Buddhism is not about being a Buddhist

[Aloka]

Ringu Tulku Rinpoche talks for approx. 3 minutes:

[philg]

Not very useful is it? Such a statement needs to be placed in context if it is not to come over as trite and superficial. He is sitting in that place in those clothes which scream, "I'm a Buddhist." Why bother if all you need is to be kind and compassionate?

[Esho]

He is sitting in that place in those clothes which scream, "I'm a Buddhist."

Sure... I thought the same.

[Aloka]

Not very useful is it? Such a statement needs to be placed in context if it is not to come over as trite and superficial. He is sitting in that place in those clothes which scream, "I'm a Buddhist." Why bother if all you need is to be kind and compassionate?

I tend to think you're nitpicking unnecessarily, to be quite honest, Phil. Its probably a clip from a longer talk somewhere.

Here's a link to Ringu Tulku's website for anyone looking in who's interested:-

https://bodhicharya.org/

and here's a link to his book "Path to Buddhahood" for an overview of the Tibetan Buddhist path:

https://www.shambhala.com/path-to-buddhahood.html

(Its a commentary on Gampopa's "The Jewel Ornament of Liberation", with a foreword byMatthieu Ricard)


Finally, here's a link to the Four Sublime States of Love, Compassion, Sympathetic Joy and Equanimity which are important for all of us, whichever Buddhist tradition or centre we prefer.

https://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/...006.html#basic



.

[woodscooter]

Not very useful is it? Such a statement needs to be placed in context if it is not to come over as trite and superficial. He is sitting in that place in those clothes which scream, "I'm a Buddhist." Why bother if all you need is to be kind and compassionate?

I don't think that's a very helpful comment. Ringu Tulku Rinpoche is a Buddhist monk, and he's promoting a perfectly valid idea: "What really counts is acting in a positive way, with kindness and compassion".

As he's a Buddhist monk, he's presenting himself authentically, as he is. If he dressed in jeans and a t-shirt, he would not be his authentic self.

If I simply claimed to be observing all the traditions of the religion, then whether of not I was dressed in robes, you would be right to criticise my superficial approach to Buddhism.

The surface appearance is not enough. What matters is your commitment to acting kindly in all your dealings.

[JadeRabbit]

Sounded like pretty good advice to me

When I was young, I used to go to church on Sundays and met people who called themselves Christians, but their actions didn't seem very kind, loving, or charitable, which I felt was important - so even then, I became wary of labels and was more interested in how people acted, rather than what they called themselves.