Buddhism as a Religion/Philosophy

September 23rd, 2007 · 4 Comments

Is Buddhism a religion? What is meant by religion? The word, as it is well known is not really found in other languages not related to our own, and the actual derivation is uncertain. Cicero wrote In 65 BC that religion was a combination of terms.

Marcus Tullius Cicero January 3, 106 BC – December 7, 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and philosopher. Cicero is widely considered one of Rome’s greatest orators and prose stylists.

Cicero is generally seen as one of the most versatile minds of Roman culture and his writing the paragon of Classical Latin. He introduced the Romans to the chief schools of Greek philosophy and created a Latin philosophical vocabulary. An impressive orator and successful lawyer, Cicero likely thought his political career his most important achievement. However, today he is appreciated primarily for his humanism and philosophical and political writings.

That the Latin terms Re (Latin meaning, “divine reading”) and Lego, Latin meaning “truth or true” and held that the terms meant the repetition of prayers and incantations. It is easy to see the connection between what we call religion today and the early attempts to clarify and give a clear understanding of the word religion. Over a period of time the word religion has been defined as a system or systems of faith and worship, owing its allegiance to a supernatural being(s) or god(s).

This is important to remember. Religion as we know it or can define is a system of faith. It is a belief in a power or powers, god or gods outside the self, and that the practice of religion is the faith in these beings through the adoration or worship of these entities. A belief in the supernatural being with powers beyond the scope of humans is common component of modern day religion. Buddhism does not demand a system of faith from its followers. The idea of belief is substituted with a ‘confidence based on knowledge and experience.’

The confidence of a lay follower in Buddhism is that of a patient to a noted physician or more like a student revering a very gifted professor. Followers do seek “refuge in the Buddha,” but as an incomparable guide and teacher who is able to instruct them on the Path of Purity. The followers of Buddhism make no servile surrender to the Buddha. Buddhist do not think that they may attain enlightenment or purity by seeking refuge in the Buddha or by having a ‘faith’ in Him. It is not within the scope of any human being to wash away the impurities of others. The Buddha was a human being. Per our teachings no one can purify or defile another. The Buddha as a teacher may be instrumental, but the responsibility of purification is ours. The Buddhist holy book or bible is called the Dhammapada.

In the Dhammapada Buddha writes:

“By oneself alone is evil done;
by oneself is one defiled.
By oneself alone is evil avoided:
By oneself alone is one purified.
Purity and impurity depend on oneself.
No one can purify another.” V-145.

A Buddhist follower is not a slave to a book or to any individual. Nor does he sacrifice his freedom to become a follower of Buddhism. There is abrogation of self or free will. The Buddhist practitioner is fully at liberty to exercise their freedom of thought and to develop the knowledge needed to attain Buddha hood for themselves. Followers quote the Buddha as an authority as you might quote your professor. But the Buddha’s instructions were to seek truth through the experience of seeking.

Individual realization is the sole truth in Buddhism. You do not accept anything on merely the say so, or authority from anyone else. Rather, you exercise your own powers of reasoning and judge for yourselves whether something is true for you or not.

Is then Buddhism a philosophy? The Dhamma, as the body of teachings are called, deals with the truths and facts that can be tested and verified by personal experience. Buddhism is not really concerned with theories and speculations which often become accepted as being profound truths of today and not accepted 10 years from now. For the Buddha his thoughts were a guide to live a wholesome life, not a revolutionary philosophy full of theories and conclusions. In very plain terms he explained both what is within and what is without as it pertains to freeing the self from the ills of life and dealing with the suffering that come to each of us.

Buddhism cannot be called in the purest sense a philosophy. It is not the ‘love of’ inducing the search for a wisdom or a hypothetical interpretation of the unknown as in metaphysics. Buddhism seeks to teach a framework for people to live. Philosophy deals normally with the knowledge of things but not the practice. Whereas Buddhist teachings have heavy emphases on practices and realizations.

One of the most import elements of Buddhist teachings is the recognition that each of us has the potential of realizing goodness in our life. We know when something is immoral or unwholesome and that with this knowledge we disregard the action that would bring about pain or suffering due to the immoral or unwholesome action.

In other words if we know it to be an action that brings harm or suffering to self or others that the action should be abandoned. We would call this a conscience. But more than that it is knowledge of what is right and wrong. The Buddha had very few rules for followers. The rules of life are more a moral code to understand and form a mindset for living.

They are:

Abstain from taking life.
Abstain from anything that in not freely given to you.
Abstain from unchaste conduct.
Abstain from false or hurtful speech.
Abstain from using intoxicants that lead to carelessness.

In these rules we can see a basic respect for self and other living things developing. As we accept responsibility for ourselves and others it easier to understand why we should develop a respect for other peoples possessions. One of the easiest ways to cause harm and hurt someone is by false speech. Carelessness through drugs or alcohol can and often does have a heavy cost.

The basic theory of Buddhism holds these four tenets:

All life is suffering;
The cause for suffering is attachment and craving;
Cessation of craving and attachment
eradicates the existence of suffering;
Developing right understanding and following
the Noble Eightfold path is the way to learn that cessation;

The Noble Eightfold Path has the following components:

1. Right Understanding.
2. Right Thoughts.
3. Right Speech.
4. Right Actions.
5. Right Livelihood.
6. Right Effort.
7. Right Mindfulness.
8. Right Concentration.

Basically however Buddhism is a practice of Metta. Metta is a Pali word meaning simply Love. Buddhism is the practice of attaining knowledge of the self. Learning to love yourself.

Only through self knowledge can we come to know others. Buddhism through its cornerstone of meditation is the key to unlock the inner universe which has developed in our minds. Only by dealing with the factors of our own making can we hope to deal with the external universe we live in. One does not take up Buddhism to hide away from the world; you take up Buddhism to engage it.

The main point differentiating  Buddhism from western style religions is that there is no petitionary prayer. There is no bargaining with a god or a deity or with Buddha “If you do this for me I will do this for you.”  Self acceptance and self love combined with self responsibility are the teaching of Buddhism.

When I was young I was involved in a backyard fight with my best friend Nicky. We had been best friends for years. I cannot remember what the fight was about but it caused a giant rift between us. A couple of 10 year old boys can not create a giant rift, but one that is large for them. I am sure we were both equally at fault but more than likely too proud to be the first to apologize or back down. I told my mom about the whole thing and she sent me to church and confession. The priest listened to me and gave me 10 Hail Mary’s and sent me on my way absolving me of my sins telling me sin no more. Nicky did the same thing going to church and becoming absolved from his sins. So now I was clean as snow and pure without sin. I was also however without my best friend. To a little boy who had lost his best friend being sinless was very little comfort.

Buddhism stresses the need for self responsibility. When you take your present, past and future out of the hands of a supernatural being there is no one else to be responsible. Our present is the off-spring of our past and the parent of our future. Buddhism teaches neither blame nor judgment of any person or situation, only our response to it. Meaning: we can take responsibility only for ourselves. Something someone else does is not for us to judge.

Our only position is to love every living person without exception with equanimity. That we do not judge nor assign any standard to, nor reproach, nor have any prejudicial feelings and actions towards anyone, is an important teaching. As a child we accept things more purely and it is easier to live a life less complicated and non-prejudicial. As a child I was able to go to my friend and make amends. We have been friends ever since.

Buddhism is a system of personal responsibility and accountability to self. Buddhists believe that goodness comes from good action which is brought about by intention, thought, and concentration. Very basically Buddhism teaches us that no one has the right to judge anyone or incidents that happen to us. We are not to take things personally as these things happen to us all. We must realize that all things pass.

Everything arises, and then falls away. Our unhappiness and sorrow come from wanting to change things or hold onto things we simply cannot. Allow yourself to let go. Allow yourself to breathe.

Believe that you are the well from which all goodness comes, and from which it flows.

I Wish You Peace,

Bhante Kassapa

Bhante n. Kassapa Bhikkhu
bhante_kassapa@yahoo.com
Buu Mon Temple
Port Arthur, Texas, 77640
409.982.9319

Lecture for World Religions Class
Professor Raul Garcia
Lamar University
Beaumont, Texas