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Message: <blockquote data-quote="clubs" data-source="post: 6191040" data-attributes="member: 257428">I'm not a Christian or Muslim, reality shows me that most religions are built on myth and superstition. But regarding this question and this statment by Sarth, it's stupid to bring a Muslim who claim that I'm a Muslim.  You may have been taught as a child about various mythological entities, say Santa Claus. As you grew, your experience and understanding made belief in childish teachings...well, childish. Why do you attach greater validity to religious stories that are often more outlandish than Santa or Bariq. I understand that it's too much to ask for many of us to drop our jealously defended beliefs, it would cause many of us to actually think instead of blind acceptance of ideas or guidelines that are often disproven. But we are growing...The Buddha didnt have a lineage... if it works for the Buddha it can work for us too. The benefit of having a lineage and teacher is, the teachings we receive are more focused, guided through experience based on our personal needs and therefore will hasten our way towards our ultimate goal. On the flip side, a self-practitioner may run into several dead ends before arriving at the ultimate destination. The difference is speed. Ultimately though... the work and effort is still our own... only the lineage or its master will point in a quicker direction. Why need speed? Because only when oneself is liberated can then one help others to be liberated. Because in many traditions of Buddhism, each and every being is considered a mother to us all through various lifetimes... and hence the question, for eg. if we know we can save ourselves from drowning in a river, would we want to swim to the shore or use the rescue raft that's next to us or grab the hand of a rescuer who is in a motorboat with lights, medicine, first aid and other rescue equipments so that we can direct them to save our loved ones that are still in the water? A self practitioner is the Swimmer, and the other two are practitioners with Lineage or an enlightenment and/or highly accomplished master. This applies to every lesson in life I guess, self study takes a longer time be it Music, martial Arts, Mechanics etc etc etcI've heard it said that since Buddha taught the 84,000 teachings so that everyone would have something, it is not often advised to cherry pick what you think applies to you out of various sources and create a method. If it is true that we are in need of development and perhaps guidance, then why would we rely solely on ourselves to choose a set of methods or practices from various lineages or books? Does Buddhism have a plan or several plans? If practitioners have spent years in meditation retreats and have spent more time studying the texts under direct tutelage of ordained lineage holders, would it reasonable to assume that someone with limited training or no training at all would be able to pick a suitable method for themselves out of the volumes and volumes of teachings that have grown and have been translated over thousands of years? So to say that sure, go ahead, pick a book and go for it, may or may not reflect a entirely rational approach. Certainly reading is good, but here is one more thought to consider. If it is true that we are all not enlightened yet, then it is safe to assume that we all have growth yet to realize. If that is true, then it is also reasonable to say, wait a minute, if I'm not there yet, is it entirely sane to trust in my own judgment to choose one path out of so many possible paths when the stakes are my spiritual growth? There may be a reason why Buddhism has traditionally been handed down in an oral fashion. As if to say, the teacher may recognize what the student needs over what the student wants.</blockquote>

Verification: Haya warak paha keeyada? (haya wadi kireema paha)

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