Why does people react?

[Spirit of Light]

The other day i was in the town for a little shopping when a small group of buddhist monks come walking toward me. As a Buddhist i feel it is a way of respecting the monks to greeting them with raising my hands together toward my forhead and give a slight bow.
The monks who already know who i am stoped and did the same toward me and they took time to ask how i was doing.

But the strange thing is that my fellow norwegian citizens looked strange at me and start talking.
I know Buddhism is not a big religion/way of life. but why is it so strange for some people that we want to greet the monks?

Have you similar experience from your own path?

 

[HonestJoe]

They reacted to you greeting the monks for exactly the same reason you reacted to them talking about you.

 

[Spirit of Light]

I am used to being spoken about because of my way of life I can`t say i live a typically Norweian/European life style. To me Monks are the teachers and that is one reason to show respect to them

 

[Valjean]

The whole world is becoming more cosmopolitan. Two hundred years ago it was rare to meet anyone who spoke, looked of lived differently. Today it's common, and people need to get used to it.

 

[Jumi]

You have lots of Buddhists in Norway, monks even? Don't see any in Finlan.

 

[SalixIncendium]

The other day i was in the town for a little shopping when a small group of buddhist monks come walking toward me. As a Buddhist i feel it is a way of respecting the monks to greeting them with raising my hands together toward my forhead and give a slight bow.
The monks who already know who i am stoped and did the same toward me and they took time to ask how i was doing.

But the strange thing is that my fellow norwegian citizens looked strange at me and start talking.
I know Buddhism is not a big religion/way of life. but why is it so strange for some people that we want to greet the monks?

Because it's not something they see every day. I would say its for the same reason people on their way to work slow down to look at a car accident and talk about it once they get to work.

Have you similar experience from your own path?

I would imagine people do so when I meditate on the beach or in a public park. I pay it no mind. People are curious animals.

 

[Audie]

But the strange thing is that my fellow norwegian citizens looked strange at me and start talking.
I know Buddhism is not a big religion/way of life. but why is it so strange for some people that we want to greet the monks?

Have you similar experience from your own path?

Do you like calling attention to yourself?

 

[Spirit of Light]

You have lots of Buddhists in Norway, monks even? Don't see any in Finlan.

In Norway there is as far as i know about 5000 Buddhists and of this 1500 are Norwegians who converted to Buddhism.
Yes we have Temple with monks also Both for Theravada, Zen buddhist, Mahayana and a few others

 

[Spirit of Light]

Do you like calling attention to yourself?

No Attention is not something i seek, But of some reason i tend to be noticed because of my lifestyle. But i dont do it on purpose no.

 

[Brickjectivity]

Have you similar experience from your own path?

Yes, because as a youth I was in a church in which members would hug each other. Perfect strangers would hug, sometimes. This did not work well outside of the church doors since in USA culture you did not hug strangers typically. In fact there was also a fear of being thought homosexual for doing so and commonly you'd be accused of being gay for letting another man hug you. It was not a good time to be a hugger.

I know Buddhism is not a big religion/way of life. but why is it so strange for some people that we want to greet the monks?

Believe me, its strange but not for religious reasons. People are naturally skeptical, and social standing is important. When people need friends they look for people who blend in with society and who can give them standing in society. They don't usually look for outliers. They don't, for example, look for someone with unusual appearance. Therefore when they see you behaving outside of the norm their first impression is a feeling of concern that you might approach them and attempt to engage them in similar activity. They may not speak to you about it, but they feel it.

 

[Spirit of Light]

Yes, because as a youth I was in a church in which members would hug each other. Perfect strangers would hug, sometimes. This did not work well outside of the church doors since in USA culture you did not hug strangers typically. In fact there was also a fear of being thought homosexual for doing so and commonly you'd be accused of being gay for letting another man hug you. It was not a good time to be a hugger.


Believe me, its strange but not for religious reasons. People are naturally skeptical, and social standing is important. When people need friends they look for people who blend in with society and who can give them standing in society. They don't usually look for outliers. They don't, for example, look for someone with unusual appearance. Therefore when they see you behaving outside of the norm their first impression is a feeling of concern that you might approach them and attempt to engage them in similar activity. They may not speak to you about it, but they feel it.

I agree with you on this

 

[Vinayaka]

The other day i was in the town for a little shopping when a small group of buddhist monks come walking toward me. As a Buddhist i feel it is a way of respecting the monks to greeting them with raising my hands together toward my forhead and give a slight bow.
The monks who already know who i am stoped and did the same toward me and they took time to ask how i was doing.

But the strange thing is that my fellow norwegian citizens looked strange at me and start talking.
I know Buddhism is not a big religion/way of life. but why is it so strange for some people that we want to greet the monks?

Have you similar experience from your own path?

While on pilgrimage in India, the longest stares I got were from European tourists. In a hotel elevator a lady asked me, "Do you live here?" in a very curious way. It seemed she was thinking, "nice place to visit, but how could you live here?" The very worst of stares were from Christian missionaries, but I expected that. I am the enemy after all.

 

[Spirit of Light]

While on pilgrimage in India, the longest stares I got were from European tourists. In a hotel elevator a lady asked me, "Do you live here?" in a very curious way. It seemed she was thinking, "nice place to visit, but how could you live here?" The very worst of stares were from Christian missionaries, but I expected that. I am the enemy after all.

Why do you feel you are their enemy? because the missionariesare there to convert hindus?
Here in Norway i had a few situations with Jheovas witnesses, but they can`t convert me, so they give up

 

[Vinayaka]

Why do you feel you are their enemy? because the missionariesare there to convert hindus?
Here inNorway ihad a few situationswith Jheovas witnesses, but they can`t convert me, so they give up

Yes. It's rare to see a white person going around to the temples, and the century old ridicule of everything Hindu is momentarily set back when the Hindus see someone loving their culture, rather than practicing disdain. Tourists were neutral to the whole Hindu thing, but still stared. They went to the old temples for the architecture. So yes, for that particular mindset, I am the enemy.

 

[Audie]

Why do you feel you are their enemy? because the missionariesare there to convert hindus?
Here in Norway i had a few situations with Jheovas witnesses, but they can`t convert me, so they give up

They try with me too, but I just talk to them
in Chinese, so they give up right away.

 

[Audie]

Yes. It's rare to see a white person going around to the temples, and the century old ridicule of everything Hindu is momentarily set back when the Hindus see someone loving their culture, rather than practicing disdain. Tourists were neutral to the whole Hindu thing, but still stared. They went to the old temples for the architecture. So yes, for that particular mindset, I am the enemy.

There is a strong feeling against anyone
"going native", and that is probably what
they are seeing.

Is "enemy" not maybe too strong a word?

 

[Audie]

No Attention is not something i seek, But of some reason i tend to be noticed because of my lifestyle. But i dont do it on purpose no.

Surely you know the reason.

You never commented btw on what I
said about adopting some other peoples'
culture as if it were your own.

 

[Spirit of Light]

Surely you know the reason.

You never commented btw on what I
said about adopting some other peoples'
culture as if it were your own.

Being a Buddhist does not mean one need to adobt a culture, But since living a buddhist way of life witch is differet from Norwegian life then yes peope will unfortunatly notice it since i am a white guy.

 

[Vinayaka]

There is a strong feeling against anyone
"going native", and that is probably what
they are seeing.

Is "enemy" not maybe too strong a word?

Yes, 'enemy' would be too strong a word for some folks, but for others, it is the word they use, so I'm just going by that. For that fundamentalist mindset, anything that isn't totally with them is 'enemy' or otherwise referred to as 'Satan's work'. I've heard a pottu (bindu, forehead mark) referred to as the mark of the devil. The missionaries of South India, in particular some Indian converts are rather radically anti-Hindu. Perhaps it was a way of pleasing their original masters. I don't know, really. Just my observations, and of course observations can be dead wrong.

 

[Audie]

Being a Buddhist does not mean one need to adobt a culture, But since living a buddhist way of life witch is differet from Norwegian life then yes peope will unfortunatly notice it since i am a white guy.

I kind of thing adopting a religion is exactly
that, adopting a culture. Call it cultural
heritage, if culture does not suit you.
But let us not do semantics, you do understand
what I said about adopting / appropriating
from another people, as if it is your own?

Is it unfortunate that you get noticed for
being "different"? No harm in it, surely.
You dont enjoy being "different"?

In the event, you do seem to know why
you get noticed, so you were not really
asking why, just commenting on it. Which
is fine.

In NYC, I am just another of countless
people from everywhere. You cannot stand
out no matter what you do or look like.

In Wyoming on the other hand, when I
visited a friend's family ranch, I was quite
the oddity. They see few "extra petite"
Asians out on the lone prairie.

I didnt mind being "different", everyone
was super nice to me, tried to include me
in things, like riding and even in branding.

Fun to wear a stetson and ride a horse,
but, you know, it sure is not my cultural
heritage and nobody would ever think it
was.