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I've had some people ask me how to become a Buddhist or how to convert to Buddhism. My answer would start with 'Why would you want to do that?"

What I mean by that is what attracts you to Buddhism? Is it meditation? You do not need to convert to Buddhism to meditate. Just follow one of the many guides out there, join a meditation circle or even a lay Zen centre.

Is it the principle of Compassion? Again, anyone can practice compassion. Some great Christian saints are examples of compassion. People like Mother Theresa come to mind immediately when you think of a compassionate being. All you need to do is practice it. Become compassion. The Dalai Lama wrote numerous books on the subject and I cannot pretend to be able to explain it better than him. I'll refer you to his books.

  Look for Dalai Lama in this Amazon search box to get a list of his books.

Why do you want to be a Buddhist? Is it to be part of a community of liked-minded people and feel their support? This could be a good reason to convert to Buddhism. The Sangha is a very important aspect of Buddhism. Buddha recognized that the community plays a definite role in enlightenment and wrote extensively on the subject. He wrote some guidelines for the communities of lay people and for monks and nuns.

If you want to join a community, you can go to my page on the different schools of Buddhism to see which one appeals the most to you. You will then have to look for a local chapter near you and contact them.

I rencently started a World Buddhist Temple Directory to help you find a place of worship near you.  

It is still incomplete but please add your organization to it and people in the future will find it easier to find you.
I often have requests by email from people wanting to help them with their conversion.  I am not affiliated to any organization so I cannot help you.  This directory is the best place to find someone who can.

Do you feel the calling to become a monk or a nun? The best thing to do in this case would be again to contact a local group and learn from them before taking your vows.

Buddhists are free thinking people. Buddhism gives a lot of freedom to everyone to study, practice, and feel the teaching within yourself rather than believing what someone tells you is true.

The Buddha is reputed to have said:

Do not believe in anything because you have heard it.
Do not believe in anything because it is spoken by many.
Do not believe in anything because it is written in religious books.
Do not believe in anything on the authority of your teachers.
Do not believe in traditions just because they have been handed down. 
But after observation and analysis,  when you find that anything agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.

In Buddhism believing comes last. You first have to learn, study, examine, test and then, when you find what really makes you tick, start believing in it. I think it's part of the reason why Buddhists never wish to convert anyone to Buddhism. Conversion to Buddhism is up to you and it is not to please someone else.

This answer, even if completely true, might feel unsatisfying. Before you go any further, I think you should review the main principles of Buddhism and study them. Applying them in your life makes you a follower of Buddha. Not in the sense of a religion but more in the sense of following the teachings he gave us in order to do like he did: awaken to a higher reality.

I guess what I'm trying to say is that there is no need to follow the Buddhist religion or to follow a leader or a certain school to attain enlightenment and follow the Buddhist teachings.

If in your practice you feel the need to take that step, then, by all means, do it. Just be wary of charlatans and cult leaders who just want your money.

Anyone who has stayed in a hotel in Japan has probably seen a copy of The Teaching of Buddha. First published in 1925, the book was originally edited by Japanese scholars of Buddhism before WWII and distributed widely throughout Japan. The first English edition was published in 1934. The Reverend Dr. Yehan Numata brought out another English edition in 1962, and in 1966, after the establishment of the Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai (BDK) (Society for the Promotion of Buddhism), Dr. Numata assembled a committee of Buddhist scholars to substantially revise and edit a new English-Japanese edition. The Teaching of Buddha has undergone minor revisions and numerous re-printings since. It is now available in fourty-one languages and over 7 million copies have been distributed and placed in hotel rooms in over fifty countries throughout the world.

If you would like your free copy, please request one at the Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai home page

With gratitude,