PREFACE

The most vocal sentiment of our present age has been, without doubt, the call for freedom. Perhaps at no time in the history of mankind, so much as at present, has the cry for freedom sounded so widely and so urgently. Never before has it penetrated so deeply into the fabric of human existence. Consequent to human being's pursuit of freedom, far-reaching changes have been produced in almost every sphere of human activity, political, social, cultural and religious. The European empires which once spread over the earth, engulfing the continents in its grasp like a huge mythical octopus have crumbled and disintegrated, as the peoples over whom they reigned have risen up to repossess their motherlands, in the name of independence, freedom and self-rule.

Old political forms such as monarchy and autocracy have given way to democracy, government by the people. Every person demands the right to contribute his or her voice to the direction of collective life. Long standing social institutions such as slavery, feudalism and caste-system that kept human beings entrapped since dawn of history, have now largely disappeared or are rapidly disappearing. Accounts of liberation movements of one sort or another fill the daily headlines of our newspapers and crowd the pages of our popular journals.

In this situation, it is imperative that an attempt is made to arrive at a more accurate grasp of the human situation in its full depth and breadth. It is necessary to turn our minds and hearts in a new direction. It must be a direction compatible with the new understanding of the need for spiritual freedom. One that brings light and peace rather than strife and distress.

As lay people, we must be vigilant so that in our pursuit of worldly goals such as wealth, pleasure, and success we do not lose sight of our spiritual goal.
Scientific and technological advancement has brought about widespread changes in the lifestyle of modern human beings. Our attitudes, values, goals and ideals too have undergone radical change. Scientific knowledge regarding the nature and evolution of the universe, humanity, society, culture and civilization has unsettled many of the old beliefs and hypotheses and undermined the basis and authority of the theistic religious traditions. With the loss of respect for authority and tradition, the validity of moral values too came to be questioned. Continuous renewal of scientific knowledge and discoveries, which exposed traditional beliefs one after another as superstitious or mythical, gave a sense of superiority to modern knowledge.

During the last twenty-five centuries Buddhism has been a great civilizing force and a guiding principle for millions of people without any compulsion or coercion. It would be useful to see what wisdom Buddhism offers for self-adjustment under modern conditions and for healthy family and interpersonal relations. Though criticism is often leveled that Buddhism is a self-denying ascetic ideal, it should not be forgotten that Buddhism embraces in its community not only monks (bhikkhu) and nuns (bhikkhuni), but also male and female lay followers (upāsaka, upāsikā). The intellectual and disciplinary training of the laity is as important a concern in Buddhism as that of the clergy. Therefore Buddhism offers a social and a ethical philosophy, the goal of which is the creation of a society where human rights are safeguarded, human enterprise is the key to success, resources are well distributed and justice reigns supreme. Taken in its totality, Buddhism is not merely a religion or a philosophy, it is in fact a whole civilization, a full-fledged multi-faceted philosophy of life designed to meet the secular and spiritual needs of all mankind.

Even on first encounter itself, intellectually, Buddhism does not fail to confront many as a freethinker's delight, sober, realistic, undogmatic, almost scientific in its outlook and method. There are no rigid creeds or random speculation, but we do come upon religious ideals of renunciation, contemplation and devotion. Though Nibbāna means final liberation, while proceeding along the path to liberation, a Buddhist has to live in the world and deal with the conditions of worldly existence. This problem is likely to be felt especially acutely by the lay Buddhist, who may find that the demands and attractions of secular life tend to pull him or her away from the path to deliverance. But the Buddha was not unaware of or unconcerned about this dilemma confronted by his lay disciples. He gave it his very careful attention. He taught his lay followers how to organize lay life in accordance with the ethical principles of the Dhamma and how to lead successful lay lives without deviating from the path of righteousness.

A large number of books on Buddhism are available in the English language. However, most of these are far too exhaustive, too specialized, or too scholarly to be of much practical help to the uninstructed and the uninitiated or even the average busy Buddhist layman in search of concise guidance. A short, clear, and simple handbook on the basic teachings of the Buddha is therefore a much-felt need.

This book has been divided into two parts. Part I is a short elementary chapter dealing with fundamentals of the teachings of the Buddha. It is non-theoretical in emphasis. It attempts to fix in the reader's mind the essential principles of the Buddha's teaching in simple easily understandable language, without complicated and sophisticated explanations. The principles discussed in this chapter should serve as a framework that illuminates the meaning and purpose of the Buddhist life. To make the best use of our human potential, we need, not only a realistic aim in life, but also a tested and proven life plan for achieving that aim.

Part II of this book shows the groundwork for developing a proper sense of values, the values essential for gaining happiness, success, and security within the mundane life and for progressing towards the ultimate goal of the Buddhist path, Nibbāna. While we walk along the path to liberation, as laypeople, we have to live in the world, and our immediate objective will be to make our life in the world both a means to worldly success and a stepping-stone to final liberation.

To accomplish this, we must organize our life within the framework of the Noble Eightfold Path. We can best realize our immediate aims by drawing up an individual life plan in keeping with our abilities and circumstances. This life plan must be realistic. It must envisage a realistic development of our innate potential, steering us towards the fullest realization of our possibilities. At the start, we require an honest understanding of ourselves. It is pointless to devise a workable life plan on the foundation stone of grandiose delusions about our character and abilities. The more we find out about ourselves, by self-observation and self-examination, the better will be our chances of self-improvement. We should ask ourselves how far and to what degree we are generous, kind, considerate, honest, sober, truthful, diligent, energetic, patient, and tolerant. These are the qualities of a well-developed Buddhist, the qualities we ourselves need to emulate.

Any person seeking after truth and freedom, irrespective of his religious beliefs, can read this book with interest and profit. If by reading this book, at least one person is motivated to pursue further study of the teachings of the Buddha and move closer to the path of freedom, then my endeavor would not have been in vain.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

This book is the result of the enormous motivation provided me by Bhante Kondanna, the Chief Administrator of the Staten Island Buddhist Vihara, in New York City, USA (http://www.sibv.org). During our conversations he impressed upon me, on numerous occasions, the genuine need for a simple book on the basic teachings of the Buddha, particularly for the uninitiated and uninstructed in the West. I am also very grateful to him for spending many hours going through my drafts and making many valuable suggestions.

It is with a sense of profound gratitude I acknowledge the Access to Insight CD entitled ‘A Handful of Leaves’ provided by courtesy of John Bullitt, which served me as a limitless resource for compiling this book. I wish to acknowledge specially the numerous writings of Ven. Dr. Bhikkhu Bodhi, Ven Narada Mahathera, Ven Piyadassi Mahathera, Ven Dr Walpola Rahula, Dr. Victor Gunasekera and Dr Lorna Devaraja.  I am also grateful to Prof. P.D. Santina who has made some of his valuable writings available on the Internet. May they, wherever they are, be well and happy!

The picture of the white lotus used on the front cover was obtained through kind courtesy of Vajira and Premalal Perera of Staten Island, New York. This is one of the many beautiful lotuses that regularly bloom during summer, in their front garden.

The lotus occupies a significant place in Buddhist tradition. At the time Siddhartha was conceived, his smother dreamt of an elephant  with a white lotus. On numerous occasions Buddha himself makes reference to the lotus. The lotus is a unique plant. Water doesn't stick to lotus leaves since nature has given the plant a self-cleaning mechanism.It is called the "lotus effect", or nature’s principle of self-cleaning surfaces. This could revolutionize the manufacture and use of several everyday products, particularly paints. Wilhelm Barthlott, professor of  Biodiversity at the Botanical Garden of the University of Bonn, Germany, has undertaken an exciting new study. He conducted a special study of the lotus leaf and how water cleans its surface. Its unique structure and self-purifying properties have encouraged scientists to devise ways of making long lasting, dirt-repelling products. Even glue fails to to stick to the surface of the lous leave which is coated with a thick bumpy layer of wax. This conspicuous layer of impermeable ‘wax’, or lipids, creates an interface between the plant surface and the surrounding environment. The contact area between water and dirt is reduced, making the leaf highly water repellent, or hydrophobic. The wax is also capable of self-regeneration. When water drops fall on this surface, they roll down, carrying dirt particles with them. Meanwhile, the bumpy surface of the wax layer creates air gaps on the surface. These gaps prevent dirt particles from sticking to the leaf, leaving them free for the water to wash off.

Said the Buddha,

"As a lotus flower is born in water,
grows in water and rises out of water
to stand above it,
unsoiled.
So I, born in the world,
raised in the world,
having overcome the world.
Live unspoiled by the world.

 

Percy Nanayakkara
New York, USA.                                November 2000.

Part I

CHAPTER 1

AN OVERVIEW

Teachings of the Buddha, a historical person, are referred to as Buddhism. Buddha himself referred to his teaching, as “Dhamma - Vinaya’. The term Dhamma (Sanskrit Dharma) is derived from a root term meaning “to sustain” which means to “sustain” the universe or the system. Hence here it has been used to mean ‘doctrine’ or ‘law’ or the ‘norm’. ‘Vinaya’ means Discipline. Hence “Dhamma – Vinaya” means the Doctrine and the Discipline. ‘Buddha’ is an honorific meaning the ‘Enlightened one’ or the ‘Awakened one’. He was born Siddhartha Gotama. Siddhartha was his first name and Gotama was the family name. Buddha is also referred to as ‘Sakyamuni’, which means Sage of the Sakyans, since he belonged to the kingdom of the Sakyans. ‘Thathāgatha’ is also an epithet used for the Buddha. Thathāgata literally means "one who has truly gone " an epithet used in ancient India for a person who has attained the highest spiritual goal.

Today there are three principal Buddhist traditions. They are Theravada, Mahayana and Vajrayana. Theravada is a compound of two words, ‘Thera’ and ‘Vada’. Thera means ‘Elders’ and ‘Vada’ means doctrine or teachings. Hence Theravada means ‘Doctrine of the Elders’. Mahayana is a compound of two words ‘Maha’ and ‘Yana’. ‘Maha’ means ‘Great’ and ‘Yana’ means vehicle. Hence Mahayana means ‘Great Vehicle’. Vajrayana is also a compound of two words, ‘Vajra’ and ‘Yana’. ‘Vajra’ means diamond, the substance more durable than others. Hence Vajrayana means the ‘Diamond Vehicle’ or the ‘Superior Vehicle’.

Three months after the passing away of the Buddha (Parinibbāna), his immediate disciples convened the First Council. At this Council the Dhamma-Vinaya was rehearsed (oral recitation). The Ven. Ananda who was the disciple who was closest to Buddha rehearsed the Dhamma and Ven. Upali rehearsed the Vinaya, the precepts. At this Council, sections of the Dhamma–Vinaya were assigned to groups of Elders (Theras) and their pupils to commit to memory. No additions or deletions were made at this Council. Thus the teachings of the Buddha were passed on from teacher to pupil in an oral tradition.

With the objective of perpetuating an unbroken and an authentic oral transmission, the Dhamma-Vinaya was rehearsed regularly. Individuals did not do this oral recitation by themselves, but by groups of elders. The reason why they were rehearsed in groups was to avoid any change, modification or any kind of interpolation and to preserve the authenticity of the doctrine. If one member of a group forgot a word or a fact, the other members would remember and correct him. On the other hand if one were to modify, change, omit or add a word or a phrase, others would correct him. Texts that were handed down through such oral traditions were considered more reliable than just one person writing something long after the death of the author.

About one hundred years after the passing away of the Buddha, the Second Council was held where only the Vinaya (Discipline) was discussed and not the Dhamma (Doctrine). At this Council, a handful of monks wanted to amend certain rules of discipline. However, majority of the elders resisted it and the Vinaya was retained unchanged. The dissenting monks broke away to form another group.

In the 3rd century B.C. after the passing away of the Buddha, the Third Council was held. This was during the reign of Emperor Asoka. At this Council all the teachings of the Buddha were rehearsed. The teachings were categorized into three groups called Pitakas or baskets. They were the Vinaya Pitaka, the Basket of Discipline, Sutta Pitaka the Basket of the Doctrine, and Adhidhamma Pitaka, the Basket of the Philosophy of the Buddha. These three Pitakas constitute the Tipitaka or the Three Baskets or the Triple Canon. The Sutta Pitaka (Sutta strictly means thread) consists of the total collection of discourses. They were classified into five Collections called Nikāyas.

The whole of the Tipitaka was rehearsed at this council and approved and the doctrine came to be called Theravāda, the Doctrine of the Elders. After the Third Council, Emperor Asoka decided to spread the doctrine to other parts of the sub-continent and neighboring countries. He sent forth nine missionaries and one of them came to Sri Lanka. This was in the 3^rd century B.C. His own son who had by then entered the Buddhist order headed the mission to Sri Lanka. Ven. Mahinda’s mission was a great success. Later he invited his own sister who had entered the order of nuns, Ven. Sangamitta to visit Sri Lanka to establish the order of Bhikkshunis, the Buddhist Nuns. She arrived in Sri Lanka with a sapling of the Bodhi tree at Buddha Gaya, under which Buddha attained enlightenment, Nibbāna (Sanskrit Nirvana). This sapling was planted in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka and is revered and worshipped even to this day. It is the oldest historical tree in the world. H.G.Wells, the World renowned British Historian wrote, "In Sri Lanka, there grows to this day, a tree, the oldest historical tree in the world which we know certainly to have been planted as a cutting from the Bodhi tree in the year 245 B.C.” The Tipitaka was first committed to writing in Sri Lanka about 80 B.C. during the reign of King Vatthagamini Abhaya. The texts were written on Ola leaves in Pali, a Magadha language spoken by the Buddha.

The earliest mention of Mahāyāna is found in the Lotus Sutra. However the term Mahāyāna was clearly defined and elucidated by Nagarjuna and others in about 2^nd century A.D. Vajrayāna is basically a part of the Mahayana tradition. Vajrayāna originated in India in about the 7^th century A.D. and regards both Nagarjuna and Asanga as its founders. The principal teachings of Theravāda, Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna are almost identical. Mahāyāna spread to the north and Far East. It spread to China, Japan, Korea and Mongolia. Vajrayāna took root principally in Tibet. Theravāda spread, besides parts of India, to Sri Lanka, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, and parts of Bangladesh, Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia.

All three traditions, Theravāda, Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna had their origin in India. Another tradition that had its origin in India is what is called Zen Buddhism which is principally a tradition of meditation. Bodhidharma, a Buddhist monk from India went to China in the 6^th century A.D. He had practiced meditation and had left numerous writings. The Pali word for deep concentration and meditative absorption is jhāna. The last syllable was dropped and jhān was transliterated to Chinese as chan. Chan meditation was later introduced to Japan in the twelfth century A.D. and the word chan was Japanized to zen which is quite widespread in Japan today and to a lesser extent in some other parts of the world. 

I think it is appropriate to give, at this point, a brief summary of the Buddha's teachings. What follows is a brief synopsis of some of the basic teachings of Buddhism according to the Theravāda tradition. I've dealt with the principal teachings in detail in separate chapters that follow. I hope that this summary will be sufficient to give the reader some basic understanding of the principal teachings of the Buddha.

Shortly after his Enlightenment (Awakening), the Buddha delivered his first sermon, in which he laid out the essential framework upon which all his later teachings were based. This framework consists of the Four Noble Truths, four fundamental principles of nature (Dhamma) that emerged from the Buddha's honest and penetrating assessment of the human condition. These Truths are not fixed dogmatic principles, but living experiences to be explored individually in the heart of each spiritual seeker:

1. The Noble Truth of dukkha (suffering, dissatisfaction, stress): life is fundamentally fraught with dissatisfaction, suffering and disappointment of every description.

2. The Noble Truth of the cause of dukkha: the cause of this dissatisfaction is tanha (craving) in all its forms.

3. The Noble Truth of the cessation of dukkha: an end to all that dissatisfaction can be found through the relinquishment and abandonment of craving.

4. The Noble Truth of the path leading to the cessation of dukkha: there is a method of achieving the end of all dissatisfaction, namely the Noble Eightfold Path.

To each of these Noble Truths the Buddha assigned a specific task, which the practitioner is to carry out. The first Noble Truth is to be comprehended; the second is to be abandoned; the third is to be realized; the fourth is to be developed. The full realization of the third Noble Truth paves the way for the direct penetration of Nibbāna (Sanskrit Nirvana), the transcendent freedom that stands as the final goal of all the teachings of the Buddha.

The last of the Noble Truths, the path leading to the cessation of suffering or in other words the Noble Eightfold Path contains a prescription for the relief of our unhappiness and for our eventual release, once and for all, from the painful and wearisome cycle of birth and death (samsāra) to which, through our own ignorance (avijja) of the Four Noble Truths, we have been bound for countless ages. The Noble Eightfold Path offers a comprehensive practical guide to the development of those wholesome qualities and skills in the human heart that must be cultivated in order to bring the practitioner to the final goal, the supreme freedom and happiness of Nibbāna. The eight qualities to be developed are: right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration. In practice, the Buddha taught the Noble Eightfold Path to his followers according to a progressive system of training, beginning with the development of sila, or virtue (right speech, right action, and right livelihood, which are summarized in practical form by the five precepts), followed by the development of samādhi, or concentration and mental cultivation (right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration), culminating in the development of pañña, or wisdom (right view and right resolve). The practice of dāna (generosity) serves as a support at every step along the path, as it helps to foster the development of a compassionate heart and counters the heart's habitual tendencies towards craving. Progress along the path does not follow a simple line upwards. Rather, development of each aspect of the Noble Eightfold Path encourages the refinement and strengthening of the others, leading the practitioner ever forward in an upward spiral of spiritual maturity that culminates in awakening or enlightenment, Nibbāna.

Seen from another point of view, the long journey on the path to enlightenment begins in earnest with the first tentative stirrings of right view, the first sparks of wisdom by which one recognizes both the validity of the first Noble Truth and the inevitability of the law of kamma (Sanskrit: karma), the universal law of cause and effect. When one begins to realize that harmful actions inevitably bring about harmful results, and wholesome actions ultimately bring about wholesome results, the desire naturally grows to live a skillful, morally upright life, to take seriously the practice of sila (virtue). The confidence built from this preliminary understanding inclines the follower to put one's trust more deeply in the teachings. With one's feet thus firmly planted on the ground by taking refuge, one can set out along the Path, confident that one is indeed following in the footsteps of the Buddha himself and the vast number of others who followed him.

Buddhism is sometimes erroneously categorized as a "negative" or "pessimistic" religion and philosophy. After all, they argue, life is not all misery and disappointment; it offers many kinds of joy and happiness. Why then this pessimistic Buddhist obsession with dissatisfaction and suffering? The Buddha was neither pessimistic nor optimistic; he was realistic. The Buddha based his teachings on a frank assessment of our plight as humans: there is dissatisfaction and suffering in the world. No one can argue this fact. Had the Buddha's teachings stopped there, we might indeed regard them as pessimistic and that existence is utterly hopeless. But, like a doctor who diagnoses a malady, prescribes a remedy and assures that the prognosis is good, the Buddha offers hope (the third Noble Truth) and a cure (the fourth Noble Truth). It is important to keep in mind that the Buddha never denied that life holds the possibility of many kinds of great beauty and happiness. But he also recognized that the kinds of happiness to which most of us are accustomed couldn’t, by their very nature, give truly lasting satisfaction. If one is genuinely interested in one's own and others' welfare, one must sometimes be willing to give up one kind of happiness for the sake of something much better. This understanding lies at the very heart of the Buddha's teaching. Whether instructing a layman on the blessings of treating one's parents and relatives with respect, or instructing a celibate monk or nun on the finer points of meditation, the Buddha's system of gradual training consistently encourages the disciple to move on to a deeper level of happiness, one that is greater, nobler, and more fulfilling than what he or she had previously known. Each level of happiness has its rewards, but each also has its drawbacks, the most conspicuous of which is that it cannot, by its very nature, endure. The highest happiness of all, and the one to which all the Buddha's teachings ultimately point, is the lasting happiness and peace of the transcendent, the Deathless, Nibbāna. Nibbāna has to be achieved while one is still alive and not upon death. Thus, the Buddha's teachings are concerned solely with guiding people towards the highest and most expansive happiness possible; there is nothing pessimistic in this. Buddhism is in fact a serious pursuit of happiness.

The Buddha claimed that the Awakening he discovered is accessible to anyone willing to put forth the effort and commitment required to pursue the Noble Eightfold Path to its end. It is up to each one of us individually to put that claim to the test. As T.H.Huxley says “Buddhism is a system that knows no God in the western sense, which denies the soul to man, which counts the belief in immortality a blunder, which refuses any efficacy to prayer and sacrifice, which bids men to look to nothing but their own efforts for salvation”.

There are some who believe that Buddhism is a very elevated and a sublime religious system that it cannot be practiced by ordinary men and women. That, in order to practice Buddhism you have to leave the normal world of lay people and retire to a Buddhist temple or to some quiet place. This is clearly a misunderstanding, due perhaps to misrepresentation of facts or due to lack of knowledge of the teachings of the Buddha.  Many people come to such hasty and wrong conclusions as a result of either hearing or reading material about Buddhism written by people who have not understood the subject in its true perspective. The teachings of the Buddha are meant not only for bhikkhus and bhikkhunis (Buddhist monks and nuns) in temples and monasteries, but also for ordinary men and women living at home with their families, earning a livelihood and attending to their daily chores. The Noble Eightfold Path, which is the Buddhist way of life, is of universal application. It does not discriminate between different classes of people and makes no distinction whatsoever between caste, gender or any other basis. The vast majority of people in the world cannot turn bhikkhu or bhikkhuni or retire into the wilderness to practice Buddhism. However good or noble Buddhism may be, it would be useless to the vast majority of mankind if they could not follow it in their daily life in the world of today. But if you understand the essence of Buddhism, you can surely follow and practice it while living the life of an ordinary person.

There may be some who find it easier and more convenient to practice Buddhism, if they live in solicitude or in a remote place, cut off from the society at large. Others may find it plausible and feasible to live in a regular environment and practice the religion. Some may regard retirement from the society at large would dull and depress their whole being both physically and mentally, and that it may not therefore be conducive to their spiritual and intellectual well being. One who lives a pure life in the village or town is definitely far superior to one who lives in the forest but full of impure thoughts and defilements.

There is a belief, mostly among those not very familiar with Buddha’s teachings, that one has to practice all what Buddha taught in order to become a true practitioner. This again is a misconception. It would be extremely difficult for one to practice everything Buddha taught. There is also a belief that you have to study everything Buddha taught in order to become a Buddhist. This too is an incorrect view. Teachings of the Buddha are vast and extensive. Buddha’s ministry lasted forty-five years, from enlightenment at the age of 35 years until his Parinibbāna at the age of 80 years. It has been estimated that all of Buddha’s teachings collectively would be about eleven times the size of the Bible. From this, one would be able to gauge the vastness of the Buddha’s teachings. It is not at all necessary for a person to study all of Buddha’s teachings in order to become a Buddhist.

There are numerous instances where, the basic teachings of the Buddha have convinced people of the true essence of Buddhism and have made them become his disciples and attain Nibbāna or enter the order. Upatissa who belonged to an affluent family was a very intelligent person. While wandering around in search of the ‘Truth’, he came upon Arahant Assaji. (Arahant means a "worthy one" or "pure one"; a person whose mind is free of defilement. A title for the Buddha and the highest level of his Noble Disciples) Arahant Assaji was going about spreading the message of the Buddha. Upatissa, who had been to several teachers in search of ‘Truth’, asked Assaji what the essence of Buddha’s teachings was. In reply, Assaji recited a short stanza.

“Ye Dhamma hetuppabhava
tesam hetum tathāgatō
Ahātesan ca yo nirodhō
evam vadi mahā samanō.”

“Of things that proceed from a cause, their cause, the Tathāgatha has told, and also their cessation; thus teaches the great Ascetic.”

 Upatissa immediately grasped its meaning and the subtle message and went to meet the Buddha and asked to be admitted to the order. Upatissa later became one of the principal disciples, under the name, Sāriputta.  (His mother Sāri was a Brahmin lady. Sāriputta means, son of Sāri.)

There are numerous references in Buddhist literature to men and women living ordinary, normal, family lives, who successfully practiced what the Buddha taught, and attained Nibbāna. It may be suitable for some people to live a retired life in a quiet place away from noise and disturbance of everyday life. But it is certainly more praiseworthy and courageous to practice Buddhism living among your fellow beings, helping them and being of service to them. There are some who find it useful for them to live in solitude for a time in order to improve their mind and character and return again to their normal lives. They could build up their moral and spiritual character to be strong enough to come out later and help others. But a person who lives all his life in solitude, thinking only of his own happiness and emancipation without caring for his fellow beings is not following the teachings of the Buddha.  Buddha's teaching is based on love, compassion, and service to others.

Buddha established the Sangha, the Order of Monks in order to provide the opportunity for those who are willing to devote their lives not only to their own spiritual and intellectual development, but also to be of service to others. An ordinary layperson with a family cannot be expected to devote his whole life to the service of others, whereas a monk, who has no family responsibilities or other worldly ties, is in a position to devote his whole life to help others. As the Buddha himself said, one enters the order ‘for the good of the many and for the happiness of the many'. That is how in the course of history, the Buddhist monastery became not only a religious and spiritual center, but also a center of learning and culture.

The Buddha did not consider life to be in some sort of a vacuum. He regarded life in its true context. Of course Buddha’s teachings on ethical, spiritual and philosophical matters are fairly well known. But little is known about his teachings on social, political and economic aspects. There are numerous discourses dealing with them. The Sigalōvāda Sutta is one such discourse. It demonstrates with what great respect the Buddha regarded a layman's life, his family and social relations. This is a discourse of the Buddha to a young householder named Sigāla.  The Buddha advised the young householder thus. Firstly, the parents should be sacred to their children, and the children have to perform certain duties towards their parents. They should look after their parents in their old age; should do whatever they have to do on their behalf; should maintain the honor of the family and continue the family tradition; should protect the wealth earned by their parents; and perform their funeral rites after their death. Parents, in turn, have certain responsibilities towards their children: they should keep their children away from evil courses; should engage them in good and profitable activities; should give them a good education; should marry them into good families; and should hand over the property to them in due course.

Secondly, there should be a good relation between teacher and pupil. A pupil should respect and be obedient to his teacher; should attend to his needs if any; should study earnestly. The teacher, in turn, should train and shape his pupil properly; should teach him well; should introduce him to his friends and should try to help him procure security or employment when his education is over.

Thirdly, the Buddha advised about the relation between husband and wife. Love between husband and wife is considered almost religious or sacred and the highest respect is given to this relationship. Wives and husbands should be faithful, respectful and devoted to each other, and they have certain duties towards each other. The husband should always honor his wife and never be wanting in respect to her; he should love her and be faithful to her; should secure her position and comfort; and should please her by presenting her with clothing and jewelry and other gifts. The wife, in turn, should supervise and look after household affairs; should entertain guests, visitors, friends, relatives and employees; should love and be faithful to her husband; should protect his earnings; should be clever and energetic in all activities.

Fourthly, the Buddha said the relation between friends, relatives and neighbors should be open and hospitable. They should be charitable to one another; should speak pleasantly and agreeably; should work for each other's welfare; should be on equal terms with one another; should not quarrel among themselves; should help each other in need; and should not forsake each other in times of difficulty.

Fifthly, he spoke about the relation between master and servant. The master or the employer has several obligations towards his servant or his employee. Work should be assigned according to ability and capacity; adequate wages should be paid; medical needs should be provided; occasional donations or bonuses should be granted. The servant or employee, in his turn, should be diligent and not lazy; honest and obedient and not cheat his master. He should be earnest in his work.

Sixthly, the Buddha spoke about the relation between the lay people and the clergy. Lay people should look after the material needs of the religious people with love and respect; the religious people with a loving heart should impart knowledge and learning to the laity, and lead them along the good path away from evil.

It should be evident even to the casual observer, that the advice given by the Buddha to the young householder over two and half millennia ago is so current and relevant even today. Take for instance how Buddha advised that for a proper relationship to exist between husband and wife, how periodically the husband should give the wife clothing jewelry and other gifts. This is the kind of advice, which a marriage counselor would give a couple even today in this new millennium, which the Buddha mentioned over two thousand five hundred years ago.

The Buddha spoke about social and economic matters on many occasions. In several discourses, the Buddha has emphasized that the principal cause for crime is poverty and that severe punishment is not the way to reduce crime. In the Kūtadanda-sutta in the Digha Nikāya the Buddha says that the way to prevent crimes is to uplift the economic conditions of the people; grains and other facilities necessary for farming should be made available to those engaged in agriculture; capital should be made available to those engaged in trading and commerce; proper salaries should be paid to employees. It is almost universally accepted that one reason for the reduction of crimes here in the United States since 1994 is the unprecedented economic prosperity.

There are some people mostly of other faiths and those not familiar with the teachings of the Buddha, who regard Buddhism as some sort of primitive cult. One should not fail to notice that there are many similarities between Buddhism and other religions. Generally, the morals and ethics of all religions are almost universally identical. However, there are also many differences between Buddhism and other religions. Out of all the founders of religions, Buddha is the only one who does not claim any divinity or divine revelations. While other religious founders were either god or incarnations of god or chosen by god to reveal certain messages, Buddha only claimed to be a human being and every human being has the capacity to become a Buddha. What are required are diligence and endeavor to attain that status and not any divine power or intervention. There is also a difference in the achievement of the ultimate goal. In every other religion, the ultimate goal, whether to be safe in the arms of god or association with Brahma, has to be achieved upon death, after extinguishing life here on earth. The ultimate aim of Buddhism is the attainment of Nibbāna. Nibbāna has to be achieved while you are still alive and not upon death.

Albert Einstein is believed to have once said, “Buddhism has the characteristics of what would be expected in a cosmic religion for the future: it transcends a personal God, avoids dogmas and theology; it covers both the natural and spiritual, and it is based on a religious sense aspiring from the experience of all things, natural and spiritual, as a meaningful unity.”

Most other religions, such as Hinduism, Judaism or Islam are to a large extent culture bound, in the sense that they are mostly restricted to specific ethnic or racial groups.  Buddhism is not a culture bound religion. Buddhism began in Northern India six hundred years before the Christian era. Over a period of several hundred years, Buddhism spread north into Tibet, south into other parts of the sub-continent and Sri Lanka, southeast into Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam, east into China, Korea and Japan. As Buddhism spread, it easily adapted to these "host" cultures, and in each situation was shaped and influenced in traditions and practices by pre-existing rituals and cosmologies. Thus, we speak of Sri Lankan Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism or Japanese Buddhism or Korean Buddhism and now even European or American Buddhism. Within each cultural sphere, many different paths, lineages and practices emerged. However, as far as the basic teachings of the dhamma are concerned, there is no fundamental difference among any of these different traditions.

Buddha never recognized uncritical acceptance of his teachings by his followers. Buddhism is free from compulsion and coercion and rejects blind faith from followers. Instead the Buddha enunciated certain basic laws and truths, which could be verified by those who have eyes to see and minds to understand. He invited his followers to test for themselves what he preached. One of the traditional epithets in Buddhism is "ehipassiko" which means "come and see"; which is an appeal to the empirical verification of the Dhamma. This is clearly expounded in the Kālāma Sutta, which is found in the opening pages of this book. There has never been, nor is there now, a central authority in Buddhism. There is no equivalent to the Holy Father of the Roman Catholic Church or to anything that resembles papal law. With no supreme arbitrator, the diversification of Buddhist tradition has flourished. However, Buddhists of all traditions universally accept the basic teachings of the Buddha.

From its very inception, tolerance and understanding have been the bedrock of Buddhist culture and civilization. Buddhism spread very rapidly due to its intrinsic values and appeal to the reasoning mind. Conversion by compulsion has been unknown to Buddhism through out its history of over two and half millennia.  When Buddhism was introduced to other countries and societies it penetrated and spread peaceably and merged with the existing creeds and beliefs. In its long history, there is not a single instance where even a drop of blood has been shed in converting people to Buddhism. Asoka, who ruled over the mighty Indian empire in the third century B.C., has been largely responsible for the spread of Buddhism in the pre-Christian era. He built a large number of Buddhist monasteries (Vihāras) in the capital city that it came to be known as ‘Vihār’ that later became Bihar. He sent several missionaries to neighboring countries and regions. Asoka converted to Buddhism after listening to a novice named Nigrodha, who based his discourse on the following stanza from the Dhammapada.

”Appamadō amatapadam – pamādo-maccunō padam
Appamatta nā miyanti – ye pamatta yathā matā”

 “Heedfulness is the path to Deathlessness. Heedlessness is the path to death. The heedful do not die, the heedless are like unto the dead”.

Although Asoka embraced Buddhism, he did not give up his ambition to expand the empire. After the Kalinga war, he was so grief stricken, that he decided to give up war. It is said that he is the only monarch on record who decided to abandon warfare after victory. He devoted ceaseless energy to the dissemination of the dhamma, but followed the noble Buddhist tradition of tolerance and understanding. Among his large number of Edicts carved on rock and available for public view even to this day, there is one in which he declared:

“One should not honor only one’s own religion and condemn the religions of others, but one should honor others‘ for this or other reason. So doing, one helps one’s own religion to grow and renders service to the religions of others too. In acting otherwise one digs the grave of one’s own religion and does harm to other religions. Whosoever honors his own religion and condemns other religions does so indeed through devotion to his own religion, thinking, “ I will glorify my own religion”. But on the contrary, in so doing he injures his own religion more gravely. So concord is good. Let all listen, and be willing to listen to the doctrines professed by others”.

After study and an understanding of the Buddha’s teachings, if one wishes to become a Buddhist, there is no ceremony like baptism or similar initiation ceremony that one has to go through. If you accept Buddha’s teachings and wish to follow them, then you are a Buddhist. Buddhism is a way of life. Hence a layman is expected to observe Pancha Sila, the Five Precepts. These are the basic moral observances expected of an ordinary layperson. The Five Precepts are as follows: firstly, not to destroy life; secondly, to refrain from stealing; thirdly, not to commit adultery; fourthly, not to utter untruths; fifthly, to abstain from intoxicating substances. It is customary for a Buddhist to take refuge in the Triple Gem, the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha. It is neither imperative nor compulsory that Buddhists should visit the temple. It is more as a tradition and as a cultural practice that Buddhists visit temple. However, for those who desire guidance and inspiration, they find great solace at the Buddhist temple and the Buddhist monk has been a spiritual guide to the Buddhists throughout the ages. Buddhists do not pray to Buddha but they pay homage. It is customary for Buddhists to offer flowers and light lamps and candles and burn incense at the statue of the Buddha in the temple. This of course is akin to our placing flowers and lighting candles at the graves of the departed loved ones.

The Dhammapada, one of the texts in the Tipitaka, is a collection of verses uttered by the Buddha. Verse 160 is as follows:

 “Atthā hi attanō nātō – ko hi nathō parō siyā
 Attanā vā sudantena – natham labhāti dullabham.”

 

“Oneself, is indeed, one’s own savior, for what other savior could there be? With oneself well trained one obtains a savior difficult to find.”

In verse 183 of the Dhammapada, the Buddha summarizes the essence of Buddhism in very simple words:

“Sabbapapāssa akaranam – kusalassa upasampadā
Sacittapariyodapanam – etam buddhānu sāsanam”

“To do no evil, To cultivate good, To purify one's own mind: This is the teaching of the Buddhas.”

Part II

Chapter 2

PRE-BUDDHIST ERA

I consider it would be helpful for the reader who is interested in a deeper understanding of the dhamma, to have some knowledge of the situation that existed in India before the Buddhist era. Such a retrospective examination would enable us to understand the life and the teachings of the Buddha in the context of the socio-economic, religious and philosophical background that existed in India.

In the third and the second millennium B.C. in northwestern parts of the Indian subcontinent, there flourished a highly developed civilization. It derived its name from the main river of that region, 'Indus'. At its peak, it stretched across the whole of what is now Pakistan and southwards towards present Mumbai (Bombay) and eastwards up to Simla at the foothills of the Himalayas. If you look at a map of Asia you would immediately notice that the specific area covers a very vast region. The cities were far more advanced than their counterparts in prehistoric Egypt, Mesopotamia or anywhere else in Western Asia. As in most other contemporary civilizations, agriculture was the backbone of the Indus economy. The people made extensive use of the wooden plough. Barley and wheat were the main food crops. Perhaps the most remarkable achievement was the cultivation of cotton. The people ate, besides cereals, vegetables and fruits, fish, fowl, mutton, beef and pork. There is also evidence of the domestication of cats, dogs, goats, sheep and perhaps, the elephant.

The Indus people made extensive use of bronze and copper. However, iron was not known to them. The people were very artistic. Evidence can be found in the pottery, stone sculpture and seal making. The pottery was made of well-levitated and well-fired clay, with painting in black pigment. People worshipped natural forces like the tree, humped bull and Mother Goddess. Even amulets and charms were used by the people to ward off evil spirits. Unlike their counterparts in the rest of the world, who were managed by kings, the Indus people were ruled by groups of merchants. They had commercial links with Afghanistan, Persia, Egypt, Mesopotamia and the Samaritans. Trade was in the form of 'barter'. There was a cleverly organized system of weights and measures. The script during this time, which was seemingly pictographic, has not yet been deciphered.      

There is a striking contrast between the Indus valley civilization and the other contemporary civilizations in the way it was managed. Elsewhere much money and thought were lavished on the building of magnificent Temples of Gods, Palaces and Tombs of kings. The common people seemingly had to content themselves with insignificant dwellings of mud. In the Indus valley the picture is reversed. The finest structures were erected for the convenience of the citizens. The two principal sites of the Indus Valley civilization were Mohenjo-daro and Harappa which were the principal towns.

After 2000 BC, the Mohenjo-daro and Harappan culture slowly declined and gradually faded out. Some ascribe this to the decreasing fertility of the soil on account of the increasing salinity, caused by the expansion of the neighboring desert. Others attribute it to some kind of depression in the land that caused floods. Still others point out that it was destroyed by the Aryans. Even though there are various theories for the downfall of this civilization, there is no clear picture as to exactly how or why it came to an end.

However, simultaneous with the decline of the Indus Valley civilization, the Indian sub-continent was invaded from the Northwest by the Aryans. The Aryans were a European race, originating from Eastern Europe who were nomadic and pastoral. This is in such contrast to the people of the Indus Valley who were sedentaric and agrarian. Indus Valley people were stable and used to an urban life. The Aryans were a warring and invading people who enjoyed the spoils of their conquests. Aryans arrived in India around 1,500 B.C. and soon became the dominant civilization. In the latter part of the second millennium B.C. Aryan values were firmly embedded in the Indian sub-continent.

Since the written records belonging to the Indus Valley civilization have so far not being deciphered we cannot glean any information about their religious and spiritual values and attitudes from the written records. However, from the archeological remains excavated at Harappa and Mohenjo-daro and the written records of the Aryans, we can derive at a very good picture of the religious attitude of the Indus Valley civilization.  The written records of the Aryans describe in great detail the religious behavior and beliefs of the Indus Valley people whom they conquered. 

Numerous excavations undertaken by several archeologists have revealed certain symbols that are of religious significance. One of them is the Pipal tree, which, after Buddha’s enlightenment, came to be called the Bodhi or Bo tree that is of great religious significance to the Buddhists. Another important symbol is the human figure seated in a cross-legged position with the palms resting on the folded legs, clearly suggesting a position of deep concentration and meditation. Based on these archeological findings, eminent scholars both from the west and east have concluded that meditation originated in the Indus Valley civilization. The Vedas, the earliest written records of the Aryans mention in great detail the religious practices of the people of the Indus Valley civilization. With the help of the archeological remains and the written records of the early Aryans, we can conclude that the religious beliefs and practices included ascetism or renunciation, meditation, some form of the concept of kamma and also belief in life after death. Since the Aryans originated in Eastern Europe, their beliefs and practices were quite different to those of the inhabitants of the Indus Valley. They believed in a pantheon of gods mostly personifications of natural phenomena such as Indra, Agni and Varuna signifying thunder, rain and fire respectively. They were also far more secular in outlook than the Indus Valley people.

Indian civilization from the earliest times has placed great importance to spirituality. Hinduism, which has been the principal religion in India over several millennia, is not based upon the teachings of a religious leader or a founder like the Buddha, Christ or Mohammed. It has evolved over ages, through the continual interplay of diverse religious beliefs and practices such as popular local cults, orthodox traditions, the Vedic hymns and the ritual texts of the Brahmins. The most ancient sacred literature of Hinduism is called the Vedas. This collection of hymns, poems and ceremonial formulas represent the beliefs of several Aryan tribes. The Vedās were considered sacred and were only transmitted orally from one generation of Brahmans to the next. The passages of the Vedas were eventually written in Sanskrit, about the end of the third century B.C. The well-known Indian epics like the Mahābharatha and Rāmāyana depict the cultural and religious life of the Indian sub-continent. Both poems have their roots and bases in the mythical and legendary events that took place in the second millennium B.C. These events are believed to have taken place after the nomadic Indo-Aryans settled in the Indus and the Ganges valleys. The nomadic sacrificial practices slowly developed into what were later regarded as religious traditions of Hinduism.

The history of religion in India from the middle of the second millennium B.C. up to the time of the Buddha, that is sixth century B.C., is the interactions between the Indus Valley religious and spiritual beliefs and practices and those of the Aryan invaders that were quite different. During this period, the Aryans had spread eastward and southwards and settled throughout the Indian subcontinent. Several significant features emerged during this period. The Aryans were divided into tribes. Tribal chieftainship gradually became hereditary, though the chief usually operated with the help and advice from either a committee or the entire tribe. With work specialization, the internal division of the Aryan society developed along caste lines. It was, in the beginning, a division of occupations; as such it was open and flexible. Much later, caste status and the corresponding occupation came to depend on birth, and change from one caste or occupation to another became far more difficult

With land becoming property and the society being divided on the basis of occupations and castes, conflicts and disorders were bound to arise. Organized power to resolve these issues therefore emerged, gradually leading to formation of full-fledged state systems, including vast empires. The nomadic tribal way of life of the Aryans gradually changed to a more sedentary pattern and numerous urban areas emerged. The tribes gave way to well defined territorial kingdoms ruled by kings and princes. Siddhartha belonged to such a royal family. Hitherto the Brahmana (priests) and Kshatriya (warriors) were the prominent people in the society. With organized urban areas emerging, commerce became a vital economic activity and the merchants became a vital force. In the time of the Buddha, this trend became quite evident. To give just one example, one of the famous disciples of the Buddha was Anāthapindika, who belonged to the merchant caste.

The sixth century B.C., that is the time of the Buddha, was a time of great social and intellectual ferment in India. There was also a religious and spiritual resurgence that was taking place at that time. Very diverse religious views and cultural activities flourished and there were a large number of people who practiced and preached different religious beliefs. The ascetic Gotama himself went to two of these ascetics of repute, namely, Alāra Kālāma and Rāmaputra. It was at that time that Mahāvira, a contemporary of the Buddha founded the Jain religion.

Chapter 3

LIFE OF THE BUDDHA

Over twenty-five hundred years ago, near the border between Nepal and India in the northern parts of the province of modern Bihar, there were a number of small kingdoms inhabited by people of different ethnic groups, each ruled by its own King. One of these little kingdoms was the land of the Sakyans, and the king who ruled over them at that time was Suddhodana. The family to which King Suddhodana belonged was called Gotama.  The capital city of the kingdom was Kapilavasthu.

King Suddhodana had a chief queen whose name was Mahāmāya. After some time, the Queen was expecting their first child. As was the custom then, Mahāmāya  left for her parent’s home to have the child. Her father was the ruler of the adjoining kingdom whose capital was Devadaha. On the way to the town of Devadaha there was a park called Lumbini. The queen wanted to rest for a while in the park to enjoy the cool shade of the great Sal trees. Since it was the month of May, the trees were covered from top to bottom with lovely blossoms. After a little while, suddenly and unexpectedly the pangs of childbirth came upon her, and in a little while, there in the Lumbini Park, she gave birth to a son. He was named Siddhartha, which means all-prosperous or all-successful one; one who will prosper or succeed in everything he sets out to do. Several wise men predicted a great future for this prince. At this place in Lumbini stands a pillar to this day that was put up by king Asoka, who ruled over a large part of India about three hundred years after King Suddhodana's time.  On it he had an engraving which can still be read, saying that he had put it up there in order that people in the future should know where the great event had taken place. Although in the course of the two thousand three hundred years it has been partly damaged, it still stands to this day in the place where King Asoka put it up with his inscription on it for any one to see.

Few days after the birth of Siddhartha, which occurred in 623 B.C. on the full moon day in the month of May, Queen Mahamaya passed away. As such Siddhartha never knew his own mother.  His mother's sister, Princess Mahāpajāpati, took care of him and brought him up just as if he had been her own son. King Suddhodana wanted his son to grow up living the worldly life of a traditional prince.  But he was no ordinary boy. After he reached the age of eight years, teachers were obtained for the young prince in order that he might learn reading, writing and math. Under these teachers' instructions he quickly learned all each had to teach in his own subject area. Indeed, he learned so quickly and well that every one was surprised at the rapid progress he made. Thus it was easily seen by all, that as regards mental ability he was well endowed, indeed, very much beyond the ordinary and his peers. The prince was always gentle and dignified in his usual bearing towards every one particularly towards his teachers and always modest and respectful.

In physical activities too he excelled. Notwithstanding the gentleness of his manners, he was bold and fearless in the practice of the manly sports of his time. He was a clever and daring horseman and an able and skillful chariot-driver. Yet, for all his keenness in trying to win a race, he was kind and compassionate towards the horses that helped him to win so often. Frequently he would let a race be lost rather than urge his weary, horses beyond their strength. Not only towards his horses but also towards all creatures he seemed to have a heart full of tenderness and compassion. He was a king's son and had never himself had to suffer hardship or distress. Yet in his kind heart he seemed to know through empathy, how others felt when they were afflicted or in pain, whether these others were human beings or animals. Thus, once when he was out walking with his cousin Devadatta, who had his bow and arrows with him, Devadatta shot a swan that was flying over their heads. The arrow hit the swan and it fluttered to the ground, painfully wounded. Both boys ran forward to pick it up, but Siddhartha reached it first and holding it gently, he pulled the arrow out of its wing and put some cool leaves on the wound to stop the bleeding. With his hand, Siddhartha stroked and soothed the hurt and frightened bird. But Devadatta was very much annoyed to see his cousin take the swan from him in this way, and he called to Siddhartha to give the swan to him because he had brought it down with his arrow. Siddhartha, however, refused to give it to him, saying that if the bird had been killed, then it would have been his; but as it was alive and not dead, it belonged to the one who actually secured possession of it, and so he meant to keep it. But still Devadatta maintained that it should belong to him because it was his arrow that had brought it down to the ground.

Siddhartha and Devadatta agreed to take their dispute to the council of wise men. The question was put before the council. Some in the council argued one way and some the other way. But at last one man in the council said: "A life certainly must belong to him who tries to save it; a life cannot belong to one who is only trying to destroy it. The wounded bird by right belongs to the one who saved its life. Let the swan be given to Siddhartha." All the others in the council agreed and Prince Siddhartha was allowed to keep the swan. He cared for it tenderly until it was healed. Later he set it free and let it fly back once more, well and happy, to its mates on the forest-lake.

One day in the spring, at the beginning of the plowing season, King Suddhodana went to participate in the plowing festival. The King took his young son with him out to the fields, and leaving him in the care of some attendants, he went to the plowing field. After a while, when the feasting began, the attendants went off to share in it leaving Siddhartha alone by himself. While looking around the place, he noticed how a worm licked and swallowed an ant an later a bird swooped down and picked up the worm. Having witnessed this unhappy incident Siddhartha was disturbed. He sat under a rose apple tree and spontaneously began meditating.  After a while, the plowing was done and the feasting was over. When the young prince's attendants came back to where they had left him, he was not there. Very much frightened, they started looking for him everywhere. At last, they found him sitting quiet and still under a tree completely absorbed in his thoughts.

At the young age of sixteen he married his cousin Yasodhara. They lived happily enjoying the luxury of a royal household. After sometime, in spite of all the luxury with which he was surrounded, the young prince Siddhartha did not feel altogether happy. He wanted to know more about what lay outside the palace walls.  He wanted to see how other people who did not belong to royalty, lived their lives. One day he ventured out to see the real world. His observant eyes met the sight of an old, sick man in dirty rags. He also had the occasion to observe a sick person, a corpse and also a hermit. This is how Buddha himself later described his early life.

“I lived in refinement, utmost refinement, total refinement. My father even had lotus ponds made in our palace: one where red lotuses bloomed, one where white lotuses bloomed, one where blue lotuses bloomed, all for my sake. I used no sandalwood that was not from Varanasi. My turban was from Varanasi, as were my tunic, my lower garments and my outer cloak. A white canopy was held over me day and night to protect me from cold, heat, dust, dirt and dew.

I had three palaces: one for the cold season, one for the hot season, one for the rainy season. During the four months of the rainy season I was entertained in the rainy-season palace by minstrels without a single man among them, and I did not once come down from the palace. Whereas the servants, workers and retainers in other people’s homes are fed meals of lentil soup and broken rice, in my father’s home the servants, workers and retainers were fed wheat, rice, and meat.

Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought occurred to me: “When an untaught, ordinary person, himself subject to aging, not beyond aging, sees another who is aged, he is horrified, humiliated and disgusted, oblivious to himself that he too is subject to aging, not beyond aging. If I, who am, subject to aging, not beyond aging, were to be horrified, humiliated and disgusted on seeing another person who is aged, that would not be fitting for me.” As I noticed this, the typical young person’s intoxication with youth entirely vanished.

Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought occurred to me: “When an untaught, ordinary person, himself subject to illness, not beyond illness, sees another who is ill, he is horrified, humiliated and disgusted, oblivious to himself that he too is subject to illness, not beyond illness. And if I, who am, subject to illness, not beyond illness, were to be horrified, humiliated and disgusted on seeing another person who is ill, that would not be fitting for me.” As I noticed this, the healthy person’s intoxication with health entirely dropped away.

Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought occurred to me: “When an untaught, ordinary person, himself subject to death, not beyond death, sees another who is dead, he is horrified, humiliated and disgusted, oblivious to himself that he too is subject to death, not beyond death. And if I, who am, subject to death, not beyond death, were to be horrified, humiliated and disgusted on seeing another person who is dead, that would not be fitting for me.” As I noticed this, the living person’s intoxication with life entirely dropped away.” Anguttara Nikāya III.38

During this time Siddhatha’s wife Yasodhara gave birth to their first child, a son. He knew that the mother and child would be well looked after since they had all the means in the palace at their disposal. He finally decided to leave the royal household in search of Truth and Peace. He summoned his charioteer Channa and asked him to prepare his favorite horse Kanthaka and went to the suite where his wife and child were asleep.  He had a final look at his wife and son who were fast asleep. Leaving all behind but with a light heart he left the palace in the darkness of the night accompanied only by his charioteer. At the age of 29 years, he thus set off in search of Truth and Peace. He arrived at the river Anoma (Neranjera) and having crossed the river rested on the bank. He shaved his head and beard with the sword and handed over all his garments and ornaments to Channa with instructions to return to the palace and inform the family. He put on the saffron garb of an ascetic and became a barefooted, penniless and homeless wanderer with only a bowl to collect whatever food the charitable gave. He went forth devoting his time and energy to discovering the Truth.

 In those days in ancient India there were many different teachers of religion, who took pupils and taught these pupils all they themselves knew. One of these religious teachers, well known for his knowledge and attainments, was Alāra Kālāma.  Siddhartha went to him in order to learn what he had to teach. And Siddhartha stayed with Alāra Kālāma a long time and studied under him and learned the practices his master taught him so diligently that at length he had learned and practiced everything his master knew and practiced. And his master Alāra Kālāma thought so highly of him and of his great ability that one day he said to Siddhartha: "Now you know everything I know. Whether you teach my doctrine or whether I teach it, it is all the same. You are the same as I: I am the same as you. There is no difference between us. Stay with me and take my place as teacher to my disciples along with me."

"But have you nothing more you can teach me?" asked Siddhartha. "Can you not teach me the way to get beyond the reach of life and death?"

"No," said Alāra Kālāma, "that is a thing I do not know myself, so how can I teach it to you? I do not believe that anybody in the whole world knows that." Very much disappointed, Siddhartha left his master Alāra Kālāma, and went away again wandering throughout the country, looking for some one who knew and could teach him more than he had learned from Alāra Kālāma. After sometime he came to hear of another famous teacher Uddaka, who was said by everybody to possess great knowledge and powers. So Siddhartha then went to Uddaka and became his pupil and diligently studied and practiced under him until as with Alāra Kālāma, he was as clever and learned as his master. Siddhartha asked him the same question that he had asked of Alāra Kālāma. He asked him if he had no more to teach him; if he could not teach him how to overcome birth and death.  But Uddaka was in the same position as Alāra Kālāma. So disappointed once more, Siddhartha took his leave of Uddaka too, and made up his mind that he would not go to any more teachers to ask about what he wanted to know but henceforth would try to find it out for himself, by his own labor and efforts.

It was a common practice in India then, for those who leave their homes and follow an ascetic religious life to accept that by going without food and making their bodies uncomfortable and miserable that they would earn the right to a long period of peace and happiness hereafter in the world of the gods. Some practiced starvation until at last their bodies became mere skin and bones. Others never lay down at night except on a bed of thorns, or else on a board with sharp nails.  Siddhartha was anxious and determined to find out what he wanted to know, and did not care how much trouble and pain he had to go through if only at last he would succeed. He did very much the same as these other ascetics who were seeking religious truth. He did not know any better way than to do just as the others did. He honestly hoped and believed that if only he tortured and tormented his body enough, at last he would obtain enlightenment of mind. Several years later, this is how the Buddha described that life to his disciple Thera Sāriputta. "I practiced the holding in of my breath," said the Buddha to Sāriputta, "until it made a great roaring in my ears, and gave me a pain in my head as if some one was boring into it with a sharp sword, or lashing me over the head with a leather whip. In my body also, I suffered pains as if a butcher were ripping me up with a knife, or some one had flung me into a pit of red-hot coals. And then I practiced loneliness. On the nights of the new moon and of the full moon, I went out to lonely places among the trees where the dead lay buried, and stayed there all night through hearing the leaves rustling and the twigs dropping when a breeze blew, with my hair all standing on end with fright. When a bird came and lighted on a bough, or a deer or other animal came running past, I shook with terror, for I did not know what it was that was coming up to me in the dark. But I did not run away. I made myself stay there and face the fear and terror that I felt, until I had mastered it. I also went without food. I practiced eating only once a day, then only once in two days, then only once in three days, and so on until I was only eating once in fourteen days. In the lonely forests I lived alone never seeing a human being for weeks and months. In winter, when it was cold at night, I stayed out in the open without a fire to keep me warm. And in the daytime, when the sun came out, I hid myself among the cold trees. And in the burning heat of summer, I stayed out by day in the open under the hot sun; and at night I went into the close, stifling thickets. Through eating so little food, my body became terribly thin and lean. My legs became like reeds, my hips like camel's hoofs. My backbone stood out on my back like a rope, and on my sides my ribs showed like the rafters of a ruined house. My eyes sank so far in my head that they looked like water at the bottom of a deep well and almost disappeared altogether. The skin of my head grew all withered and shrunken like a pumpkin that has been cut and laid out in the sun. And when I tried to rub my arms and legs to make them feel a little better, the hair on them was so rotted at the roots that it all came away in my hands. And yet, Sāriputta, in spite of all these pains and sufferings, I did not reach the knowledge I wanted to reach, because that knowledge and insight was not to be found that way, but could only be achieved by profound reasoning and reflection, and by turning away from everything in the world."

In this way, for six long years, Siddhartha put his body to all kinds of torment, thinking that by doing this, if only he went on long enough, at last he would get to know what he wanted. So thinking, all the while he was wandering about here and there through the country of Northern India. At length, in the course of these wanderings, he came to the land of Magadha again, to a quiet place in a bamboo grove.  In this place, called Uruvela, Siddhartha took up his fixed residence, under the trees meditating and striving hard, fasting and otherwise treating his poor body very badly, all in the hope that by such pains and endeavors he would gain knowledge of the Truth he sought. Meanwhile there had gathered round him a little band of disciples who admired him very much as they saw how he starved himself or otherwise made himself undergo severe hardships. These disciples, five in number, waited upon him and attended to his few wants, for they thought that an ascetic who could make himself suffer such pains and privations, and persevere in them as did Siddhartha, must be no common man. They thought, indeed, they felt sure, that an ascetic with so much endurance and determination, must be certain to get what he was looking for, and that when he had found it, then he would tell it to them, his pupils and followers.

But one day it happened that as he sat alone under a tree, the prince-ascetic, all worn out with fasting and hardships, and added to that, the strain of intense and prolonged meditation, fell down in a faint, and lay there on the ground so completely exhausted and without strength. Fortunately however, a boy who was watching some goats near by happened to come along by the tree under which Siddhartha lay and when he saw the holy man lying there, the boy at once guessed that he was dying of starvation. So the boy ran back to his goats and brought up one of them, and milked some milk from its teats into the half-open mouth of the holy man. After a little while Siddhartha was able to sit up, feeling very much better than he had felt for a long time. Siddhartha began to think about why he had fainted, and why he was now feeling so much refreshed in body and mind. Siddhartha turned to the goat-herd boy who now was kneeling before him in veneration, and asked him if he would kindly give him a little more of his goat's milk in a dish, as it was doing him much good. "O Reverend Sir," said the boy, "I cannot do that. I cannot give you milk in a dish that has been touched by my hand. I am only a common herd-boy of low caste, and you are a holy man, a Brahmin. If I were to touch you with anything I had touched, it would be a crime." But Siddhartha replied: "My dear boy, I am not asking you for caste: I am asking you for milk. There is no real difference between us, even although you are a goat herd-boy and I am a hermit. If a man does high and noble deeds, then he is a high and noble person; and if a man does low and ignoble deeds, then he is a low and ignoble person. That is all the real caste there is. You have done a good kind deed in giving me milk when I was almost dead for want of food; therefore you are of good caste to me. Give me some more milk in a dish." The herd-boy went away and soon came back with a bowl full of goat's milk which he joyfully offered to the kind hermit. The prince-ascetic, now thoroughly refreshed with the good drink of milk, sat beneath the tree, meditating more successfully than he had done for a long time. He thought, “This harsh way of treating the body cannot be the proper way to find Truth. I will give it up at once and treat my body with proper care and attention henceforth." Siddhartha now realized the futility of both the luxurious life he spent in the palace and the self-mortification he had undertaken as an ascetic. He decided to adopt an independent course, Majjhima Patipadā, the Middle Path.

After that, Siddhartha went out every morning to the village to beg for food, and eating what he got thus each day, he soon became strong again. The five disciples who believed in him and had hitherto stayed with him did not think this way at all. They still believed, that the one and only way to find the Truth in spiritual matters was to make one’s self miserable in body. So when they saw the master and teacher they had hitherto admired, beginning to eat what his body required, they were very much disappointed with him, and they said among themselves: "Ah, this Sakyan ascetic has given up striving and struggling. He has gone back to a life of ease and comfort." All five of them turned away from their master and went their way.

One day, a young woman called Sujātā, who lived near by, came to him in his hermitage among the trees with a bowl full of rice boiled with milk. He did not refuse her gift, but accepted it with pleasure, and felt the benefit of it at once in a greatly strengthened body and mind. He sat down there under the Pipal tree, resolved to sit there, no matter what might happened to him, until he had discovered the way that leads out of Samsāra, the unending cycle of birth and death, to a lasting deathless state. What Siddhartha wanted was to find some way by which he and all human beings could put an end to the cycle of life and death. He wanted to find some state that would be permanent and lasting, some kind of well being that would not be lost, so that those who reached it once, would not need to be striving and struggling to achieve it again and again. On this great night under the Pipal tree at Uruvela he was determined to find such a state of lasting well-being. Now Siddhartha wished to give the whole force of his mind to this effort but his mind fought against his will, and turned itself to dwell upon all the temporary delights and pleasures of life that he ever had tasted. He wanted to leave aside those thoughts of worldly things and concentrate all his attention upon trying to find out how all things arise, but his thoughts, in spite of all he could do, turned back to his former pleasant life, and brought before his mind's eye the most attractive pictures of the happy life he used to live in the palace before he came out on this painful search for Truth.

And there Siddhartha sat and still continued sitting, striving and struggling, laboring and wrestling with all his mind and will to find what would bring to an end all suffering. At last he was successful. After a time, as he continued his meditations, putting away from his thoughts, all evil things that were recurring to disturb his mind and concentration, at length his mind became still and quiet like a still and quiet lake. In the calm, close concentration of his mind, now wholly calmed and collected, in the intense power of his will and directed towards one thing only, there, where he sat under the Pipal tree, Prince Siddhartha, the ascetic of the Sakyans, became the Enlightened One, the Awakened One, the All-Knowing One. He became Gotama the Buddha, the bringer of the light of truth to the whole mankind. Now he knew how and why human beings were born and died again and again, and how they might cease thus to suffer repeated birth and death. But the first thing he saw clearly with his new and penetrating insight this full moon night in the month of May, as he sat meditating under the Bodhi Tree, was the long line of his own lives and deaths through the ages.

Then with his keen, penetrating power of mind, he perceived that it is people’s own actions and nothing else whatever which make them happy or unhappy. He perceived the Four Noble Truths. And then he saw the way out of the world of change and disappointment and uncertain happiness, and would be able to attain the true and certain happiness of Nibbāna (Sanskrit Nirvana). This Way or Path out of the world of suffering, he called the Noble Eightfold Path.

After attaining enlightenment, Buddha spent the first week, under the Bodhi Tree, engaged in deep concentration and meditation. The second week the Buddha stood opposite the Bodhi tree, gazing at the tree with motionless eyes. This was as an expression of gratitude to the tree that sheltered him during his great endeavor.

Now, about this time there were staying near Rajagaha two friends Upatissa and Kolita. They wanted to know something more than their teacher Sanjaya knew and taught. They wanted to find that state which is beyond the power of death. They wanted to find what they called "The Deathless." So these two friends went to the place where the Buddha was, and asked to be allowed to take Him as their master and teacher henceforth, instead of Sanjaya whom they had left. The Buddha accepted them into the Brotherhood of his Bhikkhus, and within a very short time they became the very foremost of the Buddha's disciples for their learning and practical knowledge. In fact, these two friends Upatissa and Kolita, became the two great disciples known to the world as Sariputta and Moggallana.

The Buddha now began that career of continuous teaching and preaching which lasted for forty-five years, during which time he wandered about principally in that part of North–Eastern India. Except during the rainy season he very seldom stayed more than a day or two at any one place. And during the rainy season of each year, he generally lived at the Bamboo Grove or Veluvana Vihara at Rajagaha that had been given him by King Bimbisara, or else at the Jetavanā Vihara near Sāvatthi in the Kosala country, which had been presented to Buddha and his Sangha by a very generous supporter Anāthapindika. The Buddha generally followed a daily routine of begging for alms in the morning. He rose early in the morning before dawn, and after attending to his toilet requirements, sat down and engaged in meditation for some time. Then, when there was full daylight, he used to put his robe on both shoulders, and taking His alms bowl in hand, go out to the village or town near which he happened to be staying at the time, and with his eyes fixed on the ground, pass from door to door, waiting for, and accepting in silence, whatever the charitable might put into his bowl. Sometimes he went out on this round for alms alone by himself; sometimes he went accompanied by a group of his disciples who passed along in single file behind him. Occasionally, when begging alone, some supporter to whose door he came, would invite him to come in and have his meal in their house. Such invitations he usually accepted. After finishing his meal he would speak to those present about his doctrine, telling them about the benefit and advantage of doing good and the disadvantage and harm of doing evil.

The Buddha passed away (Parinibbāna) at the age of 80 years after completing nearly 45 years of missionary work. Just before his passing away the Buddha once more addressed the assembled Bhikkhus, and these were the very last words he spoke. "O Bhikkhus," he said, "this is now my last admonition to you.” “Sabbe sankhārā anicca, Appamadena sampādetha.” “All components of existence are impermanent. With diligence and earnestness work out your liberation."  Then the Blessed One sank into a trance and passed away. Gotama the Buddha was a human being. He was born a human being, lived a human being and passed away as a human being. But of course he was an extraordinary human being. The Buddha urged his disciples to depend on themselves for their own emancipation. “You yourselves must make the effort. The Thathagāthas are only teachers”, declared the Buddha.

The Buddha had a cousin named Ānanda who entered the order with several of his Sakyan nobles. From about the 55^th year until the 80^th year of the Buddha, Ānanda was very closely associated with the Buddha acting as a personal attendant.  In the words of Elder Ānanda, as given in the ‘Psalms of the Brethren’;

For five-and-twenty years on the Exalted One,
I waited, serving him by loving deeds, and like his shadow followed after him.

For five-and twenty years on the Exalted One,
I waited, serving him with loving thoughts, and like his shadow followed after him.

When pacing up and down, the Buddha walked, Behind his back I kept the pace always; and when the Norm was being taught, in me knowledge and understanding of it grew."

Thus Ānanda had the opportunity to listen to all the discourses of the Buddha. Ānanda possessed a very powerful mental ability and retentive power. He was accordingly named ‘Dhamma Bhandagārika’ (Treasurer of the Dhamma). He was chosen to rehearse the dhamma at the First Council after the passing away of the Buddha. That is why every Sutta begins with the words ‘Evam me sutham’, which means, “Thus have I heard”.

Chapter 4

THE FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS

The Buddha delivered his first sermon, the Dhammachakkapavattana Sutta, to his old colleagues, the five ascetics, at the Deer Park, at Isipatana in Benares. ‘Dhammachakkapavattana’ means, “Setting in Motion the Wheel of Dhamma”. In this discourse, the Buddha set out the Four Noble Truths, which form the basic foundation of Buddha’s teachings. Understanding the Four Noble Truths is synonymous with achieving the ultimate goal in Buddhism. The Buddha included it in his first sermon. In this discourse Buddha first set out the Middle Path, Majjjhima Patipadā. Addressing the five ascetics the Buddha said that there are two extremes that an ascetic must avoid. They are, constant attachment to sensual pleasures and also constant addiction to self-mortification. He said avoiding these two extremes he has discovered the Middle Path. He then proceeded to expound the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eight-fold Path that lead to ‘Sight, Knowledge, Peace, Higher Wisdom, Enlightenment and Nibbāna.’

The Four Noble Truths as stated in original Pali are as follows:

Dukkha

Samudaya

Nirodha

Magga

Dukkha means ‘Suffering’; Samudaya means origin of ‘Suffering’; Nirodha means cessation of ‘Suffering’; Magga means path leading to the cessation of ‘Suffering’. The Buddha’s formulation of the Four Noble Truths is a very clever and skillful way of enunciating the fundamental principles of his teachings. It’s a very simple formula of just four words, Dukkha, Samudaya, Nirodha and Magga. Although it is a very simple formula, it contains the totality of his teachings. It contains the two fundamental things Buddha mentioned in describing his teachings, namely, Dhamma – Vinaya. The first two Truths form the Dhamma or the Doctrine and the last two Truths form the Vinaya or discipline or practice. In fact everything else is emanating from this simple formula.

Underlying this formula is also the philosophical basis of the Buddha, the principle of cause and effect. You will recall that we mentioned earlier that when Upatissa (later became Sariputta) met Assaji, explaining the teachings of the Buddha, Assaji declared ”Of things that proceed from a cause, the Tathāgatha has told, and also their cessation; thus teaches the Tathāgatha”. This very brief summarization of the Buddha’s teachings indicates the importance of the relationship between cause and effect that lie at the heart of Buddha’s teachings. That relationship between cause and effect also lie at the core of the Four Noble Truths. The First Noble Truth states the problem of universal suffering. The Second Noble Truth specifies the cause that brings about the suffering. The Third Noble Truth expresses the cessation of the cause of suffering and the Fourth Noble Truth expresses the path leading to the cessation of suffering. In other words, the removal of the cause of suffering leads to the cessation of suffering.

When we examine the concept of cause and effect in the context of the Four Noble Truths, it becomes evident that they are in a causal relationship, one to another, among themselves. The First is the cause of the Second and the Third is the cause of the Fourth. It is both useful and helpful to understand this principle and remember the relationship of cause and effect in the Four Noble Truths. Later, when we examine the teachings of the Buddha in relation to Kamma, Rebirth and dependent origination, it will become very clear that the principle of cause and effect runs as the main artery throughout the doctrine of the Buddha.

THE FIRST NOBLE TRUTH.

The First Noble Truth Dukkha, has been generally translated as The Noble Truth of Suffering. This is inadequate, unsatisfactory and misleading. It is because of this incorrect interpretation that many people have been misled to believe that Buddhism is pessimistic. In every language each word has an intrinsic meaning that is not always possible to be translated to another language to convey the same exact and precise meaning. We have that difficulty here too. Hence to translate ‘Dukkha’ as suffering is incorrect and inadequate. Francis Story defined ‘Dukkha’ as:

“Disturbance, irritation, dejection, worry, despair, fear, dread, anguish, anxiety; vulnerability, injury, inability, inferiority; sickness, aging, decay of body and faculties, senility; pain/pleasure; excitement/boredom; deprivation excess; desire frustration, suppression; longing aimlessness; hope hopelessness; effort, activity, striving repression; loss, want, insufficiency satiety; love lovelessness, friendlessness; dislike, aversion attraction; parenthood childlessness; submission rebellion; decision indecisiveness, vacillation, uncertainty.”

When you examine this broad definition, it becomes abundantly clear that the narrow translation of it as ‘suffering’ is totally inadequate. In its broad definition, the universality of ‘suffering’ becomes extremely clear and acceptable without any argument. When Buddha declares that there is suffering, he does not deny that there is happiness in life. In fact he delineated several forms of happinesses, which he calls Sukhani, which are both physical and mental.  Into this category of happinesses Buddha included the happiness of family life, the happiness of the life of a recluse, the happiness of sense pleasures, the happiness of renunciation, the happiness associated with attachment and also the happiness associated with detachment.  But all these are also included in ‘Dukkha’ since they are impermanent and therefore subject to change. When we take account of the pleasures of life, we must also take account of the accompanying sorrows and pain and also the freedom from them. Its only then that we can understand life completely and objectively and its only then that we can find true freedom in an objective way.

The First Noble Truth should not be regarded purely as a metaphysical statement saying that everything is suffering. There is a fundamental difference between a metaphysical doctrine in which you are making a statement about something that is ‘absolute’ and the First Noble Truth that is wholly an effect. The First Noble Truth is a truth to reflect upon; it is not something absolute. This is where many people get very confused about Buddhism because they interpret this Noble Truth as a kind of metaphysical absolute truth. It was never meant to be that. It becomes very clear that there is nothing absolute in the First Noble Truth, in view of the Fourth Noble Truth, which is the path leading to the cessation of suffering. You cannot have absolute suffering and then have a path leading to the cessation of suffering. That would not make sense.

There are, basically three aspects for the concept of Dukkha. They are (1) dukkha as ordinary suffering (2) dukkha as produced by change (viparināma dukkha)  (3) dukkba as con­ditioned states (samkhāra dukkha). There are all kinds of suffering in life like birth, old age, sickness, death, association with unpleasant persons and conditions, separation from beloved ones and pleasant conditions, disappointment, grief, lamentation and distress. There are also such forms of physical and mental suffering, which are universally accepted as suffering or pain, that may be included in dukkha as ordinary suffering.

A happy feeling or a happy situation in life is not permanent or everlasting. It changes sooner or later. When it changes, it produces grief, pain, suffering and unhappiness. This vicissitude is included in suffering produced by change (viparināma). It is not difficult to understand these first two forms of suffering mentioned above. No one will dispute them. This aspect of the First Noble Truth is very well known and easily accepted. It is not something subtle or uncommon. It is regularly experienced in our daily lives. But the third form of dukkha as conditioned states (samkhāra dukkha) is the philosophical aspect of the First Noble Truth, and it requires some review here. According to Buddhist philosophy, what we consider as a ‘being’, or as an 'individual' or as 'I', is only a combination of ever changing physical and mental forces or energies.

Buddha declared that a human being is a composition of Nāma (mind) and Rūpa (matter).  Rūpa (matter) is merely a manifestation of forces.  Sages of ancient India believed in an indivisible atom, Paramānu.  Analyzing this so-called indivisible atom, the Buddha declared it to be a manifestation of inter-connected forces, which he called Paramatthas (fundamental units of matter).  These Paramatthas are Pathavi, Āpo, Thêjo and Vāyo.  Pathavi means the element of extension; Āpo, the element of cohesion; Thejo, the element of heat, and Vāyo, the element of motion.  These four elements of matter are combined with the four derivatives, namely, Vanna (color), Gandha (odor), Rasa (taste) and Oja (nutritive essence).  These elements and derivatives are inseparable and inter-related, but are present in varying proportions.  In water, for instance, the element of cohesion preponderates over the other three, and in fire, the element of heat.

Mind (Nāma), which is the most important in the so-called being, is a compound of fleeting mental states, and is analyzed into four aggregates, namely, Vedanā (sensations), Sannā (perception), Sankhāra (tendencies) and Vinnāna (consciousness).  These five aggregates (Khandhas), Rūpa, Vedāna, Sannā, Sankhāra, Vinnāna, the aggregates of existence, are a composition of physical and psychical elements, which together form an individual person.

The first of the five aggregates Rūpa (body) is the physical part of the being. The second of the five aggregates is the Aggregate of Sensations (Vedanā). In this group are included all our sensations, pleasant or unplea­sant or neutral, experienced through the contact of physical and mental organs with the external world. They are of six kinds: the sensations experienced through the contact of the eye with visible forms, ear with audible forms, nose with odor, tongue with taste, body with physical objects, and mind (which is the sixth faculty in Buddhist Philosophy) with mind-objects or thoughts or ideas. All our physical and mental sensations are included in this group.

A word about what is meant by the term 'Mind' (Manasa) in Buddhist philosophy may be useful here. It should clearly be understood that mind is not a spirit as opposed to matter. It should always be remembered that Buddhism does not recognize a spirit opposed to matter, as is accepted by most other systems of philosophies and religions. Mind is only a faculty or organ (indriya) like the eye or the ear. It can be controlled and developed like any other faculty, and the Buddha speaks quite often of the value of controlling and disciplining these six faculties. The difference between the eye and the mind as faculties is that the former senses the world of colors and visible forms, while the latter senses the world of ideas and thoughts and mental objects. We experience different fields of the world with different senses. We cannot hear colors, but we can see them. Nor can we see sounds, but we can hear them. Thus with our five physical sense­ organs, eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, we experience only the world of visible forms, sounds, odors, tastes and tangible objects. But these represent only a part of the world, not the whole world. They do not include ideas and thoughts that are also a part of the world. But they cannot be sensed nor conceived by the faculty of the eye, ear, nose, tongue or body. Yet, they can be conceived by another faculty, which is the mind. Ideas and thoughts are not independent of the world experienced by these five physical sense faculties. In fact they depend on, and are conditioned by, physical experiences. Hence a person born blind cannot have ideas of color, except through the analogy of sounds or some other things experienced through his other faculties. Ideas and thoughts which form a part of the world are thus produced and conditioned by physical experiences and are con­ceived by the mind. Hence mind (manasa) is considered a sense faculty or organ (indriya), like the eye or the ear.

The third is the Aggregate of Perceptions (Sañña). Like sensations, perceptions also are of six kinds, in relation to six internal faculties and the corresponding six external objects. Like sensations, they are produced through the contact of our six faculties with the external world. It is the perceptions that recog­nize objects whether physical or mental.

The fourth is the Aggregate of Mental Formations (Sankhāra). In this group are included all volitional activities, both good and bad, wholesome and unwholesome. What is generally known as kamma (Sanskrit karma) comes under this group. The Buddha's own definition of kamma should be remembered here. “0 bhikkhus, it is volition that I call kamma. Having willed, one acts through body, speech and mind”. Volition is mental construction, mental activity. Its function is to direct the mind in the sphere of good, bad or neutral activities. Sensations and perceptions are not volitional actions. They do not produce karmic effects. It is only volitional actions such as attention (manasikāra), will (chanda), determination (adhimokkha), confidence (saddhā), concentration (samādhi), wisdom (pañña), energy (viriya), desire (rāga), repugnance or hate (pathigaha) ignorance (avijjā), conceit (māna), idea of self (sakkaya ditthi) that can produce karmic effects. There are fifty-two such mental activities that constitute the Aggregate of Mental Formations.

The fifth is the Aggregate of Consciousness (Viññāna). Consciousness is a reaction or response which has one of the six faculties namely, eye, ear, nose, tongue, body and mind, as its basis, and one of the six corresponding external phenomena namely visible form, sound, odor, taste, physical things and mind-objects, that is an idea or thought, as its object. Thus, like the other aggregates, namely, sensation, perception and volition, conscious­ness is also of six kinds, in relation to six internal faculties and corresponding six external objects.

It should be clearly understood that consciousness does not recognize an object. It is only a sort of awareness, awareness of the presence of an object. When the eye comes in contact with a color, visual consciousness arises which simply is awareness of the presence of a color; but it does not recognize what color it is. There is no recognition at this stage. It is perception (the third Aggregate discussed above) that recognizes what color it is. The term 'visual consciousness' is a philosophical expression denoting the same idea as is conveyed by the ordinary word 'seeing'. Seeing does not mean recognizing. So are the other forms of consciousness.

Thus a human being is a complex compound of five aggregates that are in a constant state of flux.  A particular combination of these five aggregates constitutes one’s individuality.  They are severally and collectively impermanent, non-substantial, and there is no permanent entity residing in them.  In Buddha’s Second Discourse is enunciated the doctrine of phenomenality of the individual, where he declares that five aggregates are devoid of any permanent entity such as a soul.  “The words ‘living entity’ or ‘ego’ are but a mode of expression for the presence of the five aggregates, but when we come to examine the elements one by one, we discover that, in the absolute sense, there is no ‘living entity’ there to form the basis for such figments as ‘I am’ or ‘I’; in other words, that in the absolute sense, there is only Nāma and Rūpa,” says Buddhaghosa in Visuddhi Magga.

Buddha  makes  it  clear  that  it is wrong to think of consciousness as something permanent. Consciousness is a changing factor.  As heat and light are manifestations of a glowing bar of steel, Viññāna or consciousness is the manifestation of the electrical activity of the living brain.

          The mental electrons come into existence, endure, though, for a moment and disappear.  Every state of consciousness has three phases: Uppāda (genesis), Thiti (development) and Bhanga (dissolution).  Each of these occupies only a Kshana, an infinitesimal division of time.  Cittakkhana is the space of three instants in which a state of consciousness becomes, exists and vanishes.

Buddhism tells us that the only reality is the spark-like sequence of actions which we see as a continuity.  In self, which we imagine to be, there is only a sequence of fleeting impressions, sensations, pains and pleasures which succeed one another in amazing rapidity, but without any link between them, or an entity functioning over and above them.

“The whole world is empty, O’ Ānanda, of a self, or of anything of the nature of self.  And what is it that is thus empty?  The five seats of the five senses and the mind, and the feeling that is related to mind; all these are void of a self, or of anything that is self-like” - Samyutta Nikāya.

Hence this self that we imagine to be is a Māyā-an illusion.  Through our senses we observe many a ‘reality’ around us.  We see and feel that they are real.  But, the Buddha says, nothing exists ‘statically’ except our thought of it. As we hold the thought ‘statically’ in our minds, the thing itself has already changed.  The whole world is but a dynamic reality.  Everything is static only in the mind’s eye.  The entire universe is in a perpetual flux.  All manifestations are the result of various degrees of frequency.  The degree of molecular frequency is one, the degree of light frequency is another, the degree of frequency that manifests itself as life is yet another.  The elements of existence are but of momentary appearance.

“In each individual, without any exception, the relation of its component parts to one another is ever changing, so that it is never the same for two consecutive moments. It follows that no      sooner has separateness begun than dissolution and disintegration also begin; there can be no individuality without a putting together; there can be no putting-together without a becoming; there can be no becoming without a becoming different; there can be no becoming deferent without dissolution, a passing away, which sooner or later becomes inevitably complete.” Prof. Rhys Davids.

It is very important to understand the First Noble Truth in its proper perspective. The Buddha said, “he who sees dukkha also sees the arising of dukkha, also sees the cessation of dukkha, and also sees the path leading to the cessation of dukkha.” This does not make the life of a Buddhist sad and pessimistic. On the contrary, many experienced practitioners have proved themselves to be very happy individuals. They have no fears or anxieties; they are calm and serene and cannot be upset or dismayed by changes or calamities. The Buddha was never melancholy or gloomy. He was described by his contemporaries as always being with a smile and a serene disposition. In Buddhist art and sculpture throughout Asia spanning over many centuries, the Buddha is always depicted as a serene, contented and compassionate person. There is never a trace of suffering or unhappiness to be observed. Buddhism is quite opposed to the melancholic, sorrowful and gloomy attitude of mind that is considered a hindrance to the realization of Nibbāna.

The two ancient Buddhist texts Theragātha (Psalms of the Bretheren) and Therigātba (Psalms of the Sisters) are full of happy utterances of the Buddha's disciples, both male and female, who found peace and happiness in life through his teachings. The king of Kosala once told the Buddha that unlike many a disciple of contemporary religious teachers who looked haggard, coarse, pale, and emaciated, his disciples were joyful and elated, jubilant and exultant, enjoying the spiritual life with faculties pleased, free from anxiety, serene, peaceful and living with an alert mind. The king added that he believed that this healthy countenance was due to the fact that these venerable ones had certainly realized the full significance of the Buddha’s teachings.

THE SECOND NOBLE TRUTH

The Second Noble Truth is samudaya, the arising or origin of dukkha. Once we have recognized the problem of suffering, it is natural and logical that we must look for its cause. Only by understanding the cause of suffering can we do something to solve the problem, to overcome it.

What is the cause of suffering according to the Buddha? The generally accepted definition of the Second Noble Truth ‘samudaya’ is ‘desire’, ‘craving’, or ‘thirst’. In most of the original texts it is defined as follows: 'It is this "thirst" (craving, tanha) which produces re-existence and re-becoming, and which is bound up with passionate greed and which finds fresh delight now here and now there namely, (1) thirst for sense-pleasures (kāma-tanha), (2) thirst for existence and becoming (bhāva-tanha) and (3) thirst for non-existence (self-annihilation, vibhāva-tanha). The Buddha taught that craving is the principal cause of suffering. There are various kinds of craving: craving for pleasant experiences, craving for material things, craving for eternal life, and craving for eternal death. Most of us enjoy good things. Enjoying good things, we want more and more of them. We try to prolong such pleasant experiences and to experience them more and more often. Yet, somehow we are never completely satisfied. We find, for instance, that when we are very fond of something, we want to enjoy it again and again.  Soon we get bored with it and try another. Still, after a while, we begin to get bored with it. We go on to look for something else. We even get tired of our most favorite things. Sometimes this chase after pleasant experiences leads to very destructive forms of behavior, like alcoholism and drug addiction. All this is craving for the enjoyment of pleasant experiences. Ultimately, our craving for pleasant experiences is insatiable; it cannot be satisfied for all times.

All forms of suffering and the continuity of beings are primarily caused by this thirst, desire, greed, craving, manifesting itself in various ways. Even this 'thirst', this ‘craving’, which is considered the cause or origin of suffering depends for its arising on something else. Thus the cycle goes on and on. Buddha called this Conditioned Genesis (Paticca-samuppāda).

The terms 'thirst', 'craving', 'desire' and 'urge' all denote the same thing: they denote the desire, the will to be, to exist, to re-exist to become more and more, to grow more and more, to accumulate more and more to posses more and more and enjoy more and more. This is the cause of the arising of suffering and it is found within the Aggregate of Mental For­mations, one of the Five Aggregates that constitute a being. Here is one of the most important and essential points in the Buddha's teaching. We must therefore clearly and carefully mark and remember that the cause, the germ, of the arising of suffering is within suffering itself, and not outside. We must equally well remember that the cause, the germ, of the cessation of suffering, of the destruction of suffering, is also within suffering itself and not outside. This is what is meant by the well-known Buddhist formula ‘What ever is of the nature of arising, all that is also of the nature of cessation. A being, a thing, or a system, if it has within itself the nature of arising, the nature of coming into being, has also within itself the nature, the germ, of its own cessation and destruction. Thus dukkha, has within itself the nature of its own arising, and has also within itself the nature of its own cessation.

The term 'thirst' or ‘craving’ includes not only desire for, and attachment to, sense-pleasures, wealth and power, but also desire for, and attachment to, ideas and ideals, views, opinions, theories and beliefs. According to the Buddha's analysis, all the troubles and strife in the world, from little personal quarrels between individuals to conflicts between nations arise out of this selfish 'thirst'. From this point of view, all economic, political and social problems are rooted in this selfish 'thirst'. Every one will admit that all the evils in the world are ultimately produced by selfish desire. This is not difficult to understand. But how this desire, 'thirst', can produce continuation of existence and becoming is not so easily understood.

 It is here that we have to discuss the deeper philosophical side of the Second Noble Truth. Is craving alone a sufficient cause of suffering? Is craving alone enough to explain suffering? Is the answer as simple as that? Of course the answer is not so simple as that. There is something that goes deeper than craving, something that is, in a sense, the foundation or ground of craving-namely, ignorance.

Ignorance is not seeing things as they really are. It is failing to understand the truth about life and the failure to observe things as they really are.  In what sense are we ignorant? There are innumerable things around us that we do not observe without the right conditions, without the right training and without right instruments. In other words, we are unable to see things as they really are. Presence of electricity cannot be observed unless we have objects by which it manifests itself or a meter to measure it. We cannot observe the presence of bacteria in a glass of water if we do not use a microscope. Unless we have these special conditions and equipment we cannot observe so many things that are around us.

When we say that ignorance is the inability to see things as they really are, what we mean is that, as long as we do not develop our minds and achieve the necessary wisdom, we remain ignorant of the nature of things as they really are. As Buddhists, we are concerned with ignorance about the nature of the self. Such ignorance means regarding the self as real. This is the fundamental cause of suffering. We take our bodies and minds, the five aggregates of existence, to be permanent beings. We take them to be real independent entities. But once you assume this conception of a self, there naturally arises the conception of something apart from or other than your self. And once the conception of something different from your self occurs, you automatically regard it as either helpful to and supportive of your self or as hostile to it. Thus elements of the reality that you assume as different from your self are pleasant or unpleasant, desirable or undesirable.

From the conceptions of self and things other than the self, craving and aversion naturally arise. Once we believe in the existence of a real self, apart from all the objects we experience as belonging to the outside world, we then want to posses those things we think will benefit us and reject the things we think do not benefit us. Thus the terms 'thirst', 'craving', 'desire' and 'urge' all denote the same thing: they denote the desire, the will to be, to exist, to re-exist to become more and more, to grow more and more, to accumulate more and more to posses more and more and enjoy more and more. This is the cause of the arising of suffering and it is found within the Aggregate of Mental For­mations, one of the Five Aggregates that constitute a being. Here is one of the most important and essential points in the Buddha's teaching. We must therefore clearly and carefully mark and remember that the cause, the germ, of the arising of suffering is within suffering itself, and not outside. We must equally well remember that the cause, the germ, of the cessation of suffering, of the destruction of suffering, is also within suffering itself and not outside. This is what is meant by the well-known formula ‘What ever is of the nature of arising, all that is of the nature of cessation. A being, a thing, or a system, if it has within itself the nature of arising, the nature of coming into being, has also within itself the nature, the germ, of its own cessation and destruction. Thus dukkha (Five Aggregates) has within itself the nature of its own arising, and has also within itself the nature of its own cessation.

Because of the failure to understand that in this body and mind there is no permanent self, attachment and aversion inevitably thrive. From the spring of ignorance develops the mighty river of craving, attachment, greed, aversion, hatred, envy, jealousy, and all other negative feelings. This mighty river of negative emotional afflictions grows from the spring of ignorance and manifests in many forms of suffering. Ignorance is the underlying cause of suffering, while craving, attachment, aversion, and all other negative emotions are immediate manifestations of suffering.

THE THIRD NOBLE TRUTH

The Third Noble Truth is Nirodha: 'The Cessation of Dukkha. In the Second Noble Truth we identified the causes of suffering and now we are in a position to examine how to reduce and eventually eliminate suffering. Just as a physician would examine the symptoms of an ailment, then having diagnosed it, would proceed to cure the ailment by eliminating its causes, we are now in a position to examine the elimination of the causes of suffering which brings us to the third of the Four Noble Truths, the truth of the end of suffering. Stated simply, the Third Noble Truth is that there is emancipation, liberation, and freedom from suffering, from the continuity of dukkha. This is called the Noble Truth of the Cessation of Dukkha.

When we speak about the cessation of suffering, the first obstacle we have to overcome is the doubt that exists in some minds about whether or not the cessation of suffering is really possible. Can suffering really be ended? Is a cure really possible? It is in this context that confidence plays an important role. When we speak of confidence in Buddhism, we do not mean blind acceptance of any particular doctrine. Rather, we speak of confidence in the possibility of achieving the goal of the end of suffering. Unless we have complete confidence that a physician can cure us of an ailment, we will never seek that physician’s services. If we do not have such confidence we might never undergo the appropriate treatment and may eventually die of the ailment that could have been cured had we only had sufficient confidence to seek the required treatment. Similarly, confidence in the possibility of cessation of suffering is an indispensable prerequisite to effective practice. The Noble Truth of the Cessation of Suffering is Nibbāna, more popularly known in its Sanskrit form of Nirvana.

As we saw earlier, to eliminate suffering completely, one has to eliminate the main root of suffering, which is 'thirst', ‘craving’, ‘desire’ (tanha) which leads to Nibbāna. Therefore Nibbāna is known also by the term ‘Tanhakkhaya’ which means ‘Extinction of Thirst'.

Here one may ask, 'How can I believe in the possibility of Nibbāna, the complete end of suffering, the supreme happiness if I have never experienced it?" But as I remarked earlier in this chapter, none of us would be able to know about bacteria were it not for the invention of the microscope. Even in this twenty-first century, most of us have never observed that inside an atom there are electrons, protons and neutrons, yet we accept their existence because there are those among us with the special training and appropriate instruments who have observed them. In case of Nibbāna too, the possibility of attaining the complete end of suffering ought not to be rejected simply because we have not experienced it ourselves. Some may be familiar with the old story of the turtle and the fish. One day the tortoise left the lake to spend a few hours on the shore. When he returned to the water, he told the fish of his experiences on dry land, but the fish would not believe him. The fish could not believe that something called dry land existed because it was totally unlike the reality with which he was familiar. How could there be a place where creatures walked about rather than swam, breathed air and not water? There are many historical instances where true and accurate information has been totally rejected since it was not compatible with what we already were familiar with and believed. When Marco Polo returned to Italy after his travels to Far East, he was imprisoned because his accounts of his travels did not corroborate what was then believed about the nature of the earth. When Copernicus advanced the theory that the sun does not revolve around the earth but vice versa, he was rejected and ridiculed.

In a later chapter, we will examine in detail the whole concept of Nibbāna. That it is of subjective realization; that you cannot explain it adequately; that you have to realize it yourself. When we speak of Nibbāna, we encounter the problem of expression, because the exact nature of an experience cannot be communicated merely by speaking about it; rather, it must be experienced directly. This is true of any experience, whether it be the simple experience of the taste of salt. We cannot adequately explain the taste of salt to another. Suffice is to say here that we ought to be careful not to dismiss the possibility of a complete end of suffering, that there is emancipation, liberation, and freedom from suffering, from the continuity of dukkha (the attainment of Nibbāna) just because we have not experienced it ourselves. Once we accept that the end of suffering is possible, that there is a cure for all our ills, then, we can proceed on the path leading to that goal. But unless and until we believe that a cure is possible, that there is no question of successfully completing the necessary steps the goal is not within reach. Therefore, in order to achieve progress on the path leading to the end of suffering, we need to have confidence in the possibility of achieving the goal.

Thus, confidence in the Buddha's Awakening is a prerequisite for progress in practicing the teaching. Without confidence in the fact of the Buddha's knowledge of attaining Nibbāna, one could not fully accept his prescription. Of course, this confidence would then be confirmed, step-by-step, as one followed the teaching and began gaining results, but full confirmation would come only with the attainment of Nibbāna. Prior to that point, one's trust, bolstered only by partial results, would have to be a matter of confidence. Acquiring this confidence is called "going for refuge" in the Buddha. The "refuge" here derives from the fact that one has placed trust in the truth of the Buddha's Awakening and expects that by following his teachings, one protects oneself from creating further suffering for oneself or others, eventually reaching true, unconditioned happiness. This act of going for refuge is what qualifies one as a Buddhist, and puts one in a position to benefit fully from what the Buddha taught. This taking refuge has several dimensions: trust in the ability to know the ideal path of practice, belief in the teachings, and a willingness to put those teachings into practice. The primary focus of conviction in the Awakening of the Buddha, and a belief that the Buddha made use of mental qualities accessible to everyone in using the path to bring about an end to suffering and thus attain complete freedom. Thus conviction in the Buddha's Awakening is something that must be acted upon. If one is convinced that one is entangled in a web of suffering that can nevertheless be unraveled, one will naturally try to learn from the example of the Buddha or his disciples, developing the same mental qualities they did and attaining release oneself. Thus, unlike a religion where trust involves the belief that the deity or some supreme being will provide for one's salvation, either through grace or as a reward for unquestioning obedience or glorification trust in the Buddha and belief in his teachings means that one's salvation is ultimately one's own responsibility. In this way, trust, belief, and a willingness to act are inseparably combined

THE FOURTH NOBLE TRUTH

What are the means by which we can remove the afflictions that are the causes of suffering? The Fourth Noble Truth MAGGA deals with that. That is the Path leading to the Cessation of Suffering. This is better known as the 'Middle Way' (Majjima Pqtipadā), because it avoids two extremes, one extreme being the search for happiness through the pleasures of the senses, which is 'low, common and unprofitable’ and the other being the search for happiness through self-mortification in different forms of asceticism, which is 'painful, unworthy and unprofitable'. The path taught by the Buddha, the Middle Way, is the path of moderation.

You will recall that the life of Gotama, before his enlightenment and becoming the Buddha falls into two distinct periods. The time before his renunciation was one in which he enjoyed every possible luxury; filled with sources of pleasure to an extent scarcely imaginable in his day. This period of enjoyment was followed by six years of extreme asceticism and self-mortification, when he did without the basic amenities of normal life, lived out in the open, wore the poorest garments, and fasted for long periods of time. In addition to such extreme deprivations, he tormented his body through various practices like sleeping on beds of thorns and sitting in the midst of fires under the cruel heat of the midday sun. Having experienced the extremes of luxury and deprivation and having reached the limits of these extremes, the Buddha saw their futility and thereby discovered the Middle Way, which avoids both the extreme of indulgence in pleasures of the senses and the extreme of self-mortification. It was through realizing the nature of the two extremes in his own life that the Buddha was able to arrive at the ideal of the Middle Way, the path that avoids both extremes. The Middle Way is capable of many significant and profound interpretations, but the most important feature is that it means moderation in one's approach to life, in one's attitude towards everything. Having himself first tried the two extremes, and having found them to be of no lasting purpose, the Buddha discovered through personal experience the Middle Way, which gives vision and knowledge, which leads to ‘Calm, Insight, Enlightenment and Nibbāna'.

We can use the example of the three strings of a lute found in the Sona Sutta in the Anguttara Nikāya to illustrate this very explicitly. Ven. Sona was a very devoted disciple of the Buddha who was at Rajagaha and practiced meditation with great zeal. ‘He did walking meditation until the skin of his soles split and was bleeding’. Yet he achieved nothing but encountered numerous obstacles. Sona began to think of giving up his vows and abandoning the life of a monk. The Buddha, who understood his problem, visited him and said to him, "Sona, before you became a monk, you were a house-dweller and a musician skilled at playing the vina (Lute)." Sona replied, "That is true." Then the Buddha said, "Being a musician, you should know which string of a lute produces a pleasant and harmonious sound. Is it the string that is overly tight?" "No," replied Sona, "the overly tight string produces an unpleasant sound and is likely to break at any moment." "Then," said the Buddha, "is it the string that is slack?" "No," replied Sona, "the slack string does not produce a pleasant and harmonious sound. The string that produces a pleasant and harmonious sound is the string that is not too tight and not too loose." In this case, a life of indulgence and luxury may be said to be too loose, without discipline or proper application, whereas a life of self-mortification is too tight, too hard and tense, and likely to cause a breakdown of the mind and body, just as the overly tight string is likely to break at any time.

This Middle Way is generally referred to as the Noble Eightfold Path, because it is composed of eight categories or divisions. We will deal with them in detail in the following chapter. Practically the whole teaching of the Buddha, to which he devoted himself during forty-five years, deals in some way or other with this Path. He explained it in different ways and in different words to different people, according to the stage of their development and their capacity to understand and follow him. But the essence of those many thousand discourses spread throughout the Buddhist Scriptures is found in the Noble Eightfold Path. The various categories in the Noble Eightfold Path deal with both mental and physical factors. More specifically, the path to the Buddhist goal of the cessation of suffering is like a medical prescription. When a competent doctor treats a patient for a serious illness, his or her prescription is not only physical but also psychological. If you are suffering, for instance, from a heart ailment, you are not only prescribed drug therapy but also advised to control your diet and avoid stressful situations. If we examine the specific instructions for following the Buddhist path to the end of suffering, we see that they refer not only to one's physical actions and behavior, but also to one's thoughts and attitudes. In other words, the Noble Eightfold Path is a comprehensive path, an integrated therapy leading to the end of suffering. It is designed to cure the disease of suffering through eliminating its causes, and it does so by means of treatment that applies not only to the body but to the mind as well.

Chapter 5

The Noble Eightfold Path

The Noble Eightfold Path is composed of eight factors, namely,

 I.       Right View (Sammā ditthi),

2.       Right Intention (Sammā sankappa),

3.       Right Speech (Sammā vāca),

4.       Right Action (Sammā kammanta),

5.       Right Livelihood (Sammā ajiva),

6.       Right Effort (Sammā vayāma),

7.       Right Mindfulness (Sammā sati),

8.       Right Concentration (Sammā sarnādhi).

These eight factors aim at promoting and perfecting the three essentials of Buddhist training and discipline. Hence, considered from the standpoint of practical training, the eight factors divide into three divisions: (i) Morality (sila). This division is made up of right speech, right action, and right livelihood (ii) Concentration (samadhi). This division is made up of right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration; and (iii) Wisdom (Paññā), made up of right view and right intention. These three divisions represent three stages of training: the training in the higher moral discipline, the training in the higher consciousness, and the training in the higher wisdom.

Some confusion could arise over an obvious inconsistency in the arrangement of the factors of the Noble Eightfold Path. Of the three divisions of factors, Wisdom, which includes right view and right intention, is the last stage in the threefold training, yet its factors are placed at the beginning of the listing of the factors rather than at its end. The sequence of the path factors, however, is not the result of an unintended error, but is determined by an important consideration, namely, that right view and right intention are called for at the outset as the initial urge for entering the threefold training. Right view provides the perspective for practice and the right intention and the sense of direction. But the two do not expire in this preliminary role. For when the mind has been refined by the training in moral discipline and concentration, it arrives at a superior right view and right intention, which then form the proper training in the higher wisdom.

It should not be the intention that the eight categories or divisions of the Path should be followed and practiced one after the other in the numerical sequence as given in the usual list. They are to be developed more or less simultaneously, as far as possible according to the capacity of each individual. They are all linked together and each helps the cultivation of the others. They can more aptly be described as components rather than as steps. With a certain degree of progress all eight factors can be present simultaneously, each supporting the others. However, until a certain stage is reached, some sequence in the unfolding of the path may be inevitable. The order of the three trainings is determined by the overall aim and direction of the path. Since the final goal to which the path leads, which is liberation from suffering, depends ultimately on uprooting ignorance, the climax of the path must be the training directly opposed to ignorance. This is the training in wisdom, designed to awaken the faculty of penetrative understanding that sees things "as they really are." Wisdom unfolds by degrees, but even the faintest flashes of insight presuppose as their basis a mind that has been concentrated, cleared of disturbance and distraction. Concentration is achieved through the training in the higher consciousness, the second division of the path, which brings the calm and collectedness needed to develop wisdom. But in order for the mind to be focused in concentration, a check must be placed on the unwholesome leanings that ordinarily dominate its workings, since these leanings disperse the beam of attention and scatter it among a multitude of concerns. The unwholesome leanings continue to rule as long as they are permitted to gain expression through the channels of body and speech as physical and oral deeds. Therefore, at the very outset of training, it is necessary to restrain the faculties of action, to prevent them from becoming tools of the defilements. The first division of the path, the training in moral discipline, accomplishes this task. Thus the path evolves through its three stages, with moral discipline as the foundation for concentration, concentration as the foundation for wisdom, and wisdom the direct instrument for reaching liberation.

RIGHT VIEW – Samma Ditthi

Right view is the first of the two factors in the Wisdom division – Pañña. It is the forerunner of the entire path, the guide for all the other factors. It enables us to know our starting point, understand our destination, and the successive landmarks to pass as we progress along the Path. Attempting to set out on the Path without a foundation of right view is to risk getting lost on the way. Without some basic idea of the general direction, one cannot arrive at the intended destination. Right view therefore provides the framework for the understanding for the Path.

The importance of right view can be gauged from the fact that our perspectives on important issues of reality and value have a bearing that goes beyond mere theoretical convictions. They determine our attitudes and our actions towards life as a whole. Our views might not be clearly formulated in our minds.  We might have only a very hazy grasp of our beliefs. Yet these views have a far-reaching influence. They influence our perceptions, order our values and determine how we interpret to ourselves the meaning of our existence. These views then necessarily condition our actions. They lie behind our choices and goals, and our efforts to turn these goals from ideals into reality. The actions themselves might determine consequences, but the actions along with their consequences hinge on the views from which they arise. Generally, views divide into two classes, right views and wrong views. Right views correspond to what is real and the wrong views deviate from the real and confirm mere illusions. The Buddha teaches that these two different types of views, lead to entirely different lines of action, and thereby to opposite results. If we hold a wrong view, even if that view is vague, it will lead us towards courses of action that result in suffering. On the other hand, if we adopt a right view, that view will steer us towards right action, and thereby towards freedom from suffering. The Buddha himself says that he sees no single factor so responsible for the arising of unwholesome states of mind as wrong view, and no factor so helpful for the arising of wholesome states of mind as right view. Again, he says that there is no single factor so responsible for the suffering of living beings as wrong view, and no factor so potent in promoting the good of living beings as right view.

The right view that completely penetrates the Four Noble Truths comes at the end of the path, not at the beginning. We have to start with the right view conforming to the truths, acquired through learning and fortified through confidence. This view inspires us to set out on the Path, to embark on the threefold training in moral discipline, concentration, and wisdom. When the training matures, the eye of wisdom opens by itself, penetrating the truths and freeing the mind from bondage.

Right Intention - Sammā Sankappa

The second factor of the path is Sammā Sankappa, which is the second factor in the Wisdom – Paññā division. We translated Sammā Sankappa as "Right Intention." The term is sometimes translated as "right thought." The Buddha explains Right Intention as threefold: the intention of renunciation, the intention of good will, and the intention of harmlessness. The three are opposed to three parallel kinds of wrong intention: intention driven by desire, intention driven by ill will, and intention driven by harmfulness. Each kind of right intention counteracts the corresponding kind of wrong intention. The intention of renunciation counteracts the intention of desire, the intention of goodwill counteracts the intention of evil and the intention of harmlessness counteracts the intention of harmfulness.

Ascetic Gotama discovered this twofold division of thought in the period prior to his Enlightenment. While he was striving for deliverance, meditating in the forest, he found that his thoughts fell into two divisions, good and bad. In one group he put the bad thoughts of desire, ill will, and harmfulness, in the other he put the good thoughts of renunciation, good will, and harmlessness. Whenever he noticed thoughts of the first group arise in him, he understood that those thoughts lead to harm and expelled them from his mind and brought them to an end. But whenever good thoughts arose, he understood those thoughts to be beneficial, conducive to the growth of wisdom, aids to the attainment of Nibbāna. Thus he cultivated those thoughts and brought them to fruition.

Right Intention is placed second in the path, between right view and the three factors of morality, namely right speech, right action and right livelihood. On the one hand, actions always point back to the thoughts from which they arise. Thought is the forerunner of action, both physical and oral. Wrong views give rise to wrong intention that result in unwholesome actions. Thus one who measures achievement in terms of gain and status will aspire to nothing else but gain and status, using whatever means he can to acquire them. The cause for the endless competition, conflict, injustice, and oppression does not lie outside the mind. These are all manifestations of wrong intentions, outcome of thoughts driven by greed, hatred and delusion.

When intentions are right, the actions will be right, and for the intentions to be right there must be right views. The Buddha explains this when he says that when a person holds a wrong view, his deeds, words, ideals and purposes will all lead to suffering, while a person who holds right view, his deeds, words, ideals and purposes will lead to happiness.

The most important formulation of right view is the understanding of the Four Noble Truths. It then follows that this view should be in some way determine the content of right intention. Understanding the four truths in relation to one's own life gives rise to the intention of renunciation; understanding them in relation to other beings gives rise to the other two right intentions, namely, goodwill and harmlessness. When we see how our own lives are pervaded by dukkha, and how this dukkha derives from craving, the mind inclines to renunciation, to abandoning craving and the objects to which it binds us. Then, when we apply the truths in a similar way to other living beings, such thoughts nurture the growth of goodwill and harmlessness. We see that, like ourselves, all other living beings want to be happy, and again that like ourselves they are subject to suffering.

The Buddha does not insist that everyone must leave the household life for the monastery. Nor does he ask his followers to discard all sense enjoyments immediately. The degree to which a person renounces depends on his or her disposition and situation. But the guiding principle is that the attainment of deliverance requires the complete eradication of craving. Progress along the path is accelerated to the extent that one overcomes craving. Breaking free from domination by desire may not be easy. But since craving is the origin of dukkha, putting an end to dukkha depends on eliminating craving, and that involves directing the mind to renunciation. But it is just at this point, when one tries to let go of attachment, that one encounters a powerful inner resistance. The mind does not want to loosen its hold on the objects to which it has become attached. Since it has been accustomed to gaining, grasping, and holding for such a long time, it would seem impossible to break these habits in an instant. So the problem arises of how to break the shackles of desire. The Buddha does not recommend repression; the attempt to drive desire away with a mind full of fear and loathing. This approach does not resolve the problem but only pushes it below the surface, where it continues to thrive. The tool the Buddha holds out to free the mind from desire is understanding. Real renunciation is not a matter of compelling ourselves to give up things still inwardly cherished, but of changing our perspective on them so that they no longer bind us. When we understand the nature of desire, when we investigate it closely with keen attention, desire falls away by itself, without need for any struggle.

Contemplating the dukkha inherent in desire is one way to incline the mind to renunciation. Another way is to contemplate directly the benefits flowing from renunciation. To move from desire to renunciation is not to move from happiness to grief, from abundance to destitution. It is to pass from clinging and entangling pleasures to an exalted happiness and peace.

When we methodically contemplate the dangers of desire and the benefits of renunciation, gradually we steer our mind away from the domination of desire. Attachments are shed naturally and spontaneously. The changes do not come overnight, but when there is continuous practice, there is no doubt that they will ultimately come. Through repeated contemplation one thought drives away another, the intention of renunciation dislodges the intention of desire. The intention of good will opposes the intention of ill will, thoughts governed by anger, jealousy and aversion. In order to counteract ill will, especially when the object is another person, the remedy the Buddha recommends is mettā. This word derives from another word meaning "friend," but mettā signifies much more than ordinary friendliness. It is popularly translated as "lovingkindness". It is an intense feeling of selfless love for other beings radiating outwards as a heartfelt concern for their well being and happiness. Mettā is not mere sentimental good will. It is a deep inner feeling, characterized by spontaneous warmth rather than by a sense of obligation or compulsion. The kind of love implied by mettā should be distinguished from sensual love as well as from platonic love involved in personal affection. The love involved in mettā, does not hinge on particular relations to particular persons. We should be concerned with treating others with a mind of lovingkindness, which ideally is to be developed into a universal state, extended to all living beings without discriminations or reservations. Once one has learned to kindle the feeling of mettā towards oneself, the next step is to extend it to others. The extension of mettā hinges on a shift in the sense of identity, on expanding the sense of identity beyond its ordinary confines and learning to identify with others. The procedure starts with oneself. If we look into our own mind, we find that the basic urge of our being is the wish to be happy and free from suffering. Now, as soon as we see this in ourselves, we can immediately understand that all living beings share the same basic wish. All want to be well, happy, and secure. To develop mettā towards others, what is to be done is to imaginatively share their own innate wish for happiness. This way one can extend lovingkindness to the entire world.

The intention of harmlessness is thought guided by compassion (karunā), aroused in opposition to cruel, aggressive and violent thoughts. Compassion supplies the complement to lovingkindness. Whereas lovingkindness has the characteristic of wishing for the happiness and welfare of others, compassion has the characteristic of wishing that others be free from suffering, a wish to be extended without limits to all living beings. Like mettā, compassion arises by entering into the subjectivity of others, by sharing their inner feelings in a deep and complete way. It springs up by considering that all beings, like ourselves, wish to be free from suffering, yet despite their wishes continue to be harassed by pain, fear, sorrow, and other forms of dukkha.

To increase the breadth and intensity of compassion it is helpful to contemplate the various sufferings to which living beings are susceptible. A useful guideline to this extension is provided by the first noble truth, with its enumeration of the different aspects of dukkha. One contemplates beings as subject to old age, then as subject to sickness, then to death, then to sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair, and so forth.

To sum up, we see that the three kinds of right intention, namely, renunciation, good will, and harmlessness counteract the three wrong intentions of desire, ill will, and harmfulness. The importance of putting into practice the contemplations leading to the arising of these thoughts cannot be overemphasized. To develop the intention of renunciation we have to contemplate the suffering tied up with the quest for worldly enjoyment. To develop the intention of good will we have to consider how all beings desire happiness and to develop the intention of harmlessness we have to consider how all beings wish to be free from suffering. The Buddha gives us his assurance that the victory can be achieved. He says that whatever one reflects upon frequently becomes the inclination of the mind. If one frequently thinks sensual, hostile or harmful thoughts, desire, ill will, and harmfulness become the inclination of the mind. If one frequently thinks in the opposite way, renunciation, good will, and harmlessness become the inclination of the mind. The direction we take always comes back to ourselves, to the intentions we generate moment by moment in the course of our lives.

MORALITY – SILA

Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood
(Sammā Vaca,  Sammā Kammanta,  Sammā Ajiva)

The next three path factors, right speech, right action, and right livelihood, may be treated together, as collectively they make up the division of factors we called morality  (sila). The principles laid down in this section restrain immoral actions and promote good conduct and their ultimate purpose is not so much ethical as spiritual. They are prescribed primarily as aids to mental purification. As a necessary measure for human well being, ethics play an important role in Buddha's teaching. In the special context of the Noble Eightfold Path, ethical principles are subordinate to the path's governing goal, final deliverance from suffering, Nibbāna

Though the training in moral discipline is listed first among the three divisions of practices, its importance should not be minimized. It is the foundation for the entire path, essential for the success of the other trainings. The Buddha himself frequently urged his disciples to adhere to the rules of discipline, Vinaya. Often sila is formally defined as abstinence from unwholesome physical and oral action. While the training in sila brings the benefit of inhibiting socially detrimental actions, it entails the personal benefit of mental purification.

The observance of sila leads to harmony at several levels, namely, social, psychological, kammic and contemplative. At the social level, the principles of sila help to establish harmonious interpersonal relations with members of family and society at large. At the psychological level sila brings harmony to the mind. At the kammic level the observance of sila ensures harmony with the cosmic law of kamma. And at the fourth level, the contemplative, sila helps establish the preliminary purification of mind to be completed, in a deeper and more thorough way, by the methodical development of serenity and insight.

In sila, each principle has two aspects, both essential to the training as a whole. One is abstinence from the unwholesome, the other, commitment to the wholesome; the former is called "avoidance" and the latter "performance". At the outset of training the Buddha stresses the aspect of avoidance. He does so, not because abstinence from the unwholesome is sufficient in itself, but to establish the steps of practice in proper sequence. The steps are set out in their natural order in the famous dictum of the Dhammapada Verse 183: "To abstain from all evil, to cultivate the good, and to purify one's mind; this is the teaching of the Buddhas". The other two steps, cultivating the good and purifying the mind, also receive their due, but to ensure their success, a resolve to avoid the unwholesome is a necessity. Without such a resolve the attempt to develop wholesome qualities is bound to result in a distorted and inhibited pattern of growth.

The training in moral discipline governs the two principal modes of action, physical and oral, as well as another area of vital concern, one's way of earning a livelihood. Thus the training in Morality, Sila, contains three factors: right speech, right action, and right livelihood. These we will now examine individually, following the order in which they are set forth in the usual exposition of the path.

RIGHT SPEECH (Samma vāca)

The Buddha divides right speech into four components: abstaining from false speech, abstaining from slanderous speech, abstaining from harsh speech, and abstaining from idle chatter. Because the effects of speech are not as immediately evident as those of physical action, its importance and potential is easily overlooked. But a little reflection will show that speech and its offshoot, the written word, can have enormous consequences for good or for evil. Speech can break lives, create enemies, and start wars, or it can give wisdom, heal disharmony, and bring about peace. This has always been so, yet in the modern age the positive and negative potentials of speech have been vastly multiplied on account of ease of communication.

(1) Abstaining from falsehood. Herein someone avoids false speech and abstains from it. He speaks the truth, is devoted to truth, reliable, worthy of confidence, not a deceiver of people. Being at a meeting, or amongst people, or in the midst of his relatives, or in a society, or in the law court, and called upon and asked as witness to tell what he knows, he answers by stating the truth, as he knows it. Thus he never knowingly utters a lie, either for the sake of his own advantage, or for the sake of another. If one speaks something false believing it to be true, there is no breach of the precept as the intention to deceive is not there. Though the deceptive intention is common to all cases of false speech, lies can appear in different guises depending on the motivating root, whether greed, hatred, or delusion. Greed as the chief motive results in the lie aimed at gaining some personal advantage for oneself or for those close to oneself; material wealth, position, respect, or admiration. With hatred as the motive, false speech takes the form of the malicious lie, the lie intended to hurt and damage another. When delusion is the principal motive, the result is a less harmful type of falsehood: the irrational lie, the compulsive lie and the interesting exaggeration, lying for the sake of a joke.

Wisdom consists in the realization of truth, and truth is not just a verbal proposition, but also the nature of things as they really are. To realize the truth, our whole being has to be brought into accord with reality, with things as they really are, which requires that in communications with others, we respect things as they are by speaking the truth. Thus, much more than an ethical principle, devotion to truthful speech is a matter of taking our stand on reality rather than illusion, on the truth grasped by wisdom rather than the fantasies generated by desire.

(2) Abstaining from slanderous speech. Slanderous speech is speech intended to create enmity and division, to set one person or group against another. The motive behind such speech is generally jealousy, resentment of a rival's success or virtues, the intention to criticize others by verbal condemnations. Other motives may enter the picture as well: the cruel intention of causing hurt to others, the evil desire to win affection for oneself, the perverse delight in seeing friends divided and fallen out.

Slanderous speech is one of the most serious moral defilements. When the slanderous statement is false, the two wrongs of falsehood and slander combine to produce an extremely powerful unwholesome deed. The opposite of slander, as the Buddha indicates, is speech that promotes friendship and harmony. Such speech originates from a mind of lovingkindness and sympathy. It wins the trust and affection of others, who feel they can confide in one without fear that their disclosures will be used against them. 

(3) Abstaining from harsh speech. Harsh speech is speech uttered in anger, intended to cause the hearer pain. Such speech can assume different forms, of which we might mention three. One is abusive speech: scolding, reviling, or reproving another angrily with bitter words. A second is insult: hurting another by ascribing to him or her some offensive quality that detracts from his or her dignity. A third is sarcasm: speaking to someone in a way that ostensibly lauds him or her, but with such a tone or twist of phrasing that the ironic intent becomes clear and causes pain.

Harsh speech is an unwholesome action with disagreeable results for oneself and others, both now and in the future, so it has to be restrained. The ideal antidote is patience; learning to tolerate blame and criticism from others, to sympathize with their shortcomings, to respect differences of viewpoints, to endure abuse without feeling compelled to retaliate. The Buddha calls for patience even under the most trying conditions.

(4) Abstaining from idle chatter. Idle chatter is pointless, baseless talk; speech that lacks purpose or depth. Such speech communicates nothing of value, but only stirs up the defilements in one's own mind and in others. The Buddha advises that idle talk should be curbed and speech restricted as much as possible to matters of genuine importance. Laypersons usually have more need for affectionate small talk with friends and family, polite conversation with acquaintances and talk in connection with their line of work. But even then, they should be mindful not to let the conversation stray into pastures where the restless mind, always eager for something sweet or spicy to feed on, might find the chance to indulge in it. In modern times, with vast means of communication freely available, serious aspirants on the path to liberation have to be extremely careful in what they allow themselves to be exposed to.

RIGHT ACTION (Sammā kammanta)

Right action means refraining from unwholesome deeds that occur with the body as their natural means of expression. The pivotal element in this path factor is the mental factor of abstinence, but because this abstinence applies to actions performed through the body, it is called "right action." The Buddha mentions three components of right action: abstaining from taking life, abstaining from taking what is not given, and abstaining from sexual misconduct. These we will briefly discuss in order.

(1). Abstaining from the taking of life. Herein someone avoids the taking of life and abstains from it. There has to be a conscientious desire, full of sympathy, for the welfare of all sentient beings.

"Abstaining from taking life" has a wider application than simply refraining from killing other human beings. The precept enjoins abstaining from killing any sentient being. A "sentient being" is a living being endowed with mind or consciousness. For all practical purposes, this means human beings, animals, and insects. Plants are not considered to be sentient beings; though they exhibit some degree of sensitivity, they lack full-fledged consciousness, the defining attribute of a sentient being.

The "taking of life" that is to be avoided is intentional killing, the deliberate destruction of life of a being endowed with consciousness. The principle is grounded in the consideration that all beings love life and fear death, that all seek happiness and are averse to pain. Suicide is also generally regarded as a violation, but not accidental killing as the intention to destroy life is absent. The abstinence may be taken to apply to two kinds of action, the primary and the secondary. The primary is the actual destruction of life; the secondary is deliberately harming or torturing another being without killing it.

The motive for killing also influences moral weight. Acts of killing can be driven by greed, hatred, or delusion. Of the three, killing motivated by hatred is the most serious, and the weight increases to the degree that the killing is premeditated. The force of effort involved also contributes, the unwholesome kamma being proportional to the force and the strength of the defilements.

The positive counterpart to abstaining from taking life, as the Buddha indicates, is the development of kindness and compassion for other beings. A true disciple not only avoids destroying life; he or she dwells with a heart full of sympathy, desiring the welfare of all beings. The commitment to non-injury and concern for the welfare of others represent the practical application of the second path factor, right intention, in the form of good will and harmlessness.

(2) Abstaining from taking what is not given. He avoids taking what is not given and abstains from appropriating what another person possesses. "Taking what is not given" means misappropriating the rightful belongings of others. If one takes something that has no owner, the act does not count as a violation. But withholding from others what should rightfully be given to them is also an unwholesome act.

There are a number of ways in which "taking what is not given" can be committed. Some of the most common may be enumerated:

(1) Stealing: taking the belongings of others secretly, as in housebreaking, picking pockets etc.

(2) Robbery: taking what belongs to others openly by force or threats.

(3) Snatching: suddenly pulling away another's possession before he has time to resist.

(4) Fraudulence: gaining possession of another's belongings by falsely claiming them as one's own.

(5) Deceitfulness: using false weights and measures to cheat customers.

The degree of moral weight that attaches to the action is determined by three factors: the value of the object taken; the qualities of the victim of the theft; and the subjective state of the thief. While greed is the most common cause, hatred may also be responsible as when one person deprives another of his belongings not so much because he wants them for himself as because he wants to harm the latter.

The positive counterpart to abstaining from stealing is honesty, which implies respect for the belongings of others and for their right to use their belongings as they wish. Another related virtue is contentment. That is being satisfied with what one has without being inclined to increase one's wealth by unscrupulous means. The most eminent opposite virtue is generosity, giving away one's own wealth and possessions in order to benefit others.

(2). Abstaining from sexual misconduct. The guiding purposes of this precept, from the ethical standpoint, are to protect marital relations from outside disruption and to promote trust and fidelity within the marital union. From the spiritual standpoint it helps curb the expansive tendency of sexual desire and thus is a step in the direction of renunciation, which reaches its culmination in the observance of celibacy. But for laypeople the precept enjoins abstaining from sexual relations with an illicit partner. The primary transgression is entering into full sexual union, but all other sexual involvements of a less complete kind may be considered secondary infringements. In case of forced, violent, or coercive sexual union it constitutes a serious transgression. But in such a case the violation falls only on the offender, not on the one compelled to submit.

For laypeople, the positive virtue corresponding to the abstinence is marital fidelity. Husband and wife should each be faithful and devoted to the other, content with the relationship, and should not risk a breakup of the union by seeking outside partners. The principle does not, however, confine sexual relations to the marital union. It is flexible enough to allow for variations depending on social convention. The essential purpose, as was said, is to prevent sexual relations that are hurtful to others. Ordained monks and nuns, including male and female devotees who have undertaken the eight or ten precepts, are obliged to observe celibacy. They must abstain not only from sexual misconduct, but also from all sexual involvements, at least during the period of their vows. The holy life at its highest, aims at complete purity in thought, word, and deed, and this requires turning back the tide of sexual desire.

RIGHT LIVELIHOOD (Sammā ajiva)

Right livelihood is concerned with ensuring that one earns one's living in a righteous way. For a lay disciple the Buddha teaches that wealth should be gained in accordance with certain standards. One should acquire it only by legal means, not illegally; one should acquire it peacefully, without coercion or violence; one should acquire it honestly, not by thievery or deceit; and one should acquire it in ways which do not entail harm and suffering for others. The Buddha mentions five specific kinds of livelihood which bring harm to others and are therefore to be avoided: dealing in weapons, in living beings (including raising animals for slaughter as well as slave trade and prostitution), in meat production and butchery, in poisons, and in intoxicants. Obviously any occupation that requires violation of right speech and right action is a wrong form of livelihood, but other occupations, such as selling weapons or intoxicants, may not violate those factors and yet be wrong because of their consequences for others.

CONCENTRATION – SAMADHI

 The three factors that fall into the division of CONCENTRATION (Samādhi) are

RIGHT EFFORT

RIGHT MINDFULNESS

RIGHT CONCENTRATION.

We will examine them individually.

RIGHT EFFORT (Sammā  Vayāma)

The purification of conduct established by the three factors in Morality, serves as the basis for the Division of Concentration (Samādhi). This present phase of practice, which advances from moral restraint to direct mental training, comprises the three factors of right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration. It gains its name from the goal to which it aspires, the power of sustained concentration, itself required as the support for insight-wisdom. Wisdom is the primary tool for deliverance, but the penetrating vision it yields can only open up when the mind has been calmed, composed and collected. Right concentration brings the requisite stillness to the mind by unifying it with undistracted focus on a suitable object. To do so, however, the factor of concentration needs the aid of effort and mindfulness. Right effort provides the energy demanded by the task, right mindfulness the steadying points for awareness.

The early texts illustrate the interdependence of the three factors within the concentration group with a simple simile. Three boys while walking along observe a tree full of flowers and decide to gather some flowers. But the flowers are on the top and beyond the reach of even the tallest boy. Then one friend bends down and offers his back. The tallest boy climbs up, but still hesitates to reach for the flowers for fear of falling. So the third boy comes over and offers his shoulder for support. The first boy, standing on the back of the second boy, then leans on the shoulder of the third boy, reaches up, and gathers the flowers.

In this simile the tallest boy who picks the flowers represents concentration with its function of unifying the mind. But to unify the mind concentration needs support, the energy provided by right effort, which is like the boy who offers his back. It also requires the stabilizing awareness provided by mindfulness, which is like the boy who offers his shoulder. When right concentration receives support from right effort and balanced by right mindfulness it can collect the scattered thoughts and fix the mind firmly on its object.

Energy, the mental factor behind right effort, can appear in either wholesome or unwholesome forms. The same factor fuels desire, aggression, violence, and ambition on the one hand, and generosity, self-discipline, kindness, concentration and understanding on the other. The exertion involved in right effort is a wholesome form of energy, but it is something more specific, namely, the energy in wholesome states of consciousness directed to liberation from suffering. This last qualifying phrase is especially important. For wholesome energy to become a contributor to the path it has to be guided by right view and right intention, and to work in association with the other path factors. Otherwise, as the energy in ordinary wholesome states of mind, it merely engenders an accumulation of merit that ripens within the round of birth and death without liberation.

On numerous occasions, the Buddha has emphasized the need for effort, for diligence, exertion, and unflagging perseverance. The reason why effort is so crucial is that each person has to work out his or her own liberation. The Buddha does what he can by pointing out the path to liberation; the rest involves putting the path into practice, a task that demands energy. This energy is to be applied to the cultivation of the mind, which forms the focus of the entire path. The starting point is the defiled mind, afflicted and deluded; the goal is the liberated mind, purified and illuminated by wisdom. What comes in between is the unremitting effort to transform the defiled mind into the liberated mind. The work of self-cultivation is not easy and there is no one who can do it for us but ourselves. Yet it is not impossible but within reach of everyone. The Buddha himself and his accomplished disciples provide the living proof that the task is not beyond our reach. They assure us that anyone who follows the path can accomplish the same goal. But what is needed is effort, the work of practice taken up with the determination. The nature of the mental process effects a division of right effort into four "great endeavors", namely,

(1) To prevent the arising of unarisen unwholesome states;

(2) To abandon unwholesome states that have already arisen.

(3) To arouse wholesome states that have not yet arisen.

(4) To maintain and perfect wholesome states already arisen.

The unwholesome states (akusala dhamma) are the defilements, and the thoughts, emotions, and intentions derived from them, whether breaking forth into action or remaining confined within. The wholesome states (kusala dhamma) are states of mind untainted by defilements, especially those conducing to deliverance. Each of the two kinds of mental states imposes a double task. The unwholesome side requires that the defilements lying dormant be prevented from erupting and that the active defilements already present be dispelled. The wholesome side requires that the undeveloped liberating factors first be brought into being and then persistently developed to the point of full maturity. Now we will examine each of these four divisions of right effort, giving special attention to their most fertile field of application, the cultivation of the mind through meditation.

(1) To prevent the arising of unarisen unwholesome states.

Herein the disciple rouses his or her will to avoid the arising of evil, unwholesome states that have not yet arisen; and he or she makes effort, stirs up energy, exerts the mind and strives.

The first side of right effort aims at overcoming unwholesome states; states of mind tainted by defilements. Insofar as they impede concentration the defilements are usually presented in a fivefold set called the "five hindrances": sensual desire, ill will, dullness and drowsiness, restlessness and worry, and doubt. They receive the name "hindrances" because they block the path to liberation; they grow up and over the mind preventing calm and insight, the primary instruments for progress.

The first effort to be made regarding the hindrances is the effort to prevent the unarisen hindrances from arising. The effort to hold the hindrances in check is imperative both at the start of meditative training and throughout the course of its development. For when the hindrances arise, they disperse attention and dilute the quality of awareness, to the detriment of calm and clarity. The hindrances do not come from outside the mind but from within. They appear through the activation of certain tendencies constantly lying dormant in the deep recesses of the mind, awaiting the opportunity to surface.

Generally what triggers the hindrances into activity is the input afforded by sense experience. The physical organism is equipped with five sense faculties each receptive to its own specific kind of data: the eye to forms, the ear to sounds, the nose to smells, the tongue to tastes, the body to tangibles. Sense objects continuously activate the senses, which relay the information they receive to the mind, where it is processed, evaluated, and accorded an appropriate response. But the mind can deal with the impressions it receives in different ways, governed in the first place by the manner in which it attends to them. When the mind responds to the incoming data carelessly, with unwise consideration, the sense objects tend to stir up unwholesome states. Since an uncontrolled response to the sensory input stimulates the latent defilements, what is evidently needed to prevent them from arising is control over the senses.

Restraint of the senses does not mean denial of the senses, retreating into a total withdrawal from the sensory world. This is impossible, and even if it could be achieved, the real problem would still not be solved. This is because the defilements lie in the mind and not in the sense organs or objects.

 (2) To abandon the arisen unwholesome states.

Herein the disciple rouses the will power to overcome the evil, unwholesome states that have already arisen and makes effort, stirs up energy, exerts the mind and strives.

Despite the effort at sense control, defilements may still surface. They swell up from the depths of the mind, from the buried strata of past accumulations, to form into unwholesome thoughts and emotions. When this happens a new kind of effort becomes necessary, the effort to abandon arisen unwholesome states. In an important discourse, Vittakkasanthāna Sutta, the Buddha explains five techniques for expelling distracting thoughts. The first is to expel the defiled thought with a wholesome thought that is its exact opposite, analogous to the way a carpenter might use a new peg to drive out an old one.

Whereas this first of the five methods for expelling the hindrances involves a one-to-one alignment between a hindrance and its remedy, the other four utilize general approaches. The second summons the forces of shame and moral dread to abandon the unwanted thought. The third method involves a deliberate diversion of attention. When an unwholesome thought arises and clamors to be noticed, instead of indulging it, one simply shuts it out by redirecting one's attention elsewhere, as if closing one's eyes or looking away to avoid an unpleasant sight. The fourth method uses the opposite approach. Instead of turning away from the unwanted thought, one confronts it directly as an object, scrutinizes its features, and investigates its source. When this is done the thought quiets down and eventually disappears. The fifth method, to be used only as a last resort, is suppression: vigorously restraining the unwholesome thought with the power of the will.

By applying these five methods with skill and discretion, the Buddha says, one becomes a master of all the pathways of thought. One is no longer the subject of the mind but its master. Whatever thought one wants to think, that one will think. Whatever thought one does not want to think, that one will not think. Even if unwholesome thoughts occasionally arise, one can dispel them immediately.

(3) To arouse unarisen wholesome states.

Herein the disciple rouses the will to arouse wholesome states that have not yet arisen and makes effort, stirs up energy, exerts the mind and strives.

Simultaneously with the removal of defilements, right effort also imposes the task of cultivating wholesome states of mind. This involves two divisions: the arousing of wholesome states not yet arisen and the maturation of wholesome states already arisen.

(4) To maintain arisen wholesome states.

Herein the disciple rouses the will to maintain the wholesome things that have already arisen, and not to allow them to wither away, but to bring them to growth, to maturity, and to the full perfection of development; and makes the effort, stirs up energy, exerts the mind and strives.

This last of the four right efforts aims at maintaining the arisen wholesome factors and bringing them to maturity and fruition. This marks the culmination of right effort, the goal in which the countless individual acts of exertion finally reach fulfillment.

RIGHT MINDFULNESS - Sammā Sati

According to Buddha, the Dhamma, the ultimate truth, the norm, is directly visible, timeless, inviting to be approached and seen. He says further that it is always available to us, and that the place where it is to be realized is within ourselves. The ultimate truth, the Dhamma, is not something mysterious and remote, but the truth of our own experience. It can be reached only by understanding our experience, by penetrating it right through to its foundations. This truth, in order to become liberating truth, has to be known directly. It is not sufficient merely to accept it on faith, to believe it on the authority of books or a teacher, or to think it out through logic and inferences. It has to be known by insight and grasped by a kind of knowing which is also an immediate seeing.

What brings the field of experience into focus and makes it accessible to insight is a mental faculty called sati, usually translated as "mindfulness." Mindfulness is presence of mind, attentiveness or awareness. Yet the kind of awareness involved in mindfulness differs profoundly from the kind of awareness at work in our usual mode of consciousness. With the practice of mindfulness, awareness is applied at a higher level. In the practice of right mindfulness the mind is trained to remain in the present, open, quiet, and alert, contemplating the current event. All judgments and interpretations have to be suspended, or if they occur, just noted and dropped. It is a way of coming back into the present, of standing in the here and now without slipping away, without getting swept away by distracting thoughts. It is assumed that we are always aware of the present, but this is an illusion. Only seldom do we become aware of the present in the precise way required by the practice of mindfulness. Mindfulness anchors the mind securely in the present, so it does not float away into the past and future with their memories, regrets, fears, hopes and aspirations. The mind without mindfulness is sometimes compared to a pumpkin, the mind established in mindfulness to a stone. A pumpkin placed on the surface of the water in a pond, soon floats away and always remains on the surface. But a stone does not float away; it sinks into the water until it reaches the bottom. Similarly, when mindfulness is strong, the mind does not wander but stays with its object and penetrates its characteristics deeply.

Right mindfulness is cultivated through a practice called "the four foundations of mindfulness". They are, mindful contemplation of the body, feelings, consciousness and phenomena or objects of the mind. As the Buddha explains: “And what, O’ monks, is right mindfulness? Herein, a monk dwells contemplating the body in the body, ardent, clearly comprehending and mindful, having put away greed and grief concerning the world. He dwells contemplating feelings in feelings, states of mind in states of mind, phenomena in phenomena, ardent, clearly comprehending and mindful, having put away avarice and grief concerning the world”. The Buddha says that the four foundations of mindfulness are "the only way that leads to the attainment of purity, to the overcoming of sorrow and lamentation, to the end of pain and grief, to the entering upon the right path and the realization of Nibbana." They are called "the only way" not for the purpose of setting forth a narrow dogmatic principle. It is to indicate that the attainment of liberation can come only through the practice of right mindfulness.

RIGHT CONCENTRATION – Sammā  Samadhi

The third factor in the Division Samādhi and the eighth factor of the path is Right Concentration, Sammā Samādhi. Concentration represents an intensification of the mind, a one-pointedness of mind. However, Samādhi is only a particular kind of one-pointedness; it is not equivalent to one-pointedness in its entirety. An assassin about to slay his victim, a soldier on the battlefield about to pull the trigger against the enemy, a watch maker probing a defect in a watch; all these act with a concentrated mind, but their concentration cannot be characterized as Samādhi. Samādhi is exclusively a wholesome one-pointedness; the concentration in a wholesome state of mind. Even then its range is still narrower: it does not signify every form of wholesome concentration, but only the intensified concentration that results from a deliberate attempt to raise the mind to a higher, more purified level of awareness. The texts define samādhi as the centering of the mind and mental factors rightly and evenly on an object. Samādhi, as wholesome concentration, collects together the ordinarily dispersed and dissipated stream of mental states to bring about an inner unification. The two salient features of a concentrated mind are unbroken attentiveness to an object and the consequent tranquility of the mental functions, qualities that distinguish it from the unconcentrated mind. The mind untrained in concentration moves in a scattered manner that the Buddha compares to the flapping about of a fish taken from the water and thrown onto dry land. It cannot stay fixed but rushes from idea to idea, from thought to thought, without inner control. Such a distracted mind is also a deluded mind. Overwhelmed by worries and concerns, a constant prey to the defilements, it sees things only in fragments. But the mind that has been trained in concentration, in contrast, can remain focused on its object without distraction. This freedom from distraction further induces a softness and serenity, which make the mind an effective instrument for penetration. Like a lake unruffled by any breeze, the concentrated mind is a faithful reflector that mirrors whatever is placed before it exactly as it is.

Chapter 6

KAMMA

Kamma is the Pali word for the Sanskrit word Karma, that is commonly used today and is now included in the English vocabulary. In the eyes of most Westerners, kamma functions like fate, more specifically as bad fate, as some inexplicable misfortune, as an unchangeable force coming out of our past. It is not uncommon to hear people sigh, "it's their karma," when they speak about the misfortunes of someone or even the defeat of their favorite sports team. When people think of kamma in this way, it becomes a vehicle of escape and assumes most of the characteristics of a belief in predestination, or fate. But this is most certainly not the correct meaning of kamma, as Buddhists understand it. This misunderstanding is clearly a result of the idea of fate that is common in many cultures. Perhaps it is because of this popular belief that the concept of kamma is often confused with and obscured by the notion of predestination. Perhaps it is on account of this reason that many Westerners have been repelled by the concept of kamma. But kamma is certainly not fate or predestination. Nor is it meant to be taken as a result or consequence as many people wrongly and loosely use it. In Buddhist terminology kamma never means an effect; effect is known as the 'fruit' or the 'result' of kamma  (kamma-phala or kamma-vipāka).

The theory of kamma has been a very popular doctrine in Asian religious beliefs throughout history. In the pre-Christian era, the foremost science in North India was astronomy. Precise observations of planetary movements, combined with newly developed means of calculation, had led astronomers to have a fairly well developed branch of study. The contemporaries of the Buddha were influenced by this premier science of their time in the way they viewed experience and it is easy to see prejudices at work in their thought. They accepted the universe to be made up of discrete bodies acting in line with regular, linear causes; that the processes of the universe can be totally explained in terms of physical principles that follow linear causal patterns unaffected by human intervention. They believed that human knowledge of these processes has no impact on the way they behave. These prejudices, when applied to human experience, resulted in a fatalistic theory based on a linear relationship in human behavior. They believed that the present is a result of the past and that the future will be determined by present behavior, a fatalistic theory of kamma. Unlike his contemporaries and several who came after him, Buddha enunciated the theory of kamma that did not operate in a linear fashion, but acted in feedback loops. In essence, it meant that the present is determined by both past and present actions, which in turn would determine the future. Other Indian schools that believed that kamma operated in a straight line saw little room for free will. Buddha, however, saw that kamma acts in feedback loops and with constant opening for present input into the causal process, which made free will possible. Although many Asian concepts of kamma are fatalistic, the Buddhist concept is not fatalistic at all. In fact, if we look closely at early Buddhist ideas of kamma, we'll find that they give even less importance to myths about the past lives.

When we considered the Four Noble Truths, we discussed the truth of the cause of suffering caused by the afflictions, ignorance, attachment, and aversion. These afflictions are something that every human being has in common. All human beings are subject to the afflictions alike. Yet there are many differences among us with which we are all familiar. For instance, some of us are wealthy while others are poor, some are strong and healthy while others are weak and ailing, some are very intelligent and some are not that intelligent and so forth. There are also many other differences among us. These differences are the result of differences in our kamma. The particular circumstances in which each human being finds himself are the effects of his particular kamma, which conditions his specific situation

The Pali word kamma or the Sanskrit word karma literally means 'action'. But in the Budd­hist theory of kamma it has a specific meaning: it means only 'volitional action', not all action.

The Buddha said, ‘Cetanaham bhikkhave kammam vadami.”  “O Bhikkhus, I declare kamma as volition’.

Immediately, we have a clear indication that the real meaning of kamma is not fate; rather, kamma is action, and as such, it is dynamic. Kamma is more than just action, because it is not mechanical action, nor is it involuntary action. On the contrary, kamma is intentional, conscious, deliberate action motivated by volition or will. Volition may relatively be good or bad, just as a desire may relatively be good or bad. So kamma may be good or bad rela­tively. How can this intentional action condition our situation for better or for worse? It can do so because every action must have a reaction, or an effect. In respect to the physical universe, this truth was established by the great classical physicist Sir Isaac Newton, who formulated the scientific law that every action must have an equal and opposite reaction. In the sphere of intentional action and moral responsibility, there is a counterpart to this law of action and reaction, the law that every intentional action must have its effect. For this reason, Buddhists often speak of intentional action and its ripened consequences or intentional action and its effect. Thus, when we want to speak about action together with its ripened consequences, or effects, we use the phrase "the law of kamma."

On the most fundamental level, the law of kamma teaches that particular kinds of actions inevitably lead to similar or appropriate results. Let us take a simple example to illustrate this point. If we plant a mango seed, the tree that grows as a result will be a mango tree, which will eventually bear mangoes. Alternatively, if we plant an apple seed, the tree that grows as a consequence will be an apple tree, and its fruit will be apples. "As you sow, so shall you reap": according to the nature of our actions, we will obtain the corresponding fruit. Or as we say in everyday parlance, “What goes around comes around”. In the same way, according to the law of kamma, if we perform a skilled action, sooner or later we will obtain a skilled result, and if we perform an unskilled action, we will inevitably obtain an unskilled result. This is what we mean when we say, in Buddhism, that particular causes bring about particular effects that are similar in nature to those causes. This will become much clearer when we consider specific examples of skilled and unskilled actions and their corresponding effects.

It may be understood from this brief, general introduction that kamma can be of two kinds: skilled kamma, and unskilled kamma. To avoid misunderstanding these terms, it may be helpful to look at the original words used to refer to so-called ‘good’ and ‘bad’ kamma, namely, kusala and akusala, respectively. To understand how these words are used, it is necessary to know their actual meanings. Kusala means "skilled" or "skillful," whereas akusala means "unskilled" or "unskillful." By knowing this, we can see that these terms are used in Buddhism not in the sense of good and evil, or merit and sin, but in the sense of skillful and unskillful, skilled and unskilled. Let us see how we could differentiate between skilled and unskilled actions. Actions are skilled when they are beneficial to one’s self and others, and hence motivated not by ignorance, attachment, and aversion but by wisdom, renunciation or detachment, and lovingkindness. How can we know that a skilled action will produce happiness, and an unskilled action, unhappiness? The short answer is that unless it is an action that manifests a consequence immediately, only time will tell. The Buddha himself explained that, as long as an unskilled action does not produce its fruit of suffering, an unwise person will consider that action good, but when it does produce its fruit of suffering, then he will realize that the act was unskilled. In the same way, as long as a skilled action does not produce happiness, an unwise person may think that it was unskilled; only when it does produce happiness will he realize that the act was skilled.

Thus we need to judge skilled and unskilled actions from the point of view of their effects. Very simply, sooner or later skilled actions result in happiness for one’s self and for others, whereas unskilled actions result in suffering for one’s self and others. Specifically, the unskilled actions that are to be avoided are related to the so-called three outlets of action, namely, body, speech and mind. There are three unskilled actions of body, four of speech, and three of mind. The three unskilled actions of body are (l) killing, (2) stealing, and (3) sexual misconduct. The four unskilled actions of speech are (4) lying, (5) harsh speech, (6) slander, and (7) malicious speech. The three unskilled actions of mind are (8) greed, (9) anger, and (10) delusion. By avoiding these ten unskilled actions, we can avoid their consequences. These ten unskilled actions are collectively called ‘dasa akusal’.

Generally, the consequence of these unskilled actions is suffering, which can, however, take various forms. Some unskilled actions manifest their results immediately while others take time. Here we can see at work the principle alluded to earlier that of an action resulting in a corresponding or appropriate reaction. Thus unskilled actions produce unskilled results in the shape of various forms of suffering, whereas skilled actions result in skilled effects, or happiness. We can interpret skilled actions in two ways, negatively and positively. We can regard skilled actions as those that simply avoid the unskilled ones (such as killing, stealing and sexual misconduct), or we can think of skilled actions in terms of generosity, restraint, meditation, reverence, service to others, transference of merit, rejoicing in the merit of others, listening to the Dhamma, teaching the Dhamma, and correction of our own erroneous views. Here, again, the effects of actions are similar to their causes. For instance, goodwill begets goodwill, listening to the Dhamma results in wisdom, and so forth. Skilled actions have effects that are similar in nature to their causes. Similarly, unskilled actions have effects that are unskilled, like the actions themselves.

Kamma, whether skilled or unskilled, is modified by the conditions under which it is executed. In other words, a skilled or unskilled action may, more or less be severe depending on the conditions under which it is performed. The conditions that determine the severity or strength of kamma may be divided into those that refer to the subject, or doer of the action, and those that refer to the object, or the being towards which the action is directed. Hence the conditions that determine the severity of a kamma apply to the subject as well as to the object of actions. If we take the example of killing, five conditions must be present for the action to have complete, unmitigated strength: (a) a living being, (b) consciousness of the existence of a living being, (c) the intention to kill the living being, (d) the effort or action of killing the living being, and (e) the consequent death of the living being. Here we can see conditions that apply to the subject as well as the object of the action of killing: the subjective conditions are consciousness of the existence of a living being, the intention to kill, and the action of killing a living being, while the objective conditions are the presence of a living being and the consequent death of that living being. Similarly, there are alternative conditions that modify the weight of kamma such as (I) persistence or repetition, (ii) willful intention, (iii) absence of regret. Again, these can be divided into subjective and objective categories. The subjective conditions are actions done with persistence, actions done with willful intention and determination, and actions done without regret or misgivings. If you perform an unskilled action again and again, with willful intention and without regret or misgivings, the weight of that action will be greater.

Every kamma has a psychological aspect and a cosmic aspect. The psychological aspect is the effect on the mind of the person who performs the kamma, while the cosmic aspect is the external consequence of the kamma. The objective conditions are the quality of the object, that is, the living being toward whom the action is directed or the nature of the relationship that exists between the object of an action and the subject. In other words, if we perform a skilled or unskilled action toward a living being with extraordinary qualities, like a sage or the Buddha, the skilled or unskilled action will have greater weight. Finally, the strength of skilled and unskilled actions is greater when they are done toward those to whom we are indebted, like our parents, teachers, and friends from whom we have benefited in the past.

The subjective and objective conditions, taken together, determine the weight of kamma. This is important because knowing this will help us remember that kamma is not simply a matter of good and bad. Kamma is, of course, intentional action and moral responsibility, but the working of the law of kamma is very finely balanced so as to match the effect with the cause. It takes into account all the subjective and objective conditions that influence the precise nature of an action. This ensures that the effects of an action are similar and equal to the cause.

The effects of kamma may become evident either in the short term or in the long term. When the effects of kamma manifest in this life, often it is possible to see them within a relatively short space of time. The effects of this kind of kamma can be easily and directly witnessed by any one of us. For instance, when a person indulges in alcohol or drug abuse, or begins to steal to support his harmful habits, the effects are evident within a short space of time. They manifest themselves in the loss of his livelihood, family and friends, in ill health, even incarceration and similar consequences. At the point of death, we have to leave behind all our worldly possessions and even our loved ones, yet our kamma will follow us like a shadow. The Buddha said that nowhere in the universe could we escape our kamma. When the conditions are present, dependent on mind and body, the effects of kamma will manifest themselves, just as, dependent on the appropriate conditions, a mango tree will bear fruits in due season, although mangoes are not stored anywhere in the tree. We can see that, even in the world of nature, certain effects take longer to appear than others. If we plant tomato seeds, we obtain tomatoes in a few weeks. If we plant a mango seed, we have to wait for a long time for it to bear fruits. Similarly, the effects of kamma manifest themselves either in the short term or in the medium to long term, depending on the nature of the kamma and other circumstances.

In addition to the two types of kamma, skilled and unskilled, we should mention neutral or ineffective kamma. Neutral kamma is action that has no moral consequences, either because the very nature of the action is such as to have no moral significance, or because the action was done involuntarily and unintentionally, that is void of volition. Examples of this type of kamma include walking eating, sleeping and other involuntary actions. Similarly, actions performed unintentionally constitute ineffective kamma, because the all-important element, volition is absent. For instance, if you step on an insect when completely unaware of its existence, such an act is considered neutral or ineffective kamma.

The benefits of understanding the law of kamma are obvious. In the first place, such an understanding discourages us from performing unskilled actions that have suffering as their inevitable result. Once we understand that throughout our entire life, each and every intentional act will, sooner or later, produce a similar and equal reaction, we will refrain from unskilled behavior because we will not want to experience the painful results of such actions. Similarly, knowing that skilled actions have happiness as their fruit, we will always endeavor to do our best to cultivate such skilled actions.

In the final analysis, all factors that influence our actions could be traced to three root causes. These are craving, hatred and ignorance or their opposites namely, renunciation, lovingkindness and wisdom. All acts motivated by craving, hatred and ignorance are morally bad or unskilled. All acts motivated by their opposites are morally good or skilled. All evil and good actions produce consequences for which the doer of actions is responsible. This correlation between actions and consequences shows certain tendencies rather than inevitable consequences. Explaining this the Buddha says it is incorrect to say, "Just as a man does a deed, so does he experience its consequences". If this were so this would be a deterministic doctrine. And if the law of kamma were a deterministic doctrine, then the living of a holy life by a person would be meaningless, for he would not be able to change his destiny. The Buddha’s teaching of kamma is not deterministic; nor is it non-deterministic, for it operates according to a causal pattern.

The fact that skills can be developed implies that action is not illusory, that it actually gives results. Otherwise, there would be no such thing as skill, for no actions would be more effective than others. The fact of skillfulness also implies that some results are preferable to others, for otherwise there would be no point in trying to develop skills. In addition, the fact that it is possible to learn from mistakes in the course of developing a skill, so that one’s future actions may be more skillful, implies that the cycle of action, result, and reaction is not entirely deterministic, and that acts of perception, attention, and intention can actually provide new input as the cycle goes through successive turns.

The important element in this input is attention. Anyone who has mastered a skill will realize that the process of attaining mastery requires attention to three things: (1) to pre-existing conditions, (2) to what one is doing in relation to those conditions, and (3) to the results that come from one’s present actions. This threefold focus enables one to monitor one’s actions and adjust them accordingly. In this way, one’s attention to conditions, actions, and effects allows the results of an action to feed back into future action, thus allowing for refinement in one’s skill. By working out the implications of these requirements, the Buddha arrived at the principle of kamma in which multiple feedback loops, sensitive to pre-existing conditions, to present input, and to their combined outcome, account for the incredible complexity of human existence. In this sense, it is actually a very familiar but overlooked assumption that underlies all conscious, purposeful action. The Buddha simply explored the implications of this assumption much further than anyone else, all the way beyond space, time, and the present.

The first lesson of skillfulness is that the essence of an action lies in the intention motivating it. An act motivated by the intention for greater skillfulness will give results different from those of an act motivated by greed, aversion, or delusion. Intention, in turn, is influenced by the appropriateness or inappropriateness of the act of attention to one’s circumstances. The less an act of attention is clouded by delusion, the more clearly it will see things in appropriate terms. The combination of attention and intention in turn determines the quality of the feeling and the physical events that result from the act. The more skilled the action, the more refined the feelings and physical events that result. Perceptions arise with regard to those results, some more appropriate than others. The act of attention selects which ones to focus on, thus feeding back into another round in the cycle of action.

Thus we can say that the Dhamma, in terms of doctrine, practice, and attainment, derives from the fully explored implications of one observation: that it is possible to master a skill. This point is reflected not only in the content of the Buddha’s teachings, but also in the way they are expressed. The Buddha used many metaphors, explicit and implicit, citing the skills of craftsmen, artists, and athletes to illustrate his points. The texts abound with explicit similes referring to acrobats, archers, carpenters, farmers, herdsmen, musicians, painters and many others, pointing out how their skills correspond either to the way the mind fashions stress and suffering for itself or to the skills a person in meditation needs to develop in order to master the path to freedom.

It is important to note that the definition of skillful states of mind as free of greed, aversion, and delusion, provides a convenient rule of thumb for distinguishing between intentions that are merely good and those that are actually skillful. Sometimes good intentions are colored by ignorance, as when one tries to help another person without knowing the true source of that person’s problem. This would qualify as a good but not a skillful intention. As we have noticed, the processes of causality are sensitive and complex. Thus there is no getting by on well-meaning intentions alone. One must monitor one’s actions continually to make sure that they are in fact appropriate to the present situation and are not based on ignorance. For this reason, one needs to be constantly observant of one’s actions and their effects so that one’s good intentions can truly become skillful, and one’s actions can actually do justice to the specific conditions in the here and now.

The distinction between skillful and unskillful provides an insightful explanation for the causes for good and evil behavior. This distinction is not limited to the values of any particular society, and it avoids the issue of whether beings are inherently good or bad. When people act in evil ways, it is because they lack skill in the way they think; when they think in skillful ways, they naturally will do good. Because skill is something that can be acquired, the way to goodness is open for all people who want to be good, no matter how badly they have behaved in the past. It is a cause for progress in the noble way if one realizes one’s mistakes as such and resolves not to repeat them. Thus it is always possible to make a fresh start in life, aware of one’s past bad kamma and resolving to mend one’s ways, unburdened with any feelings that one might be inherently unworthy or bad.

It is important to note the two basic factors, internal and external, that enable one to tell what is skillful and unskillful. The main internal factor is “appropriate attention.” One learns to view one’s thoughts objectively, without prejudice, in terms of their actual consequences. As this factor develops from a sense of conviction in the principle of kamma, it turns into the ability to view all experience in terms of the four noble truths. An Important external factor is association with admirable people, defined as those who live by the principle of kamma. From their teachings, one can learn the advisability of trying to develop skillfulness in the first place; in their behavior, one can see skillfulness in action. These internal and external factors reinforce one another, in that skillful attitudes lead one to seek out admirable people to begin with, and admirable people lead them by word and example to see the less obvious advantages of skillful attitudes. Fortunately, every human being alive has some skillful qualities in his or her mind, as well as access to people who are admirable on at least some level. Thus no one consciously starting on the Buddhist path is starting from scratch. Rather, each person is advised to make the most of opportunities that have already been present and to search for further opportunities to develop the mind in a skillful direction.

So, instead of promoting resigned powerlessness, the Buddhist notion of kamma is focused on the liberating potential of what the mind is doing with every moment. Who we are, where we come from, is not anywhere near as important as the mind's motives for us to doing right now. Even though the past may account for many of the inequalities we see in life, our measure as human beings is not the hand we've been dealt, for that hand can change at any moment. We take our own measure by how well we play the hand we've got. If you're suffering, you try not to continue the unskillful mental habits that would keep that particular kammic feedback going. If you see that other people are suffering, and you're in a position to help, you focus not on their kammic past but your kammic opportunity in the present: Someday you may find yourself in the same predicament that they're in now, so here's your opportunity to act in the way you'd like them to act toward you when that day arrives.

The Buddha explained that the experiencing of consequences of one’s actions depends on numerous other factors such as the circumstances under which the action is committed, the moral status of the doer of the action and so on. Explaining this further the Buddha said that, if a person who is not properly disciplined and who, therefore, is of mean character were to do even a trifling evil deed that would lead him to serious adverse consequences. Yet, if the same trifling deed were to be done by a person who is virtuous, the consequences would not be so grave and severe. The reason for this is the difference between moral statuses of the two doers of the same trifling deed. To illustrate this situation the Buddha presented a simile. He said that, if a person were to throw a pinch of salt into a small cup of water, the water in it would become salty and undrinkable. If he were to throw the same amount of salt into a river, the water in the river would not become salty and undrinkable. This is because unlike in the cup, the volume of water in the river is large, and the pinch of salt has little effect on the large volume of water in the river. Similarly, though the trifling act was the same, the moral status of the two people that committed the crime was different, and therefore, the way they experience the consequences, too, was different.

According to the Buddha, law of kamma is only one of the causal laws in nature that affects the life of an individual. There are five such causal laws in nature. They are physical laws (utuniyāma), biological laws (bijaniyāma), psychological laws (cittaniyāma), kammic laws (kamma niyāma) and spiritual laws (dhamma niyāma). Therefore it is wrong to believe that the law of kamma is the only law that determines the life of an individual and that all pleasure and pain he experiences is strictly determined by his previous kamma. This makes it clear that one should not attribute to kamma all ups and downs one experiences in life and give up striving to improve one’s life. As man is supreme he has the freedom of choice, ability to put forth effort, ability to persevere, ability to control his kamma and has the ability to shape his own destiny. The doctrine of Kamma fills us with hope.  It gives us hope, self-reliance and moral courage.  It validates our efforts and kindles our enthusiasm.  In a lawless universe all our endeavors will be futile; but in a world of law and order, we feel secure and could guide ourselves with the help of our knowledge.

Chapter 7

REBIRTH

Every culture has had, sometime in its history, a belief in rebirth or reincarnation as part of its teaching. Even in the new millennium, it is undeniably accepted among many religions of the East. In almost all the major cultures of the world at one time or another, there has been a strong popular belief in rebirth. This is particularly true of India, where the idea can be traced back to the very earliest period of Indian civilization. In India, all the major religions including Hinduism and unorthodox doctrines like Jainism, accept the truth of rebirth. In other cultures, too, belief in rebirth has been common. There was the theory of "pre-existence of the soul" put forward by Plato. In the Mediterranean region, belief in the reality of rebirth was also widespread. Even today, it persists among the Druze, a Middle Eastern sect of Islam.

In the early Christian era, it was prevalent in Judaism and Christianity. It is evident that the Jewish priests believed in the theory of rebirth. It is recorded in the first chapter of the Gospel according to St. John, that they sent out to ask John the Baptist, "Art thou Elijah?" In St. Matthew's Gospel we have the words of the Christ asking his disciples, "Whom do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"  "And they said, some say that thou art John the Baptist; some Elias, and others, Jeremias.”  We notice here that Jesus Christ did not contradict his disciples and this is quite significant. He did not indicate in anyway that there was any need for correction. However, it is believed that the Christian Church at the Second Council in Constantinople declared ‘pre-existence’ heretical in 553 A.D.

Belief in the reality of rebirth or reincarnation has been an important part of the human way of thinking about the world and our place in it for a very long time. Today in the West, mainstream religions and churches attempt to shy away from any discussion or belief in the cycle of rebirth. It is a concept with which many people have difficulty. Some consider it fashionable to dismiss as fantasy, the doctrine of rebirth. This has been especially true over the last few decades. It is particularly so, when we have become increasingly conditioned to think in what are regarded as ‘scientific’ terms, that is to say, terms that many people loosely regard as ‘scientific’. After all, how many religious beliefs have been ‘scientifically‘ proven? However, this attitude has caused many people to discard the idea of rebirth because they think that it savors of superstition and belongs to an old-fashioned, outdated way of looking at life in this world. For this reason, I think we need to create a degree of open-mindedness toward the concept of rebirth in general terms, before we begin to consider the Buddhist teaching on the subject.

We have the testimony of recognized authorities who belong to various religious traditions who have firsthand knowledge and experience. In Buddhism, it was the Buddha himself who taught the truth of rebirth. It is mentioned in the texts that, on the night of his enlightenment, the Buddha acquired three kinds of knowledge, the first of which was detailed knowledge of his own past lives. He recollected the conditions under which he had been born in the past, and was able to recall innumerable former lives. Besides Buddha's testimony, and that of his principal disciples, throughout the history of the Buddhist tradition, accomplished practitioners have been able to remember their past lives. Even long before and after the Buddha, numerous sages in India had been able to recount their previous births.

Nonetheless, these arguments for the reality of rebirth cannot be expected to be wholly convincing in the rational and scientific environment in which we live. Hence we need to look for other more tangible proof. It is commonly known that during the last several years, vast amount of scientific investigation of the question of rebirth has been done. Numerous psychologists and parapsychologists have undertaken extensive research. Through these researches we have been able to build up a very convincing case for the reality of rebirth on a scientific basis. Many books have been published in which the details of these investigations are described and discussed.

One such scholar who has been particularly active in this area in recent years is Professor Ian Stevenson M.D., of the University of Virginia, in the United States. In his book, The Evidence of Survival from Claimed Memories of Former Incarnations he has published his findings in several cases of recall of past lives. These cases are from various countries such as Cuba, India, France and Sicily. There is one such case, which has received widespread attention. It is the case of a woman who was able to recall her life lived more than a hundred years earlier in a foreign land, under the name of Bridey Murphy, a land she had never visited in her present life. There is considerable information available on case studies and specific details of cases for anyone interested in the scientific evidence for rebirth can readily access. In the light of these studies, even the most skeptical among us will have to admit that there is a lot of scientific evidence in favor of the reality of rebirth.

There is also the case of child prodigies. Through the ages, child prodigies have pre­sented profoundly interesting human case histories. Jean-Louis Gardiac, the "wonder-child" of the Chateau de Gardiac, in France, was reciting his alphabet when he was only three months old, and his mental progress was swift and sure. At the age of three he could read Latin with ease and at four could translate from Latin to both French and English fluently. By the time he reached the age of six, Gardiac was reading Greek and Hebrew, and was already a master of mathematics, history and geography. How can we explain Mozart's composing music at the age of five? Wolfang Amadeus Mozart was born at Salizburg in Austria. By the age of three, it was evident that the boy was an infant prodigy. Wolfgang's tiny fingers began to call forth melodies from the pianoforte and he was soon a proficient performer on a miniature violin. By the time he was four, he had written his first sonata. At seven his first full opera was completed. Then there was the Polish prodigy Josef Hofman, who was playing the piano at a year and a half, tripping off classical numbers when he could hardly reach up to the piano? Is there a reasonable answer other than the result of remembering past experiences? How do we explain the genius of somebody like Sir William Hamilton? He was speaking Hebrew when he was three. By the time he was thirteen William Hamilton could speak thirteen languages, among them Persian, Arabic and Hindustani.

There are those who argue that these infant prodigies merely inherited their genius. But the strange thing is that most of them did not have parents or families with an aptitude for the things they excelled in. Heredity does not seem to provide a complete explanation. We also observe many talents and differences among our peers. All of us have our own particular capabilities, our own particular inclinations and disinclinations, and I think it is fair to ask whether these are all really the result of chance and social conditioning in early life. For instance, some of us are more capable in sports than others. Some of us have a talent for mathematics, while others have a talent for music. Still others like swimming, while others are afraid of water. Are all such differences in our abilities and attitudes merely the result of chance and conditioning?

The story of the Pollock twins is also a very strong link in the chain of evidence to support the theory of rebirth. It relates to events that occurred several years ago: events that happened to two children who died before the twins were born. Eleven-year-old Joanna Pollock and her six year old sister, Jac­queline, skipped gaily down the sidewalk on their way to mass. It was Sunday in May 1957, in the seaside town of Whitley Bay, in the United Kingdom. Suddenly, the peace of the early summer day was shattered. A car swept round a corner into the children. Both were fatally injured.

It was a great tragedy so hard for John Pollock and his wife Florence to accept. Every day it became harder since the Pollocks were convinced that Joanna and Jacqueline were back in the little house overlooking the gray North Sea. The story of the Pollock twins has already become a strong link in the chain of evidence to support the theory of rebirth. Psychic researchers rate it one of the most baffling and intriguing stories of our times.

Gillian and Jennifer were born seventeen months after the tragedy. No one has ever discussed with them the details of the death of the sisters. Yet they know about the accident down to the last detail. Everything they say tallies with facts. Jennifer, the younger by ten minutes of the five-year-old twins, is the image of Jacqueline, the younger of the dead sisters. Since the night she was born, Jennifer has had an unusual white scar just an inch and a quarter long on her forehead. Jacqueline, the dead girl, had an identical scar; the result of a fall when she was three yeas old. There are other uncanny similarities: Jennifer has a red-brown birthmark on her hip, about an inch in diameter. Jacqueline had one exactly the same size and at the same place.

The Pollocks were constantly noting similarities between the twins and the two girls who are dead. For instance, Jennifer likes writing. Without any prompting she has adopted the peculiar habit of holding her pencil between the middle fingers of her right hand and propelling it with her first. Jacqueline did the same. The evidence the Pollocks have to offer intrigues researchers. They have interviewed the girls and extracted facts about things and places that Jennifer and Gillian have never experi­enced or seen but Joanna and Jacqueline had. Gillian copies Joanna in many ways, too. She uses many of the same expressions, has the same walk, the same tendency to lead her sister around by the hand.

But perhaps the most astounding fact is that the girls talk about the accident as if it had happened to them personally. Gillian speaks frequently of details no one has ever discussed with her. Recently, Mrs. Pollock found Gillian, her hands on Jennifer's shoulders, de­scribing in close detail the injuries Jacqueline suffered in the crash.

Once, after the girls had gone for a walk, a neighbor found them crying by the roadside. They were standing in the exact spot where the tragedy had occurred and again, no one had told them the exact location. Jennifer once asked her mother, "What happened to Mr. X ? Is he still very upset about the crash?" She mentioned the name of the man who was driving the car, knew where he lived and what make of vehicle he drove.

"Recently," says the father, "while I was in the loft I came upon a box of toys I had parceled up after the children died. I know for a fact that the twins had never seen the box and could have no idea what it contained. I decided to give them the toys. Immediately I opened the box, Gillian pounced on a little toy wringer for squeezing out washed dolls' clothes and excitedly cried out: 'Look Daddy here's my wringer again.' The toy had belonged to Joanna and it was her favorite plaything.

It is incidents like this, that are bringing experts, though reluctantly, to the conclusion that the Pollock twins have walked the earth before. One of the last to be convinced was their father. He is a Roman Catholic, and his faith does not accept the theory of rebirth. But since the children died he had a strange feeling that twin girls would replace them in the family. Mrs. Pollock scoffed at the idea. So did the doctors who examined her. They could detect only one heartbeat. But twins were born.

At first Mrs. Pollock could not accept the idea of rebirth. Now she says: "I have been forced to take it seriously. The amazing physical likenesses, the uncanny things they say, and the similarity in the things they do have made me believe there must be something in it. People have come to the house; people who have not visited since Jacqueline and Joanna died but the twins recognize them instantly. They always know their names.”  This is but one link in many similar stories emanating from all over the world.

While compiling this chapter on rebirth, today, October 15^th, 2000, I interrupted my work to watch a TV movie. It was a movie on New York cable channel CBS entitled “Yesterday’s Children”. It was advertised as “A mother’s haunting dreams lead her to another place, another time and a mysterious past….her own. Inspired by the true story of Jenny Cockell.” The movie was about the true story of an Architect, Jenny Cockell of Allentown Pennsylvania, who had dreams and visions about an Irish family that lived several decades earlier in Ireland. Without much support, initially, from her family she visits the Irish village. The details about the village, the church, the house and the names of the family members were very accurate. She was the abused mother of that family, now reborn in the US.

In Buddhism, rebirth is part and parcel of the continuous process of change. This, like other important teachings in Buddhism, is easily verifiable by reference to our own experience and to the teachings of science. For example, the majority of cells that compose the human body die and are replaced many times during the course of a lifetime. Even those few cells, which last an entire lifetime, undergo continuous internal change. This is part of the process of birth, death, and rebirth. If we look at the mind, we find that mental states appear and disappear every moment. They pass away and are replaced by new and different states. Therefore, whether we look at the body or the mind, our experience is characterized by constant birth, death, and rebirth.

Finally, I would like to distinguish rebirth from transmigration. You may know that, in Buddhism, we consistently speak of rebirth, not trans migration. This is because in Buddhism we do not believe in an abiding entity, or substance or soul that transmigrates. We do not believe in a self that is reborn. This is why, when we explain rebirth, we make use of examples that do not require the transmigration of an essence or a substance. For example, when a seed germinates, a sprout comes out of it. But there is no tangible substance that transmigrates from the seed to the sprout. The seed and the sprout are not identical in anyway. Similarly, when we light one candle from another, no substance passes from one candle to the other. Yet, undoubtedly the first is the cause of the second. When one billiard ball strikes another, there is a movement initiated in the second. Although nothing tangible or an entity passed from one to the other, the energy and direction of the first ball is imparted to the second. The first ball is the cause of the second billiard ball moving in a particular direction but it is not the same ball and nothing tangible went to the second from the first. If we step into a river, come out of it and re-enter, in a very strict sense, it is not the same river that we enter the second time. Water has flowed through since our first entry. Yet there is continuity, the continuity of succession of cause and effect. Hence there is rebirth, but not transmigration. Moral responsibility exists, but not an independent, permanent self. The continuity of cause and effect exists, but not permanence.

There are often dramatic and unexpected turns in the course of our personal development. There are also those situations in which we sometimes get a strong feeling that we have been in a particular place before, although we have not visited it in our present lifetime. On other occasions, we feel that we have known someone before when we meet a person for the first time, and yet very soon we feel that we have known that person all our lives. Experiences such as these, where we feel that we have been in a particular situation before, are so very common and universal.

If we are not dogmatic, when we add up all these indications and suggestions, the belief in rebirth in many cultures and ages throughout the history of human civilization, the testimony of the Buddha and his prominent disciples, the evidence provided by scientific research, and our own individual observations of varied intimations that we have been here before, I think we will have to confess that there is at least a strong possibility that rebirth actually is a reality.

The absence of a permanent entity or a soul that transmigrates is enunciated in the doctrine of Anatta or No-Soul. We have seen earlier, in the discussion of the First Noble Truth (Dukkha) that, what we call a being or an individual is composed of the Five Aggregates, and that when they are analyzed and examined, there is nothing within them that can be taken as an unchanging ‘self’ or any unchanging abiding entity. This same conclusion is arrived at through the doctrine of Conditioned Genesis (Paticca-samuppāda). Conditioned Genesis is the formula set forth by the Buddha pertaining to rebirth.  According to this formula there is nothing absolute in the world. Everything is conditioned, relative, and interdependent. In other words this is the Buddha’s theory of relativity. The principle of this doctrine is given in a short and precise formula:

 “Imasmim sati idam hoti; Imassuppada idam uppajati;

Imasmim, asati idam na hoti; Imassa nirodha idam nirujjhati.”

When this is, that is;

This arising, that arises;

When this is not, that is not;

This ceasing, that ceases.

If we put this in the form of a simple logical formula, it would be as follows:

When A is, B is; A arising, B arises; when A is not, B is not; A ceasing, B ceases.

Based on this principle of conditionality, relativity and inter-dependence, the whole existence and continuity of life and its cessation are explained in a detailed formula which is called Paticca-samuppāda 'Conditioned Genesis', consisting of the following twelve factors:

1. Avijja, - Ignorance. Ignorance of the Four Noble Truths or not knowing reality of life.

2. Sankhāra – Volitional actions. Through ignorance, volitional actions are performed.

3. Viññāna – Conciousness. Volitional actions bring about relinking consciousness.

4. Nāma-Rupa – Mind and Matter. Dependent on Consciousness arise mind and matter. 

5. Salāyātana – Six faculties. With mind and matter coming into being, the six faculties, namely, eyes, ears, nose, mouth, body and mind come into being.

6. Phassa – Contact. Through the six faculties contact arises.

7. Vedanā – Sensation. Through contact, sensation arises.

8. Tanha – Craving. Through sensation arises craving, desire, thirst.

9. Upādana - Clinging. Through craving is conditioned clinging

10. Bhāva  - Becoming. On account of clinging arises becoming.

11. Jāti – Birth. Dependent on becoming arises birth. 12. Jarāmarana – Aging. Through birth arise decay, pain, lamentation, aging and death.

This is how life arises, exists and continues. If we take this formula in its reverse order, we come to the cessation of the process. Through the complete cessation of ignorance, volitional activities or kamma formations cease; through the cessation of volitional activities, consciousness ceases; through the cessa­tion of consciousness birth, decay, death and sorrow cease. It should be clearly remembered that each of these factors is conditioned as well as conditioning. Therefore they are all relative, interdependent and interconnected, and nothing is absolute or independent. Thus Conditioned Genesis should be considered as a cycle. According to Conditioned Genesis, existence in its totality is relative, conditioned and interdependent.

The Buddhist path stresses the role of wisdom as the instrument of deliverance, and wisdom must comprise not only a penetration of the present moment, but also a clear comprehension of the past and future horizons within which our present existence unfolds. Recognition of the principle of rebirth will give us a panoramic perspective from which we can survey our lives in their broader context. This will spur us on in our own pursuit of the path and will reveal the profound significance of the goal towards which our practice points, the end of the cycle of births as mind's final liberation from suffering.

Chapter 8

NIBBĀNA

Nibbāna is the Pali version of the Sanskrit word ‘Nirvana’. Nirvana is a term commonly used in English today. Apart from naming musical groups, restaurants and holiday resorts, it is used to indicate a place or state devoid of pain or worry. The term nirvana is used in many Indian religions, particularly in Jainism, to denote a state of association of the soul or atman with Brahma. Lest there be confusion, for our discussions in this book, we will use the Pali term ‘nibbāna’. Nibbāna is grammatically a combined word; 'ni' (cessation) and 'bana' (attachment) that means the total cessation of attachment. It is this craving (tanha) which acts as a cord to connect the series of lives of an individual in the course of his wanderings in Samsāra, the eternal cycle of birth and death.

Nibbāna cannot be explained completely and satisfactorily in ordinary words because languages are too shallow and inadequate to express or describe the real nature of nibbāna. Languages or words are created and used by the mass of human beings to express things and ideas that are mundane, that is to say, as pertaining to experiences that are related to their senses, worldly experiences. For this reason, nibbānic bliss, a supra-mundane experience cannot be derived from such a category to conventional truth. It is not uncommon for nibbāna to be described in negative terms. It is the "Unborn, Un-originated, Uncreated, Unformed”, it is the complete annihilation of all defilement; it is the complete destruction of the five components of beings; it is a situation where no new kamma is being formed or previous kamma bearing fruit. It is the extinction of the three roots of unwholesome action namely, greed, aversion and delusion; it is the end of rebirth itself. Two misconceptions of nibbāna may be mentioned here; one entertained by the materialist is that it implies nothingness; the other, entertained by the theist, is that it involves merger with a higher entity. When the Buddha was asked, "Does an arahant exist after death?" and "Does an arahant not exist after death?" he answered both questions in the negative. It is only the limitation of our conceptualization process that leads us to pose such questions. This is one of the most difficult concepts of Buddhism and cannot really be grasped unless some progress has been made on the path to deliverance.

Sir Edwin Arnold says in ‘Light of Asia’

If any teach nibbāna is to cease,
say unto such they lie.
If any says nibbāna is to live,
say unto such they err.

The Buddhist nibbāna is quite different from the Hebrew Paradise or Christian Heaven or the Hindu Brahma or Salvation as introduced by other religions. The Buddhist way of salvation or eternal bliss cannot be attained unless a person purifies himself by becoming a perfect one or a noble one (Ariya). The Buddha insists that this level is indescribable, even in terms of existence or nonexistence, because words work only for things that have limits. All he really says about it, apart from images and metaphors, is that one can have foretastes of the experience in this lifetime, and that it's the ultimate happiness, something truly worth knowing.

Words are of course a conventional or relative truth or symbols representing things and ideas known to us. These symbols cannot convey exactly and fully the true nature of even ordinary things. Language is a combination of words expressed by human beings. So language is supposedly deceptive and misleading in the matter of understanding the Absolute Truth. The Ultimate Reality or Absolute Truth can only be realized by the enlightened knowledge of insight not by ordinary naked eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body and mind. It is described as "Uttamo" most sublime, "Aviparito "unchangeability or immutability, "Sabbaññuta ñānassa gocaro", it is comprehensible only to all knowing insight knowledge of the Buddha or an arahant.

Nevertheless, we cannot do without language. To understand Nibbana we have to use words as applicable and perfect a manner as possible. So, if Nibbāna is to be expressed and explained in positive terms as the "Absolute Happiness", it is also likely that we may immediately grasp it as an idea generally associated with those terms, which may be quite contrary to the actual meaning. For this reason, it is often referred to or expressed in various negative terms such as "Extinction of Thirst, Uncomposed, Unconditioned, Unborn, Uncreated, Unmade etc. It is indeed the complete absence of desire or the cessation of that very thirst or craving (Thanakkayo), giving it up (Cāgo), renouncing it (Patinissaggo), emancipation (Mutti) and detachment Anālayo) from it. Referring to exhaustion of all conditioned things and giving up all defilements. Since Nibbāna is expressed in negative terms, many have got the wrong notion that Nibbāna is negative and expresses annihilation of self. But of course there is no self to annihilate in Nibbāna. There is neither space nor time where and when Nibbāna can be located. It is in fact Buddha’s theory of relativity.

Buddhism holds that final extinction of ignorance and craving is the way of escape from the cycle of births and death, (Samsāra), but the escape is not actually reached somewhere like a union with Brahma or God which is to be attained only after this life. The final victory to be gained by the extinction of' ignorance and craving in the Buddhist view is the victory which can be gained and enjoyed in this very life. Nibbānic experience has to be attained while five aggregates (corporeality, feeling, perception, volitional activities and consciousness) are still functioning.

As long as craving entangles one, one accumulates fresh kamma that will give rise to new birth and death repeatedly. When all forms of craving are annihilated by following the Noble Eightfold Path, kammic force ceases to operate and one escapes the cycle of birth and death. Then one is said to attain Nibbāna. The Buddhist concept of ' Deliverance’ or ‘Liberation' is this escape from the ever-recurring cycle of birth and death and all the dissatisfaction associated with them. By nature or intrinsically Nibbāna is peaceful (sānti). As such it is unique. Nibbāna has no nāma and rūpa nor any form and shape to be longed for by tanha (craving). Neither is there any craving in Nibbāna. Nibbāna is absolutely free from craving as well as from the hankerings of craving. Nibbāna may also be characterized by the following virtues. It has past death, and thus no death occurs in Nibbāna. It has past the end called, death, so it is endless. It is not conditioned by any kamma; hence it is eternal and is neither a cause nor an effect. It is superior to and nobler than any Dhamma or law or norm. All input from the senses cools away and one is totally freed from even the subtlest stresses and limitations of existence in space and time.

When we hear or read the word Nibbāna, we often get the idea that it is unattainable, otherworldly, reachable only by spiritual giants, and that it has very little to do with us. We do not have to look at it that way. Let us consider the three kinds of liberation: “impermanence,” “suffering,” and “soulessness”. These three kinds of liberation are attained by completely penetrating impermanence (anicca), unsatisfactoriness (dukkha), and soulessness (anatta). On the other hand ‘freedom, is often misunderstood as the ability to do anything we want. We have probably tried that already and found that it doesn’t work. Even if we were to follow only our desires, we would soon be satisfied but then feel unfulfilled and want more. Freedom means nonattachment, which is not indifference but rather the penetration of absolute truth. To see that clearly, we let go for one moment of anything that we call our own, anything that we like or consider important. We examine it until its fleeting nature has become quite apparent. Then the moment comes when we can say, “I don’t have to have that; I can do without it.” That is a moment of truth. Having a moment of truth is always possible, but such moments don’t come automatically. We have to inquire into our clinging and work at loosening it. Letting go sounds easy, and it is, but only after it has happened. Before that, it entails much self-examination. The most insidious irritations arise through thinking. Thought is a constant process with which we identify and then we act upon. We cannot act upon everything we see or hear. If we see a beautiful sunset or hear some great music, there’s nothing we can do about it, except to like it. No need for a reaction, which may easily result in new problems. Even the most innocuous situations can cause friction if we identify with our thinking process. Once we express our views, hopes, and beliefs, the argument starts, and tears start flowing.

There is a way of experiencing a moment of voidness. When we see the interconnectedness of dukkha, anicca, and anatta, we glimpse the lack of substance in all existence. We can see the clouds moving in the sky and the wind blowing in the trees. We can notice our blood pulsing and our breath flowing. The universe is contracting and expanding constantly. Within all that movement, we cannot find anything to grasp and retain. There is nothing solid at all anywhere, any time.

Such a moment of seeing liberates us from craving and clinging, from samsāric existence with all its dukkha. Clinging is always connected with the fear of losing and craving is always connected with the fear of not having or not being. Fear and anxiety are natural states of being in the human condition. The supra-mundane condition is without fear, since there is nothing to be lost or gained. We crave and cling to whatever we think is important. Being free from craving or clinging for a moment doesn’t mean we are indifferent to others. The Buddha’s great compassion arose out of his enlightenment. He saw quite clearly that everybody was suffering on account of craving and clinging. Because he had eliminated these mind states within himself, his great compassion was not marred by any concern for himself, and he could completely give himself to others. We can take steps to approach this ideal and get a glimpse of its peacefulness. It is accessible and accessible to all.

Liberation does not happen by grace or by a divine intervention. It requires moment-to-moment mindfulness and purification until the last speck of impurity has been removed. When we have moments without craving and clinging, we must attend to them with great care and become familiar with them, so that we can repeat them as often as possible. Unless we are fully aware of the contents of our minds, unfortunate moments may predominate. Happiness is not an accident; it requires hard work. Just as happiness is an inner condition, peace comes about by letting go. We need to discover where we cling the most and then work with that, whatever it may be. The Buddha traced the root cause of suffering to ignorance; so the search for enlightenment is the supreme activity for the Buddhist. The activity proceeds at both the intellectual and the intuitive levels. Pure intellectual understanding is not sufficient, although it is often a very good starting point. When enlightenment is attained pure intellectual understanding is transcended by an intuitive grasp of the truths of the Universe.

If knowledge is the outcome of "intellectual" activity, a person's fund of knowledge at any moment of time is made up of a number of beliefs that he considers valid. This is usually termed ñāna or paññā. The acquisition of this kind of knowledge is useful, and is not discouraged; but it alone will not lead to enlightenment. This is clearly seen in the case of many eminent scientists, who have progressed far in the acquisition of particular kinds of knowledge, but have not been able to outgrow the dogmatic views inculcated in early childhood. True enlightenment can arise out of the third kind of knowledge, consisting of wisdom (bodhi) and insight (vipassanā). This results from the intuitive realization of the Buddhist laws and truths after the successful traverse of the Middle Path. The process of enlightenment involves the breaking of the fetters (sanyojanā) that bind people to the phenomenal world.

Just as happiness is an inner condition, so is peace.  Peace comes about by letting go. We need to discover where we cling the most and then work with that, whatever it may be. We all have to let go of them some day. It would be a good idea to prepare for that day and enjoy the bliss of letting go now, instead of waiting until the last moment. The Buddha traced the root cause of suffering to ignorance; so the search for enlightenment is the supreme activity for the Buddhist. The activity proceeds at both the intellectual and the intuitive levels. Pure intellectual understanding is not sufficient, although it is often a very good starting point. When enlightenment is attained pure intellectual understanding is transcended by an intuitive grasp of the truths of the universe.

While considering this cosmology we may also consider the important concept of Nibbāna that is the state of final release. It is only when insight-knowledge is applied to the practice of noting the phenomena of arising and passing away of the aggregates that path-consciousness develops and Nibbāna is brought near. At this stage, ignorance, with its faithful attendant, defilement, is annihilated. In the absence of defilement, no fresh actions or kamma can be formed. Any residual kamma that happens to exist after the annihilation of defilement will be rendered inoperative or ineffective. For a Worthy One, an arahant, no new life is formed after his death. There is now a complete severance of the cord of existence that signifies annihilation in sight of Nibbāna.

In Nibbāna, the round of suffering comes to a peaceful end. Hence cessation of suffering is Nibbāna. In other words, when the Path of an Arahant is reached, the round of suffering ceases. Nibbāna is, therefore, peace established with the annihilation of suffering. For the sake of brevity, we may note only that Nibbāna is synonymous with absolute peace. Annihilation brings about complete elimination of rounds of defilement, of action and of result of action. The Commentaries say that the state of peaceful coolness or santi is a characteristic of Nibbāna. When coolness occurs the ambers of suffering are extinguished. But what is to be noted with diligence is the complete annihilation of the three rounds of defilement, action and result of action which all go to sustain mind and matter.

If we try to seek the cause of the unhappiness people bring upon themselves, we can find these three primary psychological causes: greed, hatred and delusion. Only when Nibbāna is attained, the three causes and their effect, unhappiness, are absolutely destroyed and uprooted, and then inner peace appears. Instead of arguing whether Nibbāna is something negative or positive, everybody should try to attain Nibbāna by following the noble eightfold path. For example, just by having knowledge of a recipe of a delicious dish, one does not have an appetite for it nor understand what the taste of the dish would be.

In Buddhism, as Nibbāna is the final goal; the subject of Nibbāna is indeed very profound in the ultimate sense of the term. But Nibbāna is not the one that is unattainable or unrealizable, it is, of course within the reach of everyone. Apparently, Nibbāna in a proper sense is not easily comprehensible even for a Buddhist from both theoretical and practical aspect. As it is the final aim, all Buddhists aspire to reach it. Therefore no person ever could fulfill the eternal thirst or craving of his senses until and unless the craving is wiped out of his mind. A person may work as hard as a slave until his last breath is taken but still his desire or craving will continue to take root in him, even though he is too old to make use of his faculties. The infallible method to quench his craving as taught by the Buddha is to calm down one's senses instead of gratifying them. There are three ways of practice in Buddhism for overcoming craving. They are:

1. To give alms or charity (Dāna),

2. To keep to morality or to restrain one's physical and oral actions (Sila).

3. To meditate on the actual nature of one's own mind and body (Bhāvanā).

These can quench your cravings. The more you practice these principles, the more you can reduce or decrease your thirst. For instance, by giving alms or through charity, greed (Lobha) in your mind can be dispelled and by observing moral precepts, anger or hatred can be appeased, by concentrating on the supreme qualities of the Buddha or Loving-kindness (Mettā) your mind will be cleansed and highly developed and also the hindrances can be kept away and the mind thus becomes tranquillized.

By practicing meditation, you can attain the insightful knowledge that can see things as they really are and then attain to the deliverance of Nibbāna. One must learn how to control one’s senses in order to follow these principles of the Dhamma through self-training, self-discipline and self-restraint. One must also learn to achieve contentment and detachment. Very few people have realized that the cause of suffering is due to their own craving and attachment towards various pleasurable things. There is a great difference between the happiness one derives from sensual gratification and that which one gets from restraining one's senses of craving. Here, the Buddha definitely taught that the highest form of genuine happiness or bliss in life is to be attained only by controlling ones senses and not by indulging in them freely.

Using conventional terms, the Buddha declared “Nibbānam paramam sukham” which means Nibbāna is the highest bliss. He, who has realized Nibbāna, is the happiest person on earth. He lives the sublime, enjoying the pure life with his faculties pleased. He is free from any obsessions, worries and troubles that torment all others. His mental health is unaffected. He does not repent the past, nor does he brood over the future. He lives fully in the present, now and here. Thus he appreciates and enjoys things in the purest sense without any defilement. He is joyful, exuberant, free from anxiety, serene and peaceful. He enjoys pure life with all his faculties pleased. As he is free from selfish desire, hatred, ignorance, conceit, pride, and all other defilements, he is pure and gentle, full of universal love, compassion, kindness, sympathy, understanding and tolerance. His service to others is pure and clean, for he does not entertain any selfish thoughts or gains. He gains nothing, accumulates nothing, not even anything spiritual, because he is free from the illusion of self, and the 'tanha' for becoming. Nibbāna is beyond all terms of duality and relativity. It is therefore beyond our conceptions of good and evil, right and wrong, existence and non-existence. Even the word happiness (sukha) that is used to describe Nibbāna has an entirely different sense here. Sāriputta once said: '0 friend, Nibbāna is happiness! Nibbāna is happiness!' Then Udāyi asked: “But, friend Sāriputta, what happiness can it be, if there is no sensation?” Sāriputta's reply was highly philosophical and beyond ordinary comprehension: “That there is no sensation itself is happiness”. Nibbāna is 'to be realized by the wise within themselves (paccattam veditabbo viññūhi). If we follow the Path patiently and with diligence, train and purify ourselves earnestly, and attain the necessary spiritual development, all of us can one day realize it within ourselves.

Chapter 9

BUDDHIST MEDITATION

Throughout history, there have been numerous traditions of meditation. The history of meditation goes far beyond known human history. From very early times, yoga and other forms of meditation have been essential practices in Hinduism. However, meditation has not been the exclusive privilege of any particular religion. It has been a common practice of many religions. These traditions have continued generation after generation without falling out of practice because they all bring about some beneficial result to people who practice them. While they are all recognized as different forms of meditation, all of them may not produce the same benefits. But they all yield good results; in doing so, they have attracted many serious minded people around the world. Some of the commonest forms of meditation are Yoga, Transcendental Meditation, Sufi, Zen, Samātha, Vipassana, and Satipatthāna. Of these meditations, Yoga, and Transcendental Meditation are believed to be of Hindu origin. Sufi is from Islam, and the rest of them have been introduced by Buddhism. Meditation has not been a common or widespread practice among the followers of Judaism and Christianity although they too have their own variations of meditation. Thus meditation is a common aspect of many religious traditions.

The Buddha said: '0 bhikkhus, there are two kinds of illnesses. What are those two? Physical illness and mental illness. There are people who enjoy freedom from physical illness even for a year or two, even for a hundred years or more. But, 0 bhikkhus, rare in this world are those who enjoy freedom from mental illness even for one moment, except those who are free from mental defilements, the Arahants”.

The Buddha's teaching, particularly his way of meditation, aims at producing a state of perfect mental health, equilibrium and tranquility. It is unfortunate that hardly any other section of the Buddha's teaching is so much misunderstood as meditation, both by Buddhists and non-Buddhists. Firstly, it is almost universally believed that meditation is a very difficult task. Secondly, the moment the word 'meditation' is mentioned, one thinks of an escape from the daily activities of life; assuming a particular posture, like a statue in some cave or cell in a monastery, in some remote place cut off from society; and musing over or being absorbed in, some kind of mystic or mysterious thought or trance. Buddhist meditation does not mean this kind of escape at all. The Buddha's teaching on this subject was so wrongly, or so little understood, that in later times the way of meditation deteriorated and degenerated into a kind of ritual or ceremony almost technical in its routine.

Most people are interested in meditation in order to gain some spiritual or mystic powers. As we have seen with other Pali words, the word meditation is a very poor substitute for the original term bhāvanā, which means 'culture' or 'development' that is mental culture or mental development. The Buddhist bhāvanā, properly speaking is mental culture in the full sense of the term. It aims at cleansing the mind of impurities and disturbances, such as lustful desires, hatred, ill-will, indolence, worries and restless­ness, misgiving and cultivating such qualities as concentra­tion, awareness, intelligence, will, energy, the analytical faculty, confidence, joy, tranquility, leading finally to the attainment of the highest wisdom which sees the nature of things as they are, and realizes the Ultimate Truth, Nibbāna.

There are two forms of meditation. One is the development of mental concentration (Samātha or Samādhi), or onepointedness of mind. This is achieved by various methods leading up to the highest mystic states such as 'the Sphere of Nothingness' or 'the Sphere of Neither-Perception­ nor Non-Perception'. All these mystic states, according to the Buddha, are mind-created, mind-produced, and conditioned. They have nothing to do with Reality, Truth, Nibbāna. This form of meditation existed before the Buddha. Hence it is not purely Buddhist, but it is not excluded from the field of Buddhist meditation. However it is not essential for the realization of Nibbāna. Ascetic Gotama himself, before his Enlighten­ment, studied these yogic practices under different teachers and attained to the highest mystic states; but he was not satisfied with them, because they did not give complete liberation; they did not give insight into the Ultimate Reality. He considered these mystic states only as 'happy living in this existence'. He therefore discovered the other form of 'meditation' known as Vipassanā, which is 'Insight' into the nature of things, leading to the complete liberation of the mind and the realiza­tion of the Ultimate Truth, Nibbāna. This is essentially Buddhist meditation, Buddhist mental culture. It is an analytical method based on mindfulness, awareness, vigilance, and observation.

The most important discourse ever given by the Buddha on meditation is called the Satipattāna sutta 'The Setting-up of Mindfulness'. This discourse is highly venerated and regularly recited by Buddhists.  The methods of 'meditation' given in this discourse are not cut off from life, nor do they avoid life; on the contrary, they are all connected with our life, our daily activities, our sorrows and joys, our words and thoughts, our moral and intellectual occupations. The discourse is divided into four main sections: the first section deals with our body (kāya), the second with our feelings and sensations (vedanā), the third with the mind (citta) and the fourth with various moral and intellectual norms (dhamma). It should be clearly borne in mind that whatever the form of meditation may be, the essential thing is mindfulness or aware-ness (sati) and attention or observation (anupassanā).

One of the most well-known, popular and practical examples of meditation connected with the body is called 'The Mindfulness or Awareness of inhaling and exhaling’, breathing in and out (ānāpānasati). It is for this meditation only that a particular and definite posture is prescribed in the text. For other forms of meditation given in this sutta, you may sit, stand, walk, or lie down, as you like. But, for cultivating mindfulness of in-and-out breathing, one should sit cross-legged, keeping the body erect and with mindfulness alert. Of course sitting cross-legged is not practical and easy for people of most countries, particularly the Westerners. Therefore, those who find it difficult to sit cross-legged may sit on a chair, keeping the body erect and ‘mindfulness alert'. It is very necessary for this exercise that the meditator should sit erect, but not stiff; his hands resting on the lap relaxed. Thus seated, you may close your eyes or you may gaze at the tip of your nose, whichever is convenient.

The Buddha's life story gives detailed accounts of how Siddhartha learned yoga practices from accomplished teachers. However Siddhartha did not give up his search for other forms of meditations. He continued experimenting further with new techniques of meditation. Siddhartha's achievement which made him a Buddha was the result of these experiments. The Buddha taught his disciples the essentials of Buddhist meditation. These traditions continued from generation to generation. From master to master through the ages there have been individual approaches and interpretations to the original practices. When Buddhism was received in different regions of Asia, they added their own methods and interpretations. Japanese Zen and Tibetan Tantra are good examples of such modified versions of Buddhist meditation. From getting up in the morning, till lying down at night, nine-tenths of our actions are automatic. To meditate is to cease the mechanical, the automatic and the habitual; to stop preoccupying the mind with a lot of sensory stimulation, sensory proliferations or distractions. To let things settle. When the dust begins to settle, things become clearer. Although Satipatthana, Vipassana, or Zen can be done in any position, people usually think that a sitting posture is the best position for a meditator. Our mental picture of a meditator is that of a person in the lotus posture. However, as we mentioned earlier, any particular position is not quintessential for proper meditation except of course Ānāpānasati meditation. In Sri Lanka, most Buddhist temples have prominades called Sakman Maluwa for monks to practice walking meditation. Several reasons account for the popularity of the lotus posture. The cultural and historical background in India is perhaps the major reason. It is a habit of Indians to sit in lotus posture. Obviously, the meditator's lungs remain fully expanded and spinal cord stays straight when one sits in lotus posture. This helps lungs and brain to function freely. Besides, it is a stable and settled position for the meditator. It is not unusual for a person to fall asleep when the mind becomes calmer and calmer. If it happens the meditator will not suffer injury, because he or she is steady in the sitting position. We can imagine what could happen if one falls asleep during the walking meditation. Therefore sitting posture, especially the lotus posture, is a firm and balanced physical position for the meditator. However, we must be mindful of the fact that human body is uncomfortable in any posture if we maintain it for a length of time.

Before achieving the Buddhahood, Siddharta Gautama developed supra-normal skills based on yogic practices. This type of meditation is known as Sāmatha because by calming down one's thoughts and by cultivating the power of concentration one's mind reaches supranormal states or dhyāna. Thus, Sāmatha meditation, as we mentioned earlier, came from the pre-Buddhistic practices. What actually led Siddhartha to the Buddhahood was his own experimentation in meditation. This new meditation is known as Vipassanā. Vipassanā is a Pāli term that means insight or penetration into reality. It is through Vipassanā that one can attain Nibbāna, the Goal of Buddhism. Even the one who has mastered samātha does not attain Nibbāna; he has to develop Vipassanā in order to attain Nibbāna. An essential step of Vipassanā is Satipatthāna (i.e. mindfulness or awareness). Through Satipatthāna the meditator becomes aware of the present moment of life, each and every movement of his or her physical and mental existence. That kind of awareness is essential to have penetrating insight into the physical and mental phenomena that encompasses the whole world. Being aware of your feelings is traditionally known as Vedanānupassanā Satipatthāna. When the process of feeling is seen clearly with Satipatthāna, the feeler disappears. In the absence of the feeler, observant, or ego, the meditator becomes in touch with the flux of life or the stream of existence. Normally one does not notice details in one’s activities. Only when one becomes mindful one sees the minute details of one's activities. Similarly in being fully attentive, one can take note of all the movements taking place in daily living. A step beyond the physical movements is thought. The meditator begins to see his or her thoughts, he or she begins to recognize the rising, continuing, and the fall of each thought. Thus, characteristics like impermanence of the physical and mental entities become revealed to the meditator. Seeing these characteristics is Vipassanā. This way Satipatthāna leads to Vipassanā. One's progress towards enlightenment depends on Vipassanā meditation.

At this point, let us see what modern researchers have done in the field of meditation. First of all modern researchers have recognized that the meditator's brain functions are distinct from that of the non-meditator. In addition it has been discovered that the meditator's brain is not subjected to habituation process, whereas all the others live as victims of habituation of their brains. Look at the following experiment in Electroencephalographic (EEG) Analysis of Meditation.

In 1963 Dr Akira Kasamatsu and Dr Tomio Hirai of the Department of Neuro-Psychiatry, Tokyo University, presented a fascinating and unique report on Zen meditation. It contained the results of a ten-year study of the brain wave or electroencephalographic (EEG) tracing of Zen masters. The EEG tracing revealed that about 90 seconds after an accomplished Zen practitioner begins meditation, a rhythmic slowing in the brain wave pattern occurs. This slowing occurs with eyes open and progresses with meditation. This effect persists for some minutes after meditation. What is most significant is that this EEG pattern is notably different from those of sleep, normal walking, consciousness and hypnotic trance and is unusual in persons who have not made considerable progress in meditation. In other words, it suggests an unusual mental state; though from the subjective reports of the practitioners, it does not appear to be a unique or highly unusual conscious experience. It was also found that a Zen master's evaluation of the amount of progress another practitioner had made correlated directly with the latter's EEG changes.

EEG tracing is only one example found in modern research. Psychology plays a large role in the modern world and meditation is essentially a psychological matter. Therefore, it is worthwhile for us to compare and contrast briefly modern psychology with Buddhist psychology. The Buddha teaches that the world is operated by mind (cittena neeyati lōkō); pleasure and pain, happiness and sorrow, progression and regression, in brief the whole human civilization is a product of thought. An individual's future and the future of all mankind depends on our power of thinking. The role of consciousness is clearly enumerated by Dr Douglas Burns in his “ Buddhist Meditation and Depth Psychology”. “ If the basis of Christianity is God, the basis of Buddhism is mind. From the Buddhist viewpoint, mind or consciousness is the core of our existence. Pleasure and pain, good and evil, time and space, life and death have no meaning to us apart from our awareness of them or thoughts about them. Whether God exists or does not exist, whether existence is primarily spiritual or primarily material, whether we live for a few decades or live forever all these matters are, in the Buddhist view, secondary to the one empirical fact of which we do have certainty; that is the existence of conscious experience as it proceeds through the course of daily living. Therefore, Buddhism focuses on the mind; for happiness and sorrow, pleasure and pain are psychological experiences”.

Cognitive therapy has become a major outcome of psychology today. This is not surprising at all because a greater part of life is mental; even the physical body is operated by the mind. Mental health should be maintained in order to live a happy life. When one is aware of the feelings that exist on the surface of one's mind, gradually the hidden feelings begin to be revealed by themselves. In using the particular meditation, awareness of feeling, one can take one's feelings under control and manage them in a productive way.

Every person needs meditational therapy in order to make progress towards enlightenment. If one is satisfied with the usual and habitual worldly life one might not make any attempt to walk a religious path or experiment with meditation. As one should notice, normal and sane persons receive higher benefit of meditation. These people are not trying to correct some abnormal mental states, rather they are trying through meditation to achieve the highest spiritual goals possible for mankind. Satipatthāna Sutta teaches four types of meditations. They are, Kāyānuppassanā or Bodily or Physical awareness, Vedanāuppassanā the sensory awareness, being aware of thoughts or mind itself is Cittānupassanā, being aware of certain perceptions such as attachment, hate, love or compassion is Dhammanupassanā. If we look at the four Satipatthānas - body, sensory, mind, and dhammas, (Kayaanupassanā, Vedanānupassanā, Cittānupassanā, Dhammānupassanā), through meditation they gradually become subtler and subtler. To be mindful of mind or dhammas, certain concentration is needed. Clearly sitting down quietly helps one's mind to see itself and to see the content of one's mind. Seeing one's mind is a very essential step in the process of meditation. This is the doctrinal reason for the sitting position to become so attractive to the meditator. Nevertheless, we should not go to an extreme and cling to a sitting position or lotus posture as if it is indispensable to meditation. Nibbāna can be realized in any posture. Here the Buddha has taught the meditator to be attentive when he or she is going forward, returning, looking straight ahead, looking in other directions, bending arms, legs, or body, stretching out arms, legs or body, getting dressed, wearing any thing, eating, drinking, tasting, using the toilet, walking, standing, sitting, or lying down, talking and remaining silent. In short, the Satipatthāna Sutta teaches that one has to be mindful all the time. It is clear that in each and every bodily movement one must be alert. All the time, through and through one's daily living, one has to be attentive to each and every action. Any object or any event can serve the purpose. The characteristics of the world are present in everything and in every motion of the world. When one's mind is sharp enough one is able to comprehend the true nature of reality. That is what meditation does to the mind, it develops insight in the attentive mind. It is similar to what Isaac Newton experienced observing a falling apple. The law of gravity exists and works everywhere and that particular apple is not the only thing that ever fell to the ground. But maturation of the scientist's wisdom and his observation coincided with the fall of that apple. And he was observing it with his intellectual awareness. He was paying enough attention to that particular event in the nature. So it opened his insight into a universal principle. Meditative attention works in a similar way.

When we were very young we learned to walk and it has become a habit to us. There is no meditation in habitual walking. It becomes a meditation when the walker pays his or her attention to the act of walking. Just habitual movement of the legs is not meditation. Only when one is aware of the movement of one's feet, does that act of walking become a meditation. If the meditator slows down the habitual movement of the feet, then, paying attention becomes easy to the meditator. Gradually one begins to see some occurrences one has not hitherto seen clearly. For instance, raising a foot, moving it, and placing it, become, as distinctive from one another. Being aware of such feelings of the feet belongs to Vedanānupassanā Satipatthāna. Being aware of the movement of the feet belongs to Kāyānupassanā Satipatthāna. The above quoted EEG experiment has proved that the non-meditator's mind becomes insensitive to the environment and his mind functions on habituation while the meditator's mind remains alert to the outside world. This is paradoxical to meditative concentration. Simply because the sensitivity becomes sharper in the meditative mind, the meditator becomes more and more sensitive to the condition of the world. People and their pleasure and pain become almost like a part of the meditator himself or herself. That is how he or she grows in compassion. He or she cannot remain aloof doing nothing about the suffering in the world. As much as with quiet meditation he or she becomes involved with people, other living things, and rest of the world in a positive and helpful manner instead of running away from the fellow humans and other beings. The true nature of the meditative mind being a sensitive one, there is no closing of such a mind to the world. Because of the strength of such a mind it could remain uninjured by the worldly situation. However, with the same strength the meditative mind works to eliminate the suffering of others and goes out to serve the world. Such is the paradox of the quiet mind. Contrary to the quiet mind, the noisy mind just drifts on habits seeking more and more pleasure, and becomes insensitive to others’ feelings and needs. If many practiced meditation, this world will be a compassionate, caring and loving place.

Although meditation practices are not limited to the Buddhists, it must be pointed out that the goal of meditation is the goal of Buddhism. They are one and the same. Therefore, the religious path of Buddhism and meditation are inseparable. The Noble Eightfold Path itself incorporates meditation as three of its strands. Thus the journey on the Buddhist path does not start until one starts Buddhist meditation.

Chapter 10

The Place of Women in Buddhism

In the 5^th century B.C., Brahmin priests who regarded woman as being inferior to man dominated Indian Society. The code that was enforced was the Code of Laws of Manu, the reputed Hindu lawgiver. Manu was a relentless Brahmin law giver whose Code of Laws is the most anti-feminist literature one could find. At the outset Manu deprived women of their religious rights and spiritual life. Women were prohibited from reading the scriptures. A woman could not attain heaven through any merit of her own. She could not worship or perform a sacrifice by herself. She could reach heaven only through strict obedience to her husband. Having thus denied her of any kind of spiritual and intellectual nourishment, Manu elaborated the myth that all women were sinful. She should be kept occupied in the tasks of motherhood and domestic duties. Thus women occupied a very servile and degraded place in Indian society. Her place at that time in the rest of the civilized world, which extended from Far East to Southern Europe, was not far different.

It is against this background that we have to view the teachings of the Buddha in the 5th century B.C. The Buddha did not inaugurate a campaign for the liberation of Indian womanhood. But he did succeed in creating a certain amount of stir against the Hindu dogma and superstition. He condemned the caste structure dominated by the Brahmins and their excessive ritualism and sacrifice. He emphasized emancipation by individual effort and not through divine intervention. The basic doctrine of Buddhism, that is emancipation through one's own effort, presupposes the spiritual equality of all beings, male and female. This was contrary to the exclusive supremacy of the male and challenged the dogmatic male domination by the Brahmins. It needed a leader of considerable courage and a revolutionary spirit to pronounce a way of life that placed woman on a level of equality to man. The Buddha saw the spiritual potential of both men and women irrespective of caste or social standing and founded the Order of Bhikkhunis or Buddhist Nuns, one of the earliest organizations for women in the history of mankind. The Buddha Sāsana or the Buddhist Church consisted of the Bhikkhus (Monks), Bhikkhunis (Nuns), laymen and laywomen so that the women were not left out of any sphere of religious activity. The highest spiritual states were within the reach of both men and women and the latter needed no masculine assistance or priestly intermediary to achieve them. It has to be appreciated that Gotama the Buddha, as the founder of a religion that has spread far and wide throughout the world, and reached all corners of the globe, propounded a philoso­phy that is one of the most magnificent and monumental in the history of mankind. It also should be remembered that Buddha played this significant and stupendous role as a social reformer and a cultural revolutionary over two and half millennia ago.

Predominant among the changes he brought about in the fabric of human society of his day were the elimination of the pernicious caste system and the emancipation of women. With remarkable courage he exposed the injustice and stupidity inherent in the manacles of caste and the slavery of women. He sought a renaissance in the habits and thoughts of men in regard to these two vital issues. These two factors, at that time were sapping the moral fiber and vigor of women in Indian society. He set out to transform a society steeped in prejudice, superstition and injustice into one of equality, strength and ethical refinement.

For centuries before the Buddha, Brahmin hegemony that held whole of India in its iron clasp had reduced woman to a position of a menial or a slave. She had no rights of her own, no freedom to speak of, but was confined to the four walls of her home and was thought unfit for anything higher than that of being a domestic servant to her husband, her father or brother. She was never regarded as the equal of man in society. According to The Laws of Manu, matrimony was the forging of the bonds of slavery on a woman so that she became fettered to man for life as an appendage to her husband, his servant and attendant.

Submissive obedience to her husband, the execution of his command, the implementation of his wishes were sufficient to make a wife eligible to enter the kingdom of heaven. Unlike a man, she need not perform any sacrifices nor observe any religious rites and ceremonies, nor dedicate herself to a life of prayer and offerings to pave her path to heaven. Faithful allegiance to her husband, and constant submission to him was the only key that opened the gates of heaven to her. Under the Law of Manu, women were prohibited from studying the Vedas. That is why their rites were performed without Veda mantras. This view of women was indeed an insult to all the women of India.

The fidelity of a wife was not confined only to the duration of her husband's lifetime. It had to be pursued even to the funeral pyre of her husband. It was expected of a Hindu wife that she should follow her husband to the next world by immolating her body by flinging herself in to the burning flames of her husband's funeral pyre. These primitive and cruel practices were later completely abolished and exterminated and no longer remained in force. However their widespread prevalence in ancient Indian society and the occa­sional resurgence even today in modem India is a clear pointer to the debased position that women were held in Indian society in the old days.

In Buddhism death is considered a natural and inevitable end. As a result a woman suffers no moral degradation on account of her widowhood. Her social status is not altered in any way. In Buddhist societies she does not have to advertise her widowhood by shaving her head and relinquishing her ornaments. She is not forced to fast on specific days and sleep on hard floors since self-mortification has no place in Buddhism. Nor does she have to keep away from ceremonies and auspicious events. Above all, there is no religious barrier to her remarriage.

Society at that time was so constituted that the birth of a daughter was considered a misfortune. Not only the common people but also the monarchy was not immune from this narrow and erroneous outlook. The story goes that on one occasion when King Kosala was having a conversation with the Buddha, as was his normal custom, the news was brought to him that his queen and chief consort, Mallika, had borne him a daughter. At this the king was distraught, his face fell and his countenance became sad and grief stricken. Noticing this the Enlightened One remarked:

"Do not be perturbed 0, King,

A female child may prove

Even a better offspring than a male,

For she may grow up wise and virtuous,

Her husband's mother reverencing,
And a faithful wife.

The boy that she may bear may do great deeds,
And rule great realms, yea, such a son

Of noble wife becomes his country's guide."
-Samyutta Nikaya.

In Buddhism, differences in sex constitute no impediment to the attainment of the highest perfection. Referring to the Noble Eightfold Path the Buddha compares it to a chariot and observes:

"And be it woman, be it man for whom such chariot does wait, by that same car Into Nibbāna's presence shall they come."

Understanding very well the bitterly hostile and degrading attitude to women, both in the religious systems and the political society of his day, the Buddha initiated a revolution in the hearts and minds of his fellow men. He openly and courageously declared that woman was in no way inferior to man and that in the arduous and difficult path of moral purification and penetrative wisdom that led to Nibbāna, she was on par with man. Each woman, like each man, had in her the spark of the bliss of enlightenment the potentiality of becoming an Arahant.

These teachings of the Buddha, like his denunciation of the caste system, caused a tremendous upheaval in the religious circles and the society at large of his day. It was a direct and bold confrontation with the orthodox establishment of his time. However, very soon the orthodoxy had to succumb to the triumphant overpowering doctrine of the Buddha that was accepted by the royalty and the common masses alike. The Buddha elevated the status of woman by pointing out that a woman is the mother of man and no person is worthy of greater reverence and veneration than one's mother; and it is well nigh impossible for a child to pay off the debt he or she owes to a. mother.

In several instances, the Buddhist texts refer to society as Mātugāma, meaning society of mothers. This was undoubtedly out of regard and respect for the females of his time. In later years in India, men of understanding, following the admonishing by the Buddha and realizing the value of a mother, declared that the mother and the motherland should be respected more than heaven itself.

The Buddha also inculcated in people the need to pay due deference and respect to the members of the fair sex. He taught men to protect their sisters, to treat their wives with humanity and tender­ness, to regard them as equals and friends, and to allow their daughters the same opportunities in life as they give their sons. Further, as we mentioned earlier, in the Sigālovāda Sutta, the compendium of laymen's ethics, the Buddha laid down the guidelines that should direct the conduct of a husband towards his wife. He should minister to her by courtesy, by not despising her, by faithfulness, by delegating authority to her, and by providing her with ornaments and garments. In the same Sutta he also pointed out the manner in which a wife should conduct herself towards her husband. She shows compassion to her husband in five ways: she performs her duties well; she is hospitable to her husband's relations and attendants; she is faithful; she protects what he brings; and she is skilled and industrious in discharging her duties.

The discourses of the Buddha, especially those in the Anguttara Nikāya and Samyutta Nikāya, clearly show to what extent the Enlightened One has laid emphasis on the welfare of "the society of mothers." They amply demonstrate how much attention and importance the Buddha assigned to the duties and ideals of lay womanhood. According to the Buddha, all progress and achievement, both mundane and supra mundane, are within the reach of a woman leading a household life and following domestic vocations, provided she follows the teachings of the Buddha.

The Buddha promulgated certain qualities and virtues that a woman should possess that would be conducive towards the well being of women. They are as follows: religious devotion, a sense of shame and fear, not disposed towards malice and animosity, not jealous, not miserly but large-hearted, pure in conduct, moral and virtuous, learned and steeped in knowledge, ardent and zealous, mentally alert, keen and wise. A woman possessed of these qualities was on the sure road to peace and happiness. The 5^th century B.C. Greek playwright once observed: "There is no worse evil than a bad woman and nothing has ever been created better than a good one."

The Buddha was very confident that women had the capacity and competence to conduct themselves in the highest possible manner. Hence, he acceded to the entreaties of his foster-mother Pajāpati Gotami and established the Bhikkhuni Sāsana, the Order of Buddhist Nuns. In doing so the Buddha, for the first time in the religious history of mankind, accorded to women a place of the utmost importance. This was something unique and unparalleled among the numerous religious systems and schools of religious thought that prevailed before and during the time of the Buddha. It was a groundbreaking innovation that took the contemporary religious and social stalwarts of his time completely by surprise. It was an amazing innovation for it conceded to women a nobility of nature, strength and firmness of moral fiber, a capacity for penetrating wisdom, equal to that of any man. We have to remember that the Buddha permitted the establishment of this Order of Nuns at a time and place in history when women had been relegated to a very inferior, humble and discredited place in society. We must also be mindful of the fact that although more than two and half millennia have elapsed since the time of the Buddha and although several other religious systems have blos­somed and flourished in the Indian subcontinent from that time up to now, none of the other religions have established an order of female clergy. Even to this day, in some religious organizations in the West, there are controversies about admission of women to clergy. There should not be any doubt that womankind of the world of all times, then, now and in the future owe an eternal debt of gratitude to the Buddha for giving them their due place and position. He was an unparalleled pioneer in the demolishing of the so-called glass ceiling. After the establishment of this Bhikkhuni Order, a number of women from all walks of life, high caste, low caste, royalty and commoners, joined the Order and their lives and. deeds adorn the pages of Buddhist history. The lives of several of these noble nuns, their strenuous endeavors to reach the goal of freedom and their limitless joy on attaining this goal are vividly described in Therigāthā, The Psalms of the Sisters.

A detailed account of the founding of the Bhikkhuni Order can be found in the story of Pajāpati Gotami in this text. Buddhist literature is rich in examples of women who have attained distinction. The Anguttara Nikāya gives a very comprehensive record of Buddhist women, bhikkhunis and upāsikas (nuns and laywomen), who did splendid work not only as followers of the dhamma but also as preachers of the dhamma. The erroneous belief that prevailed in India that woman was the intellectual and spiritual inferior of man was effectively repudiated and exploded by Bhikkhuni Soma in these words: "How could a woman’s nature be counted as inferior when she, with concentrated mind, with clear and purified vision endowed with penetrating wis­dom, could pierce through the veils of enveloping ignorance and understand the Dhamma (doctrine) and see life in all its stark reality?"

It is stated that all the fivefold pleasures of the senses, body, sound, smell, taste and touch that enthrall and ensnare the minds of men, are all embodied in the feminine form. With this bewitching power a woman can enslave a man and bring him under her sway. It is said that a woman entices the heedless man by her glances, smiles, and expression of affections, endearing, and artful grooming and by amiable alluring speech. The opening discourse of the Anguttara Nikāya says: "Monks, I know not of any other single form by which a man's heart is captured as it is by that of a woman. Monks, a woman's form completely captivates a man's mind.”

These are the words uttered by the Buddha about the emotion of sex. But, it must be remembered that the Buddha did not despise, denigrate and disparage women. He only pointed out certain weaknesses and frailties and wanted them to be on their guard. On the other hand, he imbued and implanted in them the lesson how they should steer and regulate themselves so as to be a source of solace and strength to humanity.

In the time of the Buddha, quite in contrast to Hindu society, one sees a free intermingling of the sexes. The celibate monks and nuns had separate quarters, yet their cloisters were not cut off from the rest of the world. It is recorded that the Buddha had long conversations with his female disciples. The devout benefactress Visakha frequented the monastery decked in all her fine garments and jewelry, and accompanied by a maidservant, she attended to the needs of the monks. Her clothes and ornaments were the talk of the town, yet neither the Buddha nor the monks dissuaded her from wearing them. It was after she developed in insight and asceticism that she voluntarily relinquished her ornaments.

I think it would be helpful to examine how the teachings of the Buddha, as pertaining to the position of women, affected the social fabric of those Asian countries to which Buddhism was introduced. Let us examine whether the position of women in Buddhist societies was better than that in non-Buddhist societies of Asia. We will look briefly into the position in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Burma and Tibet, at a time before the European domination of Asia and prior to the impact of the West was ever felt. The best records are those made by the Europeans who served in these countries in the 18^th, 19^th and early 20^th centuries.

Hugh Boyd who came as a British envoy to the Kandyan Court in Sri Lanka in 1782 wrote,

“The Cingalese (Sinhalese) women exhibit a striking contrast to those of all other Oriental Nations in some of the most prominent and distinctive features of their character. Instead of that lazy apathy, insipid modesty and sour austerity, which have characterized the sex throughout the Asiatic world, in every period of its history, in this island they possess that active sensibility, winning bashfulness and amicable ease, for which the women of modern Europe are peculiarly famed. The Cingalese women are not merely the slaves and mistresses, but in many respects the companions and friends of their husbands; for though the men be authorized by law to hold their daughters in tyrannical subjection, yet their sociable and pleasable dispositions, soften the rigor of their domestic policy. And polygamy being unknown and divorce permitted among the Cingalese, the men have none of that constitutional jealousy, which has given birth to the voluptuous and unmanly despotism that is practiced over the weaker sex in the most enlightened nations, and sanctioned by the various religions of Asia. The Cingalese neither keep their women in confinement nor impose on them any humiliating restraints.”

The above quotation is just one from among a large number of comments which European observers have made on the women of Sri Lanka. Many of these European visitors to Sri Lanka came during the 17th, 18th and early 19th centuries. There were among them, envoys, missionaries, administrators, soldiers, physicians and ship wrecked marines. They had first-hand knowledge of the women in Europe and many of them came through India having observed the women in Hindu and Islamic societies

It is only in European writings that one finds lengthy accounts of the social conditions prevailing in these Asian Buddhist countries. The indigenous literature, being mainly religious, lacks information regarding mundane topics like women. It is clearly discernible that the European visitors were quite impressed that there were societies in Asia where the position of women was a favorable one, judging even from their own standards.

R. Grant Brown, who was a British Civil Service officer for 28 years in Burma (now Myanmar) from 1889 to 1917 has remarked,

"Every writer on Burma has commented on the remarkable degree of independence attained by the women. Their position is more surprising in view of the subjection and seclusion of wives and daughters in the neighboring countries of India and China."

A British envoy to the Burmese Court was struck by the equal treatment accorded even to royal ladies.

"The queen sat with the king on the throne to receive the embassy. They are referred to as 'the two sovereign Lords'. It is not extraordinary to the Burmese, for with them, generally speaking, woman are more nearly upon an equality with the stronger sex than among any other Eastern people of consideration."

Lieutenant General Albert Fytche, Chief Commissioner of British Burma and Agent to the Viceroy and Governor General of India, wrote in 1878,

"Unlike the distrustful and suspicious Hindus and Mohammedans, woman holds among them a position of perfect freedom and independence. She is, with them, not the mere slave of passion, but has equal rights and is the recognized and duly honored helpmate of man, and in fact bears a more prominent share in the transactions of the more ordinary affairs of life than in the case perhaps with any other people, either eastern or western."

In Thailand too the women enjoyed considerable liberty. For instance, J.G.D. Campbell, the British Educational Adviser to the Government of Siam (Thailand) wrote in 1902,

"In Siam (Thailand) at any rate whatever be the causes, the position of women on the whole a healthy one, and contrasts favorably with that among most other Oriental people. No one can have been many days in Bangkok without being struck by the robust physique and erect bearing of the ordinary woman. It can be said of Buddhism that its influence has at least been all on the right side; and when we remember the thousand arguments that have been advanced in the name of both religion and morality to degrade and debase the weaker sex, this is indeed saying much to its credit."

Sir Charles Bell, British Political Representative in Tibet, Bhutan and Sikkim, writes in 1928,

"When a traveler enters Tibet from the neighboring nations of India and China few things impress him more vigorously or more deeply than the position of the Tibetan woman. They are not kept in seclusion, as are Indian women. Accustomed to mix with the other sex throughout their lives, they are at ease with men and can hold their own as well as any women in the world." Bell continues, "And the solid fact remains that in Buddhist countries women hold a remarkably good position. Burma, Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and Tibet exhibit the same picture."

These comments and observations on the freedom and independence enjoyed by the women in these pre-industrialized and isolated third world Asian societies are no doubt startling. They have been favorably compared with the women of the neighboring countries of India and China, where Hindu, Confucian and Islamic doctrines held sway. The question arises as to how the situation with regard to women in these societies should be different from the major dominating cultures of Asia. The significant feature commonly predominating in these countries is that they have been overwhelmingly Buddhist for more than two millennia. Buddhism helped to elevate the position of women in the Buddhist countries of Sri Lanka, Burma, Tibet and Thailand.

This then, in short, is the place of women in Buddhism. Woman was entitled to an equal place of honor with man, and was in no way to be inferior to man in respect of her ability and capacity to attain the goal of Nibbāna and as a necessary corollary to scale the heights of sublime human achievement attained by man.

The primary concern of the Buddha was the moral and spiritual regeneration of all mankind, both male and female. He wanted to emancipate them from the bonds of never-ending samsaric existence and make them attain Nibbānic bliss. This being so, he was not too much concerned with the mundane affairs of social reform and political progress. He left these to those to whom they legitimately belonged, the rulers, kings, potentates and men in charge of the affairs of state. Throughout his lifetime he never interfered with the institutions of government; he never meddled in political affairs but nevertheless, it cannot be denied and disputed, that in proclaiming an immortal message of human deliverance at the same time, by reason of the nobility of his supreme teaching, he brought about a remarkable social progress and political enlightenment to all humanity, unique in the history of the world.

Chapter 11

BUDDHISM IN THE WESTERN WORLD

Buddhism is now one of the fastest growing religions in the Western World. Buddhism in the Western World is generally described as falling under two categories. The first is that practiced by Asian immigrants to these countries and is generally described as “ethnic Buddhism.” The other is that of people indigenous to these countries, predominantly Caucasian, who have converted to Buddhism. They are generally referred to as Western Buddhists, American Buddhists, Australian Buddhists, European Buddhists or “Caucasian Buddhists”. Many practitioners are now based in increasingly diverse communities that face the promise of multiculturalism. Although Buddhism spread throughout Asia it remained virtually unknown in the industrially developed countries, the New World, until modern times. The early missions sent by emperor Asoka to the West did not bear fruit. Knowledge of Buddhism has come through three main channels: Western scholars; the work of philosophers, writers and artists; and the arrival of Asian immigrants who have brought various forms of Buddhism with them to Europe, North America and Australia.

Very few people in Europe or America knew what the word 'Buddhist' meant, until a few decades ago. Over a century ago people from France, the Netherlands, Great Britain, and other European countries began to travel to the Far East. Many of them returned with Eastern ideas, and so Europeans began to hear about Buddhism. More recently, Buddhist people have moved to the West. Many of them have been refugees from conflict. Many Tibetans, for example, fled from their country after the Chinese takeover in 1959. The wars in Indochina in the 1950s and 1960s led many Vietnamese people to move to and settle in Europe, Australia and North America. Other Buddhists from countries such as Sri Lanka, Burma and Thailand have established in professional practice and businesses in the larger Western cities. They have all brought their Buddhist beliefs to their new homes, and helped to set up Buddhist temples.

Theism or belief in an almighty God essentially means the acceptance of an unseen authority and his numerous prophets. When the rival prophets make irreconcilable and conflicting claims, and impose mutually inconsistent rites, rituals, and codes of behavior on their followers, it is not difficult to see in them a potent cause of conflict. Indeed a large part of the violence and crimes we see in history has been caused by the attempt of the followers of one type of theism to impose their will over another. In the modern world the bulk of the people owe formal allegiance to Christianity and Islam, religions that arose long after the death of the Buddha. They are offshoots of another very ancient religion Judaism that has remained confined to a small ethnic group. All three religions affirm the existence of an all-powerful creator God. The Buddha had long ago repudiated the notion of a supreme creator God. Hence there has been very strong resistance to the spread of Buddhism where theistic religions existed.

A significant change in the last century has been the rise of materialism. Quite apart from philosophical systems that have extolled materialism there have also been a growth of materialist objectives in many people. Philosophical materialism may not be very detrimental to Buddhism because much of the arguments that materialists have directed at religion have been against theistic religions. However political movements that have formally proclaimed materialism as their creed have acted against religions, and Buddhism has suffered from such movements.

What is unsatisfactory in philosophical materialism is that it often denies the existence of absolute, objective moral standards. Buddhism of course insists on the existence of such a moral code. The failure of materialism has been mainly due to its lack of a universal norm of goodness, truth, fairness and justice. Buddhism is not against the growth of material affluence provided that it results from the pursuit of right livelihood. But much of the pressures that result from the scramble to reach the top of the economic ladder often lead to an abandonment of the principles of right livelihood.

The growing conflicts of the modern world arise from a continuous proliferation of greed and craving. The ethical systems of both the leading forms of theism and materialism encourage and endorse this tendency by giving a license to humans to prevail over other forms of life and encouraging the prudent and ceaseless accumulation of material wealth as an individual and social blessing. The Buddhist ethic, which involves the pursuit of a middle policy, by dampening the acquisitive instinct, offers mankind a viable and more appropriate alternative.

The primary appeal of Buddhism was to the dignity of human kind. In this sense the Dhamma is primarily a humanistic philosophy. In describing Buddhism as humanistic, some care must be taken in defining the latter term. Theists have defined humanism broadly as embracing "any attitude exalting man's relationship to God, his free will, and his superiority over nature". Such definitions leave out an essential quality of humanism, namely, the predominance of man and the inconsequence of God. There is no implication in Buddhism that human beings have some prior claim over other forms of living beings, or for that matter over "nature", as is implied in the definition of humanism quoted above. Buddhists however hold that of all forms of existence possible, the human form is the one most conducive to deliverance. These aspects of Buddhist humanism make the Dhamma once again unique.

Another aspect of Buddhist humanism is that it makes an individual the master of his own destiny. On his death-bed, when asked by his disciples as to whom they should follow when he was gone, the Buddha replied: "Be ye a lamp (dīpa) unto yourselves; work out your own salvation with diligence". The Pali word ‘dīpa’ also means an island, and the Buddha's final admonishment could also be rendered as "Be ye an island unto yourselves; work out your own salvation with diligence ". In either case the fundamental idea is that of self-reliance rather than reliance on an external agency.

The relevance of Buddhism for the contemporary era would depend on its ability to meet the challenges posed by the contemporary world better than the rival ideologies of theism and materialism and very often a combination of the two. The unbridled exploitation of the earth's resources, almost amounting to a rape of these resources, has been another example of this greed. Buddhism teaches that human kind should live in harmony with the environment and thus the universe. We have seen the extinction of many species of birds, animals and fish, and the threat of extermination of many more, because of the dominance of theistic and materialistic ethics, which have consistently refused to concede the "right to life" to non-human forms of existence. It is only a step from this position to the exploitation of natural resources to the extent that eco-systems have been destroyed beyond repair, and has put into question the long-term possibility of survival. Buddhist attitudes of peace, mindfulness and care for all living creatures have come to be the concern of many groups in the Western World. Buddhists believe that all things should be looked after, the earth, plants, birds, insects and animals. This is close to the feeling among many people in recent years that the human race should stop polluting the atmosphere and destroying the surface of the earth by cutting down forests and killing animals. Here in the United States, the aims and objectives of the major environmentalist group, the SIERRA Club or the PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) are in conformity with this humanistic philosophy of the Buddha.

Buddhism is closely related to what is understood by Science or Philosophy. Science investigates the nature of phenomena, and some of the latest discoveries in the areas of the physical and the psychological sciences are not in conflict with Buddhist principles. It is also in this sense that the Dhamma can be considered a Philosophy. However a substantial part of philosophy in the west since the time of Aristotle has been concerned with metaphysical speculation. An outstanding feature of the modern world has been the triumph of science and the explosion of knowledge. These have posed a serious challenge to theistic religions. Materialism seems to have been better in coping with scientific discovery, but has been totally helpless in evaluating correctly the uses to which such discovery has to be put. Buddhism on the other hand has been able to reconcile scientific discovery with its basic laws, and the path of practice that Buddhism proclaims has provided a norm for the optimal use of man's ever increasing knowledge. For the Buddhist there is no conflict between the claims of science and religion, nor a quandary as to how knowledge could be applied for the betterment of man.

A key influence on the development of Buddhism in the Western World has been the notion of individualism in terms of autonomy and self-reliance. This more liberal, nonconformist tradition may be described as being that echoed in the writings of Protestant reformers like Martin Luther, enlightened thinkers like Kant, and romantic writers like Emerson. It found expression in various areas of American life. It has been associated with life on the frontier. It was evident in the economic sphere. Such individualism also was expressed in the religious sphere. This individualism became associated with Buddhism and affirmed by a number of American promoters of the religion.

The history of the introduction of Buddhism to Britain begins with the spread of British colonial and commercial interests to the Theravada Buddhist regions of South and Southeast Asia during the late eighteenth, nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The details have been described and analyzed by a number of historians and anthropologists.  Interactions between Buddhism and aspects of Western culture evolved through mutual modification.

Buddhist doctrines with Western rationalism, humanism, and science rendered Buddhism more accessible and intellectually attractive to a growing indigenous middle class with a Western education, and hence to Westerners themselves. The sequence then is one of Buddhist tradition being scrutinized and reinterpreted through the eyes of modernism as part of its reassertion in the indigenous setting, thus facilitating its transmission to the industrially developed countries.

Western scholars and others who participated in channeling Buddhist teachings to Europe, America and Australia, collaborated with indigenous Theravada scholars, monks, and laymen, as well as important Indian scholars who participated in international Pali studies. It was, for example, not unusual for members of the colonial service in Asia and European travelers to learn about Buddhism from local people, usually monks. Two famous collaborators were the Sri Lankan monk, Ven Yatramulle Dhammarama and T. W. Rhys-Davids, who worked for the colonial service. Ven Yatramulle Dhammarama taught Pali to Rhys-Davids, who later founded the Pali Text Society in London in 1881. As a source of unimpeachable scholarship, the Society went on to provide institutional support for Buddhism in Britain; while Rhys-Davids became Britain's leading Buddhist scholar, translator, and author of widely read books on Buddhism.

Another example of Asians and Europeans creating a common cause out of issues relating to Buddhism concerns Edwin Arnold's founding of the Maha Bodhi Society in 1891 with the object of establishing a Buddhist University at the ancient Buddhist site of Buddha Gaya in India. Representatives of seven Buddhist countries were listed in the inaugural constitution, and the challenge was subsequently taken up energetically by the Sri Lankan Buddhist leader, Anagārika Dhammapāla. Sir Edwin Arnold was feted in Europe and in Asia for his epic poem about Buddhism and the life of the Buddha, The Light of Asia, first published in 1879. The poem continued to be influential in introducing Western readers to the life of the Buddha, and by 1970, there had been a total of sixty British editions and eighty American editions.

The late nineteenth century saw a number of young Europeans take what was then the very unusual step of becoming Buddhist monks. Among them was Allan Bennett, a British scientist, who read Arnold's The Light of Asia and resolved to study Buddhism. He journeyed to Burma, where, after a period of study with Burmese teachers, he formulated a plan to lead a Buddhist mission to Britain. Believing that such a mission could succeed only if carried out by a member of the Sangha, the Theravada Buddhist monastic order, he took ordination as a bhikkhu in Burma in 1902 and became known as Ānanda Metteyya. While in Rangoon, he cooperated with Burmese Buddhists and British colonialists to found an international Buddhist society to be known as Buddhasāsana Samāgama. Ānanda Metteyya envisaged that his new organization would be established first in the Buddhist countries of Asia and later extend to Europe. The Secretary of the Rangoon Society was Dr. E. Rost, a member of the Indian Medical Service.

Back in London in 1907, Rost teamed up with his friend and fellow Buddhist, Col. J. R. Pain, an ex-soldier with service in Burma. On Bury Street, close to the British museum, they opened a Buddhist book- shop where they were joined by R. J. Jackson. These three organized lectures and meetings, but were best known for their missionary endeavors in the London parks where they emulated Christian missionary style, speaking from a portable platform that was painted bright orange and bore the logo "The Word of the Glorious Buddha is Sure and Everlasting." The Bury Street enthusiasts decided to form a society to prepare for the coming of Ānanda Metteyya to England. A main mover behind the formation of the Trust was the Englishman, William Purfthurst, who later  became a monk in Thailand in 1954, taking the Pali name of Kapilavaddho. A bequest enabled the Trust to purchase two adjacent properties in Hampstead, London. One was used as a vihara for Kapilavaddho, and the other was rented as private accommodation, thus providing the Trust with an income.

Let us now trace the early stages of Buddhism in America. It is believed that in 1839, through a few Japanese, Buddhism found its way to Hawaii. However technically it cannot be considered part of America because Hawaii did not become an American Possession until 1898. Nevertheless, Buddhism was not completely unknown in nineteenth century North America although only a very few proclaimed themselves to be Buddhists. The extraordinary popularity of Sir Edwin Arnold’s heroic life of the Buddha made Buddhism a subject of debate and investigation in nineteenth century American and European philosophical and religious circles. American theosophists Helena Blavatsky and her companion Col. Henry Steel Olcott who was a lawyer, a Civil War hero, and a journalist as well, took great interest in the teachings of the Buddha. Olcott was a typical Victorian, full of optimism, individualism, and activism that characterized his times. He and Blavatsky publicly took refuge in the Buddha, or pansil, the Five Precepts, in 1880 and became an instant sensation. His American notions of Buddhism were infused with all his Victorian values from Jeffersonian democracy to love of technology that inspired and propelled reverse missionary activities in Sri Lanka by establishing the Buddhist Theosophical Society and several Buddhist centers of learning and training in Sri Lanka.

There was a critical event that foreshadowed the formal entry of Buddhism to America, called the World Parliament of Religions. It was held at Chicago’s World’s Fair in 1893. At this event several important proponents of Oriental religions aroused a great deal of interest. One young Sri Lankan who was one of the great hits of the World Congress of Religions was the young Anagarika Dharmapala, who went on to found the Mahabodhi Society, the Western World Buddhist organization. Another big winner was D.T. Suzuki, who came as the translator for Japanese Zen teacher Soen Shaku. Since Chicago became the epicenter of this new wave of Buddhism spreading not only in the US but also throughout many regions in the world.

Buddhism was foreign and curious for many Americans. America had its own variety of basis for religious and cultural patterns in Judeo-Christian tradition. It was also hard for America to understand a religion that is non-theistic and individualistic. Buddhism became more acceptable with the learning of the doctrinal base, which is the Four Noble Truths. In more recent times, there were several other factors that caused the spread of Buddhism in America. In the 1960’s the entire religious situation in America was in turmoil. Many people saw Buddhism as a religious option that deserved exploration. Moreover new Buddhist groups held a greater diversity of tradition and sectarian affiliations than ever before in America. The Vietnam War was a large factor in the growth of Buddhism in the industrially developed democracies. Vietnam was a predominantly Buddhist country and culture. Vietnam was significant in attracting large numbers of undergraduate students and a number of graduate students devoted to Buddhist studies. Vietnamese Buddhists also began to write books to explain the situation from their own view and perspective.

The subjugation of Tibet was another significant factor for the spread of Buddhism in the Western World. Many Tibetans who were forced into exile came over to North America, Europe and Australia and also settled in many other parts of the world. The contribution made by His Holiness the Dalai Lama has been enormous. There are some 1000 centers of Tibetan Buddhism in the world outside of Tibet with nearly 250 in US alone. Over the past 100 years, Buddhism in the Western World has evolved and changed, influenced by the large number of cultures and sub-cultures which can be found co-existing, particularly in the US. At the dawn of this twenty-first century, Buddhism has become an important way of life for many Caucasian people with no Asian heritage whatsoever.

It is not known precisely when Buddhism first came to Australia. Professor A.P.Elkin has argued that there may have been contact between the Aboriginal people of northern Australia and the early Kindu-Buddhist civilizations of Indonesia. He suggests that Aboriginal practices of mind training and belief in reincarnation may be evidence of such contact. It is also possible that the great fleets of the Chinese Ming emperors that explored the south between 1405 and 1433 may have reached the mainland of Australia.

The first certain contact with Buddhism can be dated in 1848, when Chinese laborers arrived to work on the goldfields of eastern Australia. The beliefs of these men were predominantly Confucian, but the makeshift temples they built have been found to contain remnants of Mahayana Buddhist statutes. Most of these men returned to China when the gold rush ended. While the older Chinese continued to practice their ancestral beliefs, their children and grandchildren often adopted the Christian faith.

In the 1870s, groups of Sri Lankans began to arrive in Australia to work on the sugar plantations of northern Queensland, or in the pearling industry centered on Thursday Island. By the 1890s, the Buddhist population of Thursday Island included about 500 Sri Lankan people. Two Bodhi trees planted by this community are still growing on Thursday Island to this day. A temple was built on Thursday Island, festivals such as Vesak were regularly celebrated, and a Buddhist monk is said to have visited to officiate at the temple around the turn of the century.

Soon after Federation in 1901, Australia adopted increasingly restrictive immigration policies that effectively halted further Asian immigration until the 1960s. In 1891, Colonel Henry Steel Olcott spent several months lecturing throughout Australia on ‘Theosophy and Buddhism’. Olcott was the cofounder of the Theosophical Society who described himself as a Buddhist, having taken the three refuges and the five precepts in Sri Lanka in 1880. His lectures in Australia were well attended and well received. Small but significant numbers of generally well-educated and influential Australians joined the Theosophical Society, the aim of which, according to Olcott, was to disseminate Buddhist philosophy. One of those who joined the Theosophical Society at this time was Alfred Deakin, who was later to be three times Prime Minister of Australia. Deakin retained a lifetime interest in and regard for Buddhism and even wrote a book about a visit to India and Sri Lanka that included three chapters that were highly sympathetic to Buddhism.

Another important figure in the Theosophical Society made a contribution to the history of Buddhism in Australia. In 1919, F.L. Woodward, who for 16 years had been principal of Mahinda College in Galle, Sri Lanka, arrived in Australia. He settled on an apple orchard near Launceston in Tasmania, and for the next 33 years devoted his time to translations of the Pali Canon for the Pali Text Society. He is perhaps best known for his anthology, Some Sayings of the Buddha, first published in 1925. This popular book provided an introduction to Buddhism for many Westerners, including some who later became prominent Australian Buddhists.

The earliest group of Western Buddhists in Australia, The Little Circle of the Dharma, may have been formed in 1925 in Melbourne by Max Tyler, Max Dunn and David Maurice. This group was strongly influenced by the Theravada tradition of Burma. By the 1950s, David Maurice was editing The Light of the Dhamma, a Buddhist magazine in English that had a wide circulation throughout the world, and in 1962 he published The Lion’s Roar, his anthology of the Pali Canon. Another early group was established in Melbourne in 1938 by Leonard Bullen, and was called The Buddhist Study Group. Unfortunately, the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939 put a stop to this promising start.

Women played an important part in the development of Buddhism in Australia. Marie Byles, the first woman solicitor in the country and also a prominent conservationist, feminist and pacifist, wrote many books and articles on Buddhism in the 1940s and 1950s. Only one of her books, Footprints of Gautama the Buddha, is still in print. She gave many talks in Sydney as well as broadcasting on the Theosophical Society’s regular Sunday night radio program on Radio Station 2GB. Marie Byles studied Vipassanā meditation in Burma, and built a meditation hut in the garden of her Sydney home that is still there to this day. Her home and garden have been given to the people of Sydney as a quiet retreat. Her extensive library of Buddhist books, including a full set of the Tipitika in English, was bequeathed to the library of the University of Sydney.

In 1952, the first Buddhist nun visited Australia. Sister Dhammadinna, born in the USA and with thirty years experience in Sri Lanka, was sponsored by Dr Malasekera, the first president of the World Fellowship of Buddhists. Although she was already 70 years old, Sister Dhammadinna was enterprising and energetic, and her 11 months in Sydney helped to further the growth. The Venerable Somaloka, a young Sri Lankan monk, arrived in Sydney in 1971, initially at the invitation of the Buddhist Society of New South Wales. On Vesak Day, 1973, the Australian Buddhist Vihara was opened at Katoomba in the Blue Mountains, a short distance to the west of Sydney. This was the first monastery in Australia. Today there are a large number of Buddhist centers in Australia belonging to the various traditions.

 Even though liberal democracy based on a market type economy is generally accepted to be the best solution to social organization, modern thought has not been able to develop a consensus on the understanding of human existence and spirituality. Though science may go a long way towards understanding the nature of the universe, it cannot resolve the fundamental problems of humanity that emerge from the mind and spirit of people. We have only to remember that the scientists, who created the atom bomb, had no solutions to the problems that resulted in the use of their discoveries with such tragic results then and since.  At the beginning of the third millennium, amid the triumphs of science and technology, the global competition for resources, markets, and loyalties, and the decay of many of the physical and environmental systems that sustain human and biological life, many people of religious faith are once again bringing ancient teachings and practices into the forefront in the new era. We must also acknowledge the profound transformation the world has undergone since the founding of these traditions, and must be engaged in refashioning the heritage to meet the challenges of the future.

In the view of those of who are practicing Buddhists, the Buddha’s basic teaching of the interdependent, ever changing impermanent nature and dependent origination of all that exists is empty without practice as practice is empty without that foundation of theory. In any Buddhist tradition, living the oneness of theory and practice is, the source of the inner peace that is the beginning of a peaceful society and Buddhism’s universal ideal of well-being and happiness for oneself and others. Our ignorance of course, has always been with us and always will be. What is new is our awareness of it, our awakening to its fathomless dimensions.  The more we learn about the world and the deeper our learning, the more conscious, specific and articulate will be our knowledge of what we do not know, our knowledge of our ignorance. We must not forget that our knowledge is finite while our ignorance is infinite. The Buddha diagnosed ignorance as the root cause of the disease that leads to conflict. Over the past 100 years, Buddhism in these countries has evolved and changed, influenced by the multitude of cultures and sub-cultures that can be found coexisting in them.

Two other basic factors that have made Buddhism appealing to the Westerner are the predominance of one’s own mind in all activities and the importance of individual effort of each person in seeking the Truth. In the preceding chapters you would have undoubtedly noticed the emphasis laid on the human mind in Buddhism. We discussed this in detail when we discussed the Four Noble Truths, Buddhist Meditation and also the doctrines of kamma and Nibbāna.

In the Dhammapada, the first verse starts thus:

“Manobubbangamā dhammā – manosettha manomaya”

“Mind is the forerunner of all phenomena; everything is mind made”.

The mind is of such paramount importance to the Buddhist, that it could be said that mind is to Buddhist as God is to theists. The other factor is individual effort. On innumerable occasions Buddha admonished both his disciples as well as lay followers to seek unceasingly their own emancipation; the thathāgatha only shows the way. He repeatedly admonished all to be heedful all the time and that heedlessness leads to continued suffering and dissatisfaction. These two factors, predominance of one’s own mind and one’s own effort have been two very appealing features of Buddhism to the intellect of the freedom minded people of the Western world, seeking the truth.

The time has long since gone when the study of Buddhism in the Western World was the preserve of a few scholars, or its influence confined to a handful of intellectuals. The time is long too, since, when Buddhist practice in the Western World was a polite indifference; 'meditation' merely the occasional ancillary to a self-defining intellectual conviction.  Popular perception has altered too. It is quite familiar now for leading Hollywood movie stars or outstanding sports figures to be photographed with Buddhist clergy of different traditions. In the first place, Western Buddhism is a palpable product of Asian influence on Western thinking, and is, indeed, one of the points at which we are able to transcend the cautious, half-reluctant, mutual regard of multiculturalism, towards a genuine inter-cultural integration of perspectives.

Buddhism has come to the Western World and set up home in many countries. For many of these followers the Tipitaka (the Pāli Buddhist canon), the zafu (the meditation cushion of Zen practitioners), or the vajra (an instrument used in Tibetan Buddhist ritual) have taken on a life orientating symbol and meaning. Likewise, those Buddhists arriving from Asian countries or being the children of immigrants have developed their own home away from home and have, up to now, maintained a low degree of change and adaptation. Most of the devotees and the monks who feature in Buddhist activities in the Western World are Buddhist converts; only very few have been brought up by Buddhist parents. Buddhists of Asian origin do visit the monasteries to participate in a variety of activities, and they make significant donations in the form of money and other resources, as do Buddhists living in Asia. Theravada Buddhists in the Western World, locate themselves within an unbroken chain that links the Caucasian as well as Asian monks to the Buddha and his original disciples, the Sangha through a narrative stream of interconnected events and characters that has a seamless appearance. Though Buddhist monasteries remain, for the time being at least, a novel form in Western World culture, their appeal is charged with references to antiquity and to tradition. Among the Buddhists, this outlook is largely due to a dependence on charismatic authority that resides within the institution of the Order itself.

A misconception we often confront in the west is that Buddhism has a cultural background that is alien to the Western cultural patterns. But a close examination would reveal that this is not quite so. All the world religions are essentially of Eastern origin and have a largely common cultural affinity. Whatever religions are accepted and practiced in the West today are all of Eastern origin. Buddhism and Hinduism originated in India; Taoism and Confucianism in China; Zoroastrianism in Iran; Judaism and Christianity in Israel and Islam in Arabia. Since the world has become more closely knit than ever before, it is imperative that we develop a greater sense of universality. Such a sense of universality can lead to a greater concern for the welfare and happiness for all living beings and for the preservation of our natural environment.

Chapter 12

BUDDHISM AND SCIENCE

In this twenty-first century, we live in a time when almost every aspect of our daily lives is largely affected by science. Since the scientific revolution commenced in the seventeenth century, science has continued to exert tremendous influence on our lives. Scientific discoveries and inventions continuously affect what we think and do. Until the beginning of the last century, Buddhism was confined to countries not very much influenced by modern science. Nevertheless, from its very beginning, the Teachings of the Buddha were always open to scientific thinking.

The Buddhist tradition is over 2500 years old. Certainly when Buddha taught, he did not discuss such things as differential equations. Nor did he discuss any scientific methods or laboratory procedures. So it might seem that Buddhism wouldn't have anything substantial to say about science. But both Buddhism and science grow out of questioning and examining the nature of the world and our existence. Buddha and Buddhist philosophers since Buddha have closely examined the role our ideas play in the ongoing evolution of our experience in the world. One reason why Buddha’s teachings can easily be embraced as being scientific is that the Buddha never encouraged rigid, dogmatic belief. He did not claim to base his Teachings on faith, belief, or divine revelation, but allowed great flexibility and freedom of thought. Another reason is Buddha’s approach to spiritual Truth. The Buddha’s method for discovering and testing spiritual Truth is very similar to that of the scientist. A scientist observes the external world objectively, and would only establish a scientific theory after conducting many successful practical experiments.

The impact of scientific discoveries in the last few centuries has been particularly strong on certain traditional religious beliefs. Some traditional religious concepts and beliefs have crumbled under the pressure of certain scientific discoveries. They are no longer acceptable to the intelligentsia and the well informed. It has become almost impossible to assert truth derived merely through theological fiat or based on the authority of religious scriptures without any consideration to scientific views and theories. People who follow certain religions choose to disregard scientific discoveries that conflict with their strongly held traditional beliefs and dogmas. Such rigid mental habits are indeed an obstacle to human progress. Since most modern day people refuse to believe anything blindly, even though it had been traditionally accepted, insistence on such blind acceptance will only succeed in increasing the ranks of the non-believers.

On the other hand, some who belong to traditional religions have found it necessary to accommodate popularly accepted scientific theories by giving new interpretations to their religious dogmas. A good example is Charles Darwin’s Theory of Evolution. Many theists believe that man was directly created by God. Darwin, on the other hand, claimed that man had evolved from the ape, a theory that upset the doctrines of divine creation. Since all enlightened thinkers and scientists have accepted Darwin’s theory, the theologians today have little choice except to give a new interpretation to their doctrines to suit this theory that they had opposed for so long.

In the light of modern scientific discoveries, it is not difficult to understand that some of the views held in many religions regarding the universe and life are merely conventional thoughts of that which have long been superseded by numerous studies and discoveries. It should not be ignored that religions have, throughout the ages, greatly contributed to human development and progress. They have laid down values and standards and formulated principles to guide human life. They have been the bedrock for many cultures and civilizations. But for all the good they have done, religions can no longer survive in the modern, scientific age if the followers insist on imprisoning truth into set forms and dogmas. For example, the findings of modern psychologists indicate that the human mind, like the physical body, work according to natural, causal laws without the presence of an unchanging entity such as a soul.

Over twenty-five centuries ago, the Buddha observed the inner self with detachment and encouraged his disciples not to accept any teaching until they had critically investigated and personally verified its truth. Just as the scientist today would not claim that his experiment cannot be duplicated by others, the Buddha did not claim that his experience of enlightenment was exclusive to him. Thus, in his approach to Ultimate Truth, the Buddha was as analytical as the present day scientist. He established a practical, scientifically worked-out method for reaching the Ultimate Truth and the experience of enlightenment.

While Buddhism is very much in line with the scientific view, it is not correct to equate Buddhism with science. It is true that the practical applications of science have enabled mankind to live more comfortable lives and experience wonderful things undreamed of before. Science has made it possible for man to accomplish many things that were not possible earlier. Yet the sphere of knowledge acceptable to conventional, scientific wisdom is confined to empirical evidence. Many scientific truths are subject to constant change and revision. Science cannot give man control over his mind and neither does it offer moral control and guidance. Despite its wonders, science has indeed many limitations not shared by Buddhism.

Often one hears so much about science and what it can do but so little about what it cannot do. Much of scientific knowledge is acquired through sense organs. It is limited to the data received through the sense organs. It does not usually recognize reality that transcends sense data. Many scientific truths are built upon logical observations of sense data that are continually changing. Scientific truth is, therefore, very often, relative truth not intended to stand the test of time to eternity. Science attempts to understand the outer world and has barely scratched the surface of the inner world of human beings. Even the science of psychology has not fully fathomed the underlying cause of mental unrest of human beings. When a person is frustrated and disgusted with life and the inner self is filled with disturbances and unrest, science today is not at all equipped to help him. The social sciences may be able to bring him a certain degree of happiness. But unlike an animal, a human being requires more than mere physical comfort and requires help and assistance to cope with the frustrations and miseries arising from the daily experiences. Today so many people are plagued with fear, restlessness, and insecurity. Yet science fails to help them except by drug therapy that subdue and dull their sensations. Science is unable to teach an ordinary human being to control his mind when he is driven by the animal nature that burns within him.

It is pertinent to ask whether science can make human beings better. If it can, violent acts and immoral practices would not abound in highly developed countries that are so advanced in science. It is fair to say that despite all the scientific progress achieved and the advantages conferred on human beings, science leaves the inner self basically unchanged. It has only heightened human beings’ feelings of dependence and insufficiency. In addition to its failure to bring security to mankind, science has also made everyone feel even more insecure by threatening the world with the possibility of mass scale destruction. Science is unable to provide a meaningful purpose of life. It cannot provide us with a clear reason for living. In fact, science is thoroughly secular in nature and unconcerned with man’s spiritual goal. The materialism inherent in scientific thought denies the psyche goals higher than material satisfaction. By its selective theorizing and relative truths, science disregards some of the most essential issues and leaves many questions unanswered. For instance, when asked why great inequalities exist among human beings, no scientific explanation can be given to such questions that are beyond its narrow specialized confines. The transcendental mind developed by the Buddha is not limited to sense data and goes beyond the logic trapped within the limitation of relative perception. The human intellect, on the contrary, operates on the basis of information it collects and stores, whether in the field of religion, philosophy, science or art. The information for the mind is gathered through our sense organs that are inferior in so many ways. The very limited information perceived makes our understanding of the world limited and distorted.

Buddhism goes beyond modern science in its acceptance of a wider field of knowledge than is allowed by the scientific mind. Buddhism admits knowledge arising from the sense organs as well as personal experiences gained through mental culture. By training and developing a highly concentrated mind, through Buddhist meditation, religious experience can be understood and verified. Religious experience is not something that can be understood by conducting experiments in a laboratory. It is something of subjective realization. Thus, while the truth discovered by science is relative and subject to change, what the Buddha experienced and taught is final and absolute. The Truth of Dhamma does not change according to time and space. In the devotional gâtha we recite to pay homage to the Dhamma, we say, “Swākhāthō Bhagavathā Dhammō…..AKĀLIKŌ…” meaning, “The Dhamma of the Exalted One is …..TIMELESS  (not limited to time or season)”. It is similar to a basic law of the universe like the law of gravity. 

Furthermore, in contrast to the selective theorizing of science, the Buddha encouraged the wise not to cling to theories, scientific or otherwise. Instead of theorizing, the Buddha taught mankind how to live a righteous life so as to discover the Ultimate Truth by themselves through their own efforts. By living a righteous life, by calming the senses and by casting off desires, the Buddha showed the way through which we can discover within ourselves the nature of life. Each and every individual who is willing to follow the path can attain the freedom by himself or herself. Buddhism is inwardly directed and is concerned with the inner development of a human being. It represents the human endeavor to grow beyond oneself through the practice of mental culture or mind development. Buddhism has a complete system of mental culture concerned with gaining insight into the nature of things that leads to complete self-realization of the Ultimate Truth, Nibbāna. This system is both practical and scientific. It involves dispassionate observation of emotional and mental states. Like a scientist, the meditator observes the inner world with mindfulness.

The wisdom of Buddhism founded on compassion has the vital role of correcting the dangerous course modern science is pursuing. Buddhism can provide the spiritual leadership to guide scientific research and invention in developing a more balanced culture towards progress. What I specifically mean is that, Buddhism can provide worthy goals for scientific advancement that is presently facing a hopeless paradoxical situation by its very inventions. Albert Einstein paid a tribute to Buddhism when he said in his autobiography: ‘If there is any religion that would cope with modern scientific needs, it would be Buddhism’. Buddhism requires no revision to keep it ‘up to date’ with recent scientific findings. Buddhism need not surrender its views to science because it embraces science as well as goes beyond science. Buddhism is the bridge between religious and scientific thoughts by stimulating human beings to discover the latent potentialities within themselves and their environment.

In the book entitled "The Buddha's Explanation of the Universe", Dr. C.P. Ranasinghe says, "The Buddha as a psychologist is unparalleled, as he taught everything about the mind. The extent of the Buddha's knowledge of Cosmology and Biology can be understood if we study his discourses about the Universe and his theory of evolution. Regarding the origins of material universes, the Buddha's "Dust-Cloud Hypothesis" begins from blank energy. His eyewitness account of the universe of energy with no planets and stars existing in it; the manner in which energy consolidates forming tiny particles floating about in space; the tiny particles coming together forming into "Dust Clouds" all over the universe; and these dust clouds compressing in the formation of planets and stars; goes past the present stage of the universe into the realms of the distant future when the universe devolves and breaks up into dust clouds, and tiny particles; and when, lastly, everything turns back into energy. This process repeats itself without an end."

It is almost universally admitted that natural laws work by themselves, without any external agency or directing hand. If we apply the same principle to human beings, then, anatta or soulessness seems logical. Hence, a comparison with scientific reasoning thus makes anatta, the theory of soulessness, seem a perfectly reasonable, and not at all revolutionary, way to understand human life. Reluctant as many are to admit it, we already see large parts of existence in these terms. Non-self may be a bit cold, but it is logically consistent, and finds a ready place in the world of philosophical systems. The historical experiences of Buddhist cultures suggest that a theory of soulessness does not necessarily undermine moral accountability. It can instead sustain a humane, religious and moral way of life since it emphasizes the consequences of one's actions, the relation of cause and effect. 

Certainly, showing that Buddhism and science are not incompatible is important, though different from showing that they are saying the same thing. This comparison reveals conceptual affinities between the two systems. That is to say, both mainstream Buddhism and scientific thinking are based on causality. The absence of the role of "divine whim" does strike as having implications of similarity. Questions arise as to whether attempting to find correlations between Buddhist doctrines and scientific theories are at all productive. The goal in science seems to be increased mastery over physical phenomena through intimate knowledge of their functioning. The goal in Buddhism is increased mastery over one's own self to view things as they really are.

Dr. Senaka Ranasinghe in his essay “Buddhism and Science” writes, “What is the force that keeps the planet Earth moving around its orbit? According to western science, planet Earth is surrounded by three types of forces. They are 1. The electrical field 2.The magnetic field 3. The gravitational field. All these three forces together can be called the Field Forces. These field forces are produced by the moving Earth, which in turn causes the movement of the Earth. Similar movements produce similar forces and again similar forces produce similar movements. This is the basic nature (law) of the universe. Since the forces produced by the earth are relatively fixed, it keeps on moving in a relatively fixed orbit. The human body is also qualitatively exactly similar to the planet Earth, both being composed of the same 104 basic elements. Human body is also surrounded by the same three types of forces, namely, 1.Electrical field, 2.Magnetic field 3. Gravitational field. The surrounding electric field is used to assess the cardiac activity (Electro Cardio Gram - E.C.G. and the activity of the brain (Electro Encephalon Gram - E.E.G.). The magnetic field is used in the Magnetic Resonance Imaging (M.R.I.), an instrument used to visualize the soft tissues (e.g. spinal cord, brain) of the body. The gravitational field that surrounds the human body is manifested as the weight of the body. So all these three types of forces together can be called the Field Forces. All the moving matter in the universe is connected together by these field forces. This is the force that moves the whole universe. These field forces cause the movement of the material human body”.

What the Buddha declared over 2,500 years ago is not very much different. In the Rohitassa Sutta the Buddha declared, "In this very one-fathom body, along with its perceptions and thoughts, do I proclaim the world, the origin of the world, the cessation of the world and the path leading to the cessation of the world". The human body is not a special creation but is part of nature. Whatever the types of energies that exist inside the body also exist outside the body and vice versa.

The movements in the human body are three fold: Emotions, Words and Bodily actions. These movements in turn create similar field forces that will again manifest as similar movements. This creation of forces by the movements of the body (by deeds, words and emotions) is called the Law of Kamma in Buddhism. The created field forces will result in similar types of movements of the material body. Unlike the planet Earth, the human being can actively alter the creation of field forces (Kammic forces) and hence its goal is not fixed. Once a human being dies, the created field forces will acquire a new embryo for the field forces to manifest and the cycle goes on as indicated by Buddha in Patticcasamuppāda.

The created field forces will result in a new birth, which will give rise to inevitable disease, decay and death. Birth is a result of created new field forces by the individual. The path leading to prevent the generation of new field forces is taught by the Buddha. This path has to be studied and experienced by the individual himself in the process of eradicating suffering and the Buddha is only a guide who showed the path.

If rebirth is to be examined from an unbiased scientific point of view, it is necessary first of all to find a way of bypassing such unscientific barriers as religious bias. This can be done by considering the standard procedure used at present for the acceptance of any modern scientific theory and investigating reincarnation by following the same procedure.

In a Scientific paper entitled “Reincarnation is Now a Scientifically Acceptable Phenomenon” presented at the 52nd Annual Sessions of the Sri Lanka Association for the Advancement of Science, November 1996, Prof. Granville Dharmawardena, of the University of Colombo, Sri Lanka, said,

“In the seventeenth century when Rene Descartes divided everything in the universe into two realms as "Res Extensa" (matter) and "Res Cogitans" (mind), gathering knowledge within the realm of Res Extensa was called Science and the phenomenon of reincarnation got pushed into the other realm Res Cogitans which was condemned to be not respectable and not up to the dignity of Scientists to probe into. Science was considered the respectable realm to study.

All important and respectable knowledge of the universe was thus restricted to science which was restricted to the study of the aspects of the universe that are measurable. Scientists accepted that the universe consisted essentially of "objects" leading to the belief that the ultimate realities of the universe are things and not beings. It was believed that everything in nature could be explained in terms of interactions of matter particles.

Science developed in this framework is known as "Classical Science". Classical Science had great material success because it helped to develop technology that brought about wealth and material benefits to mankind. It helped the West to colonize the rest of the world and acquire economic dominance and political influence.

The frame work of Classical Science was punctured by Henry Becquerel exactly hundred years ago, in 1896, by the discovery of Radioactivity. Albert Einstein cracked it at the beginning of this century by discovering the theory of relativity. It was totally blasted by the advent of Quantum Theory and the Uncertainty Principle. It is noteworthy that Einstein's discovery falls entirely within the realm of Res Cogitans as it did not involve any experiments or measurements.

There are two possible scenarios, No-Reincarnation scenario and Reincarnation scenario that can be considered. Human being is composed of the body and an immaterial part. The body, which is the material part is well understood because it fell within the Classical Science realm of Res Extensa and was extensively studied by scientists. The immaterial part, has not been studied by scientists because it fell within the Classical Science realm of Res Cogitans.

No scientifically acceptable data that can go to prove the scientific unacceptability of reincarnation have appeared in scientific literature so far….A science minded person often finds it difficult to accept reincarnation because he/she had failed to perceive a reincarnation mechanism that is intelligible within the outdated Decartes' classical science frame work. But Modern Science, specifically Quantum Mechanics, has compelled us to accept unintelligible mechanisms of natural phenomena like the behavior of electrons and we do not hesitate to accept them. Likewise with the data available we are compelled to accept reincarnation as a reality.

Austrian Scientist Rudolf Steiner says, "Just as an age was once ready to receive the Copernican theory of the universe, so is our age ready for the idea of reincarnation to be brought into the general consciousness of humanity" “.

Science is often described as systematic formulated knowledge. It is reckoned as the knowledge needed to understand the phenomena that we observe around us and those that influence our lives. The early inhabitants thought of science as being representing a cumulative process of increasing knowledge and ability to understand what is around them. It also meant a sequence of victories over ignorance and superstition. During the time of the Buddha, science was still speculative explanation of common sense observations by intellectuals who devoted much of their time for thinking and understanding natural phenomena. Later science helped to make technological advances essential for producing things needed to make life easier and more comfortable. Science has provided enormous material benefits to mankind. Therefore people all over the world have very high confidence in science and accept anything explained to them in terms of science. The ultimate aim of science is understanding the true reality of nature, minimizing human suffering and making human beings happy by way of providing material comforts.

Prof. Granville Dharmawardena of the University of Colombo, Sri Lanka, in his essay “Buddhism and Modern Science” wrote, “Of the two methods of acquiring knowledge available to the human being, the Buddha used the right brain centered intuition method, where as the western approach to acquiring knowledge used the left brain method. The Buddha trained his mind to an extreme high state of enlightenment (Buddhahood) from where he could understand the true reality of nature in its totality. It is based on such knowledge that he propounded a philosophy which is most conducive to balanced and happy living which leads to living in harmony with others, living in harmony with nature, meaningful living devoid of stress, anxiety, jealousy and empty pride, ultimately ending up in a meaningful state full of bliss. That was over 2500 years ago. Science began much later. The teachings of the Buddha, founded on the basis of the true reality of nature, have been recognized to be valid at all times and under all conditions. Buddhism is the only Doctrine based on the true reality of nature in its totality available to mankind. It is now becoming increasingly clear that solutions to most human problems that arise as a result of over indulgence, excessive competition and exploding greed leading to acquiring and amassing unlimited wealth, increasing violence, terrorism, drug addiction and self destruction lie in the teachings of the Buddha. It is clear that Buddhism is getting accepted, the world over, as the way of life of intelligent people in the third millennium……             The Buddha's way of acquiring knowledge by intuition was not subject to the limitations that stifled science and therefore unlike science the knowledge that the Buddha acquired is complete and represents the true reality of nature.”

While the knowledge the Buddha acquired represents the true reality of nature, what scientists aspire to understand as the ultimate destination of the scientific method, is also the same true reality of nature. While the goal of the teachings of the Buddha is elimination of human suffering and making human beings happy and contented by way of training their minds and creating self-discipline in them, the goal of science is providing mankind with material comforts.

The advent of computers has greatly enhanced the capability of the human brain to tackle complex phenomena that are too formidable to be tackled by the unaided and unenlightened human brain. Computer can never aspire to acquire the capabilities of the human brain because the human brain is driven by consciousness that operates at a speed much faster than the speed of light or computations by modern computers. The main achievement of the success of the twentieth century scientists in transcending the traditional barriers is acquiring a more realistic understanding of nature and natural phenomena.

Prof. Derek Parfit of Oxford University accepts the Buddhist view of life and selflessness. He believes that his acceptance of selflessness that was inspired by split-brain research, has liberated him from the prison of self. He says, "When I believed that my existence was such a further fact, I seemed imprisoned in myself. My life seemed like a glass tunnel, through which I was moving faster every year, and at the end of which there was darkness. When I changed my view, the walls of my glass tunnel disappeared. I now live in the open air." It is now increasingly becoming clear to those who reach the front lines of modern science that what science has been discovering in recent times had been known to the Buddha over 2500 years ago. This is confirmed by the following statements made by Albert Einstein, the foremost scientist of the twentieth century. "Individual existence impresses him as a sort of prison and he wants to experience the universe as a single cosmic whole. The beginnings of cosmic religious feeling already appear at an early stage of development, as an example in the Psalms of David and in some of the Prophets. Buddhism, as we have learned especially from the wonderful writings of Schopenhaur, contains a much stronger element of this”. .Niels Bohr who developed the presently accepted model of the atom together with Earnest Rutherford says, "For a parallel to the lesson of atomic theory….. (we must turn) to those kind of epistemological problems with which already thinkers like the Buddha and Lao Tzu have been confronted, when trying to harmonize our position as spectators and actors in the drama of existence." The most eminent Nuclear Physicist, Robert Oppenheimer, who produced the first atom bomb says, "The general notions about human understanding … which are illustrated by discoveries in atomic physics are not in the nature of things wholly unfamiliar, wholly unheard of or new. Even in our own culture they have a history, and in Buddhist and Hindu thought a more considerable and central place. What we shall find is an exemplification, an encouragement and a refinement of old wisdom."

The principal teaching of the Buddha is the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eight Fold Path. The world- renowned authority on Zen, Prof. D. T. Suzuki writes about the first item of this Path, Right View as, "The seeing plays the most important role in Buddhist epistemology, for seeing is at the basis of knowing. Knowing is impossible without seeing; all knowledge has its origin in seeing are thus found generally united in Buddha's teachings. Buddhist philosophy therefore ultimately points to seeing reality as it is. Seeing is experiencing enlightenment".

The teachings of the Buddha, founded on the basis of the true reality of nature, have been recognized to be valid at all times and under all conditions. Buddhism is the only doctrine based on the true reality of nature in its totality available to mankind. It is now becoming increasingly clear that solutions to most human problems that arise as a result of over indulgence, excessive competition and exploding greed leading to acquiring and amassing unlimited wealth, increasing violence, terrorism, drug addiction and self destruction lie in the teachings of the Buddha. It is clear that Buddhism is being accepted in many regions the world over, as the way of life of intelligent people in the third millennium.

At the beginning of this new millennium, we are cautioned that we are passing through perhaps the gravest crisis in human history, the ecological crisis. It is considered ‘grave’ because it seems to threaten the very survival of the earth, and invariably, its inhabitants - both human and beast. Ecology deals with relations of living organisms to their environment and the present crisis stems from the fact that human beings have disturbed the natural eco-systems. Of course, a certain degree of disturbance cannot be helped since human beings are not simply a part of nature but they also control it. Buddha’s code of conduct for the monks spells out in very clear terms the significance of the preservation of the environment. In the Book of Discipline (Vinaya Pitaka), which is a collection of rules and regulations for the guidance of monks, there is a rule relating to the cutting down of trees. It is specifically enumerated as an offence for Buddhist clergy to do anything to destroy vegetative reproduction.

Buddha, throughout his entire life, was very environment friendly. He always liked the outdoors, the parks and trees and gardens. He was born at Lumbini grove which at that time of the year, the month of May, was one mass of flowers of Sal trees. Of course, the Buddha had no choice in the selection of his place of birth, but in the later events of his life, he certainly had his choice. The site the Buddha selected for his Enlightenment was the bank of the river Neranjarā in the village of Uruvela in the kingdom of Magadha. There, he chose the foot of a spreading tree to sit and contemplate. Since the Buddha attained Enlightenment (Buddhahood) under this tree, botanists have named it ‘ficus religiosa’. The Buddhists call it the Bo tree or Bodhi tree. The site that the Buddha chose for his first sermon, the Dhammacakkapavattana Sutta, was again an environment marked by peace and tranquility in a park in Isipatana. Only the movement of the deer (miga) that roamed about leisurely in the park disturbed its tranquility. Since then, the park came to be known as Migagadāya (Deer Park). Finally, the Buddha chose another garden to pass into Parinibbāna. This was the park of Sala trees near Kusinārā, on the last lap of his journey. Monasteries (ārāma) for the monks were also built in environments closer to woods, parks and gardens for they are conducive to contemplation and meditation. The Buddha himself encouraged his benefactors to build monasteries in such places. In fact, the Pali word vihāra, which signifies a Buddhist monastery, means ‘an open place in the forest’.

May all beings be well and happy !