Subud and religion

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Religions and Spiritual Movements

Subud literature rejects the suggestion that Subud is a religion, but rather describes it as "spiritual movement." The difference between religion and spirituality is much debated. Subud is treated as a religious organisation in some countries, such as the UK, where it is registed as religious charity, but in other places, such as Indonesia, it is viewed by the government as an education organisation. It may well be that Subud (along with numerous other groups with similar reservations) qualifies as a religion by some definitions, but not by others.

Advice and Teachings

Subud is sometimes said to not be a religion on the grounds it does not propound a specific teaching, nor does it insist that members adhere to a given set of beliefs. Rather, Subud practitioners feel that they receive regular contact with God or some divine reality, from whom or which a kind of inner wisdom may be received directly. This formulation is vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that (a) some "religions" may be described similarly, and/or (b) that many Subud members in fact propound certain beliefs and generally require applicants to be at least open to the existence of one God or a Great Life Force.

Cosmopolitan Ecumenicalism

Another reason often given is that Subud welcomes members from "all" religions (theoretically including atheists). There do however exist religions which allow followers to belong to other religions as well, most notably Buddhism. Some Subud members have acknowledged that in some ways, Subud can be seen as a religion. Many others resist this conclusion very strongly. A practical reason for this explanation arises from the fact that some religions, especially Christianity and Islam, do forbid multiple identification. Subud practitioners have naturally sought to avoid a situation in which Christians or Muslims would face religious restrictions against joining Subud (as Bahá'ís already do--see link below).

Interestingly, Subud sometimes finds itself on the other end of this dynamic--for example, when it warns practitioners against "mixing" Subud with other practices such as yoga or meditation. Since yoga and meditation are major elements of Hinduism and Buddhism, some members complain this conflicts with the encouragement given to Subud practitioners to continue practicing the religion of their choice.

When looked at in more detail, however, the restriction is actually upon doing yoga or other meditation during the Latihan itself, i.e. mixing two spiritual practises during the same half hour, a far smaller sacrifice. Hindu and Buddhist members are not required to give up any aspect of their religion outside of the Latihan hall. Subud is sometimes described as "non-denominational," a curious term which usually refers to religious denominations within Christianity. Of course "multi-religious" or "ecumenical" is meant. “Non-sectarian” would probably be most accurate, as within Subud the mixing of religious groups goes hand in hand with the mingling of different ethnic groups from around the world.

External links

* [http://www.bahai-library.com/uhj/subud.html Why Bahá'ís can't be Subud-ians]