I have had various new encounters here. Some were interesting, some educational, some maybe a little dangerous. This definitely falls under the 'annoying' category.
It began with my search for temporary accomodation in Melbourne. I finally secured a great place for two weeks. Well, not so great as I later found out, but that is a story for another day. I got in contact with S through email, but we never met each other when I first arrived due to conflicting schedules.
After I moved to my new place, S called, saying that it was a shame we never met. She invited me to her place for dinner, I thought sure, why not.
Turns out....the place wasn't a regular home, but some sort of temple/lodge. Fine. We had dinner, and chatted a bit. They seemed very pleased that I am a vegetarian. For some reason, that annoyed me. I am vegetarian by personal choice, and it is not prompted by religion. It does not imply that we are of the same 'kind', nor does it mean that I am willing to accept all your ideologies.
After dinner, one of the members (I shall refer to them as members, because IMHO it seems a bit cult-like) sat me down, and showed me a folder with teachings and articles. From what I gathered they follow some sort of Buddhism, but rely on teachings compiled by somebody. That's alright I thought, similar to Confucianism. But then, she started going on about how you can draw a certain Chinese character/drawing in the text, and the words in the drawn image forms a poem. Seriously? Is that supposed to impress me? More importantly, is that what inspires people to join this 'religion'?
And then came lyrics. The supposedly meaningful lyrics. S exclaimed how she loved the songs, and I had to sit through several of them, and pretend to show interest as they sang along. Sweet mother.
They asked me what sort/sect of Buddhism I belonged to. In my opinion, Buddhism is a way of life. I don't have to belong to a certain sect or school of thought. If I had to define my religion, I'd say it's the most 'general' form of Buddhism. One of them responded with an amazingly biased and uneducated comment. She said that the various mantras such as the Great Compassion Mantra are translated from Sanskirt, whereas their teachings are directly from Mandarin, hence it is more 'pure'. I was rendered speechless.
What really infuriated me was that they ASSUMED, or felt that I SHOULD join their religion. One of them told me with a serious face that I had to come to the temple once a week to learn. That it was IMPORTANT. I would like to decide what is deemed important for myself, thank you very much. It also struck me that I knew more about the uni and life in Melbourne even though they have lived here for about 3 years. Just goes to show how closed-up they made their worlds become. Warning bells? Definitely.
Fast-forward to one month later. I made it quite clear that I wasn't really interested, and had a very busy schedule. One thing was certain: I would never set foot into the temple again, because I knew that they would try to 'suck me in'. One problem remained; there were two books in my possession, which I borrowed only to stop their verbal avalanche. Having no choice, I agreed to meet S at uni to return the books, and close this uncomfortable chapter for good.
S did not come alone. She brought along a religious teacher. Who again was pleased that I am a vegetarian. I was showing all possible signs of uninterest, but they sat there and attempted to pave through the awkwardness of the situation. The last straw for me was when the teacher said
"Even though you have a busy schedule, you have to find spare time to come to the temple. You can exchange thoughts and discuss teachings with the others." It makes my blood boil when people assume they know what's best for you. Who are you to say what I should be doing during my spare time? Even if I managed to find time, that would be the last place I'd want to be.
I stood up, said I needed to go, and left in what I hope was a rude fashion. I've barred all the telephone numbers, and I can only hope that they have FINALLY gotten my message.
I ranted about this, and someone directed me to this photo. It sums up my opinion towards this 'sensitive' topic.
