Incorporating Buddhism in Western Culture

The heart of western values is achievement, materialism, and success, and that success leads to more material rewards afterwards. We are living in a society that is rooted in avoiding suffering and fulfilling our thirst for all and any desires we might come across in life. Because of this lifestyle, we become jealous of one another, which can lead to crimes of theft, revenge, and murder, along with coveting and always being dissatisfied with what we are actually blessed with. We know that our material system is failing and leading us into poverty, and are longing for a solution that can save us from within, and also externally by saving the community we are attached to. By embracing the teachings of the Buddha, and following the ways of the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path, we learn to embrace suffering and be satisfied with what we have, and to treat others with unfailing love and compassion. The Buddhist lifestyle could save our western nation with not only the ethical point of view from the Buddha, but could also thrive economically from the self-reliant philosophy that he also taught us.

The Four Noble Truths are: Dukkha, Samudaya, Nirodha, and Magga. The Noble Eightfold Path is: Right Understanding, Right Thought, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, and Right Concentration. As we go over what each of these means, and learn from what each of them teaches us, we can find enlightenment.

The first Noble Truth is Dukkha, which literally means suffering. First of all, Buddhism views everything objectively, not pessimistically or optimistically. Buddhism tells you exactly what you are and what the world is, and shows you the way to freedom, peace, tranquility, and happiness (Rahula, 17). Suffering is an inevitable part of the human experience. Everything changes, and nothing lasts over time. People we love will love will disappoint us, leave us, or die. Our emotions change with the seasons, or even the minutes on a clock. Whatever we find joy and pleasure in, will eventually end. Dukkha simply states that we experience our lives with dissatisfaction. However, Buddhism is not saying that we should just suffer; it is saying that we need to accept life the way that it is, and through that we can find peace. The Buddhagosa says, “Mere suffering exists, but no sufferer is found.” Furthermore, if we just flow with the suffering, the suffering will not swallow us; we can overcome it.

The second Noble Truth is Samudaya, which is the ‘arising of Dukkha.’ Thirst (tanha) is the main cause of suffering, according to Buddha. Thirst or craving of desires, greed, and sense-pleasures, is the core of all troubles and strife in the world, from family bickerings to wars between nations. The Buddha taught that thirst is the source of all pain and suffering, and that by overcoming thirst, we can overcome suffering, and pain will be eliminated.

The third Noble Truth is Nirodha, which is the ‘cessation of Dukkha.’ Nirodha basically touches base with the Samudaya, and is the letting go of all attachments and thirst. By letting go and detaching from all desires of any kind, we are one step closer to reaching Nirvana. The Buddha believed that our attachments to anything of this world changed our perception on how we handle any situation, and will lead us away from the path to Nirvana.

The fourth Noble Truth is Magga, which is the path to the cessation of Dukkha. Magga is known as the ‘Middle Path’ (Majjhima Patipada), because it avoids two extremes: one being the search for happiness through the pleasure of senses, and the other being the search for happiness through self-mortification and asceticism. The Buddha himself tried both extremes to find happiness, but instead found enlightenment, calm, and insight on the Middle Path. The Middle Path is where we find the Noble Eightfold Path to reach Nirvana.

The first of the Eightfold Path is Right Understanding, which is to understand things with a clear and open mind. The second is Right Thought, which is to keep our thoughts pure and not of worldly desires. The third is Right Speech, which means to abstain from telling lies, creating slander, or any talk that could bring up hatred, and to keep from rude and impolite language. If one speaks of anything that is not useful to benefit from, one should keep ‘noble silence.’ The fourth is Right Action, which promotes moral, honorable, and peaceful conduct. It says that we should stay clear of destroying any form of life, not steal, and also not have ‘dishonest sexual intercourse.’ The fifth is Right Livelihood, which means that one should not be making a living through any profession that brings harm to others, such as, trading weapons, intoxicating drinks, cheating or conning, killing, or being involved with war. The sixth is Right Effort, which is the will to prevent evil and unwholesome thoughts of the mind, and to also hold others accountable to the same effort. The seventh is Right Mindfulness, which is to be aware and attentive to the activities of the body, sensations we feel, and to keep activities of the mind in check. The eighth and final path is the Right Concentration, which to keep unity of mind and body, and to keep meditation on only good things, keeping clear of all bad.

The Buddha never took life out of its social economic background; he looked at it as a whole, in all its social, economic, and political aspects (Rahula, 81). His teachings on ethical, spiritual, and philosophical problems are well known, but very few people in westernized culture know about his views and teachings on economic and political matters. The Buddha believed that poverty created crime such as theft, violence, hatred, cruelty, and so on. The Buddha suggested that the economic condition of the people should change by resources being provided for agriculture, capital should be provided for traders and those engaged in business, and adequate should be paid for the employed. “When people are thus provided for with opportunities for earning a sufficient income, they will be contented, will have no fear or anxiety, and consequently the country will be peaceful; and free from crime” (Rahula, 82), so because of this, the Buddha taught people how important improving economic conditions are to our well-being and us as a whole. A great example of how Buddha’s economics can help society is that of what the king of Thailand did in 1997. Upon the disastrous effects of becoming an export-driven economy, the king called for a slower growth approach and self-reliance, which would allow the country to control its own destiny by returning to the basic Buddhist principles. In 1988, the king challenged to country to become a self-sufficient economy, because he recognized that modernization and the embracing of materialistic objects and values, leads to destructive consequences. He encouraged his people to follow the Buddhist concept of self-reliance, by producing enough to live on while supporting the environment, and knowing what is enough and what is actually just greed. Instead of having our economy depend on war and our military, much like that over many western countries, we need to learn to be self-reliant. Buddhist politics have called for the government to provide basic needs of food, shelter, clothing, and medicine, for the destruction of class distinctions, for the promotion of morality, and for people to overcome the love of property, which will lead to a self-sustaining economy.

The world today lives in constant fear, suspicion, and tension. This may be caused by our increase in science that has produced weapons that are capable of destroying whole civilizations, or the fear that our neighbor will steal what is our own, or that we will lose our homes and maybe starve. Humanity has created the situation of fear themselves, and is longing for a solution that will not bring more harm to ourselves in the process. The message of the Buddha is one of the only peaceful answers to solve most, if not all, of our problems. The Buddha speaks of non-violence, peace, love, compassion, tolerance, understanding, truth, wisdom, respect for all life, and freedom of selfishness, hatred, and violence. As the Buddha says himself, “Never by hatred is hatred appeased, but it is appeased by kindness. This is an eternal truth. One should win anger through kindness, wickedness through goodness, selfishness through charity, and falsehood through truthfulness.” In western society, especially in the United States of America, we are dependent (or so we think) on our military fighting in other countries for our own freedom, or for the freedom of other countries, and we believe that without them we will fall to the ground and be slaves to someone else, or become in total poverty without our economy relying on wars. However, nowhere in history has someone had peace of mind after going to war. Perhaps the country was at peace as a whole from battle for a short period of time, but then that country would eventually be at war again looking for the same peace, but no peace would have come from any individual after such a traumatic experience. We were not designed for battle and chaos. There can be no peace or happiness for any man or woman as long as he desires conquering and dominating their neighbor. As the Buddha spoke on this, “The victor breeds hatred and the defeated lies down in misery. He who renounces both victory and defeat is happy and peaceful. One may conquer millions in battle, but he who conquers himself, only one, is the greatest of conquerors” In sum, the only conquest that brings peace and happiness is self-conquest, and we can achieve self-conquest with discipline of ourselves with the teachings of the Buddha with the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path.

Many people think that by following the Buddhist way of life means total renunciation of society. However, Buddha never specifically said that we must physically run away from the world itself, but instead keep our heart and minds pure of the world. Sariputta, chief disciple of the Buddha, once said that a man who renounces himself from society to live in a forest to devote himself to ascetic practices, but who also might be full of impure thoughts and defilements, is less greater than that of a man who lives a pure life within his village. It is more courageous to practice Buddhism living among fellow beings rather than only living in solitude, because if one only focuses on our own happiness and inner peace, we missed out on the entire teaching of compassion for others and have failed the Four Noble Truths and Noble Eightfold Path. The teachings of the Buddha were designed to help not only ourselves, but also to help each other, and up living harmoniously together. If we follow what is taught in above paragraphs, we can transform our thoughts and actions, which will transform society with peace, love, and respect. In a greater stretch of hope, by correcting people’s views on war, economics, and materialism, we could possibly achieve a more peaceful and harmonious world.

Sources:

Rahula, Walpola. What the Buddha taught /Walpola Sri Rahula. Rev. ed. London [u.a.: Fraser, 1982. Print.