I've been growing increasingly disillusioned with Hindu practice and beliefs. I've been pretty much a deist over the past 20-25 years, with a belief in other divine beings, such as the Hindu deities. I think I forced myself into adopting Full-On-Hinduism.
However, I've been drawn to Avalokiteshvara for some time now. Avalokiteshvara is the bodhisattva of infinite compassion. Amitābha is the Buddha of Infinite Light, and principal buddha in the Pure Land sect, a branch of Mahāyāna Buddhism. One thing has led to another, and I'm delving into Pure Land. I revere the Hindu deities, as well as the Tibetan and Taoist deities, and I have them in my shrine, but my focus is on Amitābha, cultivating bodhicitta, and reaching Amitābha's western Pure Land. I found a short Pure Land sādhanā.
When I mentally chant om namo amitābha buddha I can actually feel and see something I never could meditating on Vishnu om namo narāyānāya, Krishna om namo bhagavate vāsudevāya or even Shiva om namah shivāya, which I tried. It's just not there.
Someone told me a while ago that by my interest in Buddhism, reading about it and incorporating the Five Precepts into my life, is by default taking refuge. So maybe that's why I lost my affinity for Hinduism. The Buddhist substrate was there. In fact as I look back (hindsight has 20/20 vision), I realize that if there were a philosophy to follow other than Christianity, it would have been Buddhism.
No, I'm not calling myself a Buddhist... too many labels like "-ists" and "-isms" thrown around... just do it and labels be damned.
However, I've been drawn to Avalokiteshvara for some time now. Avalokiteshvara is the bodhisattva of infinite compassion. Amitābha is the Buddha of Infinite Light, and principal buddha in the Pure Land sect, a branch of Mahāyāna Buddhism. One thing has led to another, and I'm delving into Pure Land. I revere the Hindu deities, as well as the Tibetan and Taoist deities, and I have them in my shrine, but my focus is on Amitābha, cultivating bodhicitta, and reaching Amitābha's western Pure Land. I found a short Pure Land sādhanā.
When I mentally chant om namo amitābha buddha I can actually feel and see something I never could meditating on Vishnu om namo narāyānāya, Krishna om namo bhagavate vāsudevāya or even Shiva om namah shivāya, which I tried. It's just not there.
Someone told me a while ago that by my interest in Buddhism, reading about it and incorporating the Five Precepts into my life, is by default taking refuge. So maybe that's why I lost my affinity for Hinduism. The Buddhist substrate was there. In fact as I look back (hindsight has 20/20 vision), I realize that if there were a philosophy to follow other than Christianity, it would have been Buddhism.
No, I'm not calling myself a Buddhist... too many labels like "-ists" and "-isms" thrown around... just do it and labels be damned.