Chapter (4) Buddhism and modern thought
There are many indications of an awakening interest in Buddhism as a system of ethics and philosophy in keeping with the modern thought and suitable for present day needs. Outside Buddhist countries, this awareness is showing itself in various movements for the study and propagation of Buddha’s teaching and more and more thinking people are turning towards it for solution of many a problems that perplex theni Most of us also believe that the fliture of mankind rests with Buddhism, for it is the path to purity which is also the path of peace, the only true and lasting peace for humanity. The dhamma taught by the Buddha does not ask us to accept in any supernatural agency or anything that cannot be tested by experience. That is why it is unique among the systems of phisolophy, religious, psychology and ethics, and the only form of religious teaching that can survive the critical examination of any scientific mind. The Buddha was the only religious teacher who was truly scientific in his approach to the problems of life or existence and the ultimate truth that underlies them. One of the finest of all definitions of the Buddha Dhamma is that it is Passiko, that which invites every one to come and see or come and test for himself ft is a system of thought, a methodical approach based on analysis of all the factors of experience and objective and subjective knowledge. Its purpose is the attainment of that higher insight which enables us to penetrate the veil of ignorance or illusion and free ourselves from each and every fetter that binds us to the cycle of suffering we endure in the ceaseless round of Samsara. From his investigation of the nature of life, Buddha has come to realize the great truth that all sentient beings are encompassed by various kinds of suffering, ills, both mental and physical. They are subject to disease, injury, distress and death, and there is no escape from these conditions so long as there is individual ex
istence of mind and matter or body Seen in its true light there is no pessunism in this teaching, it is pure realism. Any one who seriously considers the nature of life must admit that the great sum of pain by far exceeds the sum total of happiness among living creatures. Many Phisolophers in the Eastt and West have formed the same conclusion, but where the Buddha found the way or release from this Dukkha (suffering) they have offered no solution. Buddha has declared that his Dhamma produces happiness here and now and that in this life it is possible to achieve a state of 9b geater and more eduring than the Deva Loka (the socalled relictial worles.) (1) Radhakrishiion the Indian scholar and statesman, on the occasion of his visit to China pointed to the revival ofBuddhism as the basis for a meeting ofminds among the peoples of Asia. He told the Buddhist China: We are now having a revival ofinterest in Buddhism. In the present spintual awakening of India, Gautama the Buddha and his message have eome into their own. ft is increasingly admitted that Buddha was a reformer of Hinduism and not an opponent. His fluidamental principles have their roots m the Upanishads. New Buddhist monasteries and temples are springing up in all parts ofthe country. There is every reason to hope that India will once again play a great part in stimulating the spiri
tual life of the East.”
One of the most prominent leaders of Burmese Buddhists U Chan Htoon, Ex-Justice of the Supreme Court of Burma, and ExPresident of the Federation of World Buddhists, is quoted as saying in a similar vein. “Just as a scientist investigates the external world so the Buddha investigated the internal world of the mind, or, if you like, the spirit.” Buddhist doctrine appeals only to the insight and experience of man. On the intellectual side we find that there is no point at which science comes into conflict with Buddhism. This will always be so, no matter what the flinture developments of science, There cannot be any achievemet of science, no matter how revolutionary, that will ever contradict the teachings of Buddha, In the struggle between religion and science in the Shristian West, it was always science that had to give way Buddhism, on the other hand, welcomes~~ science as the promoter of knowledg~ contrast to all religions which demand an absolute faith and unconditioned obedience to divine revelation, Buddhism is itself a system for the discovery of truth and reality by man’s own efforts. ft encourages rational criticism and objective analysis. Buddhist philosophy is flilly in accordance with reason and experience; it agrees with the general picture of the ‘miverse given by science and it does not ask us to believe in anything outside
the normal order of nature.
In the case of Buddhism, however,” U Chan Htoon continues all the modern scientific concepts have been present from the beginning. There is no principle of science, from biological evolution to the general theory of realivity, that runs counter to any teaching of Gautama Buddha. Einstein himself wrote that “if there is any religion which is scceptable to the modern scientific mind it is Buddhism.” Yet it is doubtfiil whether even Einstein quite realized the extent to which modern science confirms the teachings of Buddha. The lofty doctrine of Buddha applies to all times and, to all men. ft is capable ofbringing peace, happiness and prosperity to our profoundly disturbed world. U Chan Htoon then attempts to show that there is a parallel between Buddhism and modern science. He cites the view that “all phenomena, including life, are a flux of energies”, that there is a correspondence between biological evolution and spiritual evolution”; that the ‘life-urge’ is the motivating factor behind the processes of evolution.” Above all, however, he and his fellow neo-Buddhists
stress the two following factors;
(1) Buddhism is in tune with modem cosmology because it has from the beginning held out for a muftiplicity of worlds. It has always stressed that our earth is not the only planet capable ofbring-ing forth and sustainning life, but that it is part of an immense system, of an immeasurable plurality of worlds, and stands in intimate relation to this system.
(2) The doctrine of rebirth, which is based on the idea ofKarma, offers the sole adequate basis for an understanding ofhistory. It holds that there is no such thing as the immortality of a specific indMdual soul, but that the human personality, as it occurs in the phenomenal world, represents only a succession of single moments of conscious-ness, each of which is conditioned by the factors preceding it. Free will, however can intervene in this succession and alter the nature of the stream of personality. The conception of a personal ego is an illusion which springs from ignorance of the purely fiillctionalIJa~~c- ( acter of the procession of factors out oft~i~ib-hthecontinmty o~ the personal life is composed. The course of the life-stream is governed by the law of Karma, which insures that each good or evil act has its good or evil consequences. Only insight into the law of Karma allows us to understand the inequalities and contradictions of human existence.”
Similar sentiments have been voiced by leaders of Siamese neo-Buddhism. Dr. Suriyabongs, the well known Simese apologist for Buddhism is quoted as saying; Buddhism is not a religion based upon faith and confession but a religion of cognition, a doctrine of perfect comprehension of the true facts of life.”
Japanese neo-Buddhists and scholars have made similar statements about the conformity between Buddhism and modem science.
Prof: Kochi Nomoto of the Buddhist Komazawa University in To-kyo wiites: “In the vast aresa of Buddhist influence in the East, sci
ence and Buddhism have developed without interfering with each other. Even the resuks of scientific developments in western countries have often been imported into these areas without friction with Buddhism, while in the West, science could not enjoy its freedom for some long time because of its conflict with religion. The Buddhist way of thinking always begins with the analysis of
reality.”
Dr. Reihe Masunaga, professor at a Buddhist University in Tokyo is also quoted as saying: “The modem world of intellect, characterized by scientific research, demands a religion that does not contlict with scientific principles, a religion that will be able to embrace science. This is nothing but the logical trend of human wisdom. It follows that Buddhism as a religion of emancipation is bound to be valued more highly than monotheistic revealed religions. World culture should be based on a religion which stands with science. In Buddhist history there have been no disputes between religious beliefs and scientific knowledge, and no scientists have been persecuted. This is because Buddhism is not contradictory to science. Now is the time we need religio~)that could guide scientific knowledge. The rationality of Buddhism is required most in our age”.
Dr. Malalasekera, President of the Ceylonese State University and Editor of the Buddhist Encyclopedia also says inter alia as follows on the same subject: ‘~uddhism is more than scientific knowledge; it is a view of life. Proper understanding of reality presupposes proper conduct in the real world and a proper method of mastering reality. To that end, purely rational knowledge is
not enough.
The essential fact is that the uftimate mysteries of reality cannot be grasped by the human understanding. Man’s mind is limited when it comes to dealing with the final question of life. Buddhism believes in the uftimately jiuminous nature of reality Buddha describes his teaching as atakkavacara, that is, not susceptible of assimilation by any process of ratiocination,
not accessible to pure logic alone:
“There are profound things, things difficuk to apprehend, hard to understand, but which beget calm joyflil things not to be grasped simply by discursive thought, things which only the wise can under-stand. But that did not prevent the Buddha from using the methods of scientific investigation when it suited his purpose. And, after his death, there developed in many schools of Buddhism elaborate systems of logic. But, basically, the Buddhist point of view is that not all Truth can be discovered by following the ‘laws of thought’ nor what is of supreme importance realized by logical reasoning alone... ft would be a kind of spiritual imperialism to assume that “scientific” values are the only values, the categories and canons of scientific method is only one of several i’rtellactually significant but fallible, culturally conditioned instruments; where open-minded searching for truth is coxic concerned, there should always be freedom to pass from one field or level of analysis to another.”
Professor Kochi Nomoto of Japan, already referred to above, also points out in his article on “Science and Buddhism”, the difference between scientific and ~~i~ou~knowledge: ‘~uddha taught that ignorance is the cause of the suffering of man. The truth of Buddhism is not identical with the truth of science. A religious truth is entirely for man, wliile a scientific truth is often for itseif~ and may be indifferent to human destiny and sometimes may even be destructive to it.” ft is from this point of view that the Buddhists claim leadersbip for the religious insights of Buddhism even in the fields of scientific kiowledge. Religious insight, they argue, can establish a bridge between scientific thinking and man’s moral life, between knowledge and responsibility. Buddhism comprehends scientific thinkmg but is not limited to it. Rathei; it applies the fruit of science to the definition and practice of the moral life.”
The social and ethical interpretation of Buddhism became a matter of practical politics when the late Dr. B .R. Ambedkar, the leader of the so called depressed classes who number approximately 140 million in India, called upon the outcastes to convert enmasse to Buddhism. At the first Buddhist World Conference in Colombo Dr. Ambedkar, in announcing his own conversion, declared that Buddhism was the pariahs’ only hope for wuming recognition as human beings. The world could have been oft~&no stronger evidence that Buddhism was making a vital contribution toward the solution of contemporary social and political problems.. .
On October 14, 1956 it was reported that some 500,000 outcastes, including several thousand Christians had become Buddhists in a mass meeting at Nagpur.
Dr. Ambedkar set forth his primary motives in an essay wriff en shortly before his death in 1958 in which he listed the four great founders of religion: Buddha, Jesus, Mohamed and Krishna, and added “Our problem nowadays, therefore, is to choose among existing religions the one which best corresponds to the contemporary requirements of society Such a religion must have regard for four things: (1) A society can only survive if it is based upon a moral law. Law in society is extremely feeble unless it has a religious foundation. Therefore religion, understood as moral law, must be the indispensable governing principle of every society. (2) The religion of a society must be in harmony with its scientific knowledge; it should not be opposed to reason and experience; it should not be based on dogmas stemmillg from transrational reverlation or the authority of a priestly hierarchy (3) It must be founded on the basic principles of the liberty, equality and fraternity of all men. (4) It cannot glority poverty To be sure, renunciation of weafth by those who possess it
c be a blessed act, ut poverty itse can never e blessed. To ro cla t]~e er no Ility of poverty is a perversion of reli on and Si es pe etuation ofthe vice and c e t at wretc e ess b gs forth.
ese fo require ents for a re on odem society are, bedkar concludes, et by Bud 5 alone. ]~t erefore see to me not unreasona le to aw the conclusion that Bud 5 fate y presents itself as t e 0 y possible reli on for all men the new world w ch the people are to b d, and w c be profo y d erent fro the world we now ow.”
The folloing extract from the Fundamental Principles of Buddhism by sayadaw U Thittila, Aggamsahapandita and Patthama gyaw of Bu be of terest on the subject of neothe teac gs of the Bud a can be ed up one word ~ha . e ~ 5 t form of the word is ~ha . the pali
I guage, which the Bud a spoke d in which all the u st
scriptures are ten, it is softened to Dha .It means t th, that w ch rea y is. It also eans law, t e law which exists in a n~so heart and d. It is the p ciple of ri teousness. Therefore,
the Bud a appeals to to be noble, pure, and c aritable not in
order to please any Supre e eing, ut in order to be true to the
“][~ a ,t 5 law ofri teousness, exists not 0 y a n’s heart and d, it exists the ~erse also. the erse is an e bo ent d revelation of ha . en t e oon rises and sets, the ra 5 come, e crops grow, the season change, it is because
of bha~n~na, for ID~a a ~s the law residing in the ~~erse which d hysics, che stry, geolo . botany and astrology ha ma is the t e nature ofevery exist g t g, a te and in ate.a n ~e by ha ,he escape sery and come to Nibbana, the al release om a e g. It is not by y of prayer, or by y ceremonies, nor by any appeal to a deity or a ~od that a n iscover the ha w c lead to 5 goaL JFie discover it 0 y one way~by developing so char acter. 5 development co es 0 y t ou control of the d an p cation of the e otions. Unt a st 5 the storm in his heart,trn e extends 5 lo ess to a be gs, he not be able to take even the
step toward his goal”
Ha g reallized the st of the Four Noble Truths, i.e , the Noble Truth of S ering, that is to say that birth is suffering, old age e g etc. , as a eady stated above, e proceeds logically to t e cause of e g and d it in T a (Craving). Here again, 5 analysis is rational and strictly sci t c the sense at the t th of 5 conclusion can be tested and proved by any one.
The day of psychology has shown us ow all our actions are otivated by so e fo of Tanha (craving). some desire which we strive to realize and w ch brings us unhappiness if we fail to achieve it.e sa e science of psychology also tells us that craving is essential condition of g organis and that it can never be satisfled by y sensory experience, since as soon as one form of craving is satisfied other takes its place. The w ole of life is a succession of states of desire va g as to intensity and object, but perceptions an en essly repeat g the same cycle of cause and effect.other science, at of iolo cal evolution, co t teach ing that ~a a (craving) is the basis of life. Be d ai] this comph proces~ of tion the driving force is Tanha (craving) for increased sensory experience, which can only be obtained through improved facukies of mind and matter or body The universe in which we live, and of which we are a part, is a universe governed by consist~a~tural laws, wherein nothing happens without a cause. Science teaches us not to expect anything~ arise in it independently or by accident. So does Buddhism. (sinffi~500~ ag~~~i~e law of evolution based upon Tanlia (~~~ving) gives us a clear indication of the unseen law that governs the arising and passing away of individual being from life to life. That too is dominated by Tanlia; it is the past actions rooted in Tanha that cause the birth of an individual and the same Tanha sustains his life from moment to moment throughout its natural duration. When he dies, the impulse of Tanha is carried on by the law of cause and effect, and with it the potential of his actions and mental tendencies, and these give rise to another birth in whatever sphere of existence is most suitable for manifestation of the particular tendencies he has developed. Wherever we look we find ~vidences of this law of cause and effect, based upon volitional actions and pr~ispositions, which is called in Buddhism ‘kamma”. This Buddhist Kamma and Rebirth will be dealt with more comprehen~v4Ay on coming pages.
It is the natural law that anything that exists must come to an end, as stated before, nothing in the universe is stable and nothing is pe~rmanent. So, the third stage of the investigation into the nature of life brings us to the realisation that Dukkha (suffering) also can be brought to an end. This is the third of the Four Noble Truths, also called Dukkha Nirodha (cessation of suffering). But, there can be no cessation of suffering so long as there is personal existence; that is to say, so long as there is the continual arising of Nama-Rupa (mental and physical constituents) due to volitional activity motivated by craving the cycle of suffering must continue. Therefore, the state in which there is no suffering consiousness must be entirely free from these constituents of personality it must be beyond all possibility of the risingof birth, disease, old age, disease death which are inseparably connected with individual personality. That is why Nibbana is“Cessation”; it is the ceasing of all these elements and utter destruction ofthat which binds them together. When the Arahat passes away at the end of his final existence the particular chain of causation that has connected his former birth is broken because he has of his own intention put
in and to craving while he was still in the flesh.
As for the 4}~ature of Nibbana, nothing can he said for the obvicus reason that it is a state utterly imlike anything the mind can conceive or that words can describe. Our language deals entirely with the phenomenon known to us through our senses; it is bounded and confined by this relative world of subject and object relationship and has no terms of reference for any state where in these do not exist; no words can give a pictu~ of it. But, this at least we know; it is possible to attain it in this very life-time and to experience the passion. The state of Nibbana is not a vague promise that must wait u~~al after death for its flilfilment, but an actuality that can be known in this very life-time. We are not asked to take it on trust- we are invited to seek and find it for ourselves. The Buddha has declared emphatically that each individual must seek out his own liberation; the Budare the teachers who can only show the way: Turnhehi kiccam atappam, akkhataro tathakata. Reaffirming this point in the Dhammap ada Buddha observes: Yo ca vassasatam jive, apassam amatam padam. Ekahamjivitam seyyo, passato amatam padam. This means “It is better for a person to live only for a day to see Nibbana than to live a hundred years
not to see Nibbana.
According to the late Mahathama Gamdhi, the god-father of the Indian Independence, Nibbana is undoubtedly not utter extinction. “As far as I understand”, he says, ‘~he central fact of Buddha’s life, Nibbana, is utter extinction of all that is base in us, all that is vicious in us, all that is corrupt and corruptible in us. Nibbana is not like the black, dead peace of the grave, but the lwm~~g peace, the living happiness of a soul which is conscious of itself and which is conscious ofhaving found its
own abode in the heart ofthe EternaL”
The following remarks on Nibbana by Sayadaw U Thitthila, Aggamahapandita and Patthamagyaw of Burma at the conclusion of his article entitled “The Fundamental principles of Buddhism,” are most interesting:’~ibbana is the resuft of the cessation of
craving, or selfish desire.
It may also be defined as the extinction of lust, hatred and ignorance. The pali word Nibbana is formed of’~i” and ana”. Ni is a negative particle and Vana means craving for selfish desire. Nibbana therefore literally means the absence of craving. The Sanscrit word Nirvana comes from e root Va which means to blow, and the prefix Nir which means or out Hence, Nibban~~ its Sanscrit form means ‘~he blowing out.” ft is understood to mean
the blowing out of the flame of personal desire.
The predominance of the negative explanation of Nibbana resufted in the mistaken notion that is ‘nothingness” or “annihilation” However, in the I)itakaswe find many positive definitions ofNibbana such as highest reflige, safety, unique, absolute purity, supra-mundane, security, emancipation, peace and the like. Nibbana is, therefore, not a negative concept because it is the cessation of craving, a “1)lowing out” for it is a blowing out of man’s desires, and that blowing out of desires leaves a man free. Nibbana is freedom, but not freedom form circumstances, it is freedom from the bonds with which we have bound ourselves to circumstances. That man is free who is strong enough to say ‘~whatever comes! I accept as best”
Freedom does not mean that one can do everything that can be imagined, that one can defeat a lion with a slap of the hand. Freedom to do anything we wish is not freedom, for that means a return to the bondage of our wishes, our desires. Freedom means that one cannot be made a slave to anyone or anything, because one is free from person freedom, free from resentment, anger, pride, fear, impatience-free from all craving. Such a man’s binding emotions have been blown out like so many candles. That man is free here on earth. He has reached Nibbana in this world.
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