Good morning!

Sha here, currently living in Baltimore, MD, USA.

Anyone else in this part of the world?

Although my personal practice is going well, I find that the Sangha piece could use cultivating. I'm curious to see what might be available here on SBA.

Happy Monday. 🙂

@flatline

So glad you're here and finding value in this different way to approach the teaching!

Hi my name is Gregory and I live in the SF Bay Area. I hope we can all learn from eachother and have fun in the process. I ran into Secular Buddhism recently and found it to be a good fit for me. Ive studied Buddhism in the past as well as other religions but have always been turned off my the myths and superstitious. I have a website www.deebuddhism.org where I have been processing my journey through. Well thats about all I have to say. Thank you for creating this site.

Hi,

My name is Nicol and I live near Glasgow in Scotland. Over the last 5 years or so I’ve become really interested in Buddhism and meditation, having never had any interest in religion up until then. There is just something about Buddhism that attracted me and totally appeals. I have struggled a bit over these years with the concept of karma and rebirth, but coming across the secular Buddhism podcast has been great, allowing me to pursue and practise the parts that are meaningful to me. I am looking forward to being able to communicate and share ideas with likeminded people. There’s not a huge Buddhist movement in Glasgow😂

Hello,

I'm Keith, and I live in Eloy, Arizona. I have been interested in Buddhist philosophy for several years and have practiced a bit. I appreciated many of the insights, but I never accepted the mysticism and supernatural aspects. I was impressed with Stephen Batchelor's book, Confession of a Buddhist Athiest, and am glad to have found a place to really explore buddhist thought in a secular manner.

I've already poked around the site a bit and am impressed by all of the information. Thanks.

Hi all! 

I've recently been studying Buddhism after becoming disenchanted with my formal religion.  Like many of you, I feel a connection to the beliefs and philosophies of Buddhism without necessarily buying into the mysticism.  I'm so excited to be a part of this community!  I can't wait to learn from each of you!

Best,

Danielle

Hello All,

I’ve been meaning to write my introduction for a while, just never got round to doing it.

Anyway, I have been working with Buddhism for around 18 months mainly Soto and Rinzai Zen as well as Plum Village. One thing I always found to be missing is any emphasis on (or even mention of), what is to me anyway, the nub of Buddhism; the four noble truths, the eightfold path and the five remembrances. So I have been practicing alone, but without a sangha to communicate with it does become rather dry.

So it came as a pleasant surprise to find Secular Buddhism. I have often felt that the different branches of Buddhism reflected the culture in which they developed. So it makes perfect sense to me that in our Western secularised society that the Buddhism most suitable would be one which dwells less on the mystical and more on the practical aspects.

Enough of my ramblings. I hope to make use of this forum, but I know I’m not always the best at doing that!

@gkongthavorn  Hi, Gregory. I enjoyed looking at your attractive website. Quite an ambitious undertaking. Kudos. What is the significance of "(dee)" - the symbol - in Sanskrit? I look forward to learning more from you. 

@nicolreid1  Hi, Nicol. I know the feeling of wanting to be connected to secular buddhists locally. If you know any in Texas, please let me know. The downside of having a spiritual practice that is not a religion is the lack of a recognizable meeting place, like a church or temple. Some secular buddhists are maverick thinkers and readers, which makes them hard to identify for purposes of getting together. I think there's a sangha in Glasgow that practices in the tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh, which is a form of secular buddhism. The Plum Village website may have information about resources in Scotland. Good luck, friend. 

Hello!

Thomas from Sweden, I have studied Buddhism and have been meditating for many years within different traditions. I´m new to secular Buddhism som I´m looking forward to learn what secular Buddhism is and stand for. 

As Dogen Zenji says: To study Buddhism is to study ourselves. To study ourselves is to forget ourselves. What could be more important to study ourselves with the help of Buddhism, to understand ourselves and the world around us.

I think that secular Buddhism could be an important path for the modern Human.

Best wishes,

Thomas Boman

Hi All,

I'm a monkey-minded novice meditator who has recognized for years that I could benefit from joining a meditative community. But I've never found a good fit--the ones I've run across have exotified Eastern culture, taken on the (in my mind) irrelevant trappings of Buddhism, and idealized Zen authority figures. I'm glad to have found SBA!

Thanks,

Walter 

Hello all, my name is Dan.  The story of how I arrived here seems to be similar to others.  I was involved with a religion years ago, but for various reasons drifted away, becoming agnostic/borderline atheist.  Even though I no longer participate in a religion, I have a lot of respect for those who do.  I enjoy talking with people who believe differently than I do and seeing how their faith impacts their lives.  The first time I met someone that I knew practiced Buddhism was during a business trip to India.  I had some very interesting conversations with him and found that a lot of what he talked about made sense.  I left that interaction thinking Buddhism seemed very appealing and how I could see myself trying to practice it, if only I didn't have to believe in things like rebirth or supernatural attributes of the Buddha.  Fast forward some years and I overheard the term Secular Buddhism.  I started looking into it, reading some articles and watching YouTube videos.  I am the newest of new when it comes to learning about Buddhism, but I like what I've learned so far.  I am looking forward to learning more and incorporating these practices into my life.

My name is Ken Teixeira and I live in Stuart, FL.   I became acquainted with Buddhism perhaps 45 years ago but only began practicing in earnest about 15 years ago.   It has always been frustrating to sit with sanghas that rely upon foreign customs and supernatural ideas that have little to do with finding liberation so I am thrilled to find commerce with others that have a naturalistic view of Buddhism(perhaps we can find a word that sounds nicer than "secular"...perhaps not).   I have hosted a sangha (Clear Bell Meditation, now online) for about 6 years and I speak at local U-U, Secular Humanist and Buddhist gatherings.  I  look forward to strengthening my practice with you.

Hello, My name is Carlos, I was born in Mexico, where I currently live. I have always been intrigued by the meaning of life, what reality is, the reason why we are born and we die, etc.

My search has been based on agnosticism and rationality. Reading Modern Physics and Astronomy books, as well as Philosophy. Buddhism had interested me since time ago, and I finally decided to research it seriously, investigated about the different traditions and approached a couple of them. I also have been meditating almost daily over the last 3 years.

I have mostly tried to learn and understand through science, but I concluded that not all the answers are there. The logic and critical thinking of Buddhism resonated naturally with me, and opened my mind to a more spiritual path. 

When I read Buddhism without Believes and Confession of a Buddhist Atheist, I felt I finally found my place as a Secular Buddhist. A community of human beings with a similar mindset. Approaching life with a purpose and free of dogmas.

Looking forward to connecting with you,

@cmcosmos Hi Carlos! Like you, it was reading Batchelor's Buddhism Without Beliefs that really drew me in to investigate Buddhism. And like you, it's the way Buddhism uses logic and critical thinking to work toward its aims that make it so appealing. 

What sort of meditation do you do?