Atheists who behave/think like Theists & get your rag?

[FBM]

Atheist Buddhists.
Because I haven't got a fuckin clue about any of it.

That would just be Buddhists in general, then. It's an atheistic religion in principle, but that doesn't stop its practitioners from believing in a bunch of superstitious gobbledy-gook.

[mistermack]

Atheist Buddhists.
Because I haven't got a fuckin clue about any of it.

That would just be Buddhists in general, then. It's an atheistic religion in principle, but that doesn't stop its practitioners from believing in a bunch of superstitious gobbledy-gook.

That's what bugs me. If you believe in any kind of supernatural, you might just as well believe in a god.
It would confuse ME less, anyway.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Atheist Buddhists.
Because I haven't got a fuckin clue about any of it.

That would just be Buddhists in general, then. It's an atheistic religion in principle, but that doesn't stop its practitioners from believing in a bunch of superstitious gobbledy-gook.

That's what bugs me. If you believe in any kind of supernatural, you might just as well believe in a god.
It would confuse ME less, anyway.

They just reject a supreme being, not pixies.

[FBM]

Indeed. That was one reason I found it hard to tolerate being a Theravada monk. It wasn't that I cared what superstitions they believed in, it was that they expected me to toe the line when it came to that sort of crap. One even told me that logic and reasoning were modern weaknesses. (Didn't stop him from using the monastery's computer, tho.) And I was just non-commital on such topics when they arose, I didn't try to argue with them about it.

Mahayanists go even further. They think the Buddha is still somewhere in a super-heavenly realm called Nirvana, granting wishes and the like. At least the Theravadins are quick to point out that Siddhartha was just a man and he died.

[Svartalf]

Lol, I never managed to determine whether the worst were amidists (specialized branch of mahayanists) and their Western Purel Land heaven thing, or the vajrayanists/tantric guys who are convinced that their meditations, mantras and weird exercises will give them magical powers (beyond the proven ability to self mummify)

[FBM]

Lol, I never managed to determine whether the worst were amidists (specialized branch of mahayanists) and their Western Purel Land heaven thing, or the vajrayanists/tantric guys who are convinced that their meditations, mantras and weird exercises will give them magical powers (beyond the proven ability to self mummify)

IMO, the Vajrayanists are embedded more deeply in the fertilizer than any other institution. Next comes the Pure Land peeps, followed by the rest of Mahayana, then the Theravadins coming in last of the group. But it's a tight race, mind you.

Incidentally, to be fair, there are Buddhists, both lay and clergy, who don't get into any mystical, metaphysical, superstitious crap. But in my experience, they're in the minority. By a ways.

[Svartalf]

My aunt is a theravada nut... even if you don't believe in fairies and supernatural crap, that doesn't make you a rational and sensible person. (oh, wait, theravadas still believe in the hindu cosmology, reincarnation, and that kind of crap)