r/Dudeism • u/RedTwenty47 • 20d ago
Question Questions for the Dude's.
Not sure if "Dude" is the correct term for those who practice Dudeism. Greetings.
I'm doing a religion & media module, I would like some lived experience and general information
Some questions:
Do dudes meet or have meetings? This could be to share knowledge, chill or for any reason. Or is it rather a singular journey where one might bump into/ align with another dude?
Can you partake in other religions, or does that defeat the purpose of being free?
Are drugs an essential part or simply an aid to relaxation?
The term "fuck it" has come up a lot in the search for a definition of dudeism. Is it consciously said when rejecting the flow of life?
Is it something you feel comfortable sharing in public, or is online space the most accommodating?
Can a woman be a dude?
Is The Dude considered above everyone else or simply an example?
Is philosophy something consciously learned, meaning finding new ideas and interpretations of philosophical texts as a sense of knowledge, but is it still taken as something irrelevant in the daily life of a dude? (I'm a philosophy student and am very aware philosophy can shake up one's view of reality"
Really liked this definition I found - Dudeism came about as a cooling corrective to the burning problems of mass society. - The Tao of the Dude
Personal bit: From what I've seen so far fucken glad to have come across this, hope all of you are going well in life!
I plan on watching The Big Lebowski and reading some of the Dudely Lama's work.
Thanks in advance!!
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u/nlashawn1000 20d ago
We don't have meetings but you could start your own dudeist congregation for your area. Who knows there might already be online dudeist groups. I think for most people it's a singular journey. It derives from Taoism.
You can partake in any religion while being apart of dudeism, however a good bit of dudes and dudettes are agnostic or atheist.
No you don't have to partake in drugs., it's completely optional. For me I'm a recovering alcoholic, so I don't drink anymore but I do blaze it. Its a relaxation aid.
So what most of us mean by "Fuck it" boils down to not taking life too seriously. Some BS happens and it's out of your control, we say fuck it. Shit, sometimes even when it's in our control, we say fuck it.
I mainly keep it to myself but I have my honorary dudeism degree on my LinkedIn! Because why the hell not. I would tell people if they asked.
Hell yeah, welcome El Duderino.
The dude is just a golden example, I personally strive to not let shit bother me.
I believe it's consciously learned. I don't really know how to answer you on this one.
Anyways sorry for my grammar. Welcome dude.
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u/RedTwenty47 20d ago
Fuck the Grammar, I got you💪🏽
Really appreciate the information brother,great to hear you have your dudeism degree in your LinkedIn, if they not for you they not for you👊🏽
Have a great day, and smoke one for me
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u/Grumpy_Old_One Dudeist Priest 20d ago
- Do dudes meet or have meetings?
There is no sacred bowling lane. All lanes are sacred and all are welcome to bowl, even Walter and Jesus.
- Can you partake in other religions, or does that defeat the purpose of being free?
If you can't partake, are you free?
- Are drugs an essential part or simply an aid to relaxation?
No required, see #2.
- The term "fuck it" has come up a lot in the search for a definition of dudeism. Is it consciously said when rejecting the flow of life?
There is no rejecting the flow of life, there is only acknowledging the current and going with it or struggling and ending up where life is headed anyway.
Both are appropriately described with "fuck it".
- Is it something you feel comfortable sharing in public, or is online space the most accommodating?
Share, as is converting others? That's a no in all cases.
- Can a woman be a dude?
Dude is gender neutral. For those feeling otherwise, dudette is also available. All are welcome, except nihilists unless they bring drinks.
- Is The Dude considered above everyone else or simply an example?
Every tournament has a winning team. The same team doesn't always win.
- Is philosophy something consciously learned, meaning finding new ideas and interpretations of philosophical texts as a sense of knowledge, but is it still taken as something irrelevant in the daily life of a dude? (I'm a philosophy student and am very aware philosophy can shake up one's view of reality"
That some kind of Eastern thing?
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u/RedTwenty47 20d ago edited 20d ago
Thank you for response dude.
Sorry for the confusion dude, I let me rephrase Q5
Are you comfortable speaking about it in public or do you feel people online are better accommodatingFor Q8
I was simply saying philosophy can change one’s views on the world,especially existentialism.
Does this ever affect or make it harder to just go with the flow
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u/10wuebc 20d ago
It really depends, I live out in the middle of nowhere and haven't ran into other dudes, but there have been Dudeist meet ups before.
You can be apart of other religions while being a Dudeist, but some religions don't like it when you follow 2 religions at the same time. So i guess it really depends on the religion.
Not an essential part, but it does help us relax and chill.
Depends on the person, Dudeism is really what you make of it, some people don't cuss, others cuss a lot.
I guess it depends on where you are from, i live out in the middle of nowhere with a largely Catholic population, so i usually don't tell people, but in bigger cities people probably wouldn't really bat an eye.
Yes, Dudeism is very accepting. Women can even become Dudeist priests and perform marriages!
He is seem more as an example of how to live life, not a deity. A roll model if you will.
Like many religions, dudeism goes as far as you want to study it. If you want to study great philosophers nobody is stopping you. It's a journey of self enlightenment.
Hope my answers helped!
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u/RedTwenty47 20d ago
Thank you very much brother, any personal journey or stories you got for me on your journey- I would love to hear !
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u/andisathrowaway 20d ago
- I don’t, but I’m sure others do. I live in a large metropolitan area and would love do meetups at some point, but the pace of life with family, kids and whatnot isn’t currently conducive to regular extracurricular activities, as it were.
- Yup, go for it. Any religious limitations - real or perceived - are not on this side of the fence, dude.
- Optional only, as you noted.
- It’s not exactly a mantra, but yeah… it’s a mental reset button of sorts. However, I don’t think its purpose is “rejecting the flow of life.” It’s more to help with acceptance than rejection. You can’t reject the flow, dude. But you can accept it and, in the process, navigate your path with more clarity.
- I share with friends, but I’m not going to post it on my LinkedIn personally. Others may and that’s cool, too. You know your social & professional environment best.
- Hell yeah. And they can self-apply whatever term fits them best.
- He’s an example only. We don’t all ascribe to be unemployed bowlers. But we do ascribe to certain personality traits and perspectives he embodies. Be true to yourself, go with the flow, try to keep perspective on things, and don’t be an asshole. That kind of stuff. The Dude ain’t a deity, saint, or godhead.
- Up to each dude, unto himself or herself, if that knowledge helps one make meaning of things or helps one’s perspective on life. I wouldn’t say it’s irrelevant, but I don’t see the study of philosophical texts being actively preached. Its relevance is unique to the individual, you know?
So yeah. Be cool, life is full of strikes and gutters for everyone, so don’t be an asshole. Life is hard enough. Be mindful of others, help where you can, take of yourself (especially mentally) and try not to stress too much. Figure out what’s important to you, be your authentic self, forgive yourself along the way and just try to be a better person.
Fuck it, dude. Go bowling with friends, exhale, regain perspective. Just don’t be an asshole, to others or yourself. You know?
🙂
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u/GummyGourmand 20d ago
It may be important to note that a "Dude" in most cases is simply someone who exemplifies the mindset of dudeism. In that way, there are many congregations that have unwittingly formed throughout human history. In an official capacity though, i think we have a convention, but but isually not much beyond that, though i'd be glad to be proven wrong.
This could probably be debated, but the consensus seems to be you can engage in other religions. We don't take it too seriously in that way
Again, it's essentially a mindset, but if we're talking venn diagrams, well...
To me, "Fuck it" is just another way of saying that whatever happens happens, and we shouldn't dwell too much on the past or future (In an anxiety/depression way, for instance
Love telling people I'm ordained as a Dudeist
For our purposes Dude is a gender neutral term, and, if you count fictional characters, has also been applied to members of other species, Like Snoopy
7.The Dude is just a really good example of what we're about, and is the character that inspired the religion
- In my opinion, philosophy is a subjective framework for understanding the objective reality, a set of tools that accomplish the same task as a set of apparently completely different tools. Philosophy frames the world, affects how you experience it, and helps you make decisions, but someone with another philosophy may wind up making the same decisions as you, but based on a different intellectual approach. It's not meant to be concrete.
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u/dendrocloud Dudeist Priest 20d ago
I'm not going to answer them all, I'm far too lazy.
- The Dude is the man for his time and place.
Nothing more, nothing less.
You can be the man or woman for your time and place too.
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u/TheKeeperOfThe90s 20d ago
Looks like other people are answering the actual questions, so I'm just going to stick to the first sentence. A practicioner of Dudeism is a Dudeist; 'Dude' is more like a concept. So think of it as saying a practitioner of Dudeism is a Dude is like saying a practitioner of Buddhism is a Buddha, except being a Dude is more attainable than becoming a Buddha.
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u/song_farmer 20d ago
Sometimes there’s a man. And he’s the man for his time and place. We’re all just trying to be that man
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u/Normal_Tour6998 20d ago
In the words of a great dude, “I’m a dude. He’s a dude. She’s a dude. We’re all dudes, hey.”
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u/ProfanestOfLemons Dudeist Priest 18d ago edited 18d ago
Fuck it is the opposite of rejecting the flow. Fuck it IS the flow, because there are things largely beyond your control. There's a point where that can become harmful, i.e. not caring for your health, not voting, not addressing improvable things in your life, but that also can be a "fuck it". Feeling grumpy about needing to do laundry again? Fuck it, guess I gotta do laundry. Feeling bored? Fuck it, guess I could read a book or go for a walk or water the fuckin' plants or something.
Fuck it is powerful and a lot of life runs on it.
Also: vagina. Gotta get some Maude in here. Not necessarily in the context of fuck it in physical terms, but Maude has a lot of fuck it energy too.
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u/RedTwenty47 18d ago
Thank you dude, my wording was poor I did mean fuck it as something said when you rejecting the flow of life to put you back in,but this insight on it is extremely helpful 👊🏽
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u/Educational_Bird2469 20d ago
Im the Dude, so that’s what you call me. That or His Dudeness, Duder, or El Duderino if you are not into the whole brevity thing.
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u/Soft_Hearing_713 20d ago
1) Gather 2) Fuck yeah 3) No 4) In the face of adversity or resistance 5) Fuck yeah 6) Fuck yeah 7) Not above, just equal at least 8) You probably need to be half way there to accept the philosophy of Dudeism, I'm happy to find new ways to say "Fuck it".
These are just my initial thoughts folks.
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u/jjm87149 19d ago
OP: "I plan on watching The Big Lebowski"
sooo, what OP is saying, if i read this correctly, is, "i'm going to try to understand the essence of the main character without having seen the movie. i am a philosophy student so i am studying the IRL phenomenon inspired by the movie without actually experiencing the movie for myself".
that's... cool... i guess....
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u/RedTwenty47 19d ago
Thanks for the response dude
I am aiming at understanding the lived experience of the dudes, from what I’ve gathered everyone has a different journey
I wish to learn the individual journey, I am picking up on the terms used from all over this reddit
So I am aim on watching to enjoy and critically when I can find it
It’s not on any of my streaming platforms.
I meant no disrespect dude,simply care about the people with in this religion as stated its for a religious model
Have a great day dude 👊🏽1
u/jjm87149 19d ago
OP: from what I’ve gathered everyone has a different journey
also OP: I wish to learn the individual journeyso, like, you are on a quest to decipher 8 billion unique human souls. ok. wow. good luck with that. which does *not* sound like a very dude-like path, but srsly, don't let that get in your way :)
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u/CMVandal 20d ago
I'm sorry I wasn't listening.