Interview and Report about Buddhism
A. I was born Buddhist and been practicing the religion all my life. My family is Buddhist and for as long as I can remember I have always prayed at home or gone to the temple for worship.
Q. Are you a serious practitioner of your faith or are you just a nominal believer in your religion?
A. Yes I am a serious practitioner and strong believer of my faith. I do all that pertains to my religion and partake of its traditions whenever I can.
Q. What are your main beliefs and practices that are important to you?
A. I believe in the powers of the deities and prayer through meditation. I meditate almost daily at home or sometimes outside my home.
Q. What misunderstandings do you think others around you have about your beliefs and practices? Clarify.A. Other people think that we worship gods but it is not true. Ours is more of a way of life or philosophy because in it we find answers to all our questions about life. we follow the path of enlightenement.
Q. What part of being a Buddhist seems hard for you? How do you adjust to that?A. Conducting worship anywhere and everywhere because people just stare at us and think we are psychos. I find it hard explaining to people that by bowing to the image of Buddha is not worshiping him.
Q. What is your understanding of sin and salvation?A. Sin is not good even before God and salvation is achievable through repentance and leading a life that God consents.6. What do you find surprising about your religion? Why?A. What is surprising is that there are different types of Buddhism just like there are different factions in Islam and denominations in Christianity. But we all feel like family but many people do not understand this at all.
Q. If given the choice, what dimension of your beliefs and practices would you never change or compromise?
A. I wouldn’t compromise my belief in Karma. I belief that every cause has effect.
Q. How often do you worship? Corporately in a place of worship? Privately?A. In a place of worship I go to worship once or twice a week and once over the weekends and privately, I meditate everydayQ. Tell me some of your rituals and symbols in your faith.A. We have the most prominent symbol of the Buddha with his hands gently resting on his laps while wearing a smile on his face.
Q. Is there something that you would really like me to know about your beliefs and practices?
A. Our beliefs and practices help keep a person on the path of enlightenment. Meditation is key in ensuring this happens
Summary of the Interview
I conducted a face to face interview with the interviewee and I got a chance to have a one on one chat and interview on my subject. I asked several questions in the endeavor to get a clear picture of the religion in question and the position of the interviewee. We found ourselves a quiet and safe place just behind the library. I took the chance to ask several direct questions in order to get clearer and direct answers as well. The exercise was successful because I got to learn a lot about Hinduism from the interviewee.
After the interview I realized that I had believed in certain misconceptions about Buddhism. I never knew that the religion also subscribed to a supreme being who is manifested through several deities. All a long I had been thinking that they worship several things including sculptures and animals. I used to consider their religion as a practice of idolatry but now I know that the deities are representation of a divine being. They put a lot of importance in self meditation as the only path to realizing self happiness.
My perception about Buddhism as a religion has changed and has been influenced positively. I have come to understand that Buddhism has many rituals and practices during their worship services. Aside from that, they can worship from anywhere even if it is in public or privately and this does not have to happen in the temple. They do not have to go to the temple and their religion is so passionate about spirituality and leading an acceptable lifestyle that does not harm anybody. Meditation according to them is a true path to enlightenment which forms the basic part of their spirituality.
Reference
Hagen, S. (1999). Buddhism Plain and Simple. New York: Penguin Books
