I'd like to borrow @mangalavara 's answer. 
He said it better than I could hope to.
He said it better than I could hope to.
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What specifically makes you a (Hindu, Christian, Buddhist, Baha’i, Pagan, Exaltist, etc)?
- Thread starter The Sum of Awe
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Yazata
Active Member
Philosophically, I'm an agnostic. The only requirement for being an agnostic is the belief that we don't possess the secret of the universe. (That's pretty profound, when you get down to it.)
In Buddhism, becoming a Buddhist is called "taking refuge". One takes refuge (trusts as a means of salvation) in the "three jewels".
Refuge in Buddhism - Wikipedia
These are 1. the Buddha, 2. the Dharma (the Buddha is no longer with us, so his teachings stand in for him) and 3. the Sangha (the community, primarily the monastics but the broader community too) who preserve the Dharma.
Many Buddhist groups make taking refuge into a ceremonial thing, but it needn't be. One can do it on one's own, in one's heart.
The follow on to taking refuge is to adopt the five lay precepts. This is basically a moral code for laypeople, adopted as rules of training because practicing them and taking them to heart changes one's whole life.
Then one goes on from there depending on individual proclivities, whether through deepened ethical practice, meditation, or wherever it takes you.
Five precepts - Wikipedia
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When you say that the five lay precepts are rules of training, does this imply that one does not have to beat oneself up for unintentionally or even intentionally violating a precept?
Yazata
Active Member
One shouldn't beat one's self up. But one has to take it seriously, acknowledge where one has fallen short and try to do better. That motivational aspect, the determination to do better, is the training at work.
That's one way the Sangha (community) is important. If you supposedly become a Buddhist (even with no inner changes) and start talking like a Buddhist (even if it's all an act), then those around you will expect you to act like a Buddhist as well. That social expectation guides the young Buddhist and promotes right action.
And as right action becomes habitual and internalized, it becomes one's natural way of thinking and behaving, and the training takes place. Talking the talk in a suitable context leads naturally to walking the walk. And that ethical practice inevitably perfects one's motivations, which is what Buddhist ethics is all about.
Ethical practice (Sila) is at least as important as meditation in Buddhism. In fact it's a kind of meditation in its own right. In traditional Buddhism in Asia, meditation is typically something practiced by monks, but ethical practice is for all Buddhists.
Buddhist ethics - Wikipedia
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Sharing a kinship with other Jews is what I think of first when asked to define myself as a Jew (although all the things stated in @dybmh's post are major, too). This is not to say that I automatically get along with every fellow Jew that I meet, and it's certainly not to say that I don't get along with non-Jews.
What I mean regarding kinship is that all Jews share a common history -- including those who became Jews through religious conversion to Judaism, as it has been said that the soul of the convert was present with all Jewish souls at Sinai when the Torah was given to Moshe by God. As for those who leave Judaism either to seek out another religion or to have no religion at all... Though they may be viewed by the community as being apostate, they are nevertheless still Jews.
Judaism is also a kinship that requires community even to talk to God, as certain prayers can only be said when the congregation has a minyan present -- a quorum of ten adult Jews (traditionally, males age 13 and older, although outside of Orthodoxy there are branches of Judaism that count both adult males and adult females for a minyan).
So, Judaism is a connection not only with God but also with other Jews, and it is this kinship that (I believe) makes Judaism pretty awesome.
What I mean regarding kinship is that all Jews share a common history -- including those who became Jews through religious conversion to Judaism, as it has been said that the soul of the convert was present with all Jewish souls at Sinai when the Torah was given to Moshe by God. As for those who leave Judaism either to seek out another religion or to have no religion at all... Though they may be viewed by the community as being apostate, they are nevertheless still Jews.
Judaism is also a kinship that requires community even to talk to God, as certain prayers can only be said when the congregation has a minyan present -- a quorum of ten adult Jews (traditionally, males age 13 and older, although outside of Orthodoxy there are branches of Judaism that count both adult males and adult females for a minyan).
So, Judaism is a connection not only with God but also with other Jews, and it is this kinship that (I believe) makes Judaism pretty awesome.
"Earned."
Curious choice of words. Such gatekeeping exists in a tenuous place within the contemporary Pagan movement.
The influence of such gatekeepers left me unwilling to identify as a Druid until formally joining a Druidic order. Was this necessary? Not as simple of a question as one might imagine. Through that experience working through a proper Mystery tradition, I can say there is a very distinct difference between training through a Mystery school and not. But none of that is what makes me what I am. I am what I am, and I could not be anything other than a tree-hugging dirt-worshipper.
Curious choice of words. Such gatekeeping exists in a tenuous place within the contemporary Pagan movement.
The influence of such gatekeepers left me unwilling to identify as a Druid until formally joining a Druidic order. Was this necessary? Not as simple of a question as one might imagine. Through that experience working through a proper Mystery tradition, I can say there is a very distinct difference between training through a Mystery school and not. But none of that is what makes me what I am. I am what I am, and I could not be anything other than a tree-hugging dirt-worshipper.
I do not feel intellectually qualified to give a whole answer to that although I would like to. I think that to be a Christian requires being accepted by other Christians and also accepting them. I think it is central to atonement. What good on the ground is God's forgiveness if people on the ground do not imitate God's forgiveness. What good on the ground is communion in heaven until we have it here on the ground. Sadly it remains in heaven for now. What we have is a communion which is not good enough yet, but perhaps it can be made better.
I'm Christian because I accept Jesus Christ as Lord, God and Savior. I'm Catholic because I was baptized and confirmed into the Catholic Church and accept its teachings.
I am a Christian because I believe in God as he comes to me through Christ, through baptism in Christ one is accepted into the Catholic communion. We are not actually baptized a Catholic.
Sgt. Pepper
All you need is love.
Wicca appeals to me because of its Rede, the various deities, the respect for nature, and its openness towards death and the afterlife. Spiritualism is as natural to me as breathing because its beliefs about the afterlife are consistent with mine, which are based on over 40 years of experience as a medium.
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Karma77
New Member
i was born a Hindu but I am only spiritual now. my spiriutal teacher made me study from 3 different religions - christianity, sikhism and hinduism. finally, i came to a conclusion that all were saying the same thing, just in different languages or terms. What belief makes me spiritual is the realization that i am the SOUL (atma) and not the body.
But again, this concept of SOUL is not just a hindu teaching, it's mentioned in most religions in different ways. I do like hinduism in the sense that the vedas and holy scriptures have detailed a lot about the inner journey of the soul including chakras and more. But even Guru Nanak Ji, the pioneer of sikhism has taught in much detail about the inner journey of the soul.
I strongly agree with this. I would also cite the immense destruction and suffering resulting from historical attempts to "perfect" or "fix" humanity in support of the above points—for example, forced conversions, the extreme violence and totalitarianism of Marxist-Leninist regimes, eugenics, etc.
I don't think the flaws of human nature will ever be "fixed," but I believe we can temper them under certain circumstances and in some contexts.
YmirGF
Bodhisattva in Recovery
In the past, I have described myself as a strong atheist heavily influenced by Buddhism and Hinduism. (Yeah, ok. Work that one out, LOL.) However since getting into 12 Step programs I quickly realized I was giving into the extremist in me. I realized there is little difference between a so-called strong atheist and a fundamentalist (Insert religion here). What I mean I was just the polar opposite of the true believers. A true unbeliever?
Anywho, officially, I am now an agnostic. The reason for this is that intellectually speaking agnosticism is the only intellectually honest approach that I can see. I do not know if any gods exist, I'm a human, how would I even know if a being was a god? That said, I do believe that the human animal is wired to believe in things beyond their senses. The downside to this is that our imperfect senses will reveal a distorted version of reality so we should take solace in our views but should not go too crazy attempting to defend them.
Further to this and expanding on what @Rival said, I was a big Mr. Fix it. Being a know it all, I tried to warp everything to the way I figured everything should be. Not a good outcome for YmirGF, I'll give you that but what I have learned from my own direct experience is I can only change me and them be an example to others. There is nothing more (but that could just be my absolutist thinking doing the talking).
Anywho, officially, I am now an agnostic. The reason for this is that intellectually speaking agnosticism is the only intellectually honest approach that I can see. I do not know if any gods exist, I'm a human, how would I even know if a being was a god? That said, I do believe that the human animal is wired to believe in things beyond their senses. The downside to this is that our imperfect senses will reveal a distorted version of reality so we should take solace in our views but should not go too crazy attempting to defend them.
Further to this and expanding on what @Rival said, I was a big Mr. Fix it. Being a know it all, I tried to warp everything to the way I figured everything should be. Not a good outcome for YmirGF, I'll give you that but what I have learned from my own direct experience is I can only change me and them be an example to others. There is nothing more (but that could just be my absolutist thinking doing the talking).
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Twilight Hue
Twilight, not bright nor dark, good nor bad.
Simply by noting and acknowledging my religion isn't permanent, but a temporary raft used for this lifetime only.
Aupmanyav
Be your own guru
There is nothing to work out. There is just one difference between my Advaita view and Buddhism, and that is existence of a universal substrate - Brahman. Buddha said forget about that. But that comes up again and again. So, it is better to accept it. Otherwise, the concept of 'dharma' in Buddhism is no different from that of 'dharma' in Hinduism or Sikhism, and not very different from Jainism too. I too am a Hindu and part Buddhist, since I do not seek refuge in "Sangha" or even in "Buddha". He did not make it necessary (kill the Buddha ..). But Buddha was a very wise guide.
As if there is any other.
I'm not sure I "earned" any label, but I identify as Hindu because Hinduism aligns with my views regarding what I am and the nature of what I experience. There are also principles such as ahimsa (no harm) that align with my moral and ethical values.
Ella S.
Well-Known Member
As a rationalist, it's holding two major positions.
The first is an epistemological position that reason is the chief source of knowledge. For me in particular, I would say that reason is the only source of knowledge, which is a more extreme position within rationalism.
The second is an ethical position that fundamental moral axioms are knowable deductively. For me in particular, this means using instrumental rationality to achieve the goal of Socratic virtue.
The first is an epistemological position that reason is the chief source of knowledge. For me in particular, I would say that reason is the only source of knowledge, which is a more extreme position within rationalism.
The second is an ethical position that fundamental moral axioms are knowable deductively. For me in particular, this means using instrumental rationality to achieve the goal of Socratic virtue.
Truthseeker
Non-debating member when I can help myself
I believe that there is inspiration from a lot of religions, I am seeking to be a person of better character as defined by Baha'i scriptures especially, though other scriptures apply as well (I sponsor an interfaith devotional each week, mostly concerning aspects of character). I desire to become a person that interacts well with people of all religions and people who don't have a religion someday. Those are the main things right now.