Dakwah kepada Buddhis [oleh agama Is***]

[johan3000]

ya didebat dibantah dibuktikan....ayo posting....

debatnya ngak kedengaran......tolong pakai TOA....
soalnya kuping gw ada masalah....

[xenocross]

BUDDHISM’S ERRONEOUS BELIEFS

Kepercayaan Salah Buddhisme

The erroneous beliefs of Buddhism vary greatly from country to country, because over the past 2500 years, this religion has mingled with the various local religions, customs, and established cultures of countries into which it has spread. Today, the varieties of Buddhism practiced in Japan, China, Tibet, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and America are all quite different from one another.
As historical sources show, Buddha always chose to speak about his basic tenets and deliver his way of worship orally; centuries of research has determined that he left behind no written texts. Buddhists maintain that his sermons were passed down orally from generation to generation for 400 years, until they were finally compiled in the Pali canon. However, most scholars believe that the great majority of these words are not Buddha's at all, but were added to in the course of centuries until they attained their present form.  
Therefore Buddhism, not relying on any written texts, underwent many changes and distortions over the course of time, being considerably reshaped by additions and omissions.
Today, Buddhism's holy book, written in the Pali language, is called the Tipitaka, which means "triple basket." It is not known for sure when the Tipitaka was written down, but it is thought to have attained its present shape in Sri Lanka sometime in the first century B.C. Its texts are divided into the following chapters:
1. Vinaya Pitaka: This chapter, meaning "Basket of Discipline," contains rules relevant to priests and nuns and how they should be followed. There are also some matters of relevance to those lay readers who are not priests or nuns.
2. Sutta Pitaka: Most of this volume is composed of talks in which Buddha explained his ideas. For this reason, this chapter is called the "Basket of Discourse." These words of his were passed down through the centuries, becoming mixed with other legends and false beliefs.
3. Abhidhamma Pitaka: This volume contains Buddhist philosophy and interpretations of Buddha's sermons.
Today's Buddhist priests regard these texts as holy; they worship and organize their lives according to them. They portray Buddha as an actual god (God is surely beyond that!), and for this reason, modern Buddhists bow before his statues, place before them offerings of food and flowers, and expect help from them. This is a completely illogical practice, however, and anyone who believes that stone or bronze statues can hear or help is greatly deceived. Later in this book, we examine these basically pagan practices in more detail, and see how Buddhism has become a secret doctrine concentrating on human beings without accounting for questions of how this world's flawless systems function, much less how the entire universe came to be.


An Atheistic Religion

Buddhist philosophy denies the existence of God, but bases itself on a few aspects of human morality and on escaping from sufferings of this world. Without any intellectual or scientific support ,
it rests upon the twin concepts of karma and reincarnation—the idea that human beings are continually reborn into this world, that their subsequent lives are shaped by their behavior in their previous ones. No Buddhist scripture considers the existence of a Creator, much less how the universe, the world and living things came to be. No Buddhist text describes how the universe was created from nothing; or how living things came into being; or how to explain the evidence, to be seen everywhere in this world, of an incomparable creation. According to the Buddhist deception, it is not even necessary to think about these things! The only important thing in life, Buddhist texts claim, is suppressing desires, revering Buddha, and escaping from suffering.
As a religion, therefore, Buddhism suffers from a very narrow vision that keeps its believers from considering such basic questions as where they came from, or how the universe and all living things came to be.
Indeed, it deters them from even thinking about these things and presses them into the narrow mold of their present earthly life.


An Oppressive, Enslaving Religion

Buddhism's attempt to nullify all human desires is another aspect of its narrow philosophy. God created the blessings of this world for human beings' benefit and pleasure, and so that they would give Him thanks in return. For this reason, Islam does not command people to suppress their desires or to endure pain and suffering. On the contrary, it enjoins them to take advantage of the beautiful aspects in the world (apart from base and unlawful behavior), not to restrain themselves needlessly, nor to inflict pain upon themselves. For this reason, God revealed (Qur'an, 7: 157) that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) had "relieved his followers of their chains":
Those who follow the Messenger, the Ummi, whom they find written down with them in the Torah and the Gospel, commanding them to do right and forbidding them to do wrong, making good things lawful for them and bad things unlawful for them, relieving them of their heavy loads and the chains which were around them. Those who believe in him and honor him and help him, and follow the Light that has been sent down with him, they are the ones who are successful.
In short, Islam is a liberating religion that saves people from useless customs and prohibitions,  
social pressures and worries about what other people may think. It calls them to lead calm, peaceful lives with the purpose of gaining God's approval. So it is that our Prophet (may God bless him and grant him peace), in many of his sayings, advises us to make religion simple and easy.
"Make things easy for the people, and do not make it difficult for them, and make them calm (with glad tidings) and do not repulse (them)."1
"You have been sent to make things easy (for the people) and you have not been sent to make things difficult for them."2
Buddhism enslaves its devotees in misty monasteries and forces them into a life of suffering and poverty. Strangely, it discourages good food, cleanliness, comfort —the blessings that God has created for human beings—accepts suffering as a virtue and advises its devotees to lead a miserable life.
For Buddhist monks and nuns, life is full of all kinds of difficulties. They are forbidden to work or own property, obliged to feed themselves by going from door to door and begging among the people, with their bowls in their hands. For this reason, Buddhist priests are even called bhikkhus (beggars) by the people. Buddhist priests are forbidden to marry or have any kind of family life; they may own only one robe, which must be of poor quality yellow or red cloth.
Besides this robe, their only other possessions include a hard bed to sleep on, a razor to shave their heads with, a needle case for their own use, a water bottle and a bowl to beg with. They eat only one meal a day, generally consisting of bread and rice flavored with spices, and drink either water or rice milk. They must finish this food before noon and are not allowed to eat anything until the next day. Other foods, even medicines, are regarded as forbidden luxuries. A priest may eat meat, fish or vegetables only if he is sick and then, only with the permission of a higher-ranking priest.   In short, Buddhist strictures are a form of self-torture.
This situation is a manifestation of the truth of the verse in the Qur'an (10: 44) that reads, "God does not wrong people in any way; rather it is people who wrong themselves." But to those who believe in Him and submit themselves to Him, God promises a very good life, both in this world and the world to come. To them belong both the blessings of this world and those of the afterlife. According to the Qur'an (7: 32):
Say: "Who has forbidden the fine clothing God has produced for His servants and the good kinds of provision?" Say: "On the Day of Rising, such things will be exclusively for those who believed during their life in this world." In this way, We make the Signs clear for people who know.
Another dark aspect of Buddhism is its pessimism. The "nirvana" it promises to its believers is nothing less than a schizophrenic breaking of all connections with life by a melancholic mind that takes a dim view of the world. The Catholic Encyclopedia describes this aspect of Buddhism in these words:
Another fatal defect of Buddhism is its false pessimism. A strong and healthy mind revolts against the morbid view that life is not worth living, that every form of conscious existence is an evil. Buddhism stands condemned by the voice of nature the dominant tone of which is hope and joy. It is a protest against nature for possessing the perfection of rational life. The highest ambition of Buddhism is to destroy that perfection by bringing all living beings to the unconscious repose of Nirvana. Buddhism is thus guilty of a capital crime against nature, and in consequence does injustice to the individual. All legitimate desires must be repressed. Innocent recreations are condemned. The cultivation of music is forbidden. Researches in natural science are discountenanced.  
The development of the mind is limited to the memorizing of Buddhist texts and the study of Buddhist metaphysics, only a minimum of which is of any value. The Buddhist ideal on earth is a state of passive indifference to everything.3
Islam does not make its adherents indifferent; on the contrary, it calls them to liveliness, activity, and joy.   ::)All those who adopt the teachings of Islam are very sensitive to what goes on around them. They do not regard the world as Buddhism does, as chaos to avert the eyes from, but as a testing place—an arena in which they can put the high moral teachings of the Qur'an into practice. For this reason, Islamic history is full of just and successful leaders who ensured comfortable and happy lives for their people. In sharp contrast, Buddhism produces only wretched adherents who cause themselves suffering, drag themselves and others into passivity and poverty, and whose only solution to the problems they encounter is to immolate themselves. This is one of the biggest games that Satan plays with people.
 

[xenocross]

A Pagan Religion

Buddhism is a pagan religion, inasmuch as it worships idols. It is said that today's Buddhism has been divided into different schools, and that worship of Buddha characterizes only some of them. But even to accept Buddhism as an infallible guide—an error that all schools of Buddhism fall into—is an indication that this religion views Buddha as a god.
According to historical sources, Buddhist priests began to deify Buddha shortly after his death. Statues of him were erected everywhere, and the perverse belief gained strength that Nirvana had actually taken shape in his body and was embodied in these statues. The excessive respect that Buddhist priests paid to Buddha later turned into outright worship. Today, giant statues of him adorn every country where Buddhism is the dominant religion. In many countries from Asia to America, you can see statues and temples with Buddha's eyes painted on them—again, suggesting the message that Buddha sees everything and watches people constantly, and that they should be thinking of him every minute of their lives. Clearly, it's a completely untenable belief that someone who died thousands of years ago can still see those who believe in him, protect them, and listen to their prayers. The basic truth that Buddhists are unable to grasp is that God, Lord of all the Worlds, Who encompasses everything and knows the deepest hidden secrets of all things, created Buddha, like all human beings.


Belief in Karma

The doctrine of karma supposes that everything a person does will have its effect on him sooner or later, and will have a bearing on his so-called next incarnation. According to this belief, people are continually reborn into this world, where they must bear the consequences in that later life of what they did in a former one. Buddhism denies the existence of God and believes that karma is the unique power that governs everything.
Karma is a Sanskrit word that means "act," and refers to the law of cause and effect. According to those who believe in it, a person will experience in the future what he has done in the past, for good or ill. The past is one's former life; the future is supposed to be a new life they will begin after death. According to this belief, anyone who is poor in this life is paying with his poverty the price for evil that he committed in some former life. This superstitious belief also claims that in a later life, an evil person may be "demoted" to rebirth as an animal or even a plant. 

One harmful result of believing in karma is that it teaches that present helplessness, poverty and weakness are punishments for a person's moral evils. According to this belief system, if a person is disabled, it's because he has inflicted a similar injury on someone else in a former life and therefore deserves it. This superstitious belief is the main reason why the unjust social structure of the caste system dominated India for so many centuries. (It must be remembered that karma is a Hindu idea, and Buddhism actually arose from Hinduism.) Because the caste system was based on karma, the poor, sick and disabled within India were despised and oppressed. The wealthy high-caste ruling class regarded their own privileges as natural and just.
In Islam, however, being weak is not a retribution; it is accepted as a test from God.  ::)Furthermore, other people have the very important duty of helping those who are in need. For this reason, Islam—like Judaism and Christianity, other religions based on divine revelation but that were later altered—has a very strong sense of social justice. But karma-based religions like Buddhism and Hinduism tolerate inequality and pose a great obstacle to social progress.
Karma is based on the belief in reincarnation: the idea that people come back into the world with the same spirit but in a different body. This idea of a "wheel of rebirth" supposes that every life influences a subsequent one. But this belief fails with one single question: how does this karma operate? If Buddhism doesn't accept the existence of God, then who judges a person's former life and sends him back into the world in a new body? This question has no answer! Buddhists believe that karma is a "natural law" that functions by itself, spontaneously, like gravity or thermodynamics. However, it is God Who created all natural laws. No natural law observes what people do throughout their lives, keeps an account, and judges them after death on that basis. No natural law determines, as a result of this judgment, what kind of new life a person will have and re-creates him accordingly; and no natural law imposes this process flawlessly on billions of people, much less animals. Clearly no such natural law exists, and so, neither can such a process exist.
So many people throughout the world believe in reincarnation, even though it has no logical basis, because they have no religious faith. Denying the existence of an infinite afterlife, they fear death and cling to the idea of reincarnation as a way to escape their fear. Belief in reincarnation—like belief in karma—is based in the false consolation that death is nothing to be feared, and that anyone will be able to attain his goals in a new birth.
If reincarnation can't occur on its own, as a natural law, then clearly it could exist only through a supernatural act of creation. But a look at the Qur'an tells us that reincarnation is a myth. The Book that God sent down as a guide to humanity openly declares that reincarnation is false.


Reincarnation According to Islam

As in every other matter, the Muslim point of view regarding to the philosophy of karma must be based on what God says in the Qur'an, which states there is only one birth and resurrection. Everyone lives only once on this earth, and then he dies. In verse 62: 8, our Lord gives the following command:
Death, from which you are fleeing, will certainly catch up with you. Then you will be returned to the Knower of the Unseen and the Visible and He will inform you about what you did.
A person is resurrected after death and, according to all the things he has done and the works he has performed, is rewarded with either eternal Paradise or endless Hell. That is to say, that a human being has one life in this world, and then an everlasting afterlife. God says very clearly in the Qur'an (21: 95) that after he has died, no one will return to this life: "It is ordained that no nation We have destroyed shall ever rise again." And similarly:

When death comes to one of them, he says, "My Lord, send me back again so that perhaps I may act rightly regarding the things I failed to do!" No indeed! It is just words he utters. Behind them is a barrier until the Day they are resurrected. (Qur'an, 23: 99-100)   

As these verses show, one part of humanity will die in the hopes of being reborn, but at the moment of their death, it will be revealed to them that this is absolutely impossible. In another verse in the Qur'an (2: 28), God says this about the death and resurrection of human beings:
How can you reject God, when you were dead and then He gave you life, then He will make you die and then give you life again, then you will be returned to Him?   
God says that every human being is dead to begin with; that is, he is created out of the basic inanimate elements of soil, water and mud. Then, God "formed and proportioned" this lifeless mass (Qur'an, 82: 7) and brought him to life. At a specific time after the individual has been brought to life, life comes to an end, and he dies. He returns to the earth and decays back into the soil, where he awaits the final resurrection. Everyone will be resurrected on the Last Day when, learning that another return to earth is not possible, he will give an account of all the actions he did in his life. In the Qur'an (44: 56-57), God says that after a human being has come into this world, he will experience only one death: "They will not taste any death there—except for the first one. He will safeguard them from the punishment of the Blazing Fire. A favor from your Lord. That is the Great Victory."
These verses make it clear that death occurs only once. No matter how much people want to overcome their fears of death and an everlasting afterlife and console themselves with false beliefs in karma and reincarnation, the reality is that they won't return to this world after they die. Everyone will die only once and, as God has willed, will have an endless life in the world to come. According to the good or the evil that individuals have done, they will either be rewarded with Paradise, or punished with Hell.
Eternally just, merciful and compassionate, God gives the perfect reward for what everyone has done. If a person seeks comfort in false beliefs because he fears death or the possibility of going to Hell, he will experience certain ruin. Anyone who has intelligent awareness, conscience, and fears in this regard must turn to God with a sincere heart if he hopes to escape the pains of Hell and attain Paradise. He must conform his life to the Qur'an, the true guide for humanity.
Never yet has being old or young, beautiful or rich been able to prevent anyone from dying; and so, no one can disregard death's reality. Whether people disregard that reality or not, it is something they can never avoid.

The throes of death come revealing the truth. That is what you were trying to evade! (Qur'an, 50: 19)

Reading these lines, you may be led to consider the closeness of death. Perhaps death is closer to you than to others; and you may die before you finish reading this book. It may come for no apparent reason, with no illness, accident or age-related cause. God will send the Angel of Death to come at the hour of your departure and take
your soul.
We must always keep this important fact in mind and never postpone making preparations for death. The Qur'an (63: 11) reminds us that "God will not give anyone more time, once their time has come." Here, God tells us that death cannot be postponed, and He speaks of the sorrow of an individual who meets it:
Give from what We have provided for you before death comes to one of you and he says, "My Lord, if only you would give me a little more time so that I would give charity and be among the righteous!" God will not give anyone more time, once their time has come. God is aware of what you do. (Qur'an, 63:10-11)

[Nevada]

Good articles...

[xenocross]

http://theravadin.wordpress.com/2008/03/30/craving-for-nibbana/

One day a brahmin came to visit the venerable Ananda. He asked the venerable Ananda: “How can you ever overcome desire if you desire for Nibbana?”. Then the venerable Ananda gave a simile: When you, dear brahmin, were at home, did you not think: “I wish to go to the monastery to see the venerable Ananda”. Tell me, what happened to that desire of yours?” - Then the brahmin answered: “Well, that wish of mine was fulfilled once i came to the monastery.” - Then venerable Ananda said: “In the same way someone would desire to achieve Nibbana, but on reaching Nibbana that desire would be fulfilled.”

“‘This body comes into being through craving. And yet it is by relying on craving that craving is to be abandoned.’ Thus was it said. And in reference to what was it said? There is the case, sister, where a monk hears, ‘The monk named such-and-such, they say, through the ending of the preparations, has entered & remains in the preparations-free deliverance of the mind & deliverance through wisdom, having known & realized them for himself in this very life.’ The thought occurs to him, ‘I hope that I, too, will — through the ending of all preparations will enter and remain in the preparations-free deliverance of the mind & deliverance through wisdom, having known & realized them for myself in this very life..’ Then, at a later time, he abandons craving, having relied on craving. (So aparena samayena taṇhaṃ nissāya taṇhaṃ pajahati) ‘This body comes into being through craving. And yet it is by relying on craving that craving is to be abandoned.’ Thus was it said. And in reference to this was it said. {AN 4. 159}

[7 Tails]

kalo diladenin nanti jihad lagi

[Jerry]

The religion with Goat is İslam… (Qur’an, 3:19)

wakwakkaka.. pinteran melesetinnya

Now, for any person to follow Buddhism he should first have the desire to follow the Four Noble Truths and the Eight Fold Path. The Third great Noble Truth says that desire should be removed. Once you remove desire, how can we follow the Fourth Noble truth i.e. follow the Eight Fold Path unless we have a desire to follow the Eight Fold Path. In short desire can only be removed by having a desire to follow the Eight Fold Path. If you do not follow the Eight Fold Path, desire cannot be removed. It is self contradicting as well as self-defeating to say that desire will only be removed by continuously having a desire.

Ini nih ciri2 orang yg cuma dari baca buku Buddhism stengah2...


Utk 2 postingan di bawah ini, ada pertanyaan

Melihat atau menganalisa Ajaran Buddha dari kaca mata Al-Quran ya tidak akan pernah bisa yambung....

hihihi,kalo Buddhist dipake buat debat dari kacamata mereka yang selam,yah ga bakalan ketemu pointnya...

Tanya: Bagaimana jika dibalik? Menganalisa Agama Iselam dari kacamata Buddhism? bisa nyambung gak yah?

[xenocross]

ini propagandanya, entah taqiya (bohong) atau bukan

http://www.kebunhikmah.com/article-detail.php?artid=195

Gadis Dari China Town
   

Pertama kali wanita ini datang ke kelas Islamic Forum for non Muslims (Forum Islam untuk non-Muslim) saya sangka sekadar iseng. Dia datang tapi hanya duduk sebentar, lalu meninggalkan ruangan. Minggu selanjutnya datang lagi.

Akhirnya saya bertanya padanya dalam bahasa Inggris, “Siapa Anda dan apakah tertarik belajar Islam?”

Dia menjawab, “Ya, saya merasa disconnection.”

Ia mengaku disconnected (tidak nyambung) karena menganggap saya selalu berbicara tentang Islam dan agama lain, tapi agamanya tidak pernah disebutkan. Saya baru paham bahwa ia adalah seorang penganut Budha. Sementara dalam kelas, biasanya saya lebih berkonsentrasi pada agama kr****n, ka****k, dan Yahudi.

Sejak itu, setiap kali dia hadir di kelas, saya selalu menyebutkan beberapa kaitan diskusi dengan agama-agama lain, termasuk Budha. Misalnya bagaimana agama Budha menitikberatkan ajarannya pada “alam” dan “spiritual”, yang sesungguhnya Islam lebih jauh memperhatikan hal-hal tersebut tapi dengan pendekatan yang balanced (imbang). Secara khusus, saya sempat memberikan hadiah sebuah buku milik Harun Yahya berjudul Islam and Budhism.

Sejak itu perhatiannya ke kelas semakin konsentrasi. Bahkan setiap kali selesai belajar, dengan sopan (adat China ) meminta agar saya bisa berbicara khusus dengannya. Anehnya, sebelum memulai pembicaraan, biasanya dia sudah meneteskan airmata.

“Apa yang sesungguhnya membuat Anda menangis?” tanya saya.

Katanya, hatinya cenderung ke agama Islam, tapi ia mengaku terlalu banyak dosa yang telah diperbuatnya. Ia mengaku selama ini merasa menyembah berhala (patung-patung)--yang menurutnya-- unforgivable (tak termaafkan) dalam Islam.

Rupanya ia masih terkenang dengan penjelasan saya bahwa semua dosa diampuni kecuali dosa “syirik”. Kepadanya saya jelaskan bahwa dosa syirik yang dimaksud adalah ketika sudah menjadi Muslim/Muslimah lalu tetap melakukan berbagai kesyirikan. Barulah ia merasa senang. Bahkan sejak itu, setiap kali ke kelas--dengan bahasa Inggris logat kental China —ia sangat bersemangat untuk mengajukan berbagai pertanyaan tentang masalah-masalah praktis dalam Islam, seperti shalat.

***

Perempuan enerjik itu bernama Eirine. Itulah nama yang selama ini saya kenal. Perempuan berpenampilan sederhana, seorang profesor Antropologi di City College , sebuah universitas negeri di up town (bagian atas) kota New York .

Ia mengenal Islam dari murid-muridnya yang Muslim di kolese tersebut. Bertepatan dengan malam Nuzul Al-Qur`an, di Masjid Al-Hikmah, New York --masjid yang dimiliki masyarakat Muslim asal Indonesia —tatkala itu mengadakan open house ifthar (acara buka puasa bersama) dengan tetangga-tetangga non-Muslim. Itulah yang membawa Eirine hadir dalam acara tersebut. Secara kebetulan, saat itu, saya menjelaskan kepada non-Muslim mengenai Islam. Eirine nampak serius mendengarkan.

Setelah berbuka puasa, saya terkejut. Tidak seperti biasa, Eirine langsung mendekati saya sebelum memberikan isyarat. Biasanya dengan mengangkat tangan atau isyarat yang lain. Setelah selesai makan kue, persis di saat akan dilaksanakan shalat Maghrib, dia mendekat dan mengatakan, “Saya piker, saya tidak lagi punya alas an untuk menundanya lebih lama.”

Saya tanya, “Menunda apa?”

Dia bilang, “Saya ingin menjadi seorang Muslimah malam ini.”

Dengan bersyukur kepada Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, segera saya umumkan kepada jamaah yang memang membludak malam itu bahwa seorang sister akan mengucapkan dua kalimah syahadat.

Sebelum Maghrib, saya memintanya mengucapkan syahadat. Namun karena mengaku masih merasa gugup, saya memutuskan memberikannya waktu hingga Isya’.

Alhamdulillah, di hadapan jamaah shalat Isya’ Masjid Al-Hikmah, wanita China Town ini mengucapkan dua kalimah syahadat diiringi linangan airmata dan pekik takbir seluruh jamaah. Allahu akbar!

Senin akhir bulan Oktober 2006 lalu, Eirine menyempatkan diri mengikuti ceramah saya tentang “Why Al-Qur’an?” di Pace University. Di universitas ini beberapa waktu lalu ditemukan Al-Qur`an di WC dua kali, dan sempat menjadi berita besar. Oleh karena itu, Muslim Students Association menggelar forum publik untuk menjelaskan kepada komunitas Pace University tentang Al-Qur`an dan kenapa Al-Qur`an itu begitu disucikan.

Saat itu Eirine hadir sudah lengkap dengan menggunakan penutup kepalanya.


New York , 5 November 2006
Syamsyi Ali

[xenocross]

http://www.kebunhikmah.com/article-detail.php?artid=188

Imani, Gadis Srilanka

Dua minggu menjelang Ramadhan, the Islamic Forum seperti biasanya, padat dengan peserta dialog. Sebagian besar memang adalah para muallaf dan non Muslim yang sudah beberapa bulan belajar Islam. Salah satu dari non Muslim itu adalah seorang gadis, hampir saja kusangka gadis Aceh atau Bangladesh. Wajah dan postur tubuhnya nampak jauh lebih muda dari umurnya yang ke 23. Sangat pendiam dan sopan, tapi sangat kritis dalam mempertanyakan banyak hal.

Hari itu saya memang menjelaskan makna-makna spiritual dari ibadah puasa. Penjelasan saya terkonsentrasi pada kata "taqwa" yang didetailkan kemudian oleh S. Ali Imran: "Dan bersegeralah ke magfirah Tuhanmu dan syurga yang luasnya seluas langit dan bumi, disediakan bagi orang-orang yang bertakwa. Yaitu yang senantiasa memberi, baik dalam keadaan senang maupun susah, menahan marah dan memaafkan manusia. Sungguh Allah mencintai orang-orang yang berbuat kebajikan. Dan orang-orang yang jika melakukan kekejian atau menzalimi diri mereka sendiri, mereka ingat kepada Allah dan mereka memohon ampunan dariNya atas dosa-dosa mereka…dst".

Siang itu penjelasan saya memang banyak berkisar pada makna "takwa" dalam konteks "ihsan". Bahwa membangun ketakwaan tidak sekedar dilakukan lewat pendekatan formal hukum tapi yang menjadi inti sesungguhnya adalah kemampuan membangun "relasi spiritual" dengan Ilahi. Simbol keberagamaan (aspek-aspek formal agama) tidak menjamin ketinggian keberagamaan (religiusitas) seseorang. Tapi banyak ditentukan oleh, selain benar secara hukum formal, juga benar secara batin. Biasanya hukum formal ini terkait erat dengan masalah-masalah fiqhiyah, dan hukum batin ini terkait dengan kesadaran jiwa di saat melakukan penghambaan (ibadah).

Tanpa terasa penjelasan itu memakan waktu lebih 1 ½ jam. Sebagaimana biasa, saya kemudian memberikan kesempatan kepada semua peserta untuk mengajukan pertanyaan atau memberikan komentar.

Beragam pertanyaan yang diajukan oleh para peserta. "Nampaknya, Islam dan agama-agama lainnya tidak jauh berbeda", komentar salah seorang peserta non Muslim. "I used to think that Islam is all about laws, do this, don’t do that…etc." komentar yang lain.

Seorang gadis yang ada di ruangan itu, yang sejak awal diam dan juga jarang memperlihatkan senyum, tiba-tiba angkat suara. Suaranya pelan dan hampir tidak kedengaran. "Do you believe in the incarnation?", tanyanya lembut. "Before I respond to your question, can you explain to me, what do you know about the incarnation?" kata saya.

Dia kemudian berbicara cukup panjang mengenai konsep inkarnasi dalam pandangan agama Budha. Penjelasannya cukup menarik, dan terkadang dibumbui pula dengan argumentasi rasional. Oleh karena tidak ada yang menyangka kalau gadis itu beragama Budha, hampir semua terheran-heran di saat dia mengatakan "in my belief…Buddhism". Saya pun memotong langsung dan bertanya: "Sister, may I ask you a personal question?". "Yes sir!" jawabnya. "Are you a Buddhist?", tanya saya. "Yes sir. My mom is a strong follower of Buddhism, but my dad doesn’t really care about religion", jawabnya.

Dia memang nampak canggung menjawab pertanyaan itu. Tapi nampaknya pula bahwa dia adalah seseorang yang berani. "So, when we talk about religion, what do you mean by that word (religion)?", pancingku. "I really don’t know. But as far as I know, we Buddhists neither we believe in religion nor in god", jelasnya. "So in what do you have faith?", tanyaku lagi. "Basically the center of our faith is in the nature itself. And we the people are the center of the nature", katanya lagi.

Saya tiba-tiba teringat dengan Kumar, seorang pemuda Bangladesh beragama Budha yang masuk Islam beberapa waktu lalu. Saya juga tiba-tiba teringat dengan Nagakawa, seorang pendeta Budha yang seringkali saya temui dalam beberapa pertemuan antar-agama (interfaith) . Terbayang kegalauan mereka dalam melihat makna kehidupan ini. Mereka tidak tahu asal, dan juga tidak sadar ke mana mereka berjalan. Pencarian spiritualitas mereka hanya sebatas "pemenuhan kebutuhan spiritualitas sesaat". Inilah yang menjadikan Dalai Lama menjadi sangat populer di AS, tentu juga karena ada kepentingan politik Amerika terhadap China.

"Let me ask you a question", saya memulai diskuis itu lagi. Dia mengangguk. "Do you pray or supplicate?", tanya saya. "Yes, in fact my mother pray every day at home", jelasnya. "Now, here is the point", kata saya. "If you believe in the nature, worship the nature, and you are the most important part that nature, to whom do you address your prayers or supplications?"

Dia mulai tersenyum sambil menengok ke teman-teman lain yang ikut tersenyum ketika itu. "I don’t know. But as I heard, we pray towards the nature itself. According to Buddhism, this nature has power", jelasnya. "But if you are an important part of this nature, and in fact you yourself the center of that nature, then basically you pray to your own self!", jelas saya. "And if so, what is the point of asking to your own self? Iif you have that power, then what is the need to ask?", tanya saya.

Para peserta nampak tertawa mendengarkan pertanyaan-pertanya an saya tersebut. Sementara sang gadis itu nampak bingung dan hanya tersenyum mendengarkan semua itu. "Sister, in our religion God is the center of all issues", lanjutku. Saya kemudian berusaha menjelaskan bahwa agama itu bukan sekedar pemenuhan kebutuhan spiritualitas sesaat, melainkan konsep kehidupan. Bahwa spiritualitas memiliki tempat penting dalam agama, namun tanpa Tuhan, konsep spiritualitas seperti itu bersifat semu.

Saya kemudian menjelaskan panjang lebar kehidupan Hollywood yang penuh dengan kegemerlapan duniawi. Ada dua kemungkinan yang terjadi pada akhir kehidupan para artis itu. Kalau tidak terjebak pada kehidupan "hedonistis" tanpa ujung, atau mereka akan terjebak kepada pencarian spiritualitas yang illutif.

Pada akhir penjelasan itu, tiba-tiba gadis itu berkata: "It does make sense!". Saya menimpali: "True religion does make sense. And Islam does make sense!", jelasku.

Kelas hari itupun bubar. Tapi tanpa terlupakan saya pinjamkan gadis itu sebuah buku perbandingan Islam dan Buddha tulisan Harun Yahya dan sebuah Al-Quran terjemahan.

Dua hari kemudian, hari Senin, ketika saya tiba di kantor di pagi hari, tiba-tiba gadis itu sudah berada di ruangan resepsionis.. "Hi, how are you?", sapa saya. Tanpa memperlihatkan senyum sedikitpun, gadis tersebut menjawab: "Hi, I am fine!". Rupanya resepsionis menimpali bahwa dia sudah menunggu dari pagi. Maka segera saya ajak dia masuk ke ruang pertemuan.

"What I can do for you this morning?", tanyaku. "My mom took all my books", katanya. "Why?" tanya saya. "She doesn’t want me to read those books, but I am really interested to know", jawabnya. "It’s fine, that may cause you mom to study and know this religion too. I will give you some other books", kata saya.

Tanpa panjang lebar, saya kemudian menjelaskan Islam kepadanya. Saya memulai dari hakikat kehidupan, kedudukan manusia, dan bagaimana kebutuhan manusia kepada Yang Maha Dzat, Allah SWT. Selama saya menjelaskan itu, beberapa kali saya harus mengulangi karena beberapa terminology yang sama sekali asing baginya. Tapi akhirnya, nampak wajahnya puas.

"Any thing else in your mind that you want to clarify or further to ask?", tanyaku. Dia hanya menggelengkan kepala. "So, what do you think about the religion?", tanyaku lagi. Dengan sangat pelan, dia menjawab: "I feel that Islam is quite rational and it does make sense to me", katanya. "I like it!", lanjutnya.

Mendengar itu, saya segera memancing. "So, you are certain that the religion is the true one". "I think so!", jawabnya. "If you are still thinking that it’s true, it means you are not certain yet!", kataku. Seraya tersenyum dia menjawab: "No, I am sure about it!", tegasnya.

"Does it mean that you believe in Islam? Do you believe in God?", tanya saya. "Yes, I am sure God does exist, and sure that we need Him in our life", katanya. "Ok, if I say to you, are you willing to embrace Islam, are you ready?", tanyaku. Dengan sedikit menunduk, nampak seperti ragu, namun dengan mantap dia mengatakan: "Yes!".

Saya kemudian menjelaskan enam rukun Iman dan lima rukun Islam. Juga sedikit saya jelaskan kaitan Islam dengan kehidupan nyata manusia. "Any question before taking your shahadah?", tanyaku. Dia hanya menganggukkan kepala.

Saya kemudian menelpon resepsionis untuk memanggil dua saksi. Maka disaksikan oleh dua saksi di pagi hari itu, gadis belia ini mengucapkan: "Asy-hadu an laa ilaaha illa Allah- wa asy-hadu anna Muhammadan Rasul Allah", diikti pekikan takbir kedua saksi itu.

Alhamdulillah, gadis yang kemudian memilih nama barunya "Imani" ini sudah mulai berpuasa Ramadhan lalu. Sayang, dia baru tahu kalau Ramadhan sudah masuk setelah 10 hari Ramadhan berlalu. Maka di bulan Syawal lalu, dia berusaha mengganti puasanya yang tertinggal ditambah puasa 6 hari Syawal.

Sekitar 2 minggu lalu, Imani silaturrahmi ke rumah kami pada acara "open house" kami. Tapi setibanya siang itu di rumah kami, dia tidak makan. Rupanya dia sedang berpuasa sunnah Syawal. Maka kami ajak dia untuk tinggal sampai berbuka puasa. Setelah berbuka puasa, Imani pamitan pulang. Tapi karena sudah gelap dan akhir pekan yang biasanya subway tidak terlalu lancar, kami ajak Imani menginap di rumah kami.

Di saat silaturrahim itu, betapa gembira Imani ketika bertemu dengan keluarga Srilanka yang putranya menikah dengan wanita Indonesia. Imani merasa mendapatkan keluarga barunya. Dan pagi hari, selepas shalat subuh Imani meninggalkan rumah sambil berpesan kepada anak kami: "Tell your mom, dad, thank you so much for your hospitality and the delicious dinner!".

Hari Sabtu lalu, dengan suara pelan Imani berbisik: "I hope I can find a husband who can teach me reading Arabic (Qur’an)". "Insha Allah Sister! May Allah make it easy for you and we will do help you in any way possible!", kataku. Baru ketika itu juga saya tahu kalau Imani sudah berumur 23 tahun dan sudah tahun ketiga di salah satu college yang berafiliasi dengan Columbia University di New York.

Semoga Imani akan selalu dilindungi dalam naungan iman hingga akhir perjalanan hidupnya menuju Rabbnya!

New York , 29 Oktober 2007

* Penulis adalah imam Masjid Islamic Cultural Center of New York. Syamsi adalah penulis rubrik "Kabar Dari New York" di www.hidayatullah.com

[nyanadhana]

ada orang bodoh selalu menangkap sebuah negara yang majoritas memeluk agama A lalu ketika penduduk disitu memeluk agama B ,maka ia dengan bangga mengatakan bahwa semua orang mengakui agama B sebagai terhebat. orang seperti itu tidak pernah bisa melihat esensi dari ber"agama".ia selamanya terselimut dalam ketidaktahuan yang membuat dia berputar2 dalam kehidupan.
kalo semua orang tahu gimana agama I membuat negara itu memeluk ya pake cara kekerasan,penaklukan,senjata,perang,dan semua taktik yang membuat rakyat sengsara dan mau tak mau menerima agama I kalo tidak ya dibunuh.

[Brado]

At Nyana

Saya setuju dengan pendapat anda
Sebab yang selama ini terjadi dari abad pertengahan hingga masa kini yah tetap begitu
Antara dua pilihan, menarik2 orang masuk agamanya dengan cara menjelek2an agama lain, atau dengan cara memaksa
Yeahh.. that's a fact

[William_phang]

The religion with Goat is İslam… (Qur’an, 3:19)

wakwakkaka.. pinteran melesetinnya

Now, for any person to follow Buddhism he should first have the desire to follow the Four Noble Truths and the Eight Fold Path. The Third great Noble Truth says that desire should be removed. Once you remove desire, how can we follow the Fourth Noble truth i.e. follow the Eight Fold Path unless we have a desire to follow the Eight Fold Path. In short desire can only be removed by having a desire to follow the Eight Fold Path. If you do not follow the Eight Fold Path, desire cannot be removed. It is self contradicting as well as self-defeating to say that desire will only be removed by continuously having a desire.

Ini nih ciri2 orang yg cuma dari baca buku Buddhism stengah2...


Utk 2 postingan di bawah ini, ada pertanyaan

Melihat atau menganalisa Ajaran Buddha dari kaca mata Al-Quran ya tidak akan pernah bisa yambung....

hihihi,kalo Buddhist dipake buat debat dari kacamata mereka yang selam,yah ga bakalan ketemu pointnya...

Tanya: Bagaimana jika dibalik? Menganalisa Agama Iselam dari kacamata Buddhism? bisa nyambung gak yah?

sama saja tidak akan nyambung kl pake kaca mata yang berbeda....hehehhe...

[William_phang]

ada orang bodoh selalu menangkap sebuah negara yang majoritas memeluk agama A lalu ketika penduduk disitu memeluk agama B ,maka ia dengan bangga mengatakan bahwa semua orang mengakui agama B sebagai terhebat. orang seperti itu tidak pernah bisa melihat esensi dari ber"agama".ia selamanya terselimut dalam ketidaktahuan yang membuat dia berputar2 dalam kehidupan.
kalo semua orang tahu gimana agama I membuat negara itu memeluk ya pake cara kekerasan,penaklukan,senjata,perang,dan semua taktik yang membuat rakyat sengsara dan mau tak mau menerima agama I kalo tidak ya dibunuh.

harus baca sejarah bagaimana selam disebarkan...dan nanti juga akan tahu sendiri....

[N1AR]

shortcut gitu loh

[xenocross]

taqiya = konsep dalam Isl** yang mengatakan bohong itu HALAL asalkan demi menarik umat ke agama dia.
Makanya kalau ada orang dari I yg bilang ini itu harus diselidiki dulu.

Terlepas dari hal itu, 2 "mualaf" dari buddhis itu digambarkan sebagai "buddhis ktp" atau "buddhis tradisi" yah jelas aja gampang dikibulin