My journey into the world of Buddhism ~

I would like to say up front that I am a professing Christian. I do not practice Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Taoism or any other religion but Christianity. I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.

I do find other religions very fascinating and very much enjoy studying other people's religious beliefs, and that of my own, of course, in order that I may know more how to defend my faith to others. I want to teach my children what to believe and how to defend their faith.

I do not profess to understand and know all of Buddhism and its practices, as it is a lifelong discipline as much as any other faith. But I will share with you what was shared with me while Greg and I were in Shanghai.

This is my journey:

Buddhism

To do no evil;

To cultivate
good;

To purify one's mind:

This is the teaching of the Buddhas.

--The Dhammapada

We took the Metro clear across the city, walked a few city blocks and FINALLY made it to the Buddhist Temple in Shanghai.

We had never been in a Buddhist Temple and clearly did not have a clue.



We entered into the Temple square and were eventually greeted by a really sweet gal who spoke pretty darn good English (one of the few people we met who could speak English). She worked at the Temple and offered to show us around and educate us as to what was going on around us. (could it be our white skin and a camera around my neck that gave way to the fact we were Western tourists and didn't have a clue?)

As you wander around Shanghai there are plenty of incense for sale everywhere you go. I wasn't sure of the significance until we entered the Temple square. Practicing Buddhists who entered the Temple first off lit a mass of incense. It is said that the smoke of the incense will carry your wishes up to the heavens (and the sweet aroma of the incense as an offering).





I always assumed Buddha was Buddha and that was it. I had no idea there was a Buddha for the north, south, east and west~





Buddha of a Thousand arms (the reincarnation Buddha) ~



The 12 disciples ~



The most famous of all Buddhas, Happy Buddha ~



The only female Buddha, the Buddha of Compassion (of course it's a female) ~



And then there's the Buddha of long life ~


A family has come and rented the room with the Buddha of long life. You see, their grandfather is very old and does not want to die, they do not want him to die, so they have come to spend the day with the Buddha of long life, bring their wishes and offerings to him (the fruit on the table is their offering). And Buddha will try his best to make their wishes come true.

Followers of Buddha believe in heaven and hell, and believe there is a way in which you must live to end up in either place.

And there are even more Buddhas, so much so that I soon lost track of who was who. But I guess if you are a follower, you know who is who. And I'm also quite sure the Buddha with the black hair is the original Buddha. But don't quote me on that.



Buddhism reminds me very much of Greek Mythology (or Roman Mythology); a god for this, a god for that, a god for everything! Do you see why now it is important to study ancient history. A lot of the way we live comes from ancient culture, in the western world and elsewhere.

Buddhists also have other rituals they live by. I'm not sure how often this is done, but they burn sacks of money (not real, of course), believing that the smoke will take the ashes of money up to the heavens (another offering) as monks stand by chanting a prayer.



It looks much different than our traditional church service, doesn't it?

One last thing I will share with you, the statue in the picture below - well - I don't know what you call it. But the gist is, you toss your coins to try and make them into the holes. If you make the hole, the better chance of your wishes coming true. Should you be lucky enough to make it into one of the top holes, your chances are even greater. Greg being 6'3 I tried to coherce him into trying, but he would have no part of it.



It's surreal when you go some place like this and see these people really do believe what they believe. Greg and I had this conversation: Are we really just a product of our culture? What we're taught, what we believe? In some ways we are. Maybe they are right and we are wrong, or vice versa. How do you really know? All of this stuff may sound crazy to us. Our story may sound crazy to them.

I do know this, I went into a science and technology museum in the city - evolution was all over the place. I can just say that I like the belief that there is a Holy God that made me, and he made the stars and the heavens and the earth and everything in it. I like knowing that I don't just co-exist. I can rest in the fact that my heavenly Father is perfect, and He made all things perfectly just for us. He will not try to honor our wishes, but he hears every prayer and answers each one in His most perfect way.

I'm thankful for the opportunity to see how other's live. It makes me more thankful for where I live. And it gives me greater understanding of the world around me, a greater understanding of history and how important it truly is.