I was born and raised LDS. When I was 20 I read about the unsavory parts of Mormonism, and decided I could no longer be Mormon. The logic that made me lose my faith in Mormonism could also be applied to other religions. I could not believe in anything supernatural, which right off the bat excludes most religions. So by default I considered myself an Atheist.
Spirituality had always been a cornerstone of my life, and Atheism wasn’t spiritually fulfilling for me. It was hard grappling with my disbelief in the supernatural and having a spiritual appetite. I researched many religions, including Taoism, Paganism, Buddhism, Satanism, Asatru, Buddhism, Unitarian Universalism, Native American traditions, Pantheism, Sikhism, and several others to find a spiritual tradition that felt comfortable to me. None of them really resonated with me like how I needed. I was upset that I may go the rest of my life with the void of spiritual unfulfillment.
Then one day, an acquaintance mentioned a podcast she’d heard about called “Secular Buddhism”. I was intrigued by the idea of Buddhism shown from a secular point of view, so I decided to give it a listen. When I did, I realized I had found something very valuable to me. The host, Noah Rasheta, was able to convey the Buddhist concepts in a way that made sense and was solely focused on the core teachings of Buddhism, which have no supernatural aspects. I listened to, and still do, to every episode that he produces. I even had him come to Boise to host seminar. He’s a pretty good friend and a great mentor.
I wanted to take my spirituality to the next level. I want to understand it and myself, and maybe help others find peace with themselves as well. Noah had mentioned several times that those who want to do this should take the ministry course that he did. The ministry course is through “Bright Dawn Center of Oneness Buddhism“. I was apprehensive at first of taking a course like this, because I didn’t want to get involved with a hyper-dogmatic organization again. However, as I read more about Bright Dawn, the more I liked it.
Bright Dawn was founded with the goal of creating a distinctly American Buddhism. In Gyomay Kubos’s own words (the founder):
“I have always dreamed of establishing an American Buddhism – different from Indian, Chinese, or Japanese Buddhism – a uniquely American Buddhism that could be easily understood and practiced by Americans and that would contribute to American life and culture. This Buddhism can be explained in simple, everyday language and practiced in every aspect of our daily life. Yet, it is a unique Buddhist life-way, non-dichotomized and non-dualistic, that will bring about a peaceful, meaningful, creative life, both individually and collectively.”
I love that it was founded with the desire to be for the American people. It’s teachings are explained with terminology that I will understand.
Bright Dawn also very much focuses on finding enlightenment in your own way and in your own words. This approach resonated well with me. Bright Dawn doesn’t want to tell me what to believe or how to believe it, they want to give me information and let me decide how to interpret it. There may be things I agree with and there’s things I wont agree with. Both are totally fine, because I am on my own spiritual path.
I decided that I liked Bright Dawn enough to commit to taking their 80-week ministry program. I decided I wanted to document my progress through the program, so I decided to start this blog. I will post my written essays about my weekly readings, thoughts about Buddhism, and my journey through greater spiritual understanding.
My hope is that I will be able to convey what I’m learning in a simple enough way that my friends and family will be able to glean some value from it and understand me a bit better!