Buddhism - A Path to Happiness
“Buddhism...Is it a religion or a philosophy?...” This is often the first question people ask me when they find out that my background is Buddhist.
People nowadays have various definitions of religion, but traditionally, the word evokes a constellation of features found in all religious practices, including Buddhism: we associate religions with houses of worship (temples or pagodas), kept by individuals living a monastic life (monks) and dedicated to lead a community of believers (the Sangha) with a set of prayers and rituals, in a moral and ethical path (the Dharma) toward an eventual spiritual transformation (Nirvana). Yet, Buddhism distinguishes itself from all other world religions by not requiring the belief in, and the worship of a super-natural Creator and personal God, and by not demanding unconditional faith in some absolute truth(s) or dogma(s) enshrined in historical scriptures. Nor does it promise Paradise or Hell on Judgment Day. Why did the Buddha (The Enlightened One, ca. 563-483 BCE) not discuss Creation or evoke God? Just as Henry D Thoreau once said: “It is characteristic of wisdom not to do desperate things”, I can only speculate that the Buddha did not want us to torment ourselves with unanswerable questions, lest we will find ourselves making up stories and explanations that would only bring delusions and discords.
This fundamental distinction makes Buddhism the most open-minded religious practice in history. For “No God” in the big picture means no Creation story to fabricate, no Tower of Babel to blame men’s prejudices and follies on, no myths and no miracles to pursue, no conflict with science, no theology to fight over, no theocracies to kill or die for, and no need for anti-blasphemy and apostasy laws. The absence of God allows no one to claim that he or she can interpret the words of God better than someone else. Thus, no crusade, no jihad, no “holy wars”. Indeed, with so many sects of Buddhism around the world, and so many other competing religions, there has never been in human history a war waged in the name of the Buddha.
So what is the teaching of the Buddha? I cannot say it any better than by quoting the Buddha himself: “I teach nothing but only suffering, and the transformation of suffering”. We suffer because we let our ignorance and negative emotions take control of our life: we pursue illusions (pride, envy), we allow ourselves to be close-minded, self-focused and tribal, we seek ephemeral satisfaction in possessions (desires, pleasures and attachments), and we act from hateful reactions (anger, vengeance). This can only bring painful emotions in the end. All five Buddhist moral precepts (Do not kill; Do not steal; No sexual misconduct; No false speech; and No intoxicants) are based on one principle: Do no harm. In his sermon at Benares, the Buddha said: “As the echo belongs to the sound, and the shadow to the substance, so misery will overtake the evil-doer without fail.”
Another core Buddhist belief is the law of causality and effect. Our karma is not a pre-determined destiny, nor the work of a divine design. “What you are is what you have been/ What you will be is what you are doing now”, said the Buddha. This view of life creates rational obligations for the moment, and responsibilities for our own conduct and future.
As a person who does not pray, meditate, nor attend pagodas on a regular basis, I am quite certain that the Buddha would still accept me as one of his many followers. “It’s the moon you should look at, not the pointing finger”, he said. “Do not accept my teaching out of respect for me. Examine and re-discover the truth by yourself.” After much reading and thinking, I am trying to live Buddha’s teaching in essentially three words: Impermanence. Inter-connectedness. Mindfulness.
Impermanence: Everything is constantly changing in our world. The water of the river I am standing in now is already different downstream. Nothing is permanent. Life, love and loss are three inseparable words. A grown-up child leaves home; a parent or a spouse is dying; friends come and go; the most beautiful rose has withered. “To love and to hold” is a common romantic delusion. Attachment can only bring pain. Instead, I shall learn to love and be able to let go, blowing out the fires of longing and possession. “By absence of grasping, one is made free”, the Buddha said. “True love is love without possessiveness”, echoes Thích Nhất Hạnh, a Buddhist Master of our time.
Interconnectedness: Modern science has proven that all life forms - stars and black holes; trees and air; humans and microbes - are inter-dependent and co-evolve. While this law of nature has been discovered only recently by quantitative measurements and scientific experimentations, it has been embedded in Buddhist contemplative meditation for thousands of years. We do not exist as separate entities, but only as parts of a commonwealth of all beings, in the cycle of life, death and rebirth. “We cannot conceive of the birth of anything...There is only continuity...The day of our so-called death is a day of our continuation in many other forms” (Thích Nhất Hạnh). We are not on earth to conquer nature, or to have dominion over other living creatures. Living is about cultivating relationships and respecting harmony. Let non-violence be our weapon of mass compassion. Understanding this is the foundation for social activism in the school of “Engaged Buddhism” as well as all environmentalist and peace movements.
Mindfulness: Since the past is past and the future has not yet arrived, we can only live the moment, and make our choices in the present. Know oneself. Avoid excesses. Act with compassion. Nirvana is the state of inner peace, the cessation of chaos. I may not get there anytime soon. In fact, I know I won’t get there in this lifetime. But the journey itself, one step at a time, is worthwhile.
In the end, Buddhism is but a path to happiness. “Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional”, says the XIVth Dalai Lama. Suffering can be minimized when we are no longer self-focused, and set ourselves free of delusions and desires. This Buddhist tale says it all: There was a man standing on the corner of the street, with a sign saying: “I want happiness”. A monk walked by, saw the sign, and erased the word “I”; then he erased the word “want”. Turning to the man then, the monk said: “Here you have it – Happiness”.
Buddhism - a religion or a philosophy? “There is no need for temples, no needs for complicated philosophies, the XIVth Dalai Lama mused. My brain and my heart are my temples; my philosophy is kindness.”
Lê Trung Chính
Corvallis, Oregon, November 2015