Come See for Yourself - Ehipassiko

<p>The reason I called this podcast Rebel Buddhist is becasue it’s meant to encourage one’s own inquiry into the teachings and to not just accept things on blind faith or without deep inquiry into the teachings; to encourage questioning and for people to have different experiences of that exploration and that it is OK. </p><p> </p><p>It challenges some of the more common concepts that are often accepted without questioning anymore, like<strong>:</strong> renunciation, eating meat, no intoxicants, avoiding power and wealth…or even what it means that there is no self, and the implications of that as we live in a body on this Earth; and a sense of individual purpose and how that fits in; and is Buddhism actually different than personal growth anyway…and how this all fits into modern industrialized society where we don’t live on a <i>dana</i>-based system - at least here in the US .</p><p> </p><p>The irony is this isn’t really that rebellious considering it’s actually the foundation of one of Buddha’s main invitations - <i>ehipassiko</i>, which is Pali for “come and see for oneself.” So Buddha himself said to question things for yourself<strong>,</strong> and to see for yourself<strong>,</strong> and if you find it isn’t true, then you can set it down.</p><p> </p><p>I think alternative perspectives are important. For me, <i>ehipassiko</i> was so impactful to hear, especially after decades of being raised in a situation where when I asked questions about my religion, my mother’s response was, “don’t ask questions like that,” or “because the Bible says so.”</p><p> </p><p>That was never enough for me. </p><p> </p><p>So I loved this aspect of Buddhism, and it’s also what I loved about the Gelugpa tradition that regularly had lively debates in the monastery courtyards, and that I had the freedom, if I found it to not be true in my own experience, to put it down, and still call myself a Buddhist.</p><p> </p><p>Wow - that’s faith in the teachings, right? An undefended love of the dhamma.</p><p> </p><p>I think this concept o