In the article, the Buddhist says of the JW, "At the end of the conversation, she was *glowing* with positive
energy."
I would
hate to tell him that it's just because she "placed" books with him
and he promised to read them. She sees him as a potential convert or at
least someone to count much time with. As a matter of fact, she will
count the time of their discussion.
But on to better thoughts: You ask "Also, I wonder has anyone else dabbled with the idea of
buddhism? Not as a replacement theology but as wanting to be a more contented
person."
Many ex-JW's have included eastern thought and eastern reading
and eastern meditating in their spiritual journey. I am one of those. I favor Tao and Zen Buddhism. Whether we were seeking God or enlightenment or just inner peace, eastern
thought is an excellent place to look. The beauty of such thought is that
you can embrace some of it and not all of it. You don't need to
"believe" a certain way to appreciate the ideas that "less is
more" or that "all are equal" and that "life is
precious."
I don't care for books by "The Dalai Llama"
but I have found excellent wisdom from other eastern sources. I particularly
like Pema
Chödrön, an American author relating to Tibetan Buddhism. She is an ordained
nun and I just ignore the brief references to "master so-and-so" and
focus on the thoughts when I read her books. (So even those who preach
"all are equal" show that some are "more equal" than
others.)
