Buddhism

[asexual trans victimologist]

Western Buddhism is very much an artificial, sanitized product that has very little to do with Buddhism as practiced in Asia, particularly Mahayana Buddhism, filled as it is with Chinese Gods, dozens of hells, and Bodhisattvas with comic-book superhero powers.

This. I cringe every time I see well-to-do white hipsters try to engage in meditation or discuss the dharma, or talk about the Eight Noble Plaths and Four Noble Truths. Most religions are also ways of life whether you like it or not.

Everyone invents their own god. So why cringe?

Because well-to-do white hipsters have crappy taste in gods.

What about the ones at my church?

Hipster Jesus is arguably a lot more similar to His non-hipster equivalent[/s] than hipster Buddhism is to non-hipster Buddhism.

[anvi]

I'm with Nathan on this one.  In south Asia, real Buddhist practice is a lot more about merit-making deeds than it is about meditation.  In east Asia, real Buddhist practice is more about syncretic popular religious beliefs and burials.  In the U.S., when I go to a Barnes and Noble bookstore, roam through the "Eastern Religions" section and see a picture of the Buddha's head emerging from a bowl of soup, and look up at the title of the book, which reads: "Just Add Buddha," my eyes get even more crossed than they already are.

[A cowboy always follows his beard]

^^ How so his Hipster Jesus closer to Real Jesus than Hipster Buddha and Real Buddha?

[So the Heroes Fall]

Well Jesus was a long haired bearded dude who walked around in a sheet.

[asexual trans victimologist]

Jesus actually is entirely likely to have had relatively close-cropped hair (although with a full beard and sidelocks).

I think a lot of hipster Christians would be more likely to be some variant of Christian if it weren't a 'hipster thing' than most hipster Buddhists would be to be some more traditionalist variant of Buddhist, at least in this country. Then again, that's because the country itself is historically Christian.

[Frodo]

Jesus actually is entirely likely to have had relatively close-cropped hair (although with a full beard and sidelocks).

Something like this?

[asexual trans victimologist]

Jesus actually is entirely likely to have had relatively close-cropped hair (although with a full beard and sidelocks).

Something like this?

Little bit fuller, perhaps?

Galilee at the time was also ethnically mixed to the extent that we're not entirely sure what the Jews of the area looked like in terms of facial structure, skin tone, et cetera, if there even was any single 'look'.

[shua]

From the little I know about Buddhism, I feel there's a lot there that's worth considering and maybe learning from, even though there are some real departures for myself when it comes to my own faith and understanding of the world.  In the class I took in East Asian Religion, I found the idea of the Bodhisattva compelling and beautiful in terms of the sacrifice and solidarity involved on behalf of bringing all life to enlightenment and freedom from suffering. Shinran's Pure Land variety especially seemed to have a strong analogy to Christian grace: that salvation that can't be earned is given freely.

A friend gave me Thich Nhat Hanh's book "you are here," which is about mindfulness, and I found it helpful (and probably would be more helpful if I practiced it more). There's been some studies on incorporating mindfulness techniques into dealing with anxiety and OCD.  Practices can be beneficial even if they're taken out of their original cultural-religious context, even though it's good to recognize where they come from, and that there's more to it than just the little bit that's extracted for Western benefit.

[Tik]

Why does it matter if your practice deviates from the root of the religion? Surely Buddhism-lite can be beneficial, especially since it cuts out a lot of the crap. Just because you associate it with obnoxious people doesn't mean it has no merit. If you want to take the piss out of if find some sound flaws instead of being presumptuous and rude.

[Ghyl Tarvoke]

Why does it matter if your practice deviates from the root of the religion? Surely Buddhism-lite can be beneficial, especially since it cuts out a lot of the crap. Just because you associate it with obnoxious people doesn't mean it has no merit. If you want to take the piss out of if find some sound flaws instead of being presumptuous and rude.

This.

[anvi]

Why does it matter if your practice deviates from the root of the religion? Surely Buddhism-lite can be beneficial, especially since it cuts out a lot of the crap. Just because you associate it with obnoxious people doesn't mean it has no merit. If you want to take the piss out of if find some sound flaws instead of being presumptuous and rude.

I do think "Buddhism lite" can be beneficial for people; in fact I think various forms of "Buddhism lite" are practiced by the large majority of Asian peoples themselves.  And I do think it can cut out a lot of the crap.  One of our big problems in modern society, I think, is the degree to which our conceptions of who we are as persons is a result of artificial social construction, and that's one of the things that Buddhist thought and practice most aggressively confronts.  To whatever degree that confrontation takes place, I think its practice has great merit.  I also think it's inevitable that Buddhism is appropriated into whatever cultural context it enters (whether it be Korean or Vietnamese or American) and speak through the terms of that culture.  In fact, I think one thing that attests to the strength of a tradition is its ability to speak to the aspirations of people despite their differences in culture. 

So, I certainly wasn't trying to be rude, at least not intentionally, and if I came across that way unintentionally, apologies.  I do think there are some philosophical flaws in Buddhism, but despite that, I'm a great admirer of the tradition, and am writing a book on Buddhism as we speak, actually.  I think what sometimes gets to me is the tendency to render Buddhism all-too-easy, something that just "fits in" with everything else one is doing--and this is a tendency that exists not only in America, but in lots of places in Asia too.  I think what Buddhist practice is trying to accomplish, while certainly liberating in ways that can lead to genuine contentment in life, is, if taken seriously, in fact very hard-won, and once won, an ongoing challenge to hold on to.