Conversion can be a touchy subject, especially since it can be extremely bothersome being on the receiving end of someone trying to convert you. We have probably all encountered, or at least heard stories, about people very intrusively trying to force their religions upon others. Other times conversion can be extremely natural, for example, someone stumbles upon a teaching from a great mystic and ends up falling in love with the faith. But where do Buddhists stand on this topic? The Dalai Lama, who is the face of Tibetan Buddhism, and honestly Buddhism in general for most of us, has a bit to say on this subject. But for starters, it’s useful to understand how he views other religions. The Dalai Lama strongly believes that we should accept the diversity of religions around us. He accepts the fact that for many people, Buddhist philosophy is very effective in developing their spiritual qualities, but for other people, he is humble enough … [Read more...] about Should Westerners Convert to Buddhism?
Archives for February 2023
The Materialist Worldview vs. Unbounded Consciousness
The materialist worldview is one that I find particularly depressing. It basically states that consciousness is nothing more than a product of brain function, and it dies out when the brain dies. This is sort of the “lights out” approach to what happens after death. We just stop existing, end of story. But is consciousness attached to the brain? It doesn’t look like it. As with so many things that once seemed scientifically absurd, quantum mechanics can help us understand how something immaterial like the mind can affect the physical body and even survive the body’s death. One tiny example is the fact that photons, for instance, act like a wave when they aren’t being observed. And as is the case with waves, the photon sort of goes out in all directions without a particular location. In this situation, several different possible realities can actually be present at once. The photon can be in multiple places at the same time. But once we observe the photon, however, it stops acting … [Read more...] about The Materialist Worldview vs. Unbounded Consciousness
Is Islam a Tolerant Religion?
What Does Islam Mean? To understand Islam and to understand your Muslim peers, it’s helpful to know what the word Islam means. It means “submission” or “surrender,” and Muslims generally understand this to mean that individual people and communities will fully submit to God, which is very different from submitting to one’s own personal will. From this, one also hopes to spread an Islamic order and create a socially just society. Are Muslims The Only Ones Who Are Considered Submitters? No. Submission to God in the Quran is far more universal than to just be confined to Muslims. Abraham and Jesus, for example, are also considered submitters in the Quran because they too fully submit to God. The second verse in the Quran is very helpful in understanding what submission means. “Praise be to God, Lord of the worlds.” Although there are many interpretations of this verse, Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī explains that the “worlds” refer to all existent things. There is infinite space … [Read more...] about Is Islam a Tolerant Religion?
Who Is The Buddha? God or Man?
When Westerners think about the Buddha, we often fall into the trap of thinking that the Buddha is God. This makes sense for us considering there are Buddhist shrines, the religion is called Buddhism, and through our association with Jesus being considered God, it is natural that we would fall into this line of “God” thinking. That’s why it’s important to clear up this misconception. The Buddha (properly known as Śākyamuni Buddha) was simply a man who transcended cyclic existence. He was actually a prince named Siddhārtha Gautama, born in approximately the 5th century BCE most likely around the India-Nepal border. As a prince, Siddhārtha Gautama was kind-hearted, intelligent, very sheltered, and never really left the palace. At one point he does leave the palace and he sees real suffering in town with his own eyes. He sees a sick person, an old person, and a dead body, which truly shakes him. This causes him to very seriously contemplate suffering, which in turn leaves him … [Read more...] about Who Is The Buddha? God or Man?
Neanderthals, Spirituality, Fertility Gods, and Quantum Physics
Neanderthals and Their Brains: Spiritual beliefs aren’t new, and honestly they aren’t even close to being new. To really help us think about this, Jesus lived about 2,000 years ago but the earliest evidence we have of spiritual activity was found within Neanderthal burials dated to about 70,000-100,000 years ago. The fact that burials were taking place was significant enough, but to add to that, the dead were often buried with tools, flowers, and were even sometimes found with painted bodies. All of this possibly suggests that the people performing these burials thought that their loved ones were going somewhere after death where they might need these things, which points to signs of a belief in the afterlife. What makes this even more interesting is the fact that compared to the human ancestors who were around prior to Neanderthals, the Neanderthals had larger brains, specifically the cortex, which is responsible for higher thought processes. The evolutionary jump may have had a … [Read more...] about Neanderthals, Spirituality, Fertility Gods, and Quantum Physics
Tamas and Reincarnation
Tamas, and the gunas in general, are not widely known concepts, but they are worth putting some thought into. The Bhagavad Gita, India’s most famous scripture, goes to lengths to explain the concepts, and we can do well to take note. The idea is that every state of mind and matter is a combination of the three gunas. This is extremely vague and doesn’t quite do the concept justice, but hopefully as this story goes on, the pieces will come together. The three gunas are 1.) Tamas or inertia 2.) Rajas or activity 3.) Sattva or harmony/equilibrium. We will go over all three but Tamas is what we will focus on here the most. Tamas: Eknath Easwaran explains tamas in terms of consciousness (as opposed to matter) as being like the basement level of a house. The basement tends to be piled up with a bunch of old junk and tends to be very chaotic. So too with the mind when we are full of tamas. Our minds tend to be cluttered and we ride the wave of inertia, not trying to do anything to … [Read more...] about Tamas and Reincarnation
5 Basic Facts About Islam
Sources: The Great Courses Series: Great World Religions - Islam Lectures 1-3 … [Read more...] about 5 Basic Facts About Islam
Money vs. Heaven
Jesus speaks quite a bit about the perils of money and wealth, but today this message is seldom heard. We seek wealth constantly, and in our society, success is often measured in dollars. So let’s dive into two key examples of what Jesus has to say about money and let’s also dive into what his warnings are truly trying to convey. “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” Matthew 6:24 “As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good - except God alone. You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you … [Read more...] about Money vs. Heaven
Are Jews Too Legalistic?
Many non-Jews consider the vast number (613) of Jewish laws to be a bit cumbersome. This way of thinking often leads to negative views about the laws, and many people begin to consider the Jewish people to be too legalistic of a group. Non-Jews often say that the Jews care too much about the laws and not enough about “what really matters.” But is this a fair conclusion to make? We will back up a touch and look at the concept of Jews being the “chosen people” in the first place. Jews don’t view themselves being chosen with arrogance, they tend to look at it with humility. If we look at the Bible, it becomes painfully clear that the people God chooses aren’t always the best and brightest people out there. They are often seriously flawed just like everyone else. It seems that God chooses them to see what potential this unlikely group could achieve with a little divine guidance. This covenant and giving … [Read more...] about Are Jews Too Legalistic?
5 TAKEAWAYS FROM THE CREATION STORIES
5 TAKEAWAYS FROM THE CREATION STORIES Stories? The first strange thing you might notice is the word “stories” instead of "story." There are in fact two different versions of the creation story that are back to back in Genesis, with the cut off from one leading into the other being in the middle of Genesis 2:4. Some people take these two different versions of creation to be a contradiction and others think it works out just fine. We are going to work under the assumption that these two very different stories don’t pose a contradiction. The first story seems to focus more on terrestrial order whereas the second story focuses on the relationship between the human and divine. When taken together, we get a full and lively picture of creation. A very quick recap of the creation stories can be found below, which you can reference throughout. The First Story (Genesis 1:1-2:4): In the first Genesis story we hear that the heavens and earth were created in seven days. On day 1 we see … [Read more...] about 5 TAKEAWAYS FROM THE CREATION STORIES