The Path to Enlightement is Within cuz it sure aint at no Mega Church
Howdy Howdy!
I haven't had the time to come here lately but it's for reasons that are nice and easy breezy for the most part. Today the Artist and I went to the Chung Mei Buddhist Temple (click the link for info). A wonderful experience to say the least. I have a bunch of photos of my time there (you can only see them as my pal on facebook though). The inside of the Colombarium (burial chamber for urns) was off limits today as a health symposium was under way at the main temple. The people were very nice and inviting. I never felt that level of welcome at any church save the one I grew up in back in Mississippi. The structure of prayer and mediation really spoke to the Agnostic in the Artist and the Pagan in me. The grounds at the temple proper are even more impressive. I spied the temple a while ago when taking Mom shopping and told myself that at some point I would come back and speak to someone. So After seeing "For Colored Girls" alone, the Artist has to read the play first, I headed home, grabbed the Artist and headed to the temple. The Monks were wonderful. And invited us to English Buddhist class on Sunday at 1:30 pm. One Monk in particular took us into the main temple and talked to us about the shrines and the sculptures of the Buddha and the Bodhisattvas that graced the walls. I explained that I am a believer in Karma and wanted to really learn the foundations of the Buddhist faith and I would really like a bit of structure to my worship of nature without all the self righteousness and the nastiness I always found in the Christian Church. Rather than just "praying on it" the practice of Buddhism stresses the solving of ones problems and the accepting of responsibility over the choices we make in our lives rather than blaming the so-called Devil. I haven't practiced Christianity in more than 15 years maybe and let me say, I'm no worse for wear, hell if anything I all the better for it. I just dont subscribe to a faith that keeps women in the role of servant and keeps some people from living a truly free existence. Oh but dont worry, Christians usually dont mind if you die for them in war, they just dont want you declaring your love for people they dont approve of...yeah, no thanks.
Now I aint saying that I plan on becoming a Buddhist but I will say any faith that starts with the insistence that we sit daily and work out the problems in our lives, on paper if you have to, but most certainly the major philosophy of the religion is self responsibility and my personal favorite, SELF IMPROVEMENT. Anyway, my salmon and spinach is getting cold and I kinda wanna play a bit of Fallout 3 before hitting the hay.
Peace love and of course Karma!
Us!
I haven't had the time to come here lately but it's for reasons that are nice and easy breezy for the most part. Today the Artist and I went to the Chung Mei Buddhist Temple (click the link for info). A wonderful experience to say the least. I have a bunch of photos of my time there (you can only see them as my pal on facebook though). The inside of the Colombarium (burial chamber for urns) was off limits today as a health symposium was under way at the main temple. The people were very nice and inviting. I never felt that level of welcome at any church save the one I grew up in back in Mississippi. The structure of prayer and mediation really spoke to the Agnostic in the Artist and the Pagan in me. The grounds at the temple proper are even more impressive. I spied the temple a while ago when taking Mom shopping and told myself that at some point I would come back and speak to someone. So After seeing "For Colored Girls" alone, the Artist has to read the play first, I headed home, grabbed the Artist and headed to the temple. The Monks were wonderful. And invited us to English Buddhist class on Sunday at 1:30 pm. One Monk in particular took us into the main temple and talked to us about the shrines and the sculptures of the Buddha and the Bodhisattvas that graced the walls. I explained that I am a believer in Karma and wanted to really learn the foundations of the Buddhist faith and I would really like a bit of structure to my worship of nature without all the self righteousness and the nastiness I always found in the Christian Church. Rather than just "praying on it" the practice of Buddhism stresses the solving of ones problems and the accepting of responsibility over the choices we make in our lives rather than blaming the so-called Devil. I haven't practiced Christianity in more than 15 years maybe and let me say, I'm no worse for wear, hell if anything I all the better for it. I just dont subscribe to a faith that keeps women in the role of servant and keeps some people from living a truly free existence. Oh but dont worry, Christians usually dont mind if you die for them in war, they just dont want you declaring your love for people they dont approve of...yeah, no thanks.
Now I aint saying that I plan on becoming a Buddhist but I will say any faith that starts with the insistence that we sit daily and work out the problems in our lives, on paper if you have to, but most certainly the major philosophy of the religion is self responsibility and my personal favorite, SELF IMPROVEMENT. Anyway, my salmon and spinach is getting cold and I kinda wanna play a bit of Fallout 3 before hitting the hay.
Peace love and of course Karma!
Us!