Engaged Buddhism

Engaged Buddhism

1. Buddhism and social activism

   • Environmental Awareness
     • What is the inner-relatedness of everything? How does this relate to Buddhist attitudes to the environment?
       • Inter-relatedness means that humans depend on nature and nature depends on humans. Harming one part of this whole is the same as harming all of.
       • Therefore if people learn to live simply and in harmony with the world, the whole of the environment will benefit.
     • Links to the Noble Eightfold path, Five precpts and Karma
       • Noble Eightfold Path
         • These include ‘right mindfulness’. If you are ‘mindful’ of effects your actions on the world, this is an effective way to avoid causing damage to nature and other living creatures .
         • Noble Eightfold path sets out eight guidelines taught by the Buddha to help humans escape suffering and approach enlightenment
       • Five Precpts
         • Buddhists should abstain from taking life, and this includes any form of life. This is linked to the idea of rebirth that can include the possibility of being reborn as an animal.
         • Rather than taking life, Buddhists are encouraged to show metta and compassion to all creatures and believe that all life-forms are special, not just human beings. This first Precept relates to the concept of ahimsa. This is based on the idea of "do no harm".
         • A Buddhist may argue that destroying the natural habitats of animals is taking away something that does not belong to us and therefore breaks the second Precept. Therefore, by not acting thoughtlessly, Buddhists can protect the environment from destruction and exploitation.
       • Karma
         • They believe that our actions affect the planet in a harmful way because we are selfish and we crave things. These actions will only result in more suffering in the future.
         • The effects of karma will continue to work in a person's rebirth, so by being compassionate, we will improve our own future and that of the environment. The Buddhist declaration at Assisi stresses the need for all people to have respect for wildlife and for the environment.
   • War
     • Non-violence is at the heart of Buddhist thinking and behaviour. The first of the five precepts that all Buddhists should follow is "Avoid killing, or harming any living thing."
     • The Buddhist code that governs the life of monks permits them to defend themselves, but it forbids them to kill, even in self-defence.
     • There are numerous examples of Buddhists engaging in violence and even war. in the 14th century Buddhist fighters led the uprising that evicted the Mongols from China in Japan, Buddhist monks trained Samurai warriors in meditation that made them better fighters

2. The significant ideas of Thich Nhat Hanh

   • fourteen moral precepts
     • 2) non-attachment to view
     • 3) Freedom of thought
     • 14) True Love
     • 4) Awareness of suffering
     • 5) Compassionate, Healthy living
     • 13) Generosity
     • 6) taking care of anger
     • 11) Right Livelihood
     • 9) Truthful and loving speach
     • 8) True community and communication
     • 7) Dwelling happily in the present moment
     • 12) Reverence for life
     • 1) Openness
     • 10) Protecting and nourishing the sangha
   • Nhat Hanh was a peace campaigner during the Vietnam war and taught in the United States- Martin Luther King Jr nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967
   • Nhat Hanh moved to France in the late 1960s and continued to campaign for peace for the people of Vietnam- he was banned from entering Vietnam in 1976 until he was granted permission in 2006
   • He has written many books on mindfulness and peaceful living but he is best known as a political activist for peace .

3. The distinctive features of Engaged Buddhism

   • Engaged Buddhism refers to Buddhist who are seeking ways to apply the insights from meditation practice and dharma teachings to situations of social, political, environmental, and economic suffering and injustice
   • In 1998, while on retreat in Bodh Gaya, India, the Dalai Lama said Buddhists have not acted vigorously to address social and political problems. He stated, in this we have much to learn from the Christians.
   • The bodhisattva ideal of Mahayana Buddhism emphasizes the union of wisdom and compassion, and replaces the aim of personal liberation with motivation to practice for the benefit of all sentient beings
   • As the Dala Lama suggests, Buddhist practice is rooted in compassion action- but engaged Buddhism refers to those aspects which are more public, more collective.

4. Why a Buddhist may feel social activism is an important part of Buddhist practice

   • Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh said In order to effect change we must recover ourselves, one must be whole. Since this requires the kind of environment favourable to one's healing, one must seek the kind of lifestyle that is free from the destruction of one's humanness.
   • For most Buddhists, the guiding principles are to live simply in order to respect all life forms as well as the balance and peace in nature.
   • The Dalai Lama said: We are the generation with the awareness of a great danger. We are the ones with the responsibility and the ability to take steps of concrete action, before it is too late. This means Buddhists have to make themselves aware of the damage they do to the environment so that they can then act to change it.
   • Because the Buddha did not have a lot to say about the environment in his day, most teachings about protecting the environment come from modern Buddhist teachers.
   • Most Buddhists believe people need to live simply and respect the cycle and balance in nature so everything can continue for future generations. To some Buddhists, living 'skilfully' means to live without producing waste. The whole world benefits from avoiding needless exploitation.
   • We could describe the whole of Buddhism as being about changing the way we see the world. This is completely compatible with an environmental agenda. Changing people's attitudes about what they need, is a major step to changing how they treat the world and each other.
   • Buddhists accept changes in nature. Change is an essential part of growth. People should allow for change in the world.