Ask a Buddhist

Hi Guys I have been in a class all day. I will answer your questions when I get home.

Sookie
 
Sithious said:
Hey Sataya, what is it with you and religion?

All that hate and frustration ain't doing you any favours.

Sure, many religions portrays homosexuality as a sin, but you have to remember that any religious scripture is strongly influenced by the time and soceity it was written within.

God didn't write the Bible nor any religious scripture, it was written by man. Any religion is mans perception of God, and that is why religions are so different yet share similarities.

There is no right religion, if someone are born in a muslim country they would most likely be a muslim, if they were born among a native tribe they would follow their belief, if they were raised by a christian family they are more inclined to be a christian.

And to quote Butters: " Because if I'm bicurious and I'm somehow made from god, then I figure God must be a little bicurious himself"
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This is a wonderful response!!
 
Moxie said:
My adoptive parents are Buddhists. I am not (maybe because I didn't grow up with them), although I have a lot of Buddhist beliefs. One of the things I've never understood is the chants. My mom tried to explain it to me, but it sounded like a bunch of gibberish (words that I would never remember). Is there a chant one can do in English?

I am not Buddhist for two reasons - I believe in a higher power, and I could never accept the first tenant "Life is Suffering." I also find Buddhism, at least how my parents are as very intellectual, and rather anti-feeling. That's not a criticism, just why Buddhism doesn't work for me.
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I can only speak about SGI-Buddhism. SGI buddhists are very compassionate. It is all about the members and member care. If someone is struggling there is another member that will go and chant with that person. They will study buddhist material or read about someones experience. People often give others guidance on what to do or what to chant for in order to push through obstacle. Obtacles and suffering arise because that is what happens when you are growing. Someone once said at a meeting that it is like when an airplane is taking off. You meet resistance. Then the airplane flies and gets places faster than any other means of travel. I have changed so much poison into medicine in my life. That is a Buddhist expression. I was having problems with getting angry and having a temper. Stuff kept coming up and exasperating the problem. But I kept chanting about it until I worked it out. I had problems with depression. Stuff kept coming up and I got so depressed. I kept chanting. I found out that much of my depression was due to PTSD. I had to the fortune to find the perfect therapist for me. Now I am processing the tramatic memories and releasing the anger. My poems are not about angst because I have worked so much of my angst out through my practice. So the poison has turned to medicine. I am as happy as I have ever been. I am constructing a life of indestructable happiness so that when bad stuff happens, and it does, I can happily get through it to the other side. Just now, I typed a long answer to your response. It got erased. Instead of throwing the computer out the window. I thought about it and just did it with very little suffering, lol
 
Raccoon Love said:
1. Where do you usually find Buddhist gathering places? How do their temples look on the inside/outside?

2. What do you usually do then? Do you have it every Sunday like many religions?

3. Do you have any certain taboos on certain things such as Muslims having one on pork?
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This is a lay organization. So there are districts near where people live. I have 3 districts near my house. Boston is a huge place for SGI. It is so bit we have a culture center in Woburn. I go to the Activity Center that we rent from Boston University. I go once a month to chant at the World Peace Gongyo (We call it Kosen Rufu Gongyo- which is the Japanese term). Every monday night at 6:30 I go to my district meeting which is at someones house. I chant with the members in my district. We encourage each other. Recently the Activity Center has been open from7-9 in the morning to go and chant with other members. This was great for me this summer. I have trouble in the summer with so much unstructured time. I had no problem this summer because I was chanting alot. I want to have a lot of break throughs this year.


I cant think of any taboos. I chant I work everything out with my practice.
 
sookie said:
This is a lay organization. So there are districts near where people live. I have 3 districts near my house. Boston is a huge place for SGI. It is so bit we have a culture center in Woburn. I go to the Activity Center that we rent from Boston University. I go once a month to chant at the World Peace Gongyo (We call it Kosen Rufu Gongyo- which is the Japanese term). Every monday night at 6:30 I go to my district meeting which is at someones house. I chant with the members in my district. We encourage each other. Recently the Activity Center has been open from7-9 in the morning to go and chant with other members. This was great for me this summer. I have trouble in the summer with so much unstructured time. I had no problem this summer because I was chanting alot. I want to have a lot of break throughs this year. The culture centers just look like buildings. The activity center that we rent in Boston University just says SGI-USA on it.
I cant think of any taboos. I chant I work everything out with my practice.
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That's awesome Sookie, and thanks for the great response. I guess I'm not understanding what chanting is, or how you do it. My adopted mother is a 'Tibetan' Buddhist, and my father is a 'Zen' Buddhist. Most people would think these are the same, but they're really very different. My mom has done lots of different chants, but they all sound like "Nommmmmmm, Nommmmmmm," I don't really get it... and I associate Nom, Nom with eating, LOL. :D It's great you're responding to our questions - I love that you're doing this, and you have such great insights! I would like to learn about chanting. Can you recommend a good website I can start with?
 
sgi-usa.org This is the site that I use most often
sgi.org- There is a lot of great articles on this one. This is the web site that is based in Japan but it is in English
You Tube- Tina Turner chants on Larry King
You can find chanting on you tube as well. I am going to check and
see which is the best one to listen too.
 
www.sgi-usa.org this is the website I use the most
www.sgi.org This is the website that is based in Japan but it is in English. There are some excellant articles here. I think they are listed under Buddhist concepts
You tube- If you key in the phrase- Tina Turner chanting on Larry King...It should bring up the segment where she demonstrates chanting

I will look to see what other you tube resources there are.
 
On you tube there are two other videos that I liked.
Both have the pictures of a Lion
One is from Robby Bobby Boy- This is slower
The other
Awaken TV

These are actually what it sounds like when I am chanting with other members.
If anyone does try to chant- Please do not hesitate to private message me. I will give you tips, encouragement, whatever you need.

Whether you try it, dont try it is up to you. I just wanted to give you the choice.
 
One more thing and then I am going to go and chant. The reason that there is a picture of the lion is because of a quote from Nicherin Daishonin. Nicherin Daishonin is the monk who studied Siddartha Guatama's (also known as Shakimuni Buddha) sutra's and determined that all people needed to do for enlightenment was to chant the title of the Lotus Sutra: Nam myoho Renge Kyo.

Nichiren Daishonin wrote a series of letters to his followers that have survived since the 1200's. On of the letters is to a family who had a sick child. It is titled Reply to Kyo'o. This quote is very famous in SGI community.

"Believe in this mandala with all of your heart. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is like the roar of a lion. What sickness can therefore be an obstacle." (The Writings of Nichirin Daishonin, p412)

We will often use this quote when determing that we are going to win over any obstacle. That is the power of the Mystic Law.

Thanks Moxie for the encouragement! Don't hesitate to ask any questions!
 
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What do you have to do to be an authentic Buddhist in your opinion?
 
Roddy said:
What attracted you to Buddhism in the first place?


and why the SGI group in particular?


If you were to generalise the group members, would you say they are mainly young or old? lower, middle or upper class?
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Roddy I am so terribly sorry. My ADD brain jumps back and forth when I read posts and I missed yours!!! The answer is coming....I am typing it write now.
 
I am the adult child of an alcoholic who told me that I should go down to the basement and hangmyself. My father was seriously disturbed. So I got him out of my life and my mothers life with a restraining order. I got the first one and she followed. My life was in danger. I was the focus of all of his abuse and mental torture. I remember thinking: "I am a bad person" I accepted this fact about myself. I was not a "bad" person. I had no sense of the future and was convinced that I was going to be dead by the age of 35. I am 41 now. I knew I would never see 41. What happens when you get your abuser out of your life. The person that controlled you so completely. I did not know what to do. I did not know what to think. I was deeply depressed. It is like when person is mortally injured that they don't feel the wound. Or when someone is pinned under a crush. After a whild you stop feeling it as you go into shock. Then when the object is removed you feel excrutiating pain.

I am going to post this and keep writing.
 
You have to understand that I thought I was going to be dead by 35. I did nothing that would be considered high risk behavior. In fact I was very timid. I did not drink. I was not an alcoholic. I did not do drugs. I got him out and I slept walked for a while working and being depressed but used to it. Then I ended up going to massage school. In massage school, I met a woman who was SGI Buddhist and very open about it. I saw her have problem after problem. Problems that I would never know how to handle. She would sale right over them. "I'll just chant about it." I started chanting. What happens when you start chanting sometimes. ...When you flush a pipe with water, initially all of this garbage is going to come out. But after it gone. So I battled depression. I got suicidal. I overdosed perscription medication and ended up in the hospital. I gambled with my life to get help. Finally, I chanted and chanted. Chanted and chanted....Chanted and chanted.... Next thing I know I am in school for education things are improving. Then my work karma kicks in and I have tremendous battles with co-workers. I was this extremely insecure, mousy person with no self esteem also know as the perfect target for bullies. I had trouble getting into education. I was a paraprofessional for 2 years....Instead of teaching. I may be a lot of things but one thing I do know is that I am a good teacher. Finally, I am chanting and chanting. I decide to chant 5 hours a day for 3 days. A week and a 1/2 later I was moving to North Carolina.


I am going to post this and then keep writing.
 
I want to mention about my upbringing. I was brought up Irish Catholic. My Grandmother was the fire and brimstone Irish Catholic. I hold no ill will toward her. She was a product of her generation. I was 16 when she told me that I was going to "Burn in the everlasting fires of hell." If I did not go to church on Sunday. I remeber thinking that I try to treat everyone kindly. I didn't hate anyone because of the color of their skin or culture. I knew plenty of Irish Catholics who were racist and frankly mean. I thought they are going to go to heaven because they go to church on Sunday? I won't if I don't go to church? I walked away from the Catholic Church.

My Aunt is a Catholic Nun. She is accepting and loves to talk to me about religion. According to her I am in no more danger of going to hell than she is.

Before I got my father out of my life I knew someone who was very open minded to the occult. She actually helped to free me of some of my Irish Catholic reservations. When I was in massage school, I read conversations with God. I was struggling with the idea of hell. I did not want to choose Buddhism and be wrong. Neale Walsh states that God says that if he created everything why would he judge anything. For me that was the green light to practice Buddhism.
 
So after North Carolina I move back up here. I had been fine for years. Then last year I had a break down again. I know that it was because my life was not going in the right direction. Now I am chanting. Getting my life together. I am a leader. I can talk in front of people. I have been chanting to be the type of person that is respected and can help have a positive impact on the world. I find that this has been a huge change in my life. Now I am healing. Eating healthier. Getting my self together.
 
The great thing about SGI is that it is so diverse. Black, white, asian, latino, men and women. That is one of the defining features of SGI I think. When you go to a meeting there are people from India, Japan, US. It is wonderful
 
I do want to clarify something. I have to say I have no idea what anyone is thinking and it is a little unnerving. I was not going to share so much. I chanted about it and it seemed like the right thing to do. The night I overdosed. That day I was in court because my father had violated the restrainng order. He was acting CRAZY. There was alittle window in the door and he was looking through it with his craziest look. The court personal had to put us in a back room. A police officer went to talk to my father. That night I was so beside myself I overdosed.
 
People can comment on this or ask questions. It is unnerving to put your life story up and get no response at all on it. I promise I do not bite:)
 
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