My Religion means a way of life to me. It has taught me a way of fair and just lifestyle through its teachings. Since I’ve been born to a Buddhist family, I had no choice but to learn the religion I was supposed to learn by default. But, it has taught me a great lot to live a good life. Buddhism, in my opinion is a philosophy; the essence containing simple and practical ways of living a balanced life. To understand the depth of Buddhism, you need a lot of patience. I personally have not looked into seeking the depths of my religion, because whatever I have been taught/ learnt gives me enough knowledge to lead a just life.
Buddhism’s basic teachings for me have been equality and compassion. The teaching of the religion has made me a person who values the right for life of all living beings, from the ant to the human to the biggest living being on earth. To me my religion isn’t a thing to worship upon or anything to be carried on my shoulders and raised to “greatness.” It is simply only a “bridge” which leads me to be a selfless, compassionate human being.
What more my religion has taught me is, regardless of a person’s religion, race, caste, complexion or social status to treat all as just humans. To make relationships with people religion or social status was and is never an obstacle to me, I don’t see it as a point to even consider. Buddhism has taught me to respect all religions and beliefs. In my opinion, simply, if a certain other belief or a religion leads a person to a good life, well that’s all what is needed. My religion does not force anything on me. I am not obliged to follow whatever is being taught. It gives me absolute freedom to question the teachings and choose whether I am going to follow a right path to live a right life. But, it always show the consequences of leading a positive or a negative life. And it’s solely my call to choose whether I want to experience negative or positive consequences.
I don’t have a particular “God figure” to worship and rely on, but neither have I been denied the access to other religious figures when I need a reliable thing/person. The greatest thing Buddhism has taught me is to respect all good things, be it a teaching or a person. After all, any God is a good God!
Open House 