BUDDHISM AND THE TRUE VALUE OF REALITY
by Thich Tam Thiem
This is the discussion paper delivered at the conference on "Religion and
The Modern Way of Life", organized by the Catholic Solidarity Committee
at Hochiminh City in December 1996.
First of all, we would like to thank the Catholic Solidarity Committee of Hochiminh
City for inviting us to participate in the seminar on "The Religions Way
of Life in Modern Times". Today, as a Buddhist participant in this non
Buddhist conference, I would like to focus my discussion on one of the most
important, unique but also the most complex concepts in Buddhism. That is the
true value of living reality.
I- BUDDHISM AND THE CONCEPT OF RELIGION.
A- Man's search for the meaning of Religion :
In following and practicing any religion, first of all, one has to know what
that religion is all about and how it would guide him to his ultimate liberation.
Otherwise, the religious experience that he tries to realize will be a sheer
illusion and of course, there will be no real spiritual growth whatsoever.
In the noble but arduous attempt to understand what religion is all about, many
philosophers of religions, both ancient and modern, have tried very hard to
define religions, including Buddhism. But so far, their efforts have not been
very productive, especially in the case of Buddhism. Most of the definitions
of religion which have been often built on conceptual reasonings have been unable
to grasp the vastness, depth, and vitality of Buddhism. Before we come to a
tentative definition of Buddhism, I would like to reexamine some definitions
of religions by some of the most respected thinkers and / or from some of the
most reliable sources of knowledge in recent history.
+ Oxford Dictionary : "Religion - belief in the existence of god or gods
who has / have created the universe and given man a spiritual nature which continues
to exist after the death of the body... particular, system of faith and worship
based on such a belief..., controlling influence on one life ; something one
is devoted or committed to". (1)
+ Thomas Carlyle, the Scottish essayist and historian (1795 - 1881) : "Religion
is the thing a man does practically to heart and knows for certain, concerning
his vital relations to this mysterious universe and his duty and destiny therein"
(2)
+ J. S. Mill, the English philosopher and economist (1806 - 1873) : "The
essence of religion is the strong and earnest direction of the conditions and
desires towards an ideal object recognized as of the highest excellence, and
as rightly paramount over all selfish objects of desire". (3)
+ Aldous Huxley, the English novelist (1894 - 1963) : "Religion is, among
many other things, a system of education, by means of which human beings may
train themselves, first to make desirable changes in their own personalities
and, at one remove, in society, and, in the second place, to heighten consciousness
and so establish more adequate relations between themselves". (4)
+ Fiedrich Engels, the German socialist (1820 - 1895) : "Religion is nothing
but the fantastic reflection in men's minds of those external forces which control
their early life". (5)
+ Sir. Edwin Ray Lankester (1847 - 1929) : "Religion means the knowledge
of our destiny and of the means of fulfilling it. We can say no more and no
less of science". (6)
+ Alfred North whitehead, the English mathematician and philosopher (1861-1947)
: "Religion is what the individual does with his own solitude. If you are
never solitary, you are never religious" (7)
There are two trends of thoughts in the above statements. First is the trend
in which religion is defined as the moral and ethical system that man can recognize
and understand with his reasoning mind. Second is the trend in which religion
is presented as a miraculous mode of existence which requires man's direct perceptions
and reflections. Besides these two trends of thoughts, there is the third one
which is based purely on reason. American political philosopher Thomas Paine
(1737 - 1809) represented this school with his saying at the last moment of
his life : "The world is my country, mankind are my brotherhood and to
do good is my religion". (8) Last is the case of modern Indian philosophy.
Many Indian philosophers proclaimed that religion is not a series of profound
theological doctrines but an inner experience derived from man's direct recognition
of the divine existing in him.
Regardless of that these definitions of religions are different and contradictory,
they share one common ground. That is the emphasis and embrace of loving-kindness
as the highest religious value as Thomas Paine eloquently and succinctly declared
: "To do good is my religion". (9)
B. The Buddhist definition of Religion.
D.T. Suzuki, the well known Japanese Zen master and Buddhist scholar once said
: "Buddhism is a religion that refuses to be objectively defined, for this
will be setting a limit to the growth of its spirit". (10a) However, if
Buddhism has to be defined, in any case, we should then first examine what Buddhism
has to say about man and his world, both at the conceptual level and the deep
psychological one. At the conceptual level according to Buddhism, language and
logical thinking can only be used to observe and analyse the surface of the
human world and the universe. They can deal only with the manifestation of the
physiognomy. On the contrary, at the deep psychological level ; the spiritual
experience is an implicit hermeneutical struture. It transcends the monistic,
dualistic and pluralistic world. It goes beyond all linguistic formations because
it is invisible and formless. It belongs to the realm of metaphysics. This does
not suggest that Buddhism tries to lead man into the world of fantasies filled
with "incense mist". Buddhism only aims to cut through the logical
thingking of man's ego and shows him a way to get in touch with the divine nature
or the Buddha nature in himself.
D. T. Suzuki then put forward his definition of Buddhism which, he argued, must
be that of the life-force which carries forward a spiritual movement called
Buddhism.(10b) Suzuki 's definition of Buddhism means that from the Buddhist
point of view religion can never be discussed without any refenence to the spiritual
realm and / or the inner experience of the individual involved. It should be
made clear that here, according to Buddhism, returning to the primordial essence
of man or the true nature does not mean an advocacy of egocentrism. On the contrary,
it means, in order to take the first step to return to the primordial essence
of man, first and foremost, man must completely cast off all the attributes
of his ego, namely his infatuated feelings, solid attachment, sensuous desire,
mental formations such as "I", "mine" and "myself".
Neither does the return to the inner spiritual experience means non-egocentrism.
According to Buddhism, precisely at the moment that one get in touch with his
devine nature, he establishes in himself an ultimate reality which by nature
is essential, original, and eternal - This is called Tathata (Suchness) or Buddha
nature which is an everlasting, living stream of present consciousness.
As a consequence, Buddhism is not the faith that one has to accept blindly.
Neither is it a series of sacred principles that are created, transmitted to
man's soul and guided by some mysterious power from outside. It is the teachings
that show us the path to reach enlightenment through our inner individual experience.
In Dhammapada, Lord Buddha said : "Like earth, a balanced and well disciplined
person results not. He is comparable to an Indakhila. Like a pool unsullied
by mud, is he, to such a balanced one life's wandering do not arise". (11)
II- BUDDHISM - ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR RELIGIONS OF THE MODERN WORLD
Albert Einstein, the famous German physicist, in his Testament wrote that :
"The religion of the future will be a cosmic religion. It should transcend
a person God and avoid dogmas and theology. Covering both the natural and spiritual,
it should be based on a religious sense, arising from the experience of all
things, natural and spiritual, as a meaningful unity. Buddhism answers this
description". (12) How will Buddhism be understood through this inclusive
and thoughtful statement of one of the greatest scientists of the 20th century
?
A. Buddhism - The Religion Which Transcends A Person God, Dogmas, and Theology
and The Doctrine of Dependent Origination and The Doctrine of Cause and Effects.
In essence, Buddhism is a system of teachings which shows us the way to return
to our primordial nature or our true nature. Once standing on the ground of
our true nature, we will recognize the true nature of other human existences
as well as other existing beings around us like bird, stone, branch of tamarind
tree. This is the interdependent relations or the Dependent Origination of the
reality. Simultaneously, with the realization of his true nature and those of
other existing beings, man also realizes that, it is his volitional actions
that create and shape his own destiny-as Lord Buddha said : "Owner of their
karma are the beings, heirs of their karma, the karma is their womb from which
they are born, their karma is their friend, their refuge". (13) In Dhammapada,
Lord Buddha also taught us : "By oneself alone is evil done, by oneself
alone is evil avoided, by oneself alone is one purified. Purity and impurity
depend on oneself. No one can purity another". (Attanaø 'va katam
paøpam, attanaø sankilissati, attanaø akatam paøpam,
attanaø 'va visujjhati ; suddhi asuddhi asuddhi paccattam naønno
annam visodhage) (14) This sugests that The Buddha did not recognize any super
natural power which exerted over control human life. In Buddhism, man is the
only sentient being who has volitional actions. He has to harvest and accept
the consequences of these actions and, doing so, he lives his own fate...
The doctrine of causes and effects in Buddhism asserts that both good karma
and bad karma are the end results of man 's psychological and physical actions
; and that through the relation of cause and effect, man establishes his own
karma with his good and evil actions. It also affirms that man has the potential
capacities to liberate himself from the life which he has created and lived
with his own psychological attitude and actions accumulated in successive previous
lives ; that is the orientated biological causation.
As a consequence, the doctrine of causes and effects awakens in man the inner
power which makes him to be himself and transforms him into his own creator
with responsibilities and obligations. In other words, the doctrine of causes
and effects liberates man from the ruling power of person God, dogmas and theology.
Once liberated, man would understand that he has to be responsible for all the
consequences of his own psychological states and volitional actions and should
not look for any salvation outside himself. St. Paul 's famous statement that
: If Christ be not raised in you, your faith is vain, ye are yet in your sins"
(15) - seems to acknowledge man 's self liberating power (once he is aware of
the causes and effects of his own actions).
B. Buddhism - The Religion Which Comprises Both The Natural and Spiritual ;
and The Doctrine of Sunyaøta.
If Buddhism cuts through the natural world with prism of Dependent Origination
(paticcasamuppaø - anatta), it illuminates the metaphysical world by
spot lighting at the latter 's emptiness (Sunyaøta). The metaphysical
world is empty because it does not reside in forms and sounds and goes beyond
all appearances (Buddhist terms called Naõma - Ruõpa : mentality
and corporeality). It is in the realm of non-dualism (Asunyataø-Abhaøvaø).
As discussed above, in Buddhism, the process of becoming (Bhava) and existence
of human beings and nature is viewed as the operation of a myriad interconnecting
causations and conditions (yakti). In this intricate operation, there is no
single object that can live independently, without being interconnected with
its surrounding, and / or in disharmony with its constituents.
On this irrefutable interconnecting conditions of the human and natural world,
Buddha said :
"No God, no Brahma can be found
No matter of this wheel of life
Just bare phenomena roll
Dependent on Conditions all" (16)
In other words, there is no prime force which sets in motion the operation of
the human and natural world. This is the foundation of doctrine of Paticcasamuppaø
- anatta, which consists of the teachings of non-ego (pudgalanairaõtmya)
and non-substantiality of things (dharmanairatmya). It is also called the doctrine
of Sunyata or Emptiness.
As a philosophical concept, Sunyata (Emptiness or E'tat de vacuiteù)
is the nature of the original reality, or the absolute reality. Man recognizes
and is conscious of Sunyata when he becomes one with the absolute reality. However,
it is important to note that Sunyata is not the opposite of substantiality like
the Have not versus the Have or the Negative (asat) versus the Affirmative (sat).
Neither does it mean a complete absence of content. In trying to understand
the Buddhist concept of Sunyata, many people tend to turn to logical reasoning
and different sets of opposite categories and subcategorizes such as "to
be" or "not to be" to define it with the irsecular philosophical
mind - set. However, in doing so, they are entangled in an endless web of dualistic
concepts such as to be (bhava) not to be (abhava), birth or death, permanence
or impermanence, coming or going without directly experiencing or living with
the original and ultimate Reality which exists right in this very life. Lord
Buddha taught us that, all phenomenon (dharma) do not have a true self (svabhava)
; neither birth or death that is pure and Tathata by nature or it is Sarvadharmaøsuønyataø
(all is Emptiness). Consequently, Sunyata and Tathata are the same. They are
omnipresent and everlasting.
Following is the examination of the concept of Sunyata according to the Mahayana
Buddhist philosophy of knowledge-only (Prajnaøtimatra).
First, Sunyata is the true nature of dharma or the existing substantiality.
When man recognizes the entirely of Sunyata, he becomes enlightened. Saying
that does not mean to negate the existing substantiality or the world of phenomena,
but to affirm that man or the subject which recognizes and the world or the
object which is recognized are created, and exist in a great number of causes
and effects systems. They are not independent and self contained entities. They
are non-entities. According to The Buddhist philosophy of Knowledge-Only, in
Buddhism all existing beings has three natures :
- Temporary nature (Parikalpita - svabhava)
- Dependent nature (Paratantra - svabhava)
- Absolute nature (Parinispanna - svabhava)
1. Temporary Nature :
Ordinarily, man has a habitual tendency to control and to posses the objective
world. This is resulted in the idea that the world are made up of living independent
objects. But in reality, these object do not have any intrinsic attribute. Their
nature is emptiness and no-self. So the so called independent nature that men
imposed on the world is called the temporary nature. The temporary nature is
formed in the process of interaction between man 's senses which are determined
by his physical and psychological make up and the objective world. In Buddhist
terms man 's physical and psychological make up is called Skandhas (five aggregates
of body), AØyatana (six spheres of sense organs), and Dhatus (body remains).
2. The Dependent Nature :
Although the temporary nature is unreal, it does not suggest that thing are
not actually existing. The key issure here is to explain and illustrate the
process of becoming of things.
And yet this process of becoming is made up of the consequences of paticcasamuppaøda
or interconnecting causations. Therefore the nature of the process of becoming
of things is impermanent, ever changing, and self annihilating (anitya - uccheda).
This view of the objective world refuses all man 's attempts to reduce the world
into an individual, unique and self contained entity. It also rejects the theories
of "Chances" and "Coincidences" which advocates the simplistic
and mechanical operation of the material world. As a result, if one rejects
the dependent nature of the world, he will automatically and inevitably become
the victim of nihilism. And he also rejects the reality which is actually becoming
through the operation of the myriad of interconnecting condition.
3. The Absolute Nature :
Existing beings are Tathata (Suchness) because by nature, they do not have temporary
natures in themselves. Neither do they have the dependent nature in themselves
because the dependent nature consists of series of causes and effects and by
nature is non substantiality. That is to say they are empty. As a result, at
the level of language and logical thinking what we call the inherent nature
of things never really exist. It is non-self or Anatta.
In summation, of the three natures of things. The temporary nature to shows
that by nature the world is empty, the dependent nature illustrates that man
and his world are dependently originated and the absolute nature asserts that
the Tathata essence or Nirvana exists right in physical and psychological world,
not in any other worlds regardless of how fantastically this other world is
imagined. As a result to experience the Emptiness of the world one has no other
way except to live or to merge with the three natures of the existing world.
This is the actual process of living with reality and attaining the Enlightenment
in the Buddhist prajnaõptimaøtra philosophy
III. BUDDHISM - THE RELIGION FOR SPIRITUAL AND RATIONAL WHOLENESS
To practice Buddhism is to lead a way of life with the motto : "Not to
do evil, to do good, to purity one's mind". The Buddha's enlightenment
is the end of the spiritual journey, full of hardships and deprivations. It
was the supreme will power and the extraordinary energy which has transformed
Prince Siddhartha from a man with a deep religious consciousness and a wholesome
life into a Buddha. Buddha is the sentient being who had reached enlightenment
and obtained great wisdom.
Therefore, it is necessary to affirm that it is the inner experience of each
individual that would lead him to the supreme enlightenment and that enlightenment
is the moment that the supreme wisdom or The Boddhicitta in one individual blossoms
and radiates to all sentient and natural beings. Lord Buddha said that : All
sentient beings can become Buddha. On the path to enlightenment, one has to
light the torch and hold it to show the way for himself ; in the ocean of samsara
(Cycles of life), each individual has to be an isolated island ; I, Tathagata
is merely a teacher in principle. (17).
According to Buddhism, the religious consciousness and the inner individual
experience are the two extremely important factors in man 's path to his enlightenment.
They are the keys which control man's thinking and action in his relations with
the outside world. As a result, consciousness or mind is always the bases of
Buddhist training. Buddha said : "Mind is the forerunner of all (evil condition)
- Mind is chief ; and they are mind - made. If, with an impure mind, one speaks
or acts, then pain follows one even as the wheel, the hoof of the Ox".
"... If, with a pure mind, one speaks or acts, then happiness follows one
even as the shadow that never leaves" (Manopubhanga ; manasaø le
padutthena, bhaøsati vaø karoti vaø, tato nam dukkhamanveti,
cakkam 'va vahato padam... manaøsa le pasannena, bhaøsati vaø
karoti vaø, tato nam sukhamanveti, chaøyaø 'va anapaøyinì".
(18)
(Yamakavagga)
To lead a Buddhist way of life, whether it is to cultivate faith in Buddha or
to take refuge the three jewels, man has to have the correct consciousness or
the pure mind. The Buddhist term for this is Ehipasiko, which means "Come
and recognize". Buddhism does not teach man to believe in, obey and worship
anything that he does not know or cannot recognize ; the term Ehipasiko also
implies the inner experience of enlightenment that is only known by the individual
himself. In a Buddhist life, not the idol of worship but man is the most important
matter. As a result, a real Buddhist has to develop for himself a life of religious
sense and an inner spiritual experience. The combination of these two elements
will ultimately give rise to the absolute truth or the spiritual value. With
them, one will develop the omniscient mind which rises above all delusions and
defilements. Only then, a life - force will surge from within and brilliantly
radiate into the world. This inner life-force will fearlessly and gladly receive
any infringements and not be hindered by any obstacles. On the path to reach
the highest perfection in the spiritual life, each step forward is a belittlement
of the ego. Only when one reaches a totally egoless state, Nirvana will rise
in his life and right in this world.
To conclude this paper I would like to read Venerable Thich Thien Sieu 's statement
about Nirvana : "Nirvana is something which outrightly rejects the ego.
Nirvana is indefinite and spaceless. It is very difficult to enter Nirvana because
it is formless (Aristaka). To enter Nirvana, we must also be as formless as
Nirvana. The entrance to Nirvana is very narrow. It is as thin as hair feather,
so thin that we cannot go through it, if we still carry our possessions with
us, be it our body, our concept of the "I" and the "ego".
The bigger our ego becomes, the further we will be away from Nirvana. So it
is ruled that ego will lead to Samsara ; non-ego to Nirvana" (19)
Thank you.
Notes :
(1) OXFORD Advanced Learner's Dictionary, Jonathan Crowther, Oxford University
Press, New York, 1992, p. 762.
(2) Why Religion ?, K. Sri. Dhammananda, The Buddhist Missionary Society, Kuala
Lumpur, 1966, p. 06.
(3) Ibid, p. 06.
(4) Ibid, p. 06.
(5) Ibid, p. 07.
(6) Ibid, p. 07.
(7) Ibid, p. 07.
(8) Ibid, p. 08.
(9) One should be cautions about the do-goodlism that Thomas paine advocated
here. Not all the people who do good are religious. Further more, doing good
does not mean the same thing to different nations, peoples and races. Taking
the issue of family planing by modern medical devices for instance. It may mean
loving kindness to some but unkindness to others.
(10a and b) Essay in Zen Buddhism, D. T. Suzuki, Vol I, p. 53.
(11) reference omitted
(12) Extracted from, Ñaïi Cöông Trieát Hoïc
Phöông Ñoâng, Haø Thuùc Minh - Minh Chi,
Tröôøng Ñaïi Hoïc Toång Hôïp,
TP. Hoà Chí Minh, HCMC, 1994, p. 10.
(13) Majjhima Nikaya. 135, from Buddhist Dictionary Manual of Buddhist Terms
and Doctrines, Nyanatikola, Frewin & Co. Ltd. Colombo, Ceylon, 1972, p.
77.
(14) Dhammapada, Thích Minh Chau, Buddhist Institute of Hochiminh City,
1990, p. 97.
(15) Essay in Zen Buddhism, D. T. Suzuki, Vol I, p. 57.
(16) The Path of Purification, Bhadantacariya Buddha-Gkosa, translated from
the Pali, Comlombo, Ceylon, 1956.
(17) In Nikaya and Mahayana Sutras.
(18) Dhammapada, Naørada, Vajiraøraøma, Colombo, 1962.
(19) Nirvana is Non-self, Thich Thien Sieu, Buddhist Institute of Vietnam, Hochiminh
City, 1990, Statement quoted on the back cover. (Ven, Thich Thien Sieu is the
Head of the Buddhist Central Educational Committee in Vietnam).