For most of my life, and even today, I rigorously follow the adage "I would never join a club that would have me as a member." Part disillusionment in my young hippie days, seeing the same ego, alpha male/ female games being played out among various supposedly egalitarian groups, partly an inherent distrust in any kind of authority that has dogged me from the days of my catholic school youth when the first seeds of realization that I was being lied to began their very very painful growth, this adage has become a part of me.
That being said my interest in and attraction to Buddhism is rooted in just this sort of emphasis on personal experience over the acceptance of any written dogma. I do believe it is ultimately useful to adhere to a specific system of spirituality in order to be able to measure progress and make use of the experiences of others.
A large part of spiritual study, practical spiritual study with a real impact on my life and therefore the lives of those I come in contact with - especially my children - is about behavior. Awareness of one's own behavior, of the causes and of methods for altering behavior. From my limited study Buddhism offers a very powerful insight and methodology in this realm. Behavior is essentially the realm of psychology, and I feel that Buddhism is a very advanced science of human psychology. (My senior thesis in religious studies was on this subject). With an emphasis on personal responsibility and experience over any sort of divine intervention and interpretation , it is a most practical methodology as well.
In the sense that Lama Surya Das explains being a Buddhist in his book Awakening The Buddha Within (which I am currently reading)-
I personally feel the most important criteria or characteristic of Buddhist spirituality is a sincere commitment to the possibility of spiritual awakening and enlightenment, combined with an open heart, an inquiring mind, and daily awareness practice based on ethics, meditation, and wisdom.- I would answer the blog entry's title as Yes. This blog will serve to be, I hope, an extension of that commitment to inquiry and awareness practice.
And a place to talk about computers and gadgets, of course!
