Let's talk about Buddhism (quote, reincarnation)

[Kerby W-R]

Originally Posted by Haaziq

Buddhists practice nonviolence. I don't believe in violence either, but I strongly support Second Amendment rights and self-defense. That along with a few other things are the reasons I probably couldn't be a Buddhist.

P.S. Where are you from? I didn't think anybody in the states had picked up on Nyingma or Tibetan Buddhism yet.

I am from San Francisco but there are many places to practice all over the
United States. Here is a valuable link. It offers temples and centers for practicing different traditions of Buddhism including Tibetan.

Just click on the link:
North America - Dharmaweb

Where are you from ?

[Tricky D]

Originally Posted by ParkTwain

Would a Buddhist ever fire a cruise missile?

That is a serious question, speaking to: (1) notion of military self-defense in Buddhist practice, (2) notion of organized warfare in Buddhist practice, (3) notion of remote-targeted weaponry in Buddhist practice.

I don't see why not.
The thing is that many Japanese samurai have become Buddhist masters. And many Chinese Buddhist monks practice martial-arts; legends claim they invented kung-fu.
To a samurai violence is a part of life as much as a Buddhist believes that death is a part of life. So in themselves death and violence are neither good nor bad.
And the samurai are trained in bow and arrow and kung-fu practitioners can also train in the use of the bow and arrow and in using throwing weapons.

But the samurai believe that an old samurai can become a (pacifist) Buddhist monk, but that a (pascifist) Buddhist monk in the twilight of his years can never become a skilled samurai. If you have been a pascifist all your life it will be nearly impossible to be a samurai, simply because you were raised and trained to be a pascifist all your life.

[Travelling fella]

Originally Posted by Aeroman

I can only answer this question for myself. What would I do. I would say , no thank you.
I would not fire the missile.

I hope no one come back with those ridiculous What If , questions.

And somehow I don’t think that this is the direction that Travelling fella wanted this thread to go, at least I hope not.

Peace,
Aeroman

Well, I believe in free will so I won't impose a direction to the thread, the idea was to speak about Buddhism and compare the similarities and differences of Buddhism with Hinduism, more specifically with Yoga which is the Phillosophy I follow

But as we are all a community, every one is entitled to express their opinions or inquiries, even those what if questions, maybe they are asked out of sincere curiosity and interest of knowing more about the philosophy.

Concerning violence, ahimsa which is a rule of conduct that bars the killing or injuring of living beings. is one of the most basic guides of yoga phillosophy , but I guess that in the case of a life treathening situation, you are allowed to defend yourself or your family.

In his book Autobiography of a Yogi, Paramahansa Yogananda asks Mahatma Gandhi the definition of ahimsa. Gandhi said, “The avoidance of harm to any living creature in thought or deed.” Yogananda asked if one could kill a cobra to protect a child. Gandhi maintained he would still hold to his vow of ahimsa, but added, “I must confess that I could not serenely carry on this conversation were I faced by a cobra.”

I don't know what would be a Buddhist point of view in this? but I'd love to know.

Originally Posted by Aeroman

My practice is closest to Theravada.
However much of the Pali Canon I don’t take literally.
My interest is in nirvana, not enlightenment .
I also have a tendency not to believe in past or future lives. However if its true or not makes not difference in how I live my life. I try to be the best person I can be regardless of punishment or reward.
I hardly do any chanting. I do a lot of meditation, and I do those more advanced forms.
I don’t talk about my meditation techniques except to those who understand them. And never talk about them on the internet. For me I find it just to difficult to communicate those ideas with the written word.
And besides there are some things with those advance techniques that I think should not be known until one is ready to understand and start practicing them.

Well, that’s about all I have to say for now.

Metta,
Aeroman

That is exactly why I wanted to start this thread Aeroman, because I know that our spiritual paths share a lot of things in common

in my case I'm aware of previous lifes and I believe in them but I don't let them have an influence over my current life, I believe that when you start into the yoga path you create an alliegance with God and your Guru that is stronger than any karmic bond you might have.

What you mentioned about trying to be the best person you can be without expecting any punishment or reward for us is called karma yoga, which is selfless service unto humanity. Karma Yoga is the Yoga of action which purifies the heart and prepares the Antahkarana (the heart and the mind) for the reception of Divine Light or attainment if Knowledge of the Self. The important point is that you will have to serve humanity without any attachment or egoism.

Concerning meditation I understand you perfectly, in my religion when we become disciples of our guru, we make the bow of not revealing the techniques we use for meditation, but if a person has a genuine interest in knowing them, we can always tell him/her where he can find them.

In my case I follow the Yoga Phillosophy and practice meditation because my objective is self realization, I'm including a definition of self realization, so we can compare it to nirvana or enlightment and talk about it if you want. The term "self-realization" is a translation of Atma Jnana for knowledge of the true self. Jnana refers to knowledge gained from personal experience, as opposed to book knowledge.

Self realization in my guru's terms is this:

Yogananda taught his students the need for direct experience of truth, as opposed to blind belief. He said that “The true basis of religion is not belief, but intuitive experience. Intuition is the soul’s power of knowing God. To know what religion is really all about, one must know God.”
Echoing traditional Hindu teachings, he taught that the entire universe is God's cosmic motion picture, and that individuals are merely actors in the divine play who change roles through reincarnation. He taught that mankind's deep suffering is rooted in identifying too closely with one's current role, rather than with the movie's director, or God.
He taught Kriya Yoga and other meditation practices to help people achieve that understanding, which he called self-realization:

Self-realization is the knowing in all parts of body, mind, and soul that you are now in possession of the kingdom of God; that you do not have to pray that it come to you; that God’s omnipresence is your omnipresence; and that all that you need to do is improve your knowing.

Peace, Love, Light and Harmony!

[june 7th]

Originally Posted by Kerby W-R

I am from San Francisco but there are many places to practice all over the
United States. Here is a valuable link. It offers temples and centers for practicing different traditions of Buddhism including Tibetan.

Just click on the link:
North America - Dharmaweb

Where are you from ?

Kerby-The link you posted is wonderful! June has been wondering where there might be a Zen center closer to where she lives than going into the city...Thanks!

[Kerby W-R]

I'm happy you've found it useful June 7th. Hopefully others might take a look,
also. I believe it has just about everything.

North America - Dharmaweb

[Travelling fella]

aren't we a beautiful community?

much love and light for all!!

[Haaziq]

Originally Posted by Kerby W-R

I am from San Francisco but there are many places to practice all over the
United States. Here is a valuable link. It offers temples and centers for practicing different traditions of Buddhism including Tibetan.

Just click on the link:
North America - Dharmaweb

Where are you from ?

Indianapolis, Indiana. There really aren't many Buddhists here. Mostly Christians, Muslims, and Hindus. Oh, and some Freemasons.

[Aeroman]

Kerby, Thanks for the Dharmaweb link. I bookmarked it in my Buddhist folder.

I use World Buddhist Directory - Presented by BuddhaNet.Net looks like it has the same info.

Also a good site to ask questions and get answers to most of the Buddhist traditions is E-sangha, Buddhist Forum and Buddhism Forum (Powered by Invision Power Board)?

[GoddessofRandomThoughts]

Great Thread!
Lots of good information and food for thought

Love, laughter, peace and blessings to ya!

[Kerby W-R]

I think so , too.