# Ask The Buddhist **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [January 27, 2010, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623 "2010-01-27T03:53:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/41 "2010-01-27T22:56:53Z")
> [@olivesmarch4th](#): > > When I first got into it, I wasn’t thinking about how the world perceived Western Buddhists, I was just looking for a new religion. I’d been a Christian as a teen, discovered Nietzsche as a freshman in college, and was ready to move on. Spirituality has always been central to my life and that wasn’t about to change, I just knew I needed something that fit my new, much more open-minded perspective of the world. > > What appealed to me about Buddhism is that it can be completely without dogma – there is no requirement to believe or not believe in a god or gods, and there is no real concept of proselytizing (except, perhaps, the Nichiren Buddhists.) That was important to me because I had been a fundamentalist Christian and wanted something that was the complete opposite of that. I was tired of the concept of guilt and sin, and Buddhism really fit my new understanding of the world anyway. Are you me? I so could have written this. I am a white girl from the Eastern Seaboard who was raised as a Christian fundie. I’ve been an agnostic for about 20 years but have been studying Buddhism for about six months, and even that little bit has helped me greatly. I don’t want another religion, though–just a better way of being. It looks like you’ve been doing this longer than I have–do you think it is possible to be an agnostic Buddhist? I am reading Stephen Batchelor’s book about that right now. ---
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/42 "2010-01-27T23:05:42Z")
> [@Blalron](#): > > I strongly disagree. > > What the Buddha taught was a training program to escape from suffering. His Noble Eightfold path, which can be further condensed into the threefold training of Morality, Concentration, and Wisdom, has to actually be followed to do you any good. > > If you are hungry, you can read cookbooks all day, but at the end of the day you will still be hungry. Likewise, you can read books on Buddhism for years, but if you don’t follow the recipe that’s provided, you won’t notice any tangible results in your life. How does following the path make it a religion? As I mentioned above, I have been studying this for several months, and it has greatly helped me in how I view life, reality, suffering, attachment, and so on. I am anti-religion so have been viewing Buddhism as a philosophy, not a religion. Do you think that while it is helping me now, that will stop because I am not following the path religiously? Do you think that I will, so to speak, hit a wall if I am not willing to accept it as a religion? ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 11:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/43 "2010-01-27T23:11:15Z")
> [@kapri](#): > > How does following the path make it a religion? As I mentioned above, I have been studying this for several months, and it has greatly helped me in how I view life, reality, suffering, attachment, and so on. I am anti-religion so have been viewing Buddhism as a philosophy, not a religion. Do you think that while it is helping me now, that will stop because I am not following the path religiously? Do you think that I will, so to speak, hit a wall if I am not willing to accept it as a religion? Thanks, Kapri…you asked, in a different way, what I was trying to ask. I look forward to what objections any Dopers may have to thinking in these terms, but meanwhile, I am happy to see that someone (you) is comfortable with it. ---
**Author:** ![ToeJam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dfb087/32.png) [@ToeJam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ToeJam)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/44 "2010-01-27T23:23:11Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > Thanks, Kapri…you asked, in a different way, what I was trying to ask. I look forward to what objections any Dopers may have to thinking in these terms, but meanwhile, I am happy to see that someone (you) is comfortable with it. :shrug: I don’t really see the difference I guess. It being a ‘Religion’ vs. ‘Philosophy’. It is what it is, and if you need it to be a certain word to make it fit better, then that’s what it is to you. But I think it’s just semantics. So no objections here to either usage. ---
**Author:** ![Blalron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/35a633/32.png) [@Blalron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blalron)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2010, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/45 "2010-01-27T23:52:30Z")
> [@kapri](#): > > How does following the path make it a religion? As I mentioned above, I have been studying this for several months, and it has greatly helped me in how I view life, reality, suffering, attachment, and so on. I am anti-religion so have been viewing Buddhism as a philosophy, not a religion. Do you think that while it is helping me now, that will stop because I am not following the path religiously? Do you think that I will, so to speak, hit a wall if I am not willing to accept it as a religion? I wouldn’t call it a religion as it’s commonly understand because it’s not theistic. I’m also wary of calling it a philosophy. The ultimate purpose of the teachings are to transcend the limitations of the conceptual mind. It can function as a philosophy, and I have many good things to say about it’s philosophical aspects. But it’s more like a Way of Being. What concerns me is that people might read books on Zen, hear phrases like “you are already enlightened” and interpret this as an excuse to not meditate or obey the moral precepts. It’s very easy to like Zen in theory, but what’s important is to put into practice. Armchair Buddhists are selling themselves short. There may ultimately be nothing to attain, but this must be realized directly by oneself by practicing meditation, not merely understood by the intellect. ---
**Author:** ![kapri](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4491bb/32.png) [@kapri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kapri)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/46 "2010-01-28T01:19:50Z")
> [@Blalron](#): > > I wouldn’t call it a religion as it’s commonly understand because it’s not theistic. > > I’m also wary of calling it a philosophy. The ultimate purpose of the teachings are to transcend the limitations of the conceptual mind. It can function as a philosophy, and I have many good things to say about it’s philosophical aspects. But it’s more like a Way of Being. > > What concerns me is that people might read books on Zen, hear phrases like “you are already enlightened” and interpret this as an excuse to not meditate or obey the moral precepts. It’s very easy to like Zen in theory, but what’s important is to put into practice. Armchair Buddhists are selling themselves short. There may ultimately be nothing to attain, but this must be realized directly by oneself by practicing meditation, not merely understood by the intellect. I see what you’re saying and agree. It feels more like a way of being than anything to me, too, although I’m just familiarizing myself with it. I was just invited to attend a five-week course in meditation, and I’m going to do it. It doesn’t start for a month or so, but I’m looking forward to it. ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/47 "2010-01-28T01:20:05Z")
A few weeks ago we noticed the smell of incense invading our store. It was giving us headaches. We wandered into the surrounding stores, hoping to find the culprit, but couldn’t locate the source of the smell. One day, as I was walking into the mall with the owner of the store next door (his store was not open yet) I could smell the incense strongly and got …well, incensed! that I was going to spend another headachey day. I said to this gentleman I was walking with that I could just kill the person who was burning the incense! He got all flustered and said it was him (boy, does that smell linger!) and that he was doing it because he was Buddhist. He apologized, and said he’d stop. He did…we only smelled it one time after that, and then he moved to California. So…what part does incense play in Buddhism? And is it necessary that it be the same scent kids burn to try to hide the smell of pot? ---
**Author:** ![Blalron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/35a633/32.png) [@Blalron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blalron)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/48 "2010-01-28T01:38:22Z")
> [@kittenblue](#): > > So…what part does incense play in Buddhism? And is it necessary that it be the same scent kids burn to try to hide the smell of pot? Many Buddhists like to burn incense during meditation, but it’s not considered a requirement or anything like that. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/49 "2010-01-28T03:11:57Z")
> [@kapri](#): > > How does following the path make it a religion? As I mentioned above, I have been studying this for several months, and it has greatly helped me in how I view life, reality, suffering, attachment, and so on. I am anti-religion so have been viewing Buddhism as a philosophy, not a religion. Do you think that while it is helping me now, that will stop because I am not following the path religiously? Do you think that I will, so to speak, hit a wall if I am not willing to accept it as a religion? Ok, there are a lot of questions here that I unfortunately won’t be able to address until tomorrow night, but I wanted to take a crack at the whole religion vs. philosophy thing that has been brought up here. Is Buddhism a religion or a philosophy? Totally depends on who you ask. I am going to be blunt (and hopefully I will not hurt anyone’s feelings here). The concept of reincarnation (in the classic, souls transmigrating way) makes about as much sense to me as Scientology. I don’t believe in anything outside of observable phenomena. I consider myself an agnostic with heavy leanings toward atheism. The Buddha himself largely regarded the existence of God as irrelevant. However, there are many Buddhists who believe in deities, who pray, who think of Buddha as a godlike figure, and who believe very strongly in mystic ideas. I only had one encounter with the Nichiren Buddhists, but basically what the guy told me about his religion (after I attended a session) is that if you chant, your dreams will come true. He was talking about actual material rewards like a car or meeting the woman of his dreams. It seemed to me the exact opposite of what I understood Buddhism to be about, and yet, it’s Buddhism. One sect that seems a bit superstitious to me is Tibetan Buddhism, nonetheless I am pretty drawn to its influences. I consider the Dalai Lama a crucial figure for all Buddhists. I have a statue of Kwan Yin, the goddess of compassion, to remind myself to be compassionate toward myself. I don’t believe she exists in the literal sense, but I find her image and legacy very powerful. The weird and wonderful thing about Western Buddhism, I guess, is that I can totally practice Japanese Zen and still have a Tibetan statue on my altar. I don’t hesitate to draw on different perspectives because I feel like ultimately the thing that binds us all is the belief in the 4 Noble Truths (which personally I feel are pretty logical for anyone who really thinks about it. It’s classic Cognitive Behavioral stuff, actually.) From my perspective there is nothing inherently mystic about the basis of Buddhism. That said, do I consider myself religious? Yes. Because I truly believe that what I practice has merit. Over the years I have sustained a belief in Buddhism’s ability to help me–this is my definition of faith. Do I consider myself philosophical? Absolutely. I’m actually an existentialist first and foremost, so I recognize that Buddhism is the meaning I have constructed for myself in order to cope with life’s absurdities. I am really excited about the questions and answers generated here. Hopefully I can jump in again tomorrow! ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/50 "2010-01-28T03:21:22Z")
> [@Blalron](#): > > Have you ever gone on a weekend meditation retreat or a Sesshin? One more (I’m so predictable.) The answer is no, but I’ve come close. I’ve been to three different Zen temples and have had issues with every single one. For some reason meditating around others provokes crazy levels of anxiety in me–it feels like masturbating in public. It’s total avoidance behavior–I never seem to get up the courage to return. It’s also important to understand I come from a Christian background where religious services were a community act with people who are like family to you. You sing and shake hands and praise Jesus and eat apple pie after service. I guess a part of me shows up still wanting to reclaim that spirit of the Christian church I relied on so heavily when I was a kid. The Zen temple experience is completely different. It reminds me a bit of Catholicism in terms of how highly ritualized it is, and there is no warmth or sense of camaraderie. I do completely agree with you that regular sitting practice is important and transcends just grasping something intellectually. I know it wasn’t MEANT to feel good, necessarily. It’s just a place where I’m stuck, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/51 "2010-01-28T04:49:40Z")
> [@olivesmarch4th](#): > > Is Buddhism a religion or a philosophy? Totally depends on who you ask. I am going to be blunt (and hopefully I will not hurt anyone’s feelings here). The concept of reincarnation (in the classic, souls transmigrating way) makes about as much sense to me as Scientology. I don’t believe in anything outside of observable phenomena. I consider myself an agnostic with heavy leanings toward atheism. The Buddha himself largely regarded the existence of God as irrelevant. I touched on a couple of these issues above, but, following **Olivesmarch4th** , yet again: Since Buddhism doesn’t require a deity, and you can combine it with other religions, and be an Buddist/ , sure it’s arguably a philosophy. **Attacklass** takes this very approach, claiming that she’s not a Buddhist, but that she follows a Buddhist philosophy. On the other hand, if you define a religion as a group of beliefs that offer an explanation of the human condition and a moral compass, then, hey, it’s a religion. However, we’re talking about a religion that is pretty divergent in its branches: Nichiren buddhists believe that the essence of Buddhism is encapsulated in the Lotus Sutra, and that chanting the mantra will allow you to achieve enlightenment in a single lifetime. Tibetan Buddhists - whoa - believe in powerful supernatural beings, who are as powerful as gods, but are, in fact, just folks on their way to enlightenment, who have taken a little pause on the way to final enlightenment to help out the rest of us, at least one of whom, Avalokiteśvara, likes living in Tibet. A lot. And Zen buddhists, who don’t believe in much, but work like hell at it. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/52 "2010-01-28T10:58:58Z")
> [@olivesmarch4th](#): > > There was some interest in such a thread, so I thought I’d start it. I know I’m not alone (no really, I _know_ I’m not alone… heh.) So let’s have a Buddhist free-for-all. I imagine it will involve lots of gong-ringing and hitting people with sticks. > > I would request that participants state what sect of Buddhism they follow because I have the feeling there are going to be some really diverse perspectives. > > In that vein, I’m white and from the Midwestern United States, about as far from culturally Buddhist as you can get. I tend to fall down heavily on the Zen side of things, but I’m terribly inconsistent at meditating so I’m kind of a hypocrite. (Yes, that’s right, hypocrisy isn’t just for Christians, folks!) > > To start the ball rolling, there are four basic beliefs that Buddhists universally have in common (formally referred to as the Four Noble Truths): > > 1. Life means suffering. > > 2. The origin of suffering is attachment. > > 3. The cessation of suffering is attainable. > > 4. It may be attained by following the Eightfold Path > > 1.Right View > 2. Right Intention > 3. Right Speech > 4. Right Action > 5. Right Livelihood > 6. Right Effort > 7. Right Mindfulness > 8. Right Concentration > > And that’s where it gets tricky, folks. Have at it! If life is suffering and you want to cease suffering, wouldn’t that mean you’d have to die? ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 12:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/53 "2010-01-28T12:16:42Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > If life is suffering and you want to cease suffering, wouldn’t that mean you’d have to die? Note Noble Truth Number 3 - but rephrase it as “It is possible to live free of suffering”. It helps if you read Truth 1 as closer to “Being alive seems to attract suffering” or somesuch. Interesting thread. I’m a Buddhist (Soto Zen) atheist, I don’t celebrate the holidays or attend temple regularly, but I do attend an annual retreat and practice meditation daily, usually _Zazen_ but also _Bokuseki_ (ink painting). ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/54 "2010-01-28T20:19:53Z")
> [@olivesmarch4th](#): > > 1. Life means suffering. > 2. The origin of suffering is attachment. > 3. The cessation of suffering is attainable. > 4. It may be attained by following the Eightfold Path I’ve studied B quite a bit, mostly from the Chinese Chan perspective. I’d call myself “secular Chan” Anyway, I’d be interested in your thoughts on the fundamentals of the 4 truths. The way you’ve phrased them IMO lends a bit of a feeling of directed malice or will underlying nature and life, and a resultant blame on the human condition, that may just be an artifact of English translation and tends to get misunderstood by the general public. Some of my teachers have proposed a more fundamental “logic tree” approach translating as follows: 1. Suffering exists (i.e. a simple acknowledgement but without implied motive) 2. A cause for suffering exists (i.e. postulating logical cause-effect to truth #1) 3. A solution to suffering exists (i.e. postulating that without a solution, you are declaring yourself powerless and are logically forced down the road to either nihilism or dogmatic following of other paths). 4. A solution is the eightfold path (same as your definition) Thoughts? ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/55 "2010-01-28T20:41:56Z")
See previous post for my general background… > [@Anne\_Neville](#): > > For any of the Buddhists in this thread: > Do you believe in or worship a god or gods? If so, which one(s)? > \*\* Nope \*\* > Do you regularly go to religious services, or some kind of Buddhist meeting or activity? If so, what are those like? > \*\* Nope. I have attended many seminars, speeches, readings of the years though to satisfy my own curiosities and questions \*\* > Do you celebrate Buddhist holidays? Which ones, and how do you celebrate them? > \*\* Nope \*\* > Are you a vegetarian? I know some Buddhist sects insist on vegetarianism and some don’t. > \*\* Nope, but try to follow a harmonious-organic approach to meat, buying free-range, non-industrial, uncaged for example. \*\* > Do you drink alcohol? > \*\* Yes, but as a yummy beverage and social activity, but not to get drunk or escape \*\* > What, if anything, would you consider to be sexual misconduct? Premarital sex? Extramarital sex? Gay sex? > \*\* If you and your partners are happy and fulfilled, then break out the helium tank and trapeze \*\* > Are there any books about Buddhism that you particularly like or dislike? > \*\* Will try and dig up some books/articles and repost…\*\*\* ---
**Author:** ![Chief\_Pedant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a6a055/32.png) [@Chief\_Pedant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chief_Pedant)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/56 "2010-01-28T23:29:08Z")
**(by olivesmarch4th)** : > [@](#): > > The concept of reincarnation (in the classic, souls transmigrating way) makes about as much sense to me as Scientology. I don’t believe in anything outside of observable phenomena. I consider myself an agnostic with heavy leanings toward atheism. I believe you to be confused about what Buddhism is. Being a Buddhist without a belief in the supernatural (specifically, rebirth/reincarnation) is a little like being a “Christian” without believing in the afterlife. The whole point of teachings around Karma is the progression toward an alternate state in the next progression. Like many modern (and especially western) believers (Buddhism, Christianity…multiple others) you have embraced a handful of concepts which appeal to you and decided that doing so makes the label of the religion which invented those concepts appropriate for you. Well…ok. When you are deciding to believe any invented stuff, it’s not like there is some sort of Absolute Rule. But it’s quite unpersuasive to walk around announcing you are a Buddhist and then ditching half of the historically core beliefs. Whatcha got there is a personal philosophy with the roots of some it taken from beliefs similar to those expressed in Buddhism (or even, perhaps, Siddhartha himself). It ain’t Buddhism. ---
**Author:** ![JKellyMap](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jkellymap/32/15880_2.png) [@JKellyMap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKellyMap)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2010, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/57 "2010-01-28T23:37:38Z")
Fair enough, CP. Well then, does anyone have a suggestion for a very short phrase which expresses this idea of “I find that much of Buddhist thought jibes with what I observe in the world, and has personally helped me understand and better myself, but I can’t really call myself a Buddhist, because that implies a much stronger devotion to any of a variety of more clearly religious, supernatural beliefs and practices.” ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/58 "2010-01-29T00:57:15Z")
> [@Chief\_Pedant](#): > > Well…ok. When you are deciding to believe any invented stuff, it’s not like there is some sort of Absolute Rule. But it’s quite unpersuasive to walk around announcing you are a Buddhist and then ditching half of the historically core beliefs. Whatcha got there is a personal philosophy with the roots of some it taken from beliefs similar to those expressed in Buddhism (or even, perhaps, Siddhartha himself). It ain’t Buddhism. There’s a very interesting book called _Buddhism Without Beliefs_, by Stephen Batchelor, which argues it quite well, actually. I quite simply cannot do it justice here, but it’s not without support. ---
**Author:** ![Maeglin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/8baadc/32.png) [@Maeglin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maeglin)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/59 "2010-01-29T01:00:59Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > There’s a very interesting book called _Buddhism Without Beliefs_, by Stephen Batchelor, which argues it quite well, actually. I quite simply cannot do it justice here, but it’s not without support. But it is without support in the two millennium span of Buddhism. ---
**Author:** ![ToeJam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dfb087/32.png) [@ToeJam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ToeJam)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623/60 "2010-01-29T02:05:15Z")
> [@JKellyMap](#): > > Fair enough, CP. Well then, does anyone have a suggestion for a very short phrase which expresses this idea of “I find that much of Buddhist thought jibes with what I observe in the world, and has personally helped me understand and better myself, but I can’t really call myself a Buddhist, because that implies a much stronger devotion to any of a variety of more clearly religious, supernatural beliefs and practices.” I tend to say “I’m just spiritual” to bypass it, or “I follow my own personal views and thoughts” to try to leave the question be to people who seem to want to really try to hammer down or get pedantic about knowing about my religious views (or if I have them). It’s only when they get really nosy that I point out “Technically, I’m a follower of the Hindu with shades of Buddhistic thought mixed in amongst some Western Religion thoughts and philosophies such as but not limited to Lutheranism, Agnosticism, and even Atheism.” That usually gets me enough of the old stink eye from confused people that they leave it alone, and i get to point out to them “Shoulda just stuck with the original answer, no?” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-the-buddhist/526623.md?page=4)