Okay, I sent an email to the boy in LA about the New Kadampa Tradition.
The way I wrote it was "I was researching what lineage I wanted to follow, and I found this info about NKT, did you know there is all this controversy?" He has never been with another "Sangha" (like church pretty much) so this is his only exposure to Buddhism he's had (a girlfriend got him into it- how else do people get into cults?) So it could be that he, like any westerner, has no clue what is normal and not normal Buddhist teachings, so if they tell you "pray to this diety and you get material wealth" they have no idea that that is not Buddhist. I can say, however, that the moment I saw the webpage he directed me to, I felt that something wasn't right about it.
If he never writes to me again, I know he's a cult member.
Showing posts with label New Kadampa Tradition. Show all posts
Showing posts with label New Kadampa Tradition. Show all posts
Sunday, May 06, 2007
Friday, May 04, 2007
Too good to be true?
On the personals site I have connected with a guy in LA who bakes and likes chubby women. He has a cute writing style, is very cute, and is creative. Yes, he lives in LA, but if he was Mr. Perfect...maybe I could move to a sunny climate.
So today I asked him what lineage of Buddhism he practiced (because I am trying to pick one) and he said it was the New Kadampa Tradition
I haven't read much about it, BUT, the NKT is criticising the Dalai Lama who I happen to think is pretty cool. I haven't looked into what the specific criticims were, but if you are a cult, and people are criticising you, it often helps your case to try to discredit them as leaders. (I think this organization says the Dalai Lama is not the actual reincarnation of whoever he is supposed to be the reincarnation of. That type of stuff is unimportant to me, I am still on the fence about reincarnation anyway)
Something like Buddhism could be easily exploited into a cult, becuase we are so unfamiliar with it that someone can tell us "Buddhism says this" and we wont know any better. I am so glad I am a "Bookstore Buddhist" because I have a little background on Buddhist teachings.
This guy seems sweet, I wont give up on him yet, maybe I can convince him to visit a center with a different lineage.
So today I asked him what lineage of Buddhism he practiced (because I am trying to pick one) and he said it was the New Kadampa Tradition
I haven't read much about it, BUT, the NKT is criticising the Dalai Lama who I happen to think is pretty cool. I haven't looked into what the specific criticims were, but if you are a cult, and people are criticising you, it often helps your case to try to discredit them as leaders. (I think this organization says the Dalai Lama is not the actual reincarnation of whoever he is supposed to be the reincarnation of. That type of stuff is unimportant to me, I am still on the fence about reincarnation anyway)
Something like Buddhism could be easily exploited into a cult, becuase we are so unfamiliar with it that someone can tell us "Buddhism says this" and we wont know any better. I am so glad I am a "Bookstore Buddhist" because I have a little background on Buddhist teachings.
This guy seems sweet, I wont give up on him yet, maybe I can convince him to visit a center with a different lineage.
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