Peaceful Buddhism
By
Aung Koe (Dhammapala)
There have been no disasters or war attributable to Buddhism. Buddhism is widely recognized and accepted as the most peaceful religion of the world.
The Buddha taught His disciples over 45 years, producing altogether 84000 verses of Dharma compiled as the Sutras, the Vinaya, and the Abhidhamma, the Buddhist Triple-Canon. The Sutras are the collection of teachings about how to live harmoniously with others in this life and how to liberate the suffering of the endless cycle of rebirth (dukkha-saṃsāra), taught in specific ways to be understood by disciples in varying locations and circumstances. The Vinaya is the rules and regulations for the monastic community (sangha), to be held strictly. Abhidhama is the most detailed phenomenal teaching on body and mind and their relationships. But all the Buddha's teaching can be summarized in three points (in Pāli language):
“Sabba pāpassa akaraṇaṃ,
Kusalassa upasampadā,
Sacitta parirodapanaṃ,
Etaṃ buddhasāsanaṃ.”
Give up all evils,
Cultivate all Good,
Purify the mind,
This is the teaching of all Buddhas.
These are the main teachings of all Buddhas; performing good deeds and purifying one's mind are the vital tasks of Buddhism. Without reference to an almighty powerful one, Buddhism focus on the absolute truths of impermanence,(aniccā), suffering (dukkhā), and selflessness (anattā) in our own bodies and in the whole universe. For this reason Buddhism is totally based on practice rather than on blind faith in narrow ideas or beliefs.
One of the six qualities of Dharma, ehipassika, “Come See,” welcomes everyone to ask whatever questions they have before they undertake to follow His Dharma. Thereby Buddhism welcomes people of both high and low intellect. And thereby His teachings conform to a standard of reason and rationality, based on the ultimate truth. In Buddhism there are three essential steps of, Sīla, Samādhi, and Pañña, which comprehend the whole of Buddhist practice.
Sīla is foundational to the two higher levels of Samādhi and Paññā. Sīla, or virtue, is comprised in its simplest form of five precepts; 1-refrain from killing any sentient being, 2-refrain from stealing others' property, 3-refrain from sexual misconduct, 4-refrain from telling what is not true, and 5-refrain from using any intoxicant. Without keeping these five precepts diligently, one could not achieve Samādhi, the state of concentrated, cultivated or tamed mind, and likewise without Sīla, and Samādhi, one could not gain Paññā, wisdom, or knowledge of the absolute truth. Buddhism points out that in order to break a precept, one cannot have a tame or wise mind. For example, one could not commit theft without greed (lobha), or craving in one’s mind and one could not kill without anger (dosa), greed and delusion (moha).
All wrong doing, that is, unwholesome (akusala) actions, are rooted in some combination of lobha, dosa and moha. Through the commitment to abstain from killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying and intoxication, people coexist together harmoniously and peacefully in this world. This art of harmonious way of living in turn tends to weaken and ultimately eliminate the roots of loba, dosa, and moha. When the five precepts are kept these roots start to wither.
In this way, we can achieve inner peace through Sīla, virtue . When we achieve inner peace, the whole environment is peaceful. If everyone kept Sīla the whole world would be peaceful and harmonious. Based on Sīla, we can all go on to practice Samādhi, meditation, to purify the mind and to bring it under control, and through the concentrated tamed mind we can achieve Paññā, that is, see through absolute truth of matter and mind which allows us to remove the last vestiges of self-centered and biased thought.
The Buddha put great emphasis on loving kindness (mettā) toward others. Mettā, comes from empathy, putting oneself in other people’s shoes, treating others how you want and expect to be treated. Hatred, the opposite of mettā, will never end if left to itself. Buddha taught;
“Idha verena verāni kudācanaṃ na hi sammanti
Averena ca sammanti esa sanantano dhammo”
Hatred never ceases through hatred in this world;
Through love alone does it cease. This is an eternal law.
Treasury of Truth, Dhammapada, Ven. Weradoda Sarada Thero pp. 71-72.
Those who attempt to conquer hatred by hatred are like warriors who take up weapons, but this ancient wisdom advocated a different strategy, to meet hatred with non-hatred. The method of trying to conquer hatred through hatred never succeeds, but, that of overcoming hatred through non-hatred is eternally effective. That is what makes that method eternal wisdom. War can never end through further wars. Enmity never ends by returning enmity for enmity. Only by giving up anger, enmity, quarreling and war can these evils be stopped. It is through friendliness, forgiving and forgetting that enmity ceases.
Buddha discovered a universal truth with His insight knowledge of the enlightened mind over 2500 years ago in India. His teaching called Dharma or Dhamma.
“The Dharma which the Buddha realized and taught may be translated as the Noble Truth, because it shows us the reality of our existence and helps us lead a respectable harmless life to find liberation. Dharma is formed from root ‘ Dhar’ which mean ‘Support or hold up’. Therefore it means the absolute truth on which rests the working of the entire universe. Knowledge of this truth eradicates ignorance and therefore will help us to be free from fear and superstition. It frees us to work out our salvation. It prevents us from falling into unfortunate states of existence both in this world or the next where we can be born as animals, unhappy spirits such as hungry ghosts and so on. But do not forget, we need not wait to die to experience these states-even when we are alive as human we can display anger, hatred, greed, jealously and descend into these levels. When we develop strong mental habits with these defilements as their base, we manifest them at death and are ‘reborn’ in these lower states. An understanding of these processes, which is Dharma, will prevent us from going to unfortunate states of suffering and from repeated birth and death. As you can see, Dharma has very little to do with ‘religion’ as a system of beliefs, rituals and priests. It is truly a way to train and purify the mind.” (Why we should practice Buddhism, K Sri Dr Dhammananda, p. 2)
In this respect, Buddhism around the world represents finding truth, by keeping moral ethic, Sīla, practicing meditation to gain concentration, Samādhi and promoting to gain insight knowledge of ultimate truth, Paññā.
It is notable that these days the more science advance the more the truths of Buddhism are revealed.
Albert Einstein wrote;
“The religion of the future will be a cosmic religion. It should transcend
a personal god and avoid dogmas and theology. Covering both the
natural and the spiritual, it should be based on a religious sense arising
from the experience of all things, natural and spiritual and a meaningful unity.
Buddhism answers this description. If there is any religion that would cope with modern scientific needs, it would be Buddhism.”
“Buddhism is the Religion of the Future”(Albert Einstein, 1941)
“May the sublime Dhamma prevail in its pristine purity in the world.”
Aung Koe (Dhammapala)
Sitagu Dhamma Vihara
1519 County C East,
Maplewood, MN 55109.
May 16, 2011 Buddha Day (1337 Kason Fullmoonday)
