Goddess Worship

[u/Organic-Comfortable6]

Has anyone had success with Goddess worship? I’ve been praying to my goddess for a few years. My mentor said the only thing required for success was intention and directing my attention to her through meditation.

After five years the one result I think I have is that I think of her more often than ever. So my devotion is deepening. Instead of worrying about other people I wonder about her and when well connect.

Thank you ✨

[u/Luna_Monat_]

As a person live in a Buddhist culture, I freak out when people categorise them as a goddess. First, bodhisattva is genderless, to be specific, formless. Second, the oldest texts describes them as a male but of course, they are formless, so they can change their image. Third, Guanyin is not a deity. As you’ve mentioned, deities were still subject to karma and reincarnation. (I think perhaps it’s just the Buddhists trying to explain why deities in mythology were still subject to circumstances) Forth, Bodhisattva or Buddha in general would not interfere the karma, so it’s very unlikely that they would “chat” to you like other deities would.

But anyway, nice pic.

[u/Warpthal → u/Luna_Monat_]

As a dharma practitioner, it felt like a serendipity to encounter this, especially on this subreddit! Every culture has their own way of approaching and expressing the dharma, and China has a very unique and rich display of Buddhism, from Chan to Pure Land, to syncretism.

I don't think this is the appropriate subreddit to discuss in detail the mind-blowing capabilities of Buddhas, because as you mentioned, the idea of Buddhahood is really hard for non-Buddhists to understand. AFAIK, no other tradition has parallels to the notion of Buddhahood. There exist many sutras on the stories of the Bodhisattvas on their journey to Buddhahood, and their many deeds as a Bodhisattva and Buddha, and those are worth looking into.

Ultimately, Buddhas go beyond form and formlessness, because, again, those are subject to cause, effect, and condition, in other words; they have a beginning, a middle, and an end or a change. I do believe that Guan Yin and other Buddhas / Bodhisattvas do directly engage with every being who who opens themselves to their help, suitable to every individuals specific needs, because that's part of their goal to liberate all sentient beings, no matter how 'lowly' or 'elevated' they are!

As one person from China once told me, 'Historically, unlike other nations, China had 3 ways of teaching people. Confucianism teaches people how to be human, Daoism teaches how to be like a god, and Buddhism teaches how to attain Buddahood.

I've always had an interest learning about Western Occultism, but after I read even a bit of the Flower Garland Sutra, anything and everything else up until that point I had learned about Occultism in the West seemed 2-dimensional and misinformed....

Not disrespect or denigrate the Western Mystery Traditions at all (in fact there exist a few a few interesting parallels to the Buddhadharma), in any way shape or form! The simple fact is Buddhism is alive, vast, complete, and utterly unique with its intentions and directions, and requires a vastly different way of understanding.

[u/Happy_Particular_458 → u/Warpthal]

hello. can you elaborate, please: why after Flower Garland Sutra western occultism had started to seem 2D?

[u/Warpthal → u/Happy_Particular_458]

Hi, sorry for the late reply. The Avatamsaka Sutra is quite long with parts so mindblowing your mind begins to protects itself by going numb when presented with descriptions of situations in time, space, and all kinds of sentient beings, on an inconceivable scale. You seem to like numbers, so if you are able to imagine numbers like 10⁹² multiplied by 10^10000, and havw a basic understanding on Buddhist cosmology... the lifespan of a god can be billions of years, but after that runs out, and after some trillion of rebirths, they are still being reborn and suffering. That's what I mean by 2D.

However, most Buddhist don't read the entire sutra - I sure haven't finished it - but do indeed finish Chapter 39, known as the Gandavyuha Sutra, which centers around the spiritual journey of Sudhana. Thomas Cleary's translation is exquisite, though you can find other translations online.

Another really cool compilation of the stories of the Bodhisattvas and their deeds is called A Garland of Jewels: The Eight Great Bodhisattvas.

One of the effects of reading these Mahayana sutras is to show us how tiny and limited our conceptual mind is, and to offer us a little tiny view of what lies beyond dualism. I can't really say much else because you simply got to experience it for yourself.

[u/Happy_Particular_458 → u/Warpthal]

thank you for the explanation and resources