanks for all the greetings! (who said you have to be religious to be nice to your fellow humans?.... )

Your summary of Buddhism is a very accurate one from what I have read and experienced, and those principles make it quite a compatible way of life in relation to athiesm.

The religious trappings I found that still don't quite fit with me are largely cultural issues, rather than things which are inherent in the teachings of the Buddha, with the one exception of karma and rebirth.

The sort of cultural stuff I have struck has been across Theravadan, Tibetan and Western Buddhist groups - although there are different cultural issues in each branch. Examples are things like Prayer Wheels in the Tibetan tradition (spinning a wheel filled with written copies of a mantra that is supposed ot improve the level of kindness and love in the world); in Theravadan tradition (which I am closest to) there still persists some beliefs that certain people can achieve supernatural feats eg. living in a forest with wild animals and not being eaten because of their mental development (rather than because of their actions and the apetites of the animals in question) etc. Also, the translations of the Pali into English often refer to the "Lord Buddha" - I suspect this is an issue of misunderstanding in the original translation, but it carries too much baggage for me personally to feel comfortable with.

The issue of carrying the karma of this life into another rebirth I still can't reconcile when there is no soul (Buddhists do not believe in a soul, but I have never understood if there is no soul to move from one being to another how karma can move into a future life). On a basic level, I understand and support the karma concept within a single life (ie. put as simply as I believe it to be - if you do a good thing, good things will follow from that but not necessarily to you - a smile can change a person's day, so too can an agressive snarl).

Buddhism, with it's inherent lack of a god, has been a vital and important step on my personal journey. But i've never moved further than Buddhish!

Sorry to have raved on! Nice to meet you all! What a great forum - 'herding cats" was quite daunting, but having a community like this makes it so much easier! (I love the quote that organising athiests is like herding cats!)

[davo]

Great reply Buddhish! thanks! I've only touched on a lot of buddhism, it does interest me in regard peoples perceptions within it .. I understand there has been a lot of cultural input into it from various sources ...

is this one of the supernatural feats?

[Duffy]

Buddhish, I think I have identified the problem *image of pointing at your brain xray with a group of white coated colleagues* ... you question too much. Arhh welcome to atheism!