Vol 1 Issue 7

Because of the catchy title, you’re probably wondering if Buddhism and the Baha’i faith are related in some way. Well, not exactly. Both religions were concocted in completely different parts of the world and the only similarity they share is that they both evolved from other religions. The main reason they appear in this article together is that neither one by itself has enough crap to talk about in one article. Don’t get me wrong, as far as religions go, either one of these would make for perfectly fine, peaceful neighbors. No violent tendencies scar the purpose of these philosophies and both seek world peace: Buddhism with an inwardly-focused approach, Baha’i with an outwardly-focused approach.

Now, as far as I’m concerned, both groups consist of fine people with admirable goals. The only fault I can find is that both are full of shit. Plain and simple, no bullshit about it! Even though both have tried to abandon their superstitious pasts, magical nonsense continues to rear its ugly head at every turn.

The Baha’i faith is a recent addition to the long list of imaginative religions that pervade world culture, officially beginning in 1844 with Babism. But long before that, its true beginning began to take shape from a Shi’ite Muslim legend in 874. Shi'ites believe that at the age of five, Muhammad al-Hasan, an imam (leader), commonly called al-Mahdi (the Guided One), miraculously disappeared from the cellar of his home in Samarra, Iraq, without a trace of his whereabouts to be found. Sort of like a Messiah, the Mahdi lives in disguise among men, and he’s suppose to return and establish a golden realm on Earth. When the Mahdi disappeared, he appointed (from his concealed location in ghost land) four deputies called Babs, or ‘Gates’ to serve as intermediaries between himself and the Shi'ite community. As usual, when someone creates a ‘prophecy’, nut jobs come out of the woodwork to try and fulfill it in the name of their GOD.

Over time, this sect began to take shape, but it wasn’t until May 23, 1844 when Mirza Ali Muhammad burst onto the scene and declared that he was a Bab and a prophet equal to Muhammad in importance and also the precursor of an even greater manifestation, which was to appear in 19 years. Then Mirza proceeded to write a holy book, the Bay?n, to supersede the Qur'an, dismantling certain Islamic customs, such as polygamy.

Babism also proclaimed the coming of an era in which all religions would be united under one spiritual head. Bloody conflicts began to break out as the word spread, and after the assent of Shah Nasr-ed-Din in 1848, it became an all-out war. In an unsuccessful attempt to stem the growing violence of the Babi insurrection, the Qajar regime executed Mirza on July 8, 1850. After his death, Babism continued to be preached throughout Iraq and the Middle East, but with little success.

In 1863, a follower of Mirza Muhammed, Mirza Husaun Ali, proclaimed himself the promised “Manifestation,” or “Baha'u'llah” (Glory of God), saying the Mahdi had returned. It must be remembered, at the time, Sobh-e Azal was the APPOINTED successor of the Babi movement, who had been appointed by Mirza Muhammed before his death. This raises questions as to why the Bab did not point out Mirza Husayn as the successor (who was a minor student of his) in the first place. A quarrel between the Babis and Bahais broke out, which turned so violent and bloody, that the two communities had to be physically separated.

The Baha'i faith’s social aims included the abolition of racial and religious prejudice, equality of the sexes, an international auxiliary language, universal education, and a universal representative government. The writings of the Bab, Baha'u'llah, and Abbas constitute the scripture of the Baha'is; neither a priesthood, nor a body of ritual exists among them. The Bahai faith teaches there is no such thing as heaven or hell, and that these ideas are mere states of being distant or near to God. Baha’is also do not believe in an entity such as Satan. They assert that there is no ‘evil’ in God's creation, and that what we perceive as evil is in fact a ‘nothingness’ or ‘lack of goodness.’ To be a Baha'i simply means to love all the world: to love humanity and try to serve it and to work for universal peace and brotherhood.

Basically as far as I see it, the Baha’i Faith has taken the old Islamic superstition, discarded all the bad stuff, and changed it to a peaceful religion of philosophy. But it is still nothing more then men saying ‘trust me’ with ancient scriptures created by ‘magic men’ like Moses, Mohammed, Jesus, etc.

Buddhism, on the other hand, a fairly old religion, has several sects that, quite surprisingly, don’t quite get along with each other very well, either. However, it has survived over the years as one of the major religions of the world. It all started in northeastern India, around 565 BCE, with the enlightenment of Prince Siddhartha Gautam. According to legend, Gautam was raised in a sheltered luxury, where at the age of 29, he realized how empty his life had been until that point. Renouncing earthly attachments, he embarked on a quest for peace and enlightenment; seeking release from the cycle of rebirths (Hindu mythology of reincarnation). For the next few years, he practiced Yoga (Hindu mysticism) and adopted a life of radical asceticism. Eventually, he found this approach fruitless and instead adopted a middle path between a life of indulgence and one of self-denial. Sitting under a Bo tree, he meditated, rising through a series of higher states of consciousness, until he attained the enlightenment for which he had been searching. Having discovered this ultimate religious truth, he became Buddha (Enlightened One), and underwent a period of intense inner struggle. He began to preach and wander from place to place, when he then gathered a body of disciples and organized them into a monastic community known as the sangha. He spent the rest of his life this way, according to legend.

No complete biography of Buddha was compiled until centuries after his death, and only fragmentary accounts of his life are found in the earliest sources. As with most religions, there isn’t much evidence to support it, and I’m not sure whether Buddha actually existed or not. And since he was an oral teacher, he left no written body of thought to carry on, which led to all his beliefs being written later by his followers.

The root to all this psycho-babble starts with what’s called The Four Noble Truths:

1. Life is suffering. This is more than a mere recognition of the presence of suffering in existence. It is a statement that, in its very nature, asserts that human existence is essentially painful from the moment of birth to the moment of death. Even death brings no relief, for the Buddha accepted the Hindu idea of life as cyclical, with death leading to further rebirth.

2. All suffering is caused by ignorance of the nature of reality and the craving, attachment, and grasping that result from such ignorance.

3. Suffering can be ended by overcoming ignorance and attachment.

4. The path to the suppression of suffering is the Noble Eightfold Path, which consists of right views, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right-mindedness, and right contemplation. These eight are usually divided into three categories that form the cornerstone of Buddhist faith: morality, wisdom, and concentration.

Buddhism also accepts the absurd notion of karma, where good deeds are inevitably rewarded and evil deeds punished. Thus, neither undeserved pleasure nor unwarranted suffering exists in the world, but instead a universal justice (Bullshit). Buddhism never actually denies the existence of the Hindu gods, but it never gives them any special role, either. In Buddhism, the Hindu gods are not creators of the universe nor are they in control of human destiny, and this is where Buddhism denies the value of prayer and sacrifice to them. The ultimate goal is, of course, ‘nirvana’, where the enlightened individual may continue to live, until a state of final nirvana is attained at the moment of death, never to be reborn again.

There’s two main branches of Buddhism, one called the Theravada (School of the Elders), and the other, the Mahayana (Greater Vehicle).There are also several sects such as Zen and Tibetan Buddhism. There’s not much difference between any of these sects though, either. Theravada is more of a conservative, pro-Buddha stance, and Mahayana is more of a Hinduistic magical version, like Tibetan Buddhism. The whole of Buddhism is basically concerned with the good nature of man, and turns away from what it perceives as bad – but is mostly focused on philosophical hibble dribble like ‘consciousness’ and the imaginary ‘nirvana.’

Well, that concludes storytime on the Boring Religious Nuts Show today, kids. Come back next time and we’ll trample through some more crazy imaginary history. From the God-worshiping, new world order Baha’i’s to the orange wearing, monastic chanting, nirvana-seeking Buddhists, and me your host, Atheist Rat, we all wish you and yours a great,
magical day.