Hi, I'm Lisa, the Buddhism editor. This forum is a place to post questions about Buddhism, comment on recent articles, debate Buddhist related topics, and offer suggestions for topics you'd like me to cover in articles or future threads.

Feel free to reply to this post, introduce yourself, and let me know why you are interested in Buddhism. What Buddhist themes and practices are you most interested in? What books have you recently read on Buddhism that you enjoyed? If you are a practicing Buddhist, what branch do you consider yourself?

If you are new to Buddhism, be sure to check out the Buddhism FAQ at http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art48856.asp. And sign up for the weekly BellaOnline Buddhism newsletter at http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art31382.asp, so that you can keep up to date on current articles and forum activity.

In this and all threads, please observe the following posting guidelines:

- Be respectful! No proselytizing, for or against Buddhism. This forum is open to anyone, but it is not a platform for trying to convert others to Buddhism, or to convert Buddhists to other religions/philosophies.

- Be nice. When disagreements arise, please be courteous in your words and tone.

- If you are posting a question or debate item yourself, and are looking for responses only from Buddhists, or only from Buddhists in a particular branch, please politely state this. Otherwise, anyone may respond. This forum is open to Buddhists, quasi-Buddhists and non-Buddhists.

- Keep outside links relevant to the thread. You are welcome to post links to articles and resources directly related to a topic's thread, but please do not post spam. Note that raw urls are not allowed, if you need help using UBB code, just message me.

Thanks, and please do introduce yourself, and send me suggestions!

Hi Lisa, I'm Buddhist because after learning the four noble truths and what emptiness means in relation to cause and effect, I have come to experience that the lacking in intrinsic existence is pervasive throughout form and concept. This warms and calms me when I am falling short of the behavior that I believe myself to be capable of. I firmly believe in no beginning and no end, and that all that is in existence is equal insofar as no single part of any whole can be found to be the sum total of that whole. I would like to mention one book: Vajrayogini: Her Visualizations, Rituals, & Forms : a Study of the Cult of Vajrayogini in India By Elizabeth English Published by Wisdom Publications, 2002 ISBN 086171329X, 9780861713295 This book has helped me to understand emptiness as "empty of intrinsic existence because of dependent origination" and to equate that concept to "non-dual knowledge" or "Vajra Knowledge"

Welcome Lisa. I am the old Buddhist editor. I am still around BellaOnline.com at other sites. I had to take a sabbatical from Buddhist practices due to some life events that interupted my life. I look forward to your prespective on things.

Yu Jo, thanks so much for your post, and for introducing yourself. I will check out that book, as I am very interested in the Vajrayogini tradition. I hope you return and post more!

Jeanette, I am so glad you came by the forum. I have been meaning to email you, because I think you did such a wonderful job with the previous articles, and I hate to override any of them! For now, I am avoiding doing so by writing on new topics instead:-) I would appreciate any suggestions or comments you have...and I will come check out your Women's Lit site soon too, as I am a big reader...

Email me anytime! I hated giving the site up but I haven't been able to stay to my practices and I didn't think it was fair to keep writing about Buddhism when I am not practicing. I think I still have all of the books I reviewed and I would be glad to send them to you so you can rewrite those. Buddha or Bust is AWESOME!! It really changed the way I felt and think about things and the author is really nice.

Hi everyone :) I've been a Buddhist for a couple of years, but only first took formal refuge last April. I practice within the Vajrayana tradition, specifically Sakya. I'm writing to you from Southern California. I look forward to reading more here, and hopefully mutual sharing of info! I just discovered Bella Online and I'm flabbergasted at the amount of forums here. What a great site! Best wishes, Drolma

Drolma, Thanks for introducing yourself, and I'm glad you found BellaOnline. I am a relatively new editor, so just trying to get the Buddhist forum active again. I hope you come by again, and consider signing up for the newsletter. I appreciate any suggestions you have about topics you are interested in learning more about too...

Hi, my name is alexandra and Im a Buddhist.

I used to be a frequent visitor here, and aimed to become very involved with this forum, but pressure of work and daily life got in the way!
(isn't it maddening when it does that - ?!?)

I try to pop in now and then, and will support as much as I can.
I practice Theravada buddhism, and have been a Buddhist for nearly 20 years now.

I lose count.
One does whilst living entirely in the present, doncha know!

Alexandra, thanks so much for coming by. I hope we can get things going again here. I would appreciate any suggestions you have for future articles or forum topics...your faq questions were great...

Lisa, congratulations on becoming an editor. I am a new editor also.

I have been a Christian for many years, but got burned by a pastor (and his secretary) several years ago, as many others did in that church. He is no longer a pastor, but the harm he caused before he was removed is tragic.

That said, for many years I have looked at other religions and their beliefs, always feeling like I never quite found the right place. Although I still consider myself a Christian, I am struggling getting back into any church. Therefore, during the last several years I have been seeking where I belong in the spirit realm. Don't know if that makes sense, but I am glad to find this site. Hopefully, I will learn from you and the others who post here.

Someday, I am sure my personal spiritual ship will right itself once again, but the journey is sure taking a lot longer than I expected. I will read your articles and see if that helps me gain the proper perspective I need to move on, spiritually speaking.

Edie, welcome to BellaOnline and this forum. My own spiritual journey has taken me in a lot of different directions as well. I hope you find some food for thought (and soul) here. Be sure to check out the Spirituality and Meditation forums too if you haven't already, as they offer a lot of non-denominational references, themes and books that you might benefit from too.

Hi Lisa, I posted a reply ( Law of attraction ) and then doing the introduction. Sorry about that. I practice Vipassana meditation and spent around 3.5 years studying and practicing the teachings of the Buddha, off my work ( i quit my job for this ). Now I am back to work , but think a lot of Dhamma and how best to apply it in my daily , "ordinary" life and I am quite bent upon practicing this meditation to the best of my abilities or paramis and serve humanity, in my own small way, perhaps proportional to whatever levels I develop in my practice. This meditation aligns with Theravada tradition. I work in the software industry and still wondering if I am doing the right thing though.

To Lisa,

Like most men,Idid not read the instruction manual before starting invading this site.Well it is done now.

your student
loong

To my Teacher,

After rereading ,the (rules) now I see why people might find me aggressive.My whole life is dedicated to Buddhism,however respecting all other phylosophy and religions.

Will try to be less strict.

loong
Mahayana,with a bit of Tibetan.

Hi Loong, you have been fine here in this forum, but yes, we want this to be accessible to everyone. It's not helpful to anyone to judge their practice. All we do is present our own understanding of Buddhism as best we can, knowing that we are all always in the midst of practice, and therefore may at any given time have a limited view. Doing our best in the moment is all that is asked.

Hi I am 'Kopila' from Nepal, the birth place of Buddha and the Buddhist philosophy.
I am an agnostic so far by belief and I am still researching / learning more about Buddhism. In Kathmandu, we have Vajrayana Buddhism and Hindu Tantra mixed up making it very unique and complicated. Recently it has also become learning centre of Tibetan Buddhism.
Being in Nepal and the Himalayas, we see, hear and come across rituals and practices all the time. I am always curious and every time I learn more. So I never leave a chance to learn either it is internet or real life.
I hope to hear great stuffs from people around the world.