34 Human Values in Buddhism

1.    Learning Outcomes

2.    Introduction

3.    Basic Teachings of Buddhism

4.    Schools of Buddhism

5.    Buddhism in the West

6.    Buddhist Culture

7.    Buddhism today in India

8.    Summary

9.    References

1 .Learning outcomes-

1.1 To acquire the in depth knowledge of Buddha Religion.

1.2 To understand basic human values and teachings of Buddha

1.3 To acquire wisdom and knowledge like Buddhists.

2.  Introduction

Buddhism is a worldwide religion. Its origin was by Siddhartha Gautama known as “Buddha”. ‘Buddha’ means ‘awakened one’. This religion was extinct in India due to Islam in 12th century. In the present time period, it remains a major religion only in Himalayan areas like Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Ladakh, Darjeeling hills in west Bengal, Lahaul and Spiti areas. But it has been gaining importance again by many Indians. There is a great contribution of Lord Buddha in inculcating good human values. He took birth in Lumbini in Nepal. He attained enlightenment sitting under a pipal tree, therefore, is also known as “The perfectly self- awakened one”. He spread this religion in the whole world by forming the company of Buddhist monks. His first formation was Triple Gem i.e. Buddha, Dharma and Sangha with his fire companions. Now, there are many Buddhist councils in India. Dalai Lama presently is the 14th Buddhist leader of this religion. There is a big temple of Buddhist in Dharamsala or McLeod Ganj. It is one of the big centers of Buddhism in India. The religion has spread basic human values by providing awakening to mankind.

3. Basic teachings of Buddhism have been explained as under:-

3.1 Believe in ‘Karma’- Human beings must believe in ‘Karma’ theory whatever actions we do, it has an effect on the next. There is a cause and effect relationship. One person is responsible for every wrong action committed by him. Everything exists in the world only with a change. We must believe in doing good change. Buddha remained in the heart of every person due to his true feelings. He taught them to differentiate between right and wrong and then only decide.

3.2 Serve the Sicks- Buddha and his discipline Ananda, one day visited a monastery. A monk was suffering from a chronic disease there. The Buddha himself took a good care of sick monk and also guided the other monks to look after each other .He said that serving the sick means serving the God.

3.3 Morality- One of the teachings of Buddha consists of ‘Sila’ which means Morality, good conduct and virtue. He believed in two golden rules of Christianity i.e. principle of equality and the principle of reciprocity. It means we must behave or act in the way, we expect from others. As per Buddha all human beings are equal and we must follow moral and ethical values being good human beings.

3.4 Mental Development- This is the only path which can strengthen and control our mind. Development of mind means wisdom, personal freedom and liberty. Mental Development is possible by concentration and meditation. This will help in maintaining good mental health and conduct. Buddha believed in ‘Prajna’ means wisdom and enlightenment. This can be gained with a pure and calm mind.

3.5 Belief in Sufferings- Sufferings is the truth of lie which means ‘Dukkha’ causing due to sickness, pain and failures. Suffering is only due to attachment, desires, fear, anger and jealousy. End of the sufferings is possible through…’Nirvana’, in which mind is completely free and liberal with non-attachment. One has to leave all desires and a quest for fame. We must not harm anybody. We must avoid frauds and economic exploitations. One should always follow the path of truthfulness. One must not commit any sexual harassment. We should not consume alcohol or any other such drug or intoxicants. All these things spoil our mind and are the basic cause of human sufferings.

3.6 Buddha’s Eightfold Path- The Buddha’s eightfold path consists basically Panna: wisdom, sila: morality and Samadhi : meditation. He stressed upon right understanding of the noble truths and right thinking to follow right path in life. He also focused on right speech and to abstain from lying, criticism, gossip, harsh language etc. He also guided to follow right actions to away from killing and stealing. One should also avoid dishonesty and hurting others. We must put right efforts to conquer bad qualities. We must have awareness of our body, mind and emotions to overcome hatred and ignorance. Right concentration can be obtained through continuous meditation.

3.7 Virtues for layman’s happiness- Once a man visited the Buddha to ask him some doctrines for happy life in the world. Buddha told him to follow four virtues in life. First, he should be quite skilled, efficient, energetic and earnest in his profession. Secondly, he should take care of his hard earned money from the stealers. He should have faithful, knowledgeable, liberal, intelligent and moral friendship to always show right path. He should avoid extravagance and try to live within his means. All these four virtues can make a person very happy and successful in his life.

3.8 Love and Affection- As per Buddha the end of hatred is to do love and compassion. We can conquer anger by love and affection to others. He asked the common man to think good, do good and pray good for the welfare of mankind. He said that Nirvana is the supreme bliss of the whole world so may God bless happiness to all human beings. Happiness for others may cause happiness to us and thus, the whole world will be happy.

3.9 Individual Transformation- Shakyamunl Buddha travelled throughout Indian and discovered that fundamental reason of suffering of human beings is not the external environment rather it is within the human heart. He tried to reform the hearts and minds of the individuals in the society. He was a moral leader and teacher. As per Buddha world peace can be attained through inner transformation in the life of each individual. He stressed on social reforms and morality as well.

3.10 Harmony- He strived to maintain a balance and harmony between all living and non-living things in the universe. It is a law of nature. Shakyamunl’s enlightenment is the fusion of individual’s own inner power and external power acts to bring out the individuals’ own power completely for the restoration and rejuvenation of the humanity.

3.11 Sila, Samadhi and Panna– Buddhism is based on Sila, Samadhi and Panna which means precepts, meditation and wisdom respectively. These three trees are the way to salvation from all sufferings of this world. Combination of these three can make a perfect human being. Sila is concerned with rules, regulations, principles and discipline, which are helpful for building good character and nature. Mind can be kept very cool, pure and peaceful by practicing Sila. Moreover, one can abstain from all unlawful deeds. Samadhi means to control our mind for right action and welfare with concentration. Samadhi means meditation, yoga, bhavana and contemplation. With more efforts and strong determination, one can achieve right wisdom or Panna. Among the three wisdom is at the highest position, wisdom is most required in our daily life for the attainment of our goals and destination. It is not essential only to achieve salvation.

3.12 National Integrity and humanity- Buddhism is the religion in which more importance is given to humanity. Lord Buddha worked for the good of mankind. Buddha’s preaching was not for a particular nation or community or group. Buddhism has no national boundary. The Buddha travelled from one place to another in his whole life by not giving any importance to their political ideology, constitution or administration. Both the greedy and rude emperors who were trying to conquer other‘s land, they all respected Buddha equally. The Buddha laid emphasis on ten duties of the kings. The ten rajadhamma, ten kingly attributes and seven unconquerable principles called the sapta aparihaniyo dhamma. This preaching of the Buddha was for the kings to protect their national integrity. There is inverse relationship between human beings and the society. Without society, there cannot be any human. Religious norms are no doubt essential, but to lead a social life, human beings have also to follow social norms. Humanity is the core of any society.

3.13 Spread of Peace- This was Buddha’s main message, Buddha‘s aim towards all living beings was to spread peace,. Human society can be peaceful by accepting this very aim of Buddha. Peace can be attained through the practice of non-violence, equally brotherhood and friendship. This message of Buddha was not only for the Buddhists but for all human beings irrespective of any caste, creed and religion.

3.14 Self- Reliance– Human society and nation can be developed by self-power, unity and self- reliance. Unity got and grown by the strength of weapons is not last longing. True unity lies with courtesy and self sacrifice. To develop morality, self-reliance and duty consciousness is must to proceed towards the attainment of our goals.

3.15 Brahma Vihara- Buddha advocated four kinds of right thinking called Brahma Vihara in Buddhist tradition. Aim was to control our unlimited human wants and aspirations, moreover to be free from greed in this world. It is the combination of four concepts-

I. Maîtree (friendship)- This means to have a desire for the happiness and welfare for all the living creatures in this world.

II. Karuna (compassion)- It means to have sympathy with all mankind and trying to reduce the pains and sorrow of others.

III. Mudita (sympathy or pity without any jealousy)- One should be happy for other’s wealth and prosperity rather to feel any kind of jealousy.

IV. Upekkha (indifference)- We should try to apart from all kinds of jealousy, anger, ignorance, practicality and prejudice.

3.16 Patience and Calmness– One must have the ability to be calm and clear while facing various obstacles like delays, frustrations etc. Human beings should have ability to remain peaceful and abstain from anger during the time when other people try to harm them. With due patience, It is easy to control all unpleasant situations.

3.17 Perseverance- Human beings can achieve this perfection. It is the capability to utilize all of our energy into productive and constructive purpose which may benefit to all mankind. So, one should never indulge in wrong and useless activities. We should properly channelize our efforts.

3.18 Clarity of objectives in life– Maha-Mangala sutta in Buddhism says that a mind should be properly directed and guided. One should know his position and the place in the world. He must have clear vision and mission. He must acquaint with the way to achieve these goals. One must have a simple philosophy of his life, useful aims of life and clear plan of actions to follow. This is done only by a balanced person. Aims should be practical and feasible, only then we may be successful in life.

3.19 Self- Analysis- Self-analysis and self-observation is required for self-improvement. We should measure the degrees of our traits like kindness, honesty, truth, patience, tolerance, tactfulness etc. These are the qualities of a well-adjusted Buddhist. A little practice to improve ourselves is needed in every day of our life. Right practice will become our habit which ultimately becomes the part of our character. Meditative practices are independent of material things. A strengthen person is self-reliant and with self sufficient mind. Material things become his servants and not his master. He lives his life with simplicity. He possesses a cool, calm, contended and controlled mind. As per Buddha, contentment is the greatest wealth. One can easily adjust himself to new environment.

4.  Schools of Buddhism– There are various schools of Buddhism

4.1 Theravada

4.2 Mahayana

4.3 Tibetan

4.4 Zen

4.1 Theravada– This is the oldest school of Buddhism. It is found in southern Asia (Sri Lanka, Burma, and Thailand etc.) As per their thoughts Monasticism is the way to obtain Nirvana. Enlightment is possible through our own efforts. So, one should focus on increasing wisdom and doing meditation. Their ultimate goal is to become a Buddha. The followers of this school are fairly unified in these believes and practices but there are some cultural differences.

4.2 School of Mahayana- Mahayana means the ‘Great Vehicle’. This was developed in first century and found in Northern Asian (China, Japan etc.) They seek guidance from wise people called Bodhi Sattvas and heavenly Buddha, Their main focus was on compassion. Their basic aim is to become a Bodhi Sattva and help the people to get enlightenment.

4.3 School of Tibetan- It was development in 7th century. It is a combination of Theravada and Mahayana. They also focus on Meditation, monasticism, wisdom and compassion. Their Bodhisattvas include living Lamas (Dalai Lama)

4.4 School of Zen- It is the ‘Meditation’ school. They also focus on monasticism. They seek sudden enlightenment through meditation (satori), obtaining emptiness (sunyata) and the Buddha Nature. They stressed on beauty, arts and aesthetics in our life.

5. Buddhism in the West- Many people migrated from Asia to the west. But western Buddhists are stick to their own faith, believes and traditions. They find Buddhism a complement instead of conflict with other religions. The two groups Asian and Western remain independent of one another.

6.  Buddhist Culture– A person is successful only when he has progressed in ethical discipline and mental culture. One should be self-less without any lust and greed. We must develop positive attributes in our life i.e. kindness, compassion, honest and truthfulness etc. Only then we can became cultured Buddhists. A person with such qualities is well trained in body, speech and mind. He will be able to live with calmness and harmony with himself and others. This is called in real sense ‘Dhamma’. One should be super active and energetic rather than being lazy and lethargic. We may become cultured and civilized people of our society. We may become aware of our rights and duties. Social development is possible through transformation of each individual personally. Buddhism focuses on Art, which is a medium of human communication. Art is helpful in the education of feelings and it is the most civilized agency of humankind. The work of all artists highlights fresh insights, whether artist is a painter, writer or dramatist. They express the worldly objects in a different perspective and emotions creating new values e.g. when we observe the Samadhi statue of Buddha, it catches our mind, increases our confidence and our desire for the Dhamma. All the Buddhist paintings, sculptures and art work are the typical form of artistic expression. Buddhist culture is never obsolete. There is no moral blindness.

7.  Buddhism Today in India: Buddhism has come back to India in the 20th century due to the prevalence of caste system. Top power of the society possessed economic and political powers and bottom i.e. Dalits were called untouchables. They had limited facilities for education, health, employment etc. There was oppression all over India. Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar, a dalit leader had done tremendous work to eradicate the caste system in India. Millions of people accepted the appeal of Dr. Ambedkar to adopt Buddhism to escape from the caste system. He was a man who is revered as a bodhisattva. Many Dalits from various villages and towns have shrines with pictures of the Buddha every year in October. Over a million dalit Buddhists go to Nagpur for rally at the place of the original conversion. Even though, many of them belong to a very low economic condition, they try to establish a Buddhist society to develop their understanding of the Dharma. These are many temples and places for meditation. Many social projects have been carried out by the younger generations to realize. Dr Ambedkar’s vision of social justice and Indian growth based on the preaching of Buddha. There are various approaches and schools working in the different areas. Some of them are committed to Dharma and others are engaged in social welfare. Near Nagpur Nagaloka is a training center for Buddhist activities. This is a center for providing Buddhists knowledge by teachers like Dalai Lama and Thich Nhat Hahn. Thousands of pilgrims visit this place to see Buddha statute at the campus. Other centers are Triratha Bauddha mahasangha, National Network of Buddhist society and Manuski Institute. Important Buddhists temples are Bodhgaya, Sarnath (Varanasi) Shravasti, Kusinasa, Nalanda and Rajgir. Many of the dalit people have joined this religion to get self-respect and dignity. Most important movements in the world is the Buddhist revival in India. The focus of all the Buddhist centers is to spread the teachings of Buddha in the whole nation.

Summary:-

There are “Three Jewells” of Buddhism, Buddha the teacher, Dharma the teachings and Sangha the community. Buddha as a teacher through his teachings served the society a lot. His four noble truths consider sufferings in life of every human being, which are due to our desires and attachments. The solution is to attain Nirvana (extinction) by leaving our desires and belongingness. Nirvana can be attained by the “eight-fold path” given by the Buddha. Which are:-

• Right understanding
• Right motivation
• Right Speech
• Right Action
• Right livelihood
• Right efforts
• Right mindfulness
• Right mediation

To sum up Nirvana is the ultimate solution of all human problems which can be attained by wisdom, moral and mental discipline Buddhism totally rejects the philosophy of Hinduism, ancient Vedic texts, the Vedic caste system, Hindu deities, rituals and the concept of Brahman. They also differ from Jainism. They reject the concept of Atman (soul).

Buddhists believe in Rebirth (reincarnation) which is only the results of attachments (karma). They said that Nirvana is a peaceful and detached state of mind and it is also a way to escape from the cycle of rebirth. Buddha is not regarded as God but just a revered teacher. Everything in this world is im-permanent as per Buddhist philosophy. Buddhism shows a rational, practical and balanced way of overcoming all our pains and sufferings. Life is most important than any other thing.

References-:

• Bhikku Bodhi,”The Noble Eightfold path, The Way to the End of suffering,” Buddhist information.
• The Buddhist Core Values and Perspectives for Protection Challenges, Faith Protection, High Commissioner’s Dialogue on Protection challenges, 12-13 December 2012. www.unhcr.org.
• Buddhism and Human Values lake House www.lakehouse lk. mihintalava. pracou)
• Buddhism and Human Values by Sukomal Barua, chairman Department of Pali and Buddhist studies at the university of Dhaka, The Daily star, October 3, 2009.(www.buddhist.channel tv.)
• Nichiren “the Three kinds of Treasure,” The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin translated and edited by Gosho translation committee
• Bryan Wilson and Daisku Ikeda, Human Values in a Changing World: A Dialogue on the Social role of Religion.
• Daisaku Ikeda, The Living Buddha: An Interpretive Biography, Burton Watson (new York Weather hill 1976)
• Ethics in Indian and Tibetan Buddhism, Stanford encyclopedia of philosophy, first published tue,June, 22, 2010. Revision wed, feb, 1 2017 (http.// plato. standford.edu/entries/ ethics. Indian-buddhism/)
• Dharmajiva-Buddhist Renaissance in India (https//dhaimajiva.org)