Expert: Justin Choo - 5/10/2006

Question
Hello,
After a lot of careful consideration i have decided to become a buddhist, i find the views and beliefs to be inspiring and they make me want to be a better person. But i still have a few questions. I live in a town that has no temples for worship and noone i can really get advice from how to live as a buddhist. Is it necessary to visit a temple? Also, i have been told of many ways and rituals to actually become a buddhist. Can you tell me is there a 'right' way to do so?
Thank you in advance


Answer
Hi Louise,

Thank you for asking me, and welcome to the path of truth and inner peace.  It will be a long but pleasent journey of learning and experiencing.  First to answer your last question; the "right" way is to use your human intelligence and common sense to analyze the Buddha's teachings.  The Buddha advised, "When you know for yourselves - these things are moral, these things are blameless, these things are praised by the wise, these things, when performed and undertaken, conduce to well-being and happiness then do you live acting accordingly."

Just like any other religions, inevitably there are different schools or traditions of Buddhism.  You have to study them through the websites which I have recommended below.  The 2 main traditions are Theravada and Mahayana.

It will help to know a bit of the historical development of Buddhism. During the Buddha's time, his teachings were all memorized by the learned monks and passed down as such. After a few hundred years, differences in interpretations began to appear. A lot of Brahmins from the Brahmin religion (modern day Hinduism) became Buddhists. During that time the emperor was a Buddhist. His name was King Asoka. Naturally, all would like to become Buddhists! Because of these differences, King Asoka called for a council of monks to confirm the authenticity of the Buddha's teachings. The council of learned monks recited and confirmed the full text of the teachings which had been handed down by verbal recitation. They referred to this confirmation as the text or doctrine of the elders (senior monks). In the Pali language it is called Theravada, which is the tradition that I follow. The Brahmin group decided to have their own version and called themselves the Great Vehicle (Great Wheel), in Pali, Mahayana. They then belittled the Theravada by calling them Lesser Vehicle which in Pali is Hinayana.
The Mahayana spread towards the north-west to Afghanistan, through the Silk Route to China, Korea, and Japan (and subsequently to Tibet). While the Theravada spread to the south to Ceylon (Sri Lanka), and then up north-east to Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam.
Being very practical teachings based on universal truths, Buddhism was accepted by the different communities. They could practise Buddhism without having to change their cultures, traditions and customs. That is why we have Tibetan Buddhism, Chinese Buddhism, Japanese Buddhism, and who knows Western Buddhism!  
The beauty of Buddhism is that although there are such varieties, the basic teachings of the Buddha are the same. The difference is actually in the rites and rituals, and some other minor discourses.  Most Chinese Buddhist temples are of the Mahayana tradition, with emphasis on rites and rituals which are very Chinese and a lot of chanting, bowing, and praying paraphernalia.  The Tibetans have their unique and colourful way of practising Buddhism with their physical devotion in prostrating and Tibetan art. The Theravada tradition emphasizes in the practice of the Buddha's teachings and meditation, with less rites and rituals.  The Mahayana tradition features a wide pantheon of Bodhisttas and Buddhas; whereas the Theravada follows only the teachings of the historical Buddha Gotama.
The Theravada services are simpler. You would have to visit the various temples to have a feel of the different and colourful rites and rituals. But please remember, they are NOT Buddhism. They are just different ways of showing respect and reverence to the Buddha.

The most salient aspect of Buddhism is FREEDOM in its practice. The Buddha encouraged his followers to use their common sense and human intelligence to analyze his teachings before accepting them.  In Buddhism there is no dogma and no commandment. There is only the guidelines and noble precepts which the Buddha advised us to follow. As diligent Buddhists we use certain precepts to guide our lives. These are the 5 precepts: to refrain from killing, to refrain from stealing, to refrain from committing sexual misconduct, to refrain from telling lies, and to refrain from taking intoxicating substances.

Another aspect of Buddhism is meditation as taught by the Buddha.  This is to train the mind to be alert and mindful so that we can SEE the realities of the world and this existence.

Please take your time to surf through the sites below and you will find all the info about Buddhism.

http://www.ksridhammananda.com
Venerable K. Sri Dhammananda is my revered teacher. His writings have benefitted countless people throughout the world.

http://www.geocities.com/wave_books
You can obtain excellent publications from them.

http://www.buddhanet.net  (The “mother” of all Buddhist web sites)
http://www.dharmanet.org
http://www.buddhism.about.com
http://www.parami.org/buddhistanswers/index.htm
http://www.nibbana.com
http://www.triplegem.net
http://www.buddhistchannel.tv
http://www.bswa.org/modules/news/
http://dharmaavenue.com/home.htm  
http://www.thebuddhistsociety.org
http://www.fundamentalbuddhism.com
http://www.maithri.com/index.asp
http://www.parami.org/buddhistanswers/

There is this site in Western Australia where Ajahn Brahmawamso resides. He is an English monk and is a very popular speaker. You can listen to his talk through this site: www.bswa.org

If you need further clarifications, please come back.

Smile from justinchoo