JUDAISM
AND OTHER
FAITHS / BUDDHA:
___
P :
Good evening. *smile*
SimShalom :
Hi how are you?
P :
I'm not bad. Much better than I was. *smile* Sleep deprivation does that to you.
SimShalom :
oh yes, I agree
SimShalom :
ok good, it's not easy nowadays to keep an "even keel"
P :
*nods*
I try to be mindful of myself and my body... it's a Buddhist thing. *laughs*
SimShalom :
Well Buddha always look very comfy in those little idolatrous statues....
P :
*Laughs* Definitely.
SimShalom :
and VERY overweight...
P:
It doesn't matter as long as you're happy...
SimShalom :
Oh and he is dressed so informally for a religious event...
P :
*shrugs*
He's the Buddha... I don't think the Buddhist acolytes really care what he wears.
C'mon... if God were to come down from the heavens sporting a speedo and Days of Thunder shades, would you be the one to tell him it's inappropriate? *Laughs*
SimShalom :
Wait I didn't know Buddhist believed in God, I thought it's some sort weird "consciousness' that they are into thru meditation (and sleep deprivation sometimes--especially for new recruits being "trained" to be good little Buddhists and chant away till their brains fall out...and into it pops little Buddha with his bald pate, sardonic smile , folded hands, and ill-fitting robes, sitting on a few pillows on the floor...what a god)
P:
*Laughs*
Actually, Buddhists don't worship a God. They seek a higher state of consciousness found through healthy living, following the 4 noble truths and the 8 laws (I can't remember what they're called), which of course include compassion. They seek inner knowledge of themselves through meditation and seeking, and hopefully, after a few lifetimes, they can right their snafu karma and learn all there is to learn, then they achieve enlightenment.
P :
That's the readers digest version...
SimShalom :
Oh, well I never go beyond that, is there more?
P :
Yes, lots. Just give me a second and i'll give you a link.
SimShalom :
Oh, it's quite ok, I'm not t h a t inspired..I was kidding...
P :
*nods* Alright...
SimShalom :
In Judaism, Buddha does not register on the Richter scale...even tho oddly many secular Jews are very drawn to Buddhist ideas...
P :
Does the concept of reincarnation fit in at all anywhere?
SimShalom :
YES, but only the very Orthodox accept it fully.
The Reform and Conservative Jews (they are the majority of North America's six million Jews) have not just abandoned this notion they vehemently deny it. This goes in tandem with their rejection of the MYSTICAL cabalistic side of Judaism about which they know very little...
P :
*nods* I've only done very soft skimming of kaballah, not enough to know definitively what it is, but enough to know it exists. What is the proper spelling anyway? I've seen it spelled so many ways.
SimShalom :
all ways are ok as it comes out sounding as "kabala" or "cabala" or "kabalah" or "kabbalaH" etc, since it's a Hebrew word that sounds like "kabala".
It translates as "A Received Tradition"
P :
*nods* Very interesting.
There are a lot of grey areas within Judaism that haven't been revealed to me yet, and maybe some more that have (that I don't know I know) and I was wondering where exactly I could go to find some more information? I understand the some or all of the Old Testament deals with the antediluvian and post-flood Jewish culture, but what else? Are there any contemporary authors that I could look for?
SimShalom :
In Jewish studies it's not so much the authors that count its the SUBJECT and THE WAY THE AUTHOR TREATS IT.
So basically, you pick one topic, say 'The Flood" or "Kabala", or "Abraham", or something current like "Judaism's view on love , sex, and marriage", and then you start DIGGING for information and spreading out from there.
The Internet is an excellent starting point..it will keep you busy forever, and the sites invariably all recommend books.
Thus

Here's a good Judaism introduction site:

http://www.aish.com/

Here's good introduction to the mystical Lubavitch (Chabad) Hasidim

http://www.chabad.org/

Here is an excellent resource of Torah teachings :

http://www.torah.org/

And here you can just learn basic facts and terminology:

http://www.jewfaq.org/

All these are coming from an Orthodox perspective.
You can then search and find those sites that present Judaism from the Conservative movement and Reform movement perspectives.
P :
Excellent. Thank you kindly, my friend. *smile* I appreciate the gesture and i'll be sure to give those a glance over in the near future. Maybe later on tongiht. *shrugs*
SimShalom :
Go ahead..as the ad used to say about New York's Levy's kosher bread "try it you'll like it"
have a good night!
P:
Take care and have a good night. *smile*

- posted by Izak @ 9:13 PM