Buddhism and Christmas.

[Gincha]

Do you celebrate Christmas and what does Christmas mean to you?

Wish you all great day! Peace, love and happiness!

[tranides]

I do becouse my family sticks together quite nice, and we do meet twice a year for celebrating xmass. And for me its a great oportunity to practice bodhicitta (we have buddhist, atheist, catholics, pagan - so different traditions meeting together), to observe impermanence - the group changes base on people that pass away and those who are beeing born, to practice loving kindness and to just be with them. Lastly i have found they are beeing interested more and more in buddhism practice, so i found it joyfull

[Ron-the-Elder]

Since Christmas is a celebration practiced throughout the West, we also celebrate with lights, spruce trees with colorful balls, family gatherings, exchanging of gifts, family dinners and etc..

While I do give gifts, I don't accept them, but ask instead that the money they would have spent on me be donated to their favorite charities.

I abstain from mind altering substances such as alcoholic drinks in accordance with the precepts to which I have committed.

I

[The Artis Magistra]

Hi, Ron, can you make a thread about all your practices and precepts and all that? It may benefit vistors as well. I'd really like to see too. Thank you!

I don't understand what Celebrating Christmas means since most people do not appear to be worshiping Jesus in any direct way.

If Celebrating Christmas means worship of Jesus, then no, I do not worship Jesus, nor do I concern myself with the birth of Jesus or emphasize it.

I may attend a dinner or something I am invited to but these are not typically Christians, nor is there any prayer to Jesus or anything. If there was a prayer to Jesus I would not perform it, except if forced at gunpoint or fork point, to which I would in my mind be calling Jesus or "Our Father" or whatever something other than what the words typically mean, something Buddhist instead.

So even if I were seen wearing crosses, giving gifts, saying "Praise Jesus! The Son of God was Born Today!" I would be meaning entirely different things as a Buddhist.

This is because I reject the notions typically associated by pop Christians with the words God, the idea of Jesus as the Son of God in any literal sense, and a great deal of Christian testimony or dogma or theology.

If I were seen to be saying "Allah Hu Akbar!" and performing Muslim worship and prayers, I would be performing Buddhist prayers with Arabic words, and the term Allah would conform to some Buddhist idea instead.

[Chaz]

We celebrate Christmas with abandon.

To us it means family, heritage, the end of winter and the coming of light. 

Our family was emmersed in the holiday.  It was my father's favorite holiday.  He would spend weeks preparing.  My father in law was a professional Santa.  Hecand his wife went ot every night between Thanksgiving and Christmas bring a lot of joy to a lot of littke kids.  He even looked like Santa when he wasn't dressed up.  We remember and honor that.

While I do give gifts, I don't accept them, but ask instead that the money they would have spent on me be donated to their favorite charities.

Much of the holiday is derived from the Roman holiday called Saturnalia.  It was marked buy feasting and gift giving.

I abstain from mind altering substances such as alcoholic drinks in accordance with the precepts to which I have committed.

Saturnalia was also a time for drink and we honor that as well.  Hot Toddies, Tom and Jerrys, spiked egg nog and our own home made Irish Cream. Rum soaked fruitcake.

We smoke a little pot, too..

We continue with our pagan scandanavian roots, with a Christmas tree, yule log and traditional foods.

Mistletoe.  Holly.  Wreath on the door.

My sangha back in CO would have a new member reception every year around Christmas.  We'd  hold it in the shrine room and it would be decorated for both Chanuka and Christmas.  They'd  play Christmas music.  Chritmas tree.  Someone always managed to put a Santa cap on the Buddha.

Great time of year.

We have a new home in South Carolina.  It's better suited for holiday decorations than the house in CO.  I'm  gonna have a ball this year.

[The Artis Magistra]

Very nice, and made me happy. If Christmas can be about spreading joy and beneficence then it is a great vehicle for the Dharma.