Am I alone in not believing anything

[Gjallarhorn]

yep; and for Descartes, it was absolutely certain.

...as far as he was willing to admit.

 

[Bob Dixon]

But the God concept by itself is common to all of them.

bro u fergot buddhisem

 

[RubyEyes]

bro u fergot buddhisem

Whoops sorry. Actually what I forgot was to specify I was talking about theistic religions. Some people don't consider Buddhism a religion (in favor of considering it more like a philosophy) precisely beacause of its lack of theism.

 

[gnomon]

Large numbers of Buddhists are indeed theists. It is incorrect to state that Buddhism lacks theism. It can be a little complex because it depends primarily upon which Buddhists one is talking about.

 

[RubyEyes]

Large numbers of Buddhists are indeed theists. It is incorrect to state that Buddhism lacks theism. It can be a little complex because it depends primarily upon which Buddhists one is talking about.

Really? From believers of western religions (mainly Christianity) I've only heard Buddhism to be non-theist, in the sense that its beliefs don't require a deity.

Edit: So I wasn't implying it is incompatible, just that it is not theistic per se. Am I wrong?

 

[Gjallarhorn]

Really? From believers of western religions (mainly Christianity) I've only heard Buddhism to be non-theist, in the sense that its beliefs don't require a deity.

While the Buddha did outright deny the existence of a creator god, the existence of other deities were merely brushed aside because they are unimportant in the pursuit of enlightenment.

 

[The Sum of Awe]

Am I alone in not believing anything. These are the things I don't believe in.

1. Religion - There are hundreds of them even if some of them are much bigger than others. All of them are stating different things and different holy figures.

2. Mediums - Even a lot of non religious people believe in this. What I mean by a medium are people that can contact the dead etc.

3. Spirits of any sort - things like a house could be haunted etc.

4. Fortune tellers - looking into the future

5. Witches and other ghosts

Am I alone in thinking all of the above are made up horse ****

Not at all, in fact I lack belief in a lot more stuff than you, and not just metaphysical creatures. It stretches to epistemology, morals, etc.

 

[RubyEyes]

While the Buddha did outright deny the existence of a creator god, the existence of other deities were merely brushed aside because they are unimportant in the pursuit of enlightenment.

Oh so I see what the different interpretations could be.

To me, for example, my view of theism implies a personal, creator God so that if buddhists stick to what Buddha says I'd label it non-theistic.

 

[gnomon]

Really? From believers of western religions (mainly Christianity) I've only heard Buddhism to be non-theist, in the sense that its beliefs don't require a deity.

Edit: So I wasn't implying it is incompatible, just that it is not theistic per se. Am I wrong?

You're not wrong or right. Buddhism is a rather malleable concept. To non-theism doesn't equate to atheism. They believe in the existence of gods but they do not worship them. However, some Buddhists do worship gods. Some incorporate Buddhism with other major world religions. My in-laws from Cambodia are an example of that. Though they tend towards Christian beliefs but still incorporate the Buddhist traditions.

I think Westernized Buddhism is a very watered down form of Buddhism which puts more focus on the personal enlightenment aspect and away from the traditions that Asian and Southeastern Asian cultures attached to Buddhism. That's probably why Zen/Chan Buddhism is quite popular in the West.

 

[Kerr]

Am I alone in not believing anything. These are the things I don't believe in.

1. Religion - There are hundreds of them even if some of them are much bigger than others. All of them are stating different things and different holy figures.

2. Mediums - Even a lot of non religious people believe in this. What I mean by a medium are people that can contact the dead etc.

3. Spirits of any sort - things like a house could be haunted etc.

4. Fortune tellers - looking into the future

5. Witches and other ghosts

Am I alone in thinking all of the above are made up horse ****

I dont believe in them either, but I would never say that I believe in nothing . I believe in planty of things... just not supernatural things.

 

[9Westy9]

Not at all, in fact I lack belief in a lot more stuff than you, and not just metaphysical creatures. It stretches to epistemology, morals, etc.

I bet that I believe in less things than you

 

[RubyEyes]

You're not wrong or right. Buddhism is a rather malleable concept. To non-theism doesn't equate to atheism. They believe in the existence of gods but they do not worship them. However, some Buddhists do worship gods. Some incorporate Buddhism with other major world religions. My in-laws from Cambodia are an example of that. Though they tend towards Christian beliefs but still incorporate the Buddhist traditions.

I think Westernized Buddhism is a very watered down form of Buddhism which puts more focus on the personal enlightenment aspect and away from the traditions that Asian and Southeastern Asian cultures attached to Buddhism. That's probably why Zen/Chan Buddhism is quite popular in the West.

I see, thank you for the explanation.

 

[The Sum of Awe]

I bet that I believe in less things than you

I don't know about that

 

[RubyEyes]

I don't know about that

Is this a contest lol?

 

[Godobeyer]

i will be wounder if i see a title of thread
"i believe in everything "

 

[The Sum of Awe]

Is this a contest lol?

I don't know about that either

 

[9Westy9]

I don't know about that

Is this a contest lol?

It is now

 

[Kerr]

i will be wounder if i see a title of thread
"i believe in everything "

If you believe in everything, does that include everything that contradicts what you believe ?

 

[Viker]

If you believe in everything, does that include everything that contradicts what you believe ?

Yes and no.

 

[Tristesse]

Nobody believes such a thing. They know it. Cogito ergo sum.

So, you don't believe you exist? Because belief and knowledge are different things, you can believe you exist while also knowing you do, but I don't think you could know that to an absolute certainty.