Buddhism a religion?
Submitted by pjo on Sat, 02/11/2012 - 21:09The fact that Buddhism did not start as a religion, at least for me, was overshadowed by all the offshoots and thousands of years of interpretation and evolution. I think that Buddhism appeals so much because it does not attempt to remove one supreme being and replace it with another, which now that I think about it would be spiritually violent!
I also feel that Buddhist principals are broad enough to appeal to many yet offer specific enough instruction to be easy to follow (but very difficult to master).
I was moved by the Buddhist complete dedication to their core concepts to the point of saying that when you achieve enlightenment you will realize that everything, including Buddhism itself is "empty"! I know of no religion willing to give itself so completely for the good of the practitioner. To me, they are truly sacrificing their belief as nothing more than a vehicle or method to get you to where you need to be. There is some awesome purity there that I am only beginning to grasp.
