BACK.....
Does Religion Hinder Human Progress?
Many scientists, great thinkers and philosophers have adopted a hostile attitude towards religion. They say religion hinder the progress of mankind and misleads them by introducing ridiculous, superstitious beliefs and practices which keep people blinded to scientific facts. But when we ascertain how they define religion, we can understand that Buddhism does not belong to those religious groups.
Therefore, from the intellectuals’ own point of view, Buddhism is clearly a scientific religion and cannot be dismissed on superstitious grounds. What is more, the Buddha revealed not only the man-made truth, but the absolute spiritual truth as well. If indeed there is truth, it will remain forever as truth. If any truth is changeable under any conditions, then it is certainly not the absolute truth. This is why the truth as revealed by the Buddha is called the noble truth - the truth which leads man to be a noble person.
There will always remain a noble, righteous way of life
which is strong enough to face any intellectual and scientific challenge.
In this respect, the Buddha’s message is unshakeable. Intellectuals will
surely respect to this way of life if they only understand what the Buddha
really taught. Whether religious labels exist or not, the teaching of the
Buddha will continue to prevail as a noble way of perfecting life. The
essentials of the teaching are set in place. Even with the passing of time,
people will not need to change it.
A Liberal Religion
Another important point which the Buddha taught is how to live, work and co-operate with the followers of other religions without disturbing or ridiculing their practices. This liberal and understanding style of religion is very important if we are to live peacefully without religious prejudices, strife and conflicts. The Buddha’s message of peace and tolerance is indeed remarkable. Tolerance is a glorious virtue. It is essential for the peaceful co-existence of different peoples anywhere and any time.
A Religion of Freedom
The freedom that the followers of the Buddha enjoy is commendable. In fact, many Buddhists have not even realised this themselves. We have full freedom to judge and to think for ourselves whether to accept or to reject anything. We are not bound to accept anything in the name of religion, either simply by thinking of the greatness of a particular religious teacher or by thinking that it is our bounded duty to accept the words of holy scriptures or the ways of ancient traditions.
Buddhists are at liberty to investigate for themselves and accept or reject any proposition in accordance to their own conviction, based on sensible reason. Buddhists never say that they are forbidden to do this or that. They simply say that they dislike doing something because it creates some troubles, miseries, pain or disturbance amongst the masses. Conversely, they practise certain good deeds not because their religion asks them to do so, but because they themselves have come to realise the value and meaning of such good deeds for the welfare of themselves and others.
This is a religion of personal freedom which never restricts
the affairs of individuals so long as they are not immoral or harmful.
Buddhists are granted full freedom to organise their family affairs in
keeping with basic religious principles. For intellectuals as well,
this religion is like a gold mine in which to conduct meaningful research
on the deeper aspects of psychology, philosophy, science and the universal
law. Buddhism holds the greatest wealth for humankind and the ultimate
key to our spiritual development and liberation from unsatisfactoriness
and unrest. This is why for more than 2500 years Buddhism has managed to
convince the masses in many parts of the world without support of political
powers. In the time of the Buddha, people welcomed and invited His teaching
as a goodwill message of peace and harmony worthy to be spread around the
world. This is why Buddhists have introduced their religion without any
difficulty and without resorting to any kind of exploitation or violence.
Buddha Preached through His Own
Experience
This is the only religion which explains things based on the human experience, realisation, wisdom and enlightenment of its founder, and never as divine revelation or commandment dictated by a god. It affirms that human problems must be understood by fellow human beings through their own experience and by developing altruistic virtues. Solutions to problems have got to be found through the purification and development of the human mind. It is therefore easy to understand why some people say that Buddhism is not a religion at all, but humanism. Yet humanism is the beginning of every religion. Buddha did not introduce Himself as a supernatural saviour. He did not acknowledge the existence of any saviour. According to Him, only we can save ourselves.
Such an attitude makes Buddhism the least dogmatic of
all religions. The Buddha explained the nature of suffering, the cause
of suffering, and how to get rid of suffering. He also explained the nature
of bliss which people can experience when they free themselves from
suffering. External forces cannot bring freedom. Bliss comes only if people
work for it.
Three Characteristics
The three characteristics of everything in this universe are clearly explained only in this religion. They are the impermanency of everything, the unsatisfactories of everything, and the impersonality or unsubstantiality of everything. This is the most remarkable discovery of the Buddha. But due to the ignorance or limited mental capacity of mankind, very few people can comprehend such a lofty and sublime teaching.
Cause of Our Problems
Another important aspect of this religion is the explanation of the main cause of human problems and sufferings. According to the Buddha, we face the problems of this mundane world due to the strong selfish craving which exists in our minds. He has revealed that there are three kinds of craving forces in our minds. These are:- craving for existence, craving for worldly or sensual indulgence, and craving for non-existence. These three cravings are responsible for our existence, our rebirth, and all the thousands of other problems and mental disturbances. To understand the profound meaning of Buddha’s interpretation, it has to be considered very carefully and wisely. Only then can realisation come.
World famous philosophers and psychologists have also explained these three forces, but they used different terms. The German writer Arthur Schopenhauer explained these three forces as sexuality, self-preservation and suicide. The Austrian psychologist Sigmund Freud explained these same things as libido, ego instinct and death instinct. It was Freud’s famed student Carl Iung who said, “From the sources of instinct spring forth everything creative”.
This is the way great intellectuals are prepared to support
the truth revealed by the Buddha twenty-five centuries ago. But when we
study the explanations of these modern thinkers we can see that the Buddha
went far beyond their limited understanding capacity.
The Cause of Suffering:
Questions and Answers
It is evident that the world is full of various kinds
of sufferings such as death, decay, sorrow, lamentation, pain, despair,
etc. The Buddha pointed out that birth (jati) brings forth sufferings.
If there is no birth, there is no scope for suffering.
Q: Why is there birth?
A: The sub~conscious process of becoming as a combination of mind and body
(Nama-rupa) (bhava) causes birth. In other words, where there is bhava, there is birth.
Q: What leads to
the formation of the combination of body and mind?
A: Thoughts grasped by Tanha or craving (upadana) lead to the formation of Karmic tendencies and lead to the mind-body combination.
Q: What leads to
clinging?
A: Craving (tanha) leads to clinging.
Q: What produces
craving?
The Cause of Suffering: Questions and Answers 33
A: Craving is produced by sensations or feeling (vedana).
Q: What generates
feeling?
A: It is the contact (of the senses with their objects) which generates feeling.
Q: Why is there such
contact?
A: The six sense-bases (salayatana) are the causes of contact.
Q: How do the six sense-bases
come into being?
A: Psycho-physical combinations (nama-rupa) brings forth the six sense-bases.
Q: How do the psycho-physical
combinations come into being?
A: With the appearance of inactive or passive consciousness (vinnana or vipaka citta) the psycho-physical combinations come into being.
Q: How does passive
consciousness appear?
A: It is the outcome of latent Karmic energies (sanhhara).
Q: How do Karmic energies
(sanhhara) appear?
A: Their appearence depends ‘upon ignorance (avijja) which is a facet of Tanha.
Thus it is apparent that ignorance (avijja) is at the base of the whole process of birth or origination. However, this beginning cannot be taken as a ‘prima cause’, a metaphysical cause or as a cosmogenic principle; but as a condition under which development takes place. In dependence upon the one, another may arise. In fact this is a conditional arising ‘paticca samuppada’. The entire phenomenon is a series called the cycle of existence or ‘bhava cakka’. Any link can be combined with any other. These links (i.e. ignorance, karmic energies, etc. ) are known as the twelve spokes of the wheel of existence.
Further, these spokes are linked with the past, present
and future in succession or series. In the background of past life, ignorance
and karmic energies are found. Within the sphere of the present life there
are Reactive types of consciousness, psycho-physical combinations, the
six sense-bases, contact, sensation, craving, clinging, formation of karmic
tendencies. In the future are seen the re-birth and attendant sufferings.
Thus the cycle of existence of being is
linked with the periods of past, present and future.
It goes on.
Here we have a religion in which we can find true religious principles which can be maintained without changing the essential ideas and principles at any time, anywhere, under any circumstances. Yet, the capacity of humans to value these religious ideas may well disappear in course of time. Man is likely to experience difficulty in practising these principles while living in a corrupted society. But the value of this precious golden discipline will remain and be appreciated by understanding people everywhere.
lt is hoped that the explanations given here will serve as an appropriate answer to the question posed, “Why Buddhism?” - and why Buddhism is still so vitally needed especially in this modern era.
BACK TO FRONT.....