Buddhism/God (reject, Creator, tradition, disciples, scriptures)

[Mossburg32908]

I read that Buddism does not beleive in a god, but everything that I read about Buddhism doesn't say anything about a god, so did Buddha leave that to the people to decide

[Peacefulnrss]

The thing about God in Buddhism for me is this; if when you say God, you mean a creator, someone separate from us who created the world, then no. Buddha rejected the notion of there being a creator. But if you mean God as in Love, compassion, all good things then yes Buddha would say that there is a God. I think it is important to understand that whenever asked about God, Buddha would just kind of move to another question (or at least this is what I have noticed). I think it is because Buddha didn't want his disciples to get caught up in the idea. Buddha was a very practical man. Here is your problem; this is why you have a problem; here is the solution; here is how you get to the solution. No real need for God. Now, because Buddha didn't put much emphasis to this question, it is easy for a practitioner to go either way. This is why I find a lot of people practicing Buddhism while still believing in God. For example, I do not have any problem with the idea of God. To me it is kind of an uninteresting question, really. I mean, to me it doesn't matter too much if there is a God or not. I am still going to act the same way, trying to treat other people with respect and love. Now, this is not to say that I don’t enjoy hearing other people’s thoughts on God. It brings me great pleasure to converse with others and see if we both can have any learning opportunities... these are just my thoughts. I do not speak for any other person or Tradition.

With Love

Mark

[almifkhar]

i am aware of this much, when buddha was alive, he was born hindu but didn't much agree with it. when he found his way so to speak, he did change around the hierarchy of hindu gods but brahim remained the supreme deitey. buddhism in practice is different from culture to culture as well so keep this in mind. i may be wrong about this but i am 90% sure i am right, so if i am wrong i am sorry.

[Engyo]

I believe that Buddha's actual statement when asked where people came from was that it didn't matter. The important point was what to do to relieve suffering now. The other issue with gods in Buddhism is that they are unenlightened beings just like humans are.

[lilithu]

Namaste Peacefulnrss,
for the most part I loved your post but there is one thing with which I disagree.

Originally Posted by Peacefulnrss

The thing about God in Buddhism for me is this; if when you say God, you mean a creator, someone separate from us who created the world, then no. Buddha rejected the notion of there being a creator.

Technically, the Buddha did not reject the notion of there being a creator. The Hindu creator god, Brahma, makes an appearance in Buddhist scriptures. In fact, it is Brahma who convinces the Buddha to go out and teach when the Buddha questions whether anyone will understand him.

What the Buddha said was that this creator god was himself a conditioned being, and subject to the same laws of karma and samsara that you and I are subject to. Brahma may live a lot longer than you and I and have a lot more powers, but eventually even his existence will end and then there will be rebirth. Only with nirvana - the unconditioned - does one escape the cycle of death and rebirth. Therefore, as you said, this god is not of ultimate importance. This god will not help you to attain that which you really want - nirvana. Spending time worshipping this god is time that could have been better spent following the 8-fold path.