Cattāri Brahmavihārā

Yes, I know, strange to see a Muslim blessing on a Theravada Buddhist blog isn’t it? Well, for those of you that might not know it, may wife’s family is Muslim and so I find myself in the unique and often precarious situation of straddling the fence between the Muslim and Buddhist worlds. Fortunately for me many of the moral precepts (although in Islam I don’t believe they’d be called precepts) are similar enough (i.e., Islam does not use sacramental wine as do its sister Abrahamic religions) for me to feel comfortable in observing. Also, Ramadhan is a great month to practice nekkhama and its observance has really given me the chance (as imperfectly as I have followed it) to see craving in action.

Because I feel the need to justify not just this post but myself as well I’ll give a brief apology: I converted to Islam before I married my wife and at a time when my practice of the Dhamma was still in its infancy. I basically lied when I was asked if I believed in a personal God and that Mohammed was his last prophet.  Notwithstanding, from that day forth, I’ve tried to learn as much as I can about the religion and use those parts of it that are compatible with the Dhamma simply due to the fact that it is important to me wife that we impart her culture (if not the beliefs) to our children. So, I keep halal, observe the fast of Ramadhan but have no faith in many of the dictates of the religion. Still, I would rather my son choose Islam over secular consumerism any day. Metta.