Why aren´t you not a buddhist yet Veeky Forums ?

I'm trying to, but I can't bring myself to believe in reincarnation. It just doesn't add up.

>With similar discipline and introspection I have my own system.

Some of my axioms:
>Better to change your behaviors rather than change the way you feel about them
>Body is everything. Image is everything. All is judged by flesh and blood.
>Meditation
>Health
I don't like the whole idea of sitting still and reprogramming yourself to see a shit situation as better through self-hypnosis. I definitely prefer the systems of dogma that revolve around effort and motivation rather than rethink and sit-still.
>4 Noble truths are alright but, again I'm not so sure all suffering is desire. Suffering is relative and desire within moderation is the answer to problems that arise from immoderate desire(s). Desire is the reality of life.

>TL:DR I would tell a buddhist to sack up and find better shit to do rather than mope and withdraw into your head about your problems.

>Rantings 2/2
To be fair Buddhism arose in a time when the cast system was very honored and commonplace. Buddhism was an oasis for individuals who were born into a caste of non-income and had a very good purpose in history. The enslaved poor people of China had a favoring to it as well as their economy provided ever-so little chance of change. But as Americans it is far greater to seek bettering your life rather than rethink your values.

3/3 austism ranting (last post)
In first world societies the only people that should really have a religion that revolves around disatisfaction with the world are people that behaved poorly their whole life. It seems like druggy old people and hipsters who are making a shit life for themselves find it easy to say the world is a problem and it would be better to want less. But If one does all the right things and feels good about it (which is an option provided to almost everyone in a first world society) then buddhism would just be a counterproductive approach.

>muh inner peace
It's the discontent that drives us to change.

This protestant interpretation of Buddhism as a rationalistic, philosophical endeavour is a bit dubious. Even the earliest buddhist communities had some fucking kooky beliefs. Their legalistic codes conferred a whole heap of rights to stupas - shrines of the Buddha's relics. Like, a building housing an 80th of the buddha's cremated remains would be seen literally, legally, as the owner of huge swathes of land, for example.

What. You're talking about Islam.

Meh- I don't think you need to believe in reincarnation to be Buddhist.

Four dharma seals:
All compounded things are impermanent.
All emotions are painful.
All phenomena are without inherent existence.
Nirvana is beyond description.

a lot of different belief systems can be built up around those

Buddhism is just a beta version of Hinduism
Shiva is the most Veeky Forums God
Does fuckall chilling in the mountains but if shit goes bad he destroys everything

>implying I'm not raised a Buddhist all my life

I only believe in death, which will end us all and can not be escaped by some fairy tales.

Would rather keep doing LSD a couple of times a year, its cheaper.

...

>buddhism doesn't let you drink alcohol/smoke weed
True buddhism believes that you should meditate on something to see if it holds truth, they don't think you should believe something because you are told to believe in it.
This is why meditation is used to clear the mind and its desires, truly look at alcohol and weed in this state and decide for yourself if the truth that they are immoral holds true in yourself.

The confusing thing is religion can be so different outside of the west that what we call religion might be completely different than what eastern cultures.
This is why someone can be christian/jewish/whatever and be buddhist at the same time, buddhism is not a "religion" in the western since, it's not a list of rules or facts that needs to be followed.
It's a spiritual guidance.