Meditation for a buddhist to be?

[kresh]

Okay, so I'm not sure if 'Buddhist to be' is an accepted term with you guys here but I don't know much about the Buddhist community...

I'm 17 (18 in two months if that means anything to you guys), and I was raised Christian. About 2 years ago I started asking questions about the whole "God" concept and everything related to it. That led me to becoming agnostic. I have always felt drawn towards the Buddhist way of life, and wanted to learn more about it. My family prohibited this, of course, so I have only been researching and learning about it in the past year. I joined this forum because I have support in adopting the Buddhist way of life from a few friends, and that's it. My family sees me as incredibly foolish and possibly even possessed (my grandfather is very, very, very, very puritan) so there is zero support there. I do feel rather alone in this decision, but regardless I am motivated and looking forward to it.
The main point of this post is to find out what I have to do to get to the point where I can see myself as a Buddhist. I would like to know some good meditation methods, and just advice on the Buddhist way of life. I have a Buddhist friend who I have been talking to and I asked her about any Sanghas in my area and there are none, unfortunately.
So, yeah. Any advice and stuff?


Josh

[Seishin]

Hi Josh, Welcome to the forum

Here's a favourite video of mine to get you started

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Gassho,
Seishin

[TaTa]

I would recommend that you shift your motivation from trying to become a buddhist to looking for advice in buddhist philosophy and contemplative techniques so you become a better person(aka: Less angry, less neurotic, more attentive and open to others). If you found use in the teachings and techniques the path will lead you to become a buddhist and maybe a hardcore contemplative, who knows!?

[Johnny Dangerous]

I think TaTa's advice is good.

People go backwards a lot of time, wanting a label or some sort of lifestyle to display before they are sure of anything, there's nothing wrong with being a Buddhist...i'm all for it personally, but really you should do that out of confidence in the teachings, rather than some existential confusion about what to call yourself. So the advice to just practice and see what happens is IMO the soundest approach.

Try to be patient with your family, it's hard to deal with that kind of thinking sometimes, try to remember they are just trying to find peace in the world like you are..however misguided they may seem to be. This is the sort of advice i've been given in similar situations, and I think it's good.

[kresh]

Thank you all for the responses! I don't like putting any labels on anyone, much less myself, but I was just saying I want to become a Buddhist in the truest sense of the word. Not as a label. That is what I desire right now, but it could change in the future. I'm very accepting of my familys religious choices. It makes them happy, so why should I judge or think any less of them? Thats my thinking regarding my family and all that. its how I am going about dealing with them.

Seishin, thank you for the video! It was very helpful.

There is one other thing: I have some friends who are practice Sahaj yoga and I'm wondering if they might good people to meditate with. I meditated with them once in the past and thought it was ridiculous and silly because of my very close minded Christian views. Now, obviously, I think differently of their meditation. Would they be good to go to for help/advice?

Thank you
Josh

[Johnny Dangerous]

Typically most yoga you see publicly is Hinduism/Vedanta derived in some way..that doesn't mean you shouldn't do it, but the meditation will usually be a different animal than Buddhist meditation.

[Seishin]

I have friends who have benefited from yoga meditation and some friends who have been left confused. Give it a try and see if it helps, and if it doesn't then leave it at that.

Gassho,
Seishin