Posted by Bob - the Alien on February 19, 2003 at 00:34:05:
In Reply to: Re: well, posted by giveawayboy on February 18, 2003 at 23:52:07:
OK, Bill stepped into my area, so I must end my BBS silence and comment --
Bill Said:
"I don't believe everything that the Buddhists teach."
Quesiton for Bill, then:
"Which Buddhists??"
Most buddhists acknowledge that there are two levels of teachings... the core beliefs of buddhism, and then all the rituals and other crap that each individual tradition layers on top of that. Anything that falls into that second layer can readily be rejected as crap, and no real buddhist will even blink twice at you for it.
Just FYI, there is as of yet no such thing as American Buddhism. Americans are still trying to sort through all the traditions to figure out what works for them. When that process is done... and it will probably be many many many many years, then there may be a tradition that truly works for people like you and I. Until then, you really have to pick and choose what works for you and mold it to yourself.
Note that this only applies to Buddhism.... not to other religions. Picking and choosing parts of other religions can be problematic. The difference lies in the fact that buddhism is Not a religion at heart... it is a code of ethics, on top of which religions have been built.
With Love,
Bob