Buddhists/Buddhist

Advertisement

Expert: - 1/9/2011


Question
Hello my name is Kristine and I have been reading through many of your questions and I am most certainly impressed by your knowledge.
Well, I'm a 17 year old from Australia and have been studying Humanistic Buddhism at my local temple for about three years now. Even now I am having trouble wrapping my head around some of the concepts of Buddhism after growing up with Christianity being the only religion I was exposed too.
To tell you the truth, I'm not really sure what I'm trying to ask. I'm really just looking for guidance. I want to know how to be a good Buddhist and show my respect. I'm scared that I'm doing it all wrong.

Answer
Hi Kristine,

Thank you for reading my answers.  And welcome to the path of contentment and inner peace.  It is not too often to find a 17-year old person to be seriously interested in things spiritual, especially Buddhism. You are one of those few exceptions.  Take your time to study the Buddhist concepts with an open mind, and not to let your childhood religious preconditioning hinders your search.

<<"I want to know how to be a good Buddhist and show my respect. I'm scared that I'm doing it all wrong.">>
Buddhism is very liberal and tolerant. Don't worry.  Just do the right thing.  It's easy, you see, you only need some common sense by using these three criteria on your actions:
1. Will this action hurt you?
2. Will this action hurt others?
3. Will this action be beneficial?

Australia has some very good Buddhist Centres.  You may try to visit them and maybe can learn from them.  If you need any clarification at any time, please come back, and I shall be very happy to clarify for you.

Go to this link below and you will find Buddhist Centres near you:
http://www.buddhanet.info/wbd/country.php?country_id=18

Look out for this monk Ajahn Brahm @ http://www.ajahnbrahm.org/
He is British residing in Western Australia. He is a very popular Buddhist speaker.  You can listen to his talk in videos and youtube.

Hope this helps.

Take care, and may you have a happy and challenging life ahead.

Justin Choo  

Buddhists

All Answers

Answers by Expert:

Ask Experts

Volunteer

Justin Choo

Expertise

When in doubt seek it out. All your questions will be answered, and you may not have to agree with the answers. Such is the beauty of Buddhism. You are free to decide. I follow the Theravada tradition, and have been studying Buddhism for more than 40 years. Please view my profile for more details. I have answered more than 1500 questions since joining this category. You may like to give me the honor to answer your question.

Experience

I was brought up in the 50's as a Buddhist. For the past 40 years I have read numerous books on Buddhism and listened to numerous talks on Buddhism by well-respected and learned monks and lay teachers. I conduct Buddhist classes for parents of Sunday School children in a Theravada Buddhist Temple. My teacher was the late Chief Reverend, The Ven. K Sri Dhammananda of The Brickfields Buddhist Mahavihara, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. You can view the relevent website in memory of my revered late teacher @ http://www.ksridhammananda.com

Organizations
I am a life member of the Buddhist Missionary Society Malaysia.

Publications
YOU ARE INVITED TO VISIT MY BLOG @ http://lifeislikethat999.blogspot.com/ Published a book called "The Rainbow And The Treasure". It is a compilation of extracts from various sources to introduce Buddhism to beginners. (Currently out of print)

Education/Credentials
Bachelor of Commerce And Administration, Victoria University Of Wellington, NZ.(1974)

©2012 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.