I read an interview once with Leonard Cohen, who, as you might remember, became a Buddhist monk. He stated that in the monastery, you’re free to do pretty much anything - in your free time. Listen to rock music, take drugs, no-one cares.
It’s just that you don’t have any free time because every day is 100% structured.
Comment on Pointless existence
zaphod@sopuli.xyz 5 weeks ago
If only there was a way to be a non-religious monk.
Prime_Minister_Keyes@lemm.ee 5 weeks ago
novibe@lemmy.ml 5 weeks ago
Not non-religious, but Buddhists don’t believe in god 🤷♂️ it’s something
frezik@midwest.social 5 weeks ago
It’s way more complicated than that. Can depend on the sect, or even the individual. There’s a lot of Buddhist stereotypes that persist from how westerners first reported back about Buddhists to other westerners.
novibe@lemmy.ml 5 weeks ago
I know, but still, the oldest schools of Buddhism don’t have anything that would equate to what we in the west consider a god, or gods.
I know that in east asia, south-east Asia etc., there are schools of Buddhism that do have gods.
But Buddhism being in many ways a rejection of brahamical religion in north india/nepal, also rejected the idea of gods when it first started to develop. I think that’s pretty uncontroversial no?
sunbather@beehaw.org 5 weeks ago
they dont believe in capital g God but buddhism has plenty of gods for sure
novibe@lemmy.ml 5 weeks ago
Depends on the school of Buddhism sure. That’s true. Some don’t have anything resembling what we call God or even gods tho.
nicknonya@lemmy.blahaj.zone 5 weeks ago
i’m pretty sure a nonreligious monasteary is just a commune