Most of the books I have read really don't cover the Pure Land segment. There is a local Pure Land group and I was wondering if they (Pure Land Buddhists in general) teach and practice jhana as part of the path to awakening?

Does any Buddhist tradition have an explicit prohibition on participating in the rituals and practices of other religions? Are there any rules about entering other religions' holy places?

The books and videos all describe it as, **Looking at jhana and its factors in retrospective knowledge** What does this mean exactly? Is it going over the events that happened during the jhana? there anything specific you suppose to do?

Tibetan singing bowls produce a binaural tone which is claimed to be conducive to deep meditation. However, if you are meditating you would need someone to play it for you or you'd need to listen to a recording. The former is not always available and the latter doesn't have the same effect. Is there a practice of using tibetan singing bowls for solo meditation? Is it effective to play and meditate at the same time?

Why Alaya Vinnana and Manas is not supported in Theravada? The objective of this question is not to criticise Mahayana teaching, but to compare and contrast the idea so we will have a better understanding of Theravada. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eight_Consciousnesses

I am looking for a solution for my complete lack of control - tried many things (doing lot of meditation doing 1 minute meditation - no formal meditation - but i never manage to keep it more than a few days usually 1-2 days even with only 1 minute meditation a day) what im trying to do now is to avoid doing bad stuff in hopes to do good stuff but i have no self control and always fail in it thought about a way to change that using some self-hypnosis - auto suggestion something i asked about here : https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/questions/14330/should-i-use-autosuggestion-to-make-myself-meditate now im thinking of doing chanting of sabba papassa akranam (As to the focus of avoiding doing bad i will do good) maybe during the day maybe just repeat it 108 times one time a day ? Do you think this will have a benefit ? can this "work" and cause a big change ? any tips advice on how to this ?

I can't seem to find resources that tell me the role of karma within the wheel itself rather than the nature of karma. Any suggestions?

What are entertaining/fictional movies, cartoons or books about Buddhadharma or Buddha himself?

What is the difference between greed and karma? For instance, a person eats meat greedily, greed for meat but no direct killing. Another person kills a cat (not for food) but he is not greedy. Which one is more unwholesome or causing more suffering, killing or greed?

I live in the United States, where although unlikely, a draft could happen. There are also many other countries that *require* military service in some capacity. I know Buddhism generally opposes killing and murder, so how does Buddhism see required or involuntary military service?

As a complete beginner to Buddhism, what steps should I follow to get closer to enlightenment? Should I study Buddhism and meditate or should I move to a monastery? I know that to attain nirvana, one must discard the desire of nirvana. But one must work towards it in one way or another. So, what are the actions required for one to get closer to nirvana?

I've heard Steve Jobs described as a Buddhist but is that actually true? I know that he was married by Zen monks but did he actually have a Buddhist practice, meditate or was associated with a particular sangha. Or was it just more of an interest with him rather than him actually identifying as a Buddhist?

I just came to a very upsetting realisation : Almost all my motivation for the things I do in my daily life (mostly playing the piano and studying math in college) comes from bad things, such as ego, greed or aversion. Here a some examples : - I study very hard, because I wish to be better than everybody else, and prove myself that I am the most clever. In addition, I can't bear the fact of not understanding anything related to the classes. - I play the piano in order to impress people listening to me and because I am craving to get better and better. - I work hard in everything I do because I want to be admired by my friends and family. I also realized that it all leads to tension, pain and suffering. The problem is that I feel that just dropping these activities will certainly make things even worse. **The question is** how should I replace these bad motivations by more skillful ones ? In other words, how to stay motivated to do the things you love without causing you pain ? Is it even possible ?

As I know Vajrayana Buddhism has a concept of "Gods": it's kind of "polytheism". How does it related to the concept of non-theism in common "original" Buddhism?

I want to ask the following: Is there a mention in the suttas or anywhere else that tells that there is a corresponding hell (Naraka) according to specific evil deeds? I wonder if it is a random thing or there is some corresponding hell to our evil deeds.

May All Beings be Truly Happy! Is it possible that one can see that everything they have tried has failed, in a worldly sense, and has brought about suffering for themselves and others: has been completely selfish in motivation, at most times; and the times when help was extended to others, had little effect on alleviation of any suffering. Much contemplation has been gone into very deeply on this subject. I have found that without Right Loving Understanding, one is lost and is subject to confusion and suffering. So my question is that it seems logical to stop and address ones own suffering, and become free from suffering, so that one can be a beacon of peace and sanity in an insane world: so I am drawn to the monastic life ... but, have been told that this is a path of negative mysticism: that one should be a part of the world, and find time for personal peace while maintaining a householder's responsibilities? I have failed time and again attempting to achieve this goal. It seems that society and the way in which it functions is deeply corrupted. How does one remain uncorrupted unless one is free from it? The most important goal at this point is to be free from suffering so one can be liberated and be of service to humanity. Can this be achieved in a corrupted world? In a future that had a respect for all living things and lived at a humane level of consciousness I could see this being possible.

I wish to learn Buddhism from monks and learn things I don't understand. Is a formal training from an institute like ( http://www.rootinstitute.ngo/ ) fruitful? Are there people who have taken training like this? I will have to invest a life-time of my savings to take this education. I want to make a good decision. Can someone please show me the way? :) --Noob here.

It happens to people when they get for example a heart attack they will get a near death experience (NDE). Sometimes they encounter a very bright light but sometimes persons like Jesus encounters them. Probably such experiences are very cultural influenced but are there studies of NDE in more Buddhist countries where Buddha appears in a NDE?

Several people (several questions and answers) in [this topic](https://buddhism.stackexchange.com/q/24266/254) use the word "corrupted", especially applied to "the world" and "society". - What does the word "corrupted" mean? - Does it have a standard meaning in Buddhism, or is it idiosyncratic? Is it an objective (observable, shareable) property (of the world), or a subjective (personal) feeling? Do all schools (or yanas) define it the same way? Is it mentioned in any suttas? - Is it related to the idea that the Buddha's Dharma may (or will be, has been) lost, misinterpreted, over time? Or is it a different perception, applied to "society" rather than "dharma"? - Why would someone say that the world or society is becoming *more* corrupt? Compared to when and where, or what? Do schools (and/or teachers) differ in their view of whether the world is "progressing", i.e. whether it's improving or regressing?

Throughout canonical discourses (Sutta Pitaka) the Buddha teaches that there are 3 modes of Vedana. Where in Pali canon do we find 6 classes of Vedana? How is Vedana related to Nibbana?