Playing Devil’s Advocate here (:-)) I decided to take up the question of whether Buddhism is religion or philosophy, as discussed a few posts ago<\/a>.<\/p>\n

I think any belief system can have a philosophical or religious side. Buddhism gets away with a lot because people who aren’t brought up in its traditions tend to be introduced to the philosophy, which has some wonderful insights into the human condition and the nature of life. In which case, you might think it doesn’t matter if it also involves certain observances.\u00c2\u00a0 Have you ever heard of Nicheren Shoshu “Buddhism”? It involves chanting certain mantras, to get rewards in the material world – wealth, promotions, a wife or husband, a new kitchen, etc. It seems to require that believers hand over fair amounts of cash but they can always get\u00c2\u00a0this back\u00c2\u00a0through their dedication to\u00c2\u00a0chanting. Chanting for things you need \u00c2\u00a0is a sign of devoutness. If you need a new washing machine, surely it shows a lack of faith if you don’t take the opportunity to chant\u00c2\u00a0 so the universe will magically\u00c2\u00a0provide it for you.<\/p>\n

By this standard, even\u00c2\u00a0extreme fundamentalist Islam<\/a> or Christianity<\/a> seem almost innocent. However, having said that, there is little evidence that the\u00c2\u00a0self-indulgent celeb-heavy philosophies like Nicheren Shoshu or Kabbala leads people to take part in crusades or jihads, so I suppose we should be grateful for them.<\/p>\n

Technorati Tags: Religion<\/a>, Philosophy<\/a>, Society<\/a>, Buddhism<\/a><\/p>\n