Buddhism in the modern western world

Ok gang this is for those of you that are Buddhist or those of you with 'real' buddhist interests...

I am writing a book about Buddhism in the Modern western world, with all of its 'evils' like consumerism etc...and how the modern world affects/influences your buddhist ideology..

I am interested in your thoughts on the 'ease' of trying to live a buddhist life when we live in a world that goes against alot of buddhist principles....
I want to know the trials and tribulations of your personal experiences...
How do your buddhist beliefs interfere with/disrupt your daily life and decisions you have to make?

P.s... any info i use for reference will be credited in the book....

Chakra meditation in the early morning when it's still dark outside seems to make me waaay more focused at whatever it is i'm doing during the day. I'm not 100% sure whether it originated in India or not though. GO GIANTS WOOOOOOOOOOOOOT!

I found the Dharma Paddha to help calm me during a sever crisis.
But during an even worse crisis, the Christian Bible, uplifted me to an exhalted high.

The cutting of hair as a religious practise brings one down to a point of neutrality, which is better than nothing, but the growing of one's crown turns hell into heaven.

Without strife there would be no exhalted bliss.

frostythesnowthug said:

I am interested in your thoughts on the 'ease' of trying to live a buddhist life when we live in a world that goes against alot of buddhist principles....

Click to expand...

hi frost... can you gve me an example?

iloveyou

Heya GK,ok Just throwing a few things out here..

I have a friend who works for a big US arms manufacturer..He's interested in buddhism and has read alot of buddhist texts to feed his insatiable appetite for the Dharma..
Now he has a clear understanding of Buddhism, my friend is aware that he works for a company that could be said, to be responsible for Dukkha..
Now he has an understanding,He constantly asks himself 'IF' he should work for a company that creates products with the purpose of harming others, and that have a great impact on wildlife and the surrounding environment, and questions his own integrity due to his constant yearning to earn more $$$ to buy more..which also meant his family unit suffered in as many ways as they reaped its supposed 'benefits'
He was very materialistic, always had a new car, big 250k apartment, fancy clothes etc.. and still never felt fulfilled..Thru his understanding of buddhist belief, and his own interpetation of it, he is now making decisions in his life to change certain aspects, as he feels that he was 'guilty'( i was soo looking for another word) greed and ignorance, Which is something we are force fed by marketing companies 24hrs per day, whether it be from radio, tv,magazines or Billboard posters.. We are constantly being told we 'need' this car/house or 'this' product will make you look younger/ more sexually desirable/cooler etc.
I think that the western world tends to create Tanha or Craving, which is considered the origin of suffering..and that the pressure we are under to keep competing against the rest of society, makes it difficult to maintain the buddhist 'right view' at all times, and stay on the path.
Thats the sorta thing i mean.......We all encounter things on a daily basis, that test our beliefs..Should you lie to the boss about the memo you forgot to send, maybe blame it on the fax machine screwing up or a co worker...etc

The book i am writing is intended to be a basic introduction to buddhism,its teachings and exploring the difficulties of buddhist life in the western world...

Thanks frost.... i feel for your friend...

I suspect that matter is MANIFESTED when there is CONFLICT... i know this is a bit vague...

Life manifests as matter when there is conflict.... when the INNER and the OUTER are not ONE....

When the inner and the outter are the same.. then conflict is over...

This, your friend is ion the perfect situation to end the conflict... LOL

iloveyou

the mind is a whore and a liar ahhahahahaha just wanted to say that...

iloveyou

PoseidonsNet said:

I found the Dharma Paddha to help calm me during a sever crisis.
But during an even worse crisis, the Christian Bible, uplifted me to an exhalted high.

The cutting of hair as a religious practise brings one down to a point of neutrality, which is better than nothing, but the growing of one's crown turns hell into heaven.

Without strife there would be no exhalted bliss.

Click to expand...

I also have gone to the DhamaPaddha many times to learn and calm myself over the years. I have only gone to the bible at one point in my life recently that helped in some ways... but in some ways it was harmful. Just a strange part of life.