Do Buddhist believe fortune teller?

Upvote:1

Simple answer is No. According to the Several Sources budhda can see the Future and he is not reveal it. He truly believe Future is not exact it can be change according to our present life events. So According to my readings answer is NO.

I Rephrase Theravada Reading

Those who telling Fortune will tell Fortune. But If someone believe in Triple gems. Will not use those.

Upvote:4

Here is a quote from the book "What Buddhists Believe" by Ven. K. Sri Dhammananda. The quote is from the chapter: "Fortune-Telling and Charms", p. 422-424:

"ALTHOUGH Buddhism does not refute belief in deities, spirits, astrology and fortune-telling, the Buddha’s advice was that people should not be slaves to any of those forces. A good Buddhist can overcome all difficulties by knowing how to make use of intelligence and will-power. The above mentioned beliefs have no spiritual significance or value. A person must overcome all problems and difficulties by his or her own efforts and not through the medium of deities, spirits, astrology or fortune-telling. In one of the Buddhist JATAKA stories, the Bodhisatta said:

‘The fool may watch for lucky days,

Yet luck he shall always miss,

The luck itself is luck’s own star,

What can mere stars achieve?

He believed that hard work was the luckiest star and one should not waste time by consulting stars and lucky days in order to achieve success. To do your best to help yourself is better than to rely solely on the stars or external sources. Although some Buddhists practise fortune-telling and dispense some forms of charms or amulets under the guise of religion, the Buddha at no time encouraged anyone to practise such things. Like fortune-telling, charms come under the category of superstition, and have no religious value. Yet there are many people today who, because of sickness and misfortunes attribute the cause of their illness and ill-luck to the power of charms.

When the cause of certain sicknesses and misfortunes cannot be ascertained or traced, many people tend to believe that their problems are due to charms or some other external causes. They have forgotten that they are now living in the twentieth century. This is the modern age of scientific development and achievement. Our leading scientists have thrown aside many superstitious beliefs and they have even placed men on the moon! And no matter how strongly traditionalist religions object, the first human clone is almost at our doorstep.

All sicknesses owe their origin to either mental or physical causes. In Shakespeare, Macbeth asked a doctor if there was any medicine that could cure his wife and the doctor replied: ‘More needs she the divine than the physician.’ What he meant was that some diseases can only be cured if the mind is strong enough to face facts in life. Some severe mental disorders manifest themselves in a physical manner as in the case of ulcers, stomach aches, and so on.

Of course certain diseases are purely physical and can be cured by a competent doctor. And finally, some inexplicable disorders could be caused by what Buddhists call the ripening of the karmic fruit. This means we have to pay for some evil deed that we had committed in a past life. If we can understand this in the case of some incurable diseases, we can bear it with greater patience, knowing its real cause. This is not fatalism: we must still make all reasonable efforts to find a cure. But we do not expend unnecessary energy feeling sorry for ourselves. This is what we would call a realistic attitude.

People who cannot be cured of their sickness are advised to consult a medical specialist and obtain specialised attention. If after having gone through a medical check-up, a person still feels he or she is in need of attention, then he or she may want to seek spiritual guidance from a proper religious teacher.

Buddhists are strongly advised against falling into the miserable pit of superstitious beliefs and allowing the mind to be troubled by unnecessary and unfounded fears. Cultivate strong will-power by refusing to believe in the influence of charms.

A short meditation course may also prove very helpful to clear the mind of unwholesome thoughts. Meditation leads to strengthen the mental energy. A developed mind automatically leads to a purified and healthy body. The Buddha-Dharma is a soothing balm to get rid of sickness of this nature."

Upvote:5

You can't really say No to "Do Buddhist Believe in Fortune Tellers?" Because The Buddha himself had the ability to tell someone's fortune and future.He didn't do it for money of course.But he could tell what would happen to people. There were times where he knew that they had to listen to the Dhamma soon because their death was imminent.He could tell their fortune or misfortune.

In fact the past Buddha Kassapa was able to predict that the then Boddhisatta would one day become a Buddha.I know this all sounds like magic.But it all boils down to Karma. All Buddhas posses omniscient knowledge.They have the ability to discern someone's karma and the karmic tendency that will lead to the likelihood of one's karmic fruit ripening.

The Buddha also had a disciple who was once a fortune teller called Venerable Vangisa.Now, You don't have to be a Buddha to be able to predict the future.It can come as a Siddhi in some yogic practices.But this is clouded by delusion because one doesn't see dependent origination in it.Not to mention the Ego is still very much in charge.

When people try to read or tell your fortune it may be skillfull to just politely decline.If you don't want to do that then just remember that no one can make or take your fortune except you.It all depends on you.When people read your future their reading what your own actions are producing, their not causing the future to happen to you.Your fortune depends on your own actions.

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