Re: Am I Buddhist or Hindu? Does it matter?
hariḥ oṁ
~~~~~~
namasté
A few things from my point of view which is neither here or there; that is, I hope only to provide food for thought.
I do not have an answer for you , as I suspect you are quite capable of making a reasonable decision; and, as it is with many decisions of this nature, there is no ‘lock’ on what you choose in the short term because with real growth we change our minds, values, beliefs and the like as we evolve with more knowledge. So, you have a forgiving decision.
You mention this:
- So, I am wondering what exactly I am
- Would it make more sense to identify as a Buddhist or Hindu
Instead of wondering what you are, it is who you are that brings resolve to your question.
If you come to realize ( in full) who you are, it is in fact, ‘I am’ ahaṁ. I am in hopes from your readings you recognize this term. It is when one says I am _______ ( fill in the blank: a manager, husband, happy, sad, big , small, smart, ill, aged, young, etc etc) then one has gone past who they really are. If you confuse doing ( a bundle of actions) for who you are you missed the real you. This is in fact at the core of sanātana dharma, unfolding one's core nature.
This dharma is not about becoming localized with an identity of one thing or another, but about one’s actual universal status. The more localized/individual the less universal. See the point?
So, the question you may be asking is what practice(s) or darṣana (school) should align to? I would ask: what behaviors should I align to that supports sanātana dharma ( or buddhist) frame of reference. I would ( in my humble opinion) consider the wisdom of patañjali’s yogadarśana and become familiar with the principles yama and niyama. They are highly transferable and most noble. Here one’s actions & behaviors are groomed accordingly and are in line with dharma. This same knowledge is found within our upaniṣads , śastra-s and the like, yet patañjali was kind enough to put them in one place for our kind consideration and are not overly burdensome as I see it.
Calling one’s self a hindu or buddhist , all well and good, yet it is a label. Action and behaviors that align to one’s unfoldment is at the core sanātana dharma. Sanātana dharma embraces many many views, but the end point for all of them is wholeness, fullness of Being; living one’s full potential in God Consciousness.
इतिशिवं
iti śivaṁ
Last edited by yajvan; 20 July 2017 at 09:54 AM.
Reason: corrected spelling
यतस्त्वं शिवसमोऽसि
yatastvaṁ śivasamo'si
because you are identical with śiva
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