Brinne
Active Member
Hello,
I've been debating whether or not to post in here for the past few days and I saw illykitty post a thread so I figured I should probably just man up and make a thread.
A little backstory first, I've dabbled with Dharmic religions my whole life practically. Buddhism and Hinduism were the closest thing I really had to a religious upbringing per say, my mom never felt the need to push any kind of religious belief on me but she did share some things with me. When I was younger she would show me how to do various yoga poses (back when I was flexible and able to, now not so much
) and theology wise she'd tell me stories about Hanuman from time to time. She really loves Hanuman. As I grew older she told me about mantras, exposed me to some devotional music, and told me about what she's read about Hinduism and Buddhism but that was about it. She never told me I had to follow her path (tbh I'm not sure if she even is a Hindu, I never bothered to ask her what her religion was; she was raised Christian but never really believed any of it), never took me to a religious institution of any kind, or forced me to go through any kind of rites of passages. Which I'm very grateful for; it allowed me to explore all kinds of faiths and learn new things from my research -- new worldviews.
As per tradition my mother, cousin, and grandmother eventually passed down Herman Hesse's Siddhartha, a book that receives rave reviews among my family. I loved it. I suppose it was little things like that that permeated my life at an early age that sort of drew me to Dharmic religions.
About three or four years ago I started studying Hinduism to really see if I could get a grasp on it. Alongside it I studied Buddhism and Islam. I eventually dropped my private studies in Hinduism and kind of ignored spirituality -- thinking that it was just a waste since I couldn't find the path for me. I eventually decided to revise my decision after coming back from Japan and feeling like a new person after visiting temples, shrines, and other religious areas.
So here I am, back again studying Hinduism and kind of uncertain of where to start really. I've always had a nice little altar filled with Buddhist imagery for meditation and the like and I've only recently added an image of Krishna and I feel as though my experiences thus far with him are very good! When I pray and recite a mantra I feel a sort of warm energy, images of Krishna and devotional songs to him, Radhe, and Rama all fill me with bliss. The same goes for images of Hanuman, but more a nostalgic bliss.
I was wondering if maybe you could give me advice as to what I should do? I think I'm far from considering myself a Hindu but I'd like to learn. I'm open to any suggestions -- just be gentle please
I've been debating whether or not to post in here for the past few days and I saw illykitty post a thread so I figured I should probably just man up and make a thread.
A little backstory first, I've dabbled with Dharmic religions my whole life practically. Buddhism and Hinduism were the closest thing I really had to a religious upbringing per say, my mom never felt the need to push any kind of religious belief on me but she did share some things with me. When I was younger she would show me how to do various yoga poses (back when I was flexible and able to, now not so much
) and theology wise she'd tell me stories about Hanuman from time to time. She really loves Hanuman. As I grew older she told me about mantras, exposed me to some devotional music, and told me about what she's read about Hinduism and Buddhism but that was about it. She never told me I had to follow her path (tbh I'm not sure if she even is a Hindu, I never bothered to ask her what her religion was; she was raised Christian but never really believed any of it), never took me to a religious institution of any kind, or forced me to go through any kind of rites of passages. Which I'm very grateful for; it allowed me to explore all kinds of faiths and learn new things from my research -- new worldviews. As per tradition my mother, cousin, and grandmother eventually passed down Herman Hesse's Siddhartha, a book that receives rave reviews among my family. I loved it. I suppose it was little things like that that permeated my life at an early age that sort of drew me to Dharmic religions.
About three or four years ago I started studying Hinduism to really see if I could get a grasp on it. Alongside it I studied Buddhism and Islam. I eventually dropped my private studies in Hinduism and kind of ignored spirituality -- thinking that it was just a waste since I couldn't find the path for me. I eventually decided to revise my decision after coming back from Japan and feeling like a new person after visiting temples, shrines, and other religious areas.
So here I am, back again studying Hinduism and kind of uncertain of where to start really. I've always had a nice little altar filled with Buddhist imagery for meditation and the like and I've only recently added an image of Krishna and I feel as though my experiences thus far with him are very good! When I pray and recite a mantra I feel a sort of warm energy, images of Krishna and devotional songs to him, Radhe, and Rama all fill me with bliss. The same goes for images of Hanuman, but more a nostalgic bliss.
I was wondering if maybe you could give me advice as to what I should do? I think I'm far from considering myself a Hindu but I'd like to learn. I'm open to any suggestions -- just be gentle please
