I am thinking of becoming Buddist?

Question

and was wondering how do I find a local temple, figure out if the teacher and group is good and positive and not just potraying "empty rituals" or harmful cult?

Any other helpful advice would be useful.

Please no jokes, this is a serious inquiry

Vslave, that is why buddism is appealing to me. It stresses use of common sense and not blind faith. I appreciate the guidelines, yet I ask for advice because the easiest time to make mistakes and be taken advantage of is when one knows nothing and does not know the pitfalls that the more experienced know what to look out for.

Answer 1

Buddhanet.net Lists temples, Wats, meditation centers, etc. by country and locale or state...

Get the book by Alexander Berzin "How to Relate to a Spiritual Teacher" which addresses your concerns in great detail and I applaud you for your wisdom in patience finding the right teachers... I think the book is available for FREE download online, just run a search on it... I think it's via .pdf file so you can save it, print it, whichever floats your boat... AND you can buy it in major bookstores or online... snowlionpub.com and wisdompubs.org are my favorite 2 online bookstores.

The basic guidlines "Ten characteristics of a qualified lama"

1. They should control themselves well, i.e. practice an ethical way of life (dulwa)
2. should be at peace and have a high degree of extraordinary training of meditative concentration (shiwa)
3. should have high peace - practice the extraordinary training of wisdom to a high degree (nyer shiwa)
4. should have spiritual qualities which exceed those of their student (yenten hlakpa)
5. should be willing to make "great efforts" or take great joy in helping their students (tsunche)
6. should be "rich in scripture" - have a deep knowledge of the sacred texts (lung gi chuk)
7. should have a deep realization of "suchness" ("emptiness" as Buddhism defines it) - should have perceived emptiness directly or have an excellent scriptural and intellectual understanding of it (de-nyi rabtok)
8. should be a "master instructor" - should know the students capacity well and fit the amount and order of spiritual info into the student's mind accordingly (make din)
9. should be "the image of love" teaching the Dharma out of love NOT for worldly motives (tseway daknyi)
10. should be beyond becoming "discouraged" never tiring of repeating the teachings if the student needs it (kyowa pang)

Three Characteristics of an authentic teaching:

1. must be spoken by the Buddha
2. must be free of corruption by having been analyzed
3. if you hear it, meditate on it, think about it, etc. it works and liberates you... it should make good common sense and logical sense.

So as you see, these are quite logical and it asks that you, the student eyeball the teacher you might want for a LONG time... and they IN TURN should be eyeballing YOU carefully as well as a potential student.

If you want authentic Dharma teachings also steer clear of people who call themselves monks, and have done things that indicates they should likely disrobe, and aren't teaching the Dharma without mixing other religions into it. While we respect other religions deeply, to mix their philosophy into ours is ultimately unecessary, illogical and could do "harm" in some cases, etc., and even His Holiness the Dalai Lama has said something along these lines about mixing religions.

Take your time, be wise... the Buddha basically always wants us to question the answers, take our time, use common sense and a middle path.

I hope this poor explanation was of some benefit.

_()_

Answer 2

Q: Do you think of that's clever to alter right into a Buddhist ? A: confident, you're making a genuine determination. A 12 twelve months-previous isn't too youthful to study Buddhism. some human beings start up at age 7 or youthful. Q: Are there starter web pages ? A: there are distinctive and that i additionally propose the less than links. Q: Are there any regulations ? A: There are no rituals, regulations or conversion to alter right into a Buddhist. as quickly as you study and get ready the Buddha's teachings, you would be the guy who comes to a decision which you at the instant are a Buddhist.

Answer 3

Hmm.. The thing is that there are different types of Buddhism, just as there are other religions. Some pray to Buddha, some do not. Some place great emphasis on meditation, some less so. Some think 'salvation' can be earned, others believe that you must achieve enlightenment for yourself.

All I can tell you is what I did. I read several books on Buddhism before I discovered Zen, and in particular a teacher who lives in France. I read several of his books and found that there are branches of his 'order' in Britain. I attended a meditation group for about a year and found it very helpful at the time.

So I think you need to find what kind of Buddhism attracts you and perhaps use the internet to find out more. I'm not aware of any Buddhist 'cults' though there are varying degrees of ritual. Then just go along and see what you think. The Buddha himself effectively said 'Try it out. See if it works for you. And if it does then give it a go.'

There are several Buddhists here on Y!A. Perhaps find some of their answers and email any questions. I'd certainly tell you more about my travels with Zen if you like.
.

Answer 4

go to any fast food restaurant to discover buddha style 'enlightenment'

Answer 5

dont, its a little silly if u think about it clearly.

Answer 6

gOoOoOoOod
may God help you brother