Harsha Kumara Navaratne Chairperson, Executive Committee
Every time that we join together we are reminded that although we come from different backgrounds and work on many different issues, as engaged Buddhists, we share a common vision, common values, and a common commitment to spread this teaching and practice and end all forms of suffering. When INEB first started more than 20 years ago, it provided a space for kalyanamitras to share experiences and support each other with independent initiatives. In recent years, we have been developing more collaborative programs that bring together INEB members around issues of common concern. So much has happened since we last gathered in Bodhgaya, India in 2011 around the theme “The Future of Buddhism: From Personal Awakening to Global Transformation.” Progress has been made on nearly all of the initiatives we discussed in Bodhgaya. The Young Bodhisattva program for youth leaders has continued to expand, and develop and in January 2013, INEB convened an interfaith meeting of Asian women leaders. In September 2012, INEB organized a highly successful interfaith dialog on religion and climate change. More than 150 people representing Buddhist, Hindu, Christian, Islamic, Baha’i, and animist faith traditions gathered together at the Islander Center in Sri Lanka. An outcome of this event was the formation of the Inter-religious Climate and Ecology (ICE) Network. The INEB Secretariat is playing a key role in coordination and follow-up, and has also been representing an engaged Buddhist perspective at international programs on climate change and environmental conservation. The 2012 AC / EC meeting was held as planned and was hosted by the Japanese Network of Engaged Buddhists. During the excellent study tours and side programs, the AC / EC members heard first-hand accounts of the Fukushima nuclear disaster, and many of us were able to travel to the affected areas. This experience made it clear that nuclear power is not a viable solution to the climate crisis, and INEB issued a statement supporting the anti-nuclear campaign. Another initiative that was proposed in Bodhgaya was the Right
Welcome Letter
Welcome to the 2013 gathering of the International Network of Engaged Buddhists
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Welcome Letter
2 Livelihood Fund. There have been multiple workshops and discussions with groups in different parts of the world. We now have a team of legal and financial professionals who are looking at how to take this forward as a social enterprise and supporters, like Lodi Gyari Rinpoche, who are willing to take key leadership roles. We should have more news on this initiative in the coming months. Some of the activities in the past two years were not anticipated in 2011. One of these was the emergence of the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC). INEB was actively involved in organizing the founding members conclave in India in September 2013. Almost all of the Buddhist traditions, schools and countries were represented. The INEB Secretariat will be taking a lead role on implementing some of the proposed activities with a particular focus on youth outreach and climate change. We hope that in the future, INEB and IBC collaboration will be a big support for all our kalyanamitras who are committed to engaged Buddhist activity. Another new development was the emergence of BuddhistMuslim violence as an international news story, particularly in countries like Myanmar and Sri Lanka. INEB has worked with other international groups like International Movement for a Just World (JUST), to hold a series of discussions on how to address the roots of these violent conflicts. This resulted in the theme for this year’s conference: “Inter-Faith Dialog for Peace and Sustainability” and the special “International Buddhist-Muslim Forum on Peace and Sustainability.” Finally, since the last time we were all together, we celebrated the eightieth birthday of our founder, Ajahn Sulak Sivaraksa. Although he says he is no longer fit to travel, he continues to accept invitations to all parts of the world. His energy and commitment inspire us all to continue with this work. We hope he will use his beautiful collection of walking sticks to travel with us for many more miles to come. With that, I welcome you all to Kuala Lumpur for the 2013 Conference and the AC / EC meeting of the International Network of Engaged Buddhists.
Welcome Letter
Welcome Letter Conference Overview Youth Empowerment for Social Justice, Peace and Sustainability Buddhist Muslim Exposure Tour International Buddhist–Muslim Forum on Peace and Sustainability INEB 2013 Conference Programme Schedule
Articles Beginning Anew Before the Inter-Faith Dialogue for Peace and Sustainability Shared Commitment of Action Towards a Culture of Peace: A Buddhist Perspective BUDDHIST ECONOMICS : A Middle Path of Radical Change? The Inescapable “GENDER ORDER”: Confused Thoughts on the Rule of “RECEIVING PRECEPTS IN BOTH ORDERS” Rinsho Buddhist Chaplain Training Program Tradition and Modernity: Religion and Spirituality in a changing world
Overview of INEB
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Overview of INEB
APPENDIX 1: Melaka (Malacca)
23 Articles
International Buddhist-Muslim Joint Statement :
1 4 6 9 10 11 14 23
Conference Overview
CONTENTS
Conference Overview
Conference Overview
Background and Rationale
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The social and environmental issues we face today affect people of all religions. Modern trends towards materialism, consumerism, urbanization, corporate globalization and nationalism are contributing to a wide range of inter-connected challenges: depression, loneliness and suicide, poverty and inequality, communal conflict, environmental degradation and climate change. As we search for new paths, our religious traditions have a critical role to play. Religious teachings and practices help us move beyond the material. They shape our understanding of the world, our values, and our behavior. Religious teachers and practitioners recognize that personal transformation is the root of global transformation. In recognition of these shared challenges and opportunities, the International Network of Engaged Buddhists (INEB) has been expanding its programs to increase dialog, understanding, and collaboration across traditional religious divides. This includes divides between institutions and sects in the Buddhist tradition and divides between religious traditions. In recent years, INEB has participated in and organized interfaith programs on greed and consumerism, women’s leadership and gender issues, peace and human rights, and climate change and biodiversity. Every two years, INEB organizes an international gathering of kalyanamitras, which means spiritual friends. In these biennial gatherings known as the INEB Conference, opportunities are provided to discuss and formulate ways to address these social issues, to learn more about the specific context and challenges of the host country and to exchange more broadly between participants from all of the countries. The first INEB Conference was held in 1989 in Uthai Thani, north of Bangkok, and have since been held in Bodhgaya(India), Chiang Mai(Siam), Taiwan, Nagpur(India), South Korea and Sri Lanka. The 2013 INEB Conference will be in Malaysia, and will provide an opportunity to increase understanding and engagement with the majority Muslim community. This is a timely event. In recent years, there have been examples of Buddhist and Muslim tensions in Thailand, Indonesia,
Objectives The conference organizers share the overall goal of creating a just, peaceful, and sustainable global society. The specific objectives of the conference are to: Increase Buddhist-Muslim understanding and develop mechanisms for future collaboration Promote inter-faith dialog, exchange and collaboration on issues of common concern Celebrate and expand the spirit of kalyanamitra and inter-faith friendship
Conference Overview
Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. Buddhism and Islam are the two most prevalent religions in Southeast Asia. It is vital that strong bonds of mutual respect and compassion between these two great faiths are maintained and nurtured. In 2006, INEB organized a Buddhist-Muslim dialog on justice and peace at the Suan Dusit Rajabhat in Bangkok, which resulted in the Dusit Declaration. This has been reviewed and revised as the International Buddhist-Muslim Joint Statement: Shared Commitment of Action, Bangkok, Siam (Thailand), 16 June 2013. The 2013 INEB Conference in Malaysia will build on these past programs and include a BuddhistMuslim youth camp, study tours, and dialog on Buddhist-Muslim relations. Participants from all countries will have an opportunity to learn about the Malaysian experience with inter-sectoral and inter-faith dialog and collaboration. Besides the dialog, Muslim representatives will be invited to participate in the INEB conference activities to further encourage and foster greater understanding and cooperation. Muslim representatives as well as other representatives from other religions will also be invited.
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Interfaith Awareness Youth Camp
Youth Empowerment for Social Justice, Peace and Sustainability
Conference Overview
October 27th ~ 31st, 2013 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
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Are you passionate about building a sustainable world? Do you see sustainability about more than just the cleaning products you use? Sustainability is not only for the environment, but also spirituality of human beings. In this youth camp, you will create awareness about global issues of common concern and shared values, and develop relationships that can support further collaboration and action.
What You Can Take Home • Awareness of environmental issues and social injustice • Holistic worldview for sustainability • Empowerment of next generation for social transformation with justice, harmony and sustainability • Deep connection with nature and deep connection with each other for creating a strong network of youth in action.
Key activities • Community & Trust building: to create trust among the participants, to open up the heart, the mind and prepare the body for learning, and to create a community of learning • Metta & Gratitude: to build a deep sense of loving kindness and gratitude to the earth, mankind and all beings through deep ecology exercises, and to build awareness and understanding that we all are part of the web of life; the concept of ‘Co-Existence’ • Concerns: to share our concerns of injustices in society, the collapsing of ecosystems that affect all beings. • Positive Vision for a Sustainable World: to create a positive vision for a harmonious and sustainable future • Action Plan: to find passion to take action towards a positive future, creating an action plan and commitment • Networking and Group Strengthening: to look at why networking is important and how can we create a good network that will keep spreading inspiration • Socially Engaged Spirituality: to connect deeply with the core of our spirituality, look for our inner qualities that will help us accomplish our mission for social justice, peace and a sustainable world • Celebration: to celebrate our hearts, our minds, our bodies which are committed to bring social justice, peace and a sustainable world, and to celebrate the earth, the web of life that we are all part of.
Conference Overview
Targeted Participants • Young men and women between 18 and 35 years • Actively engaged as social activists, community leaders, religious teachers and practitioners
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Facilitators: Venerable Balangoda Ananda Manjusri
Conference Overview
is a Sri Lankan Buddhist monk ordained in 1995. After graduating in 2006, he joined Sewalanka Foundation one of the leading development organizations in Sri Lanka and started working as a coordinator for interfaith dialogue, and a trainer for conflict sensitivity for staff, young clergy and youth leaders. He is currently working as international program coordinator.
Sunisa Jamwiset
lived and worked at the eco-community of Wongsanit Ashram in Thailand for 8 years. Here she trained and started working as a facilitator. She then spent one year living and working at the Panya Project, a permaculture based community in Chiang Mai. Here she got the chance to interact with nature more deeply in everyday living. www.gaiaschoolasia.com
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Trudy Juriansz
is a social worker and educator by heart. She finds her niche in alternate systems of education and youth empowerment. Before returning to Sri Lanka in 2012 she worked in Myanmar, supporting organizational development, youth initiatives and teaching about our environment and sustainability. Organized by :
Sponsor :
Buddhist Muslim Study Tour October 30th ~ 31st, 2013 Putrajaya and Malacca, Malaysia
Conference Overview
9 On the 30th of October, we will depart Kuala Lumpur for an exposure trip to Malaysia’s Federal Administrative Capital - Putrajaya. In Putrajaya, in the Prime Minister’s office, there is a special Department of National Unity and Integration, which houses inter-faith relations. We will be meeting the department through the Committee to Promote Understanding Among Religious Adherents. Representatives from the department and its interfaith council will be sharing about the relevant ministries approach, strategies, programmes, and challenges in the field. Putrajaya’s vision is to be the World’s First Intelligent Garden City. It is conceptualised based on three simple ideologies that cover the spiritual, social, and natural; an eco-friendly tech city - technology that exists in harmony with nature. Thus, a tour of Putrajaya will conclude the visit. On the 31st of October, Malacca - a UNESCO World Heritage Site - will be the site of our exposure trip. It is a site of convergence of Buddhist and Islamic civilization brought about by the traders and sea merchants. It provides inspiration as to how cultures have intertwined and how communities have grown together. For more context & historical background: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1223
“Whoever is lord of Malacca shall have his hands on the throat of Venice.” Portuguese writer and trader, Tome Pires, 1512-1515
INTERNATIONAL BUDDHIST-MUSLIM FORUM ON PEACE AND SUSTAINABILITY. November 1st, 2013
Conference Overview
Institut Kefahaman Islam Malaysia (IKIM), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
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Institut Kefahaman Islam Malaysia (IKIM), the International Network of Engaged Buddhists (INEB) and the International Movement for a Just World (JUST) are pleased to announce that an International Buddhist-Muslim Forum on Peace and Sustainability will be held at IKIM, Kuala Lumpur on the 1st of November 2013. The Forum will focus on issues that impact upon Peace and Sustainability and how Muslims and Buddhists can further advance these goals. Malaysia has been chosen as the venue of the Forum because of the peace and harmony that has prevailed between the majority Muslim and minority Buddhist communities for a long period of time within the context of a sustainable political, economic and social system. Former Malaysian Prime Minister and IKIM Chairman, Yang Amat Berbahagia Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi will deliver the Opening Address at the Forum. The speakers will be Prof. Datin Dr. Azizan bt Baharuddin, the Deputy Director-General of IKIM; Dr. Chandra Muzaffar, President of JUST; Ajarn Sulak Sivaraksa, the founder of INEB; and Rev. Alan Senauke, Advisory Committee of INEB and Clear View Project, USA. Government officials, leaders of various religious communities, academics, NGO activists and members of the public will participate in the Forum. Organized by :
Institut Kefahaman Islam Malaysia
International Movement for a Just World
INEB 2013 Conference
Inter-Faith Dialog for Peace and Sustainability November 2nd-4th, 2013 Buddhist Maha Vihara, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Conference Overview
11 www.buddhistmahavihara.com
The Inter-Faith Dialog for Peace and Sustainability will be held on November 2nd, 3rd and 4th 2013. This biennial event will be expanded to invite Muslim and other faiths to participate actively in the program. This event will be organized around key INEB program areas and will provide an opportunity for working groups to provide updates, get input, and expand outreach. The INEB biennial conference provides an opportunity to look beyond regional politics to see issues of common concern and opportunities for collaboration and exchange.
INEB 2011 Conference, Bodhgaya, India
Conference Overview
The event will open with a keynote speaker and a panel on interfaith dialog and collaboration. The afternoon and evening sessions on the first and second day will be used for parallel sessions on issues of common concern. Suggested topics include:
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• Planet, People and Profit: Business for a New Economy • Tradition and Modernity: Spirituality and Religion in a Changing World • Conflict Transformation • Faith, Climate, and Ecology: Inter-Faith Response to Climate Change • Responses to Nuclear and Alternative Energy • The Pursuit of Happiness: Policy for Wellbeing and “Gross National Happiness” • Loneliness, Illness and Death: Spiritual Guidance for Challenging Times • Half the Sky: Women in Society • Yuppie, Hippie, Dropout: Young Leaders Making New Paths • Eating is a Religious Act: Mindfulness and Food Systems • Spiritual Arts The third day starts with a World Café in the main hall, which is an informal non-structured, relaxed open ended discussion regarding topics of the participants choosing, and with whom they choose to engage. This is followed by an informal discussion where participants can choose to bring up and present to everyone any topic of their choosing and persuade the audience to join his/her discussion. A session for ideas on the collaborative platform will also be held. All participants will then come back together for a facilitated sharing and summary session and a closing ceremony.
INEB Advisory Committee and Executive Committee Meeting The INEB AC and EC meeting will be held on November 5th 2013. AC and EC members will review reports from 2013 and budgets and plans for 2014, and discuss a long term strategy for strengthening INEB regional networks, program activities and inter-faith partnerships. Conference Overview
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INEB AC/EC Meeting in Japan, 2012
INEB 2013 Conference
Inter-Faith Dialog for Peace and Sustainability Overall Schedule
Conference Overview
Affiliated Events
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October 27-31, 2013
Interfaith Awareness Youth Camp Youth Empowerment for Social Justice, Peace and Sustainability
October 30-31, 2013
Buddhist Muslim Exposure Tour to Putrajaya and Malacca.
November 1, 2013
International Buddhist – Muslim Forum on Peace and Sustainability
November 2-4, 2013
INEB 2013 Conference
November 5, 2013
INEB Advisory Committee / Executive Committee Meeting (by invitation)
Buddhist-Muslim Study Tour Daily Schedule
Wednesday, October 30, 2013 Depart from Buddhist Maha Vihara, KL
08:30
Arrive at Malaysia’s Federal Administrative Capital - Putrajaya. Meeting and dialogues with Department of National Unity and Integration -a department in the Prime Minister’s office. Learning and sharing approaches to interfaith harmony.
11:00
Leave Putrajaya & Lunch
14:00
Arrive at Melaka (Malacca) Settle & short rest in Seck Kia Eenh Buddhist Temple*
16:00
Study Tour: Cheng Hoon Teng Temple On the “Harmony Street” of Malacca lies Chen Hoon Teng temple (青云亭; Temple of Green Cloud). It was founded in the 1600s by the Chinese Kapitan Tay Kie Ki alias Tay Hong Yong. During the Portuguese and Dutch eras, Kapitans were appointed chiefs or headmen of the various ethnic communities. In its early years, besides serving the community’s religious needs, the temple also functioned as the official administrative centre and a court of justice for the Kapitans. The Cheng Hoon Teng temple is a Chinese temple practicing the Three Doctrinal Systems of Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism. It is Malaysia’s oldest functioning temple; it ranks among the most significant in Southeast Asia, being central to the spiritual aspirations of the Chinese community in historic Malacca. (with an UNESCO award for outstanding architectural restoration). More info: http://www.chenghoonteng.org.my/ Meeting & dialogues with committee & communities
18:00
Dinner is served
19:00
Free & Easy time in Melaka
Conference Overview
07:00
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Thursday, October 31, 2013 07:00 – 08:30
Breakfast
09:00
Study Tour: Masjid Kampung Keling Mosque
Conference Overview
This traditional mosque was built by Indian Muslim traders in 1748. It is one that still retains its original design. The architectural design of the mosque is a cross between Sumatran (Indonesia), Chinese, Hindu, and the Melaka Malay. The minaret resembles a pagoda. The mosque also has a blend of English and Portuguese glazed tiles, Corinthian columns with symmetrical arches in the main prayer hall, a Victorian chandelier, a wooden pulpit with Hindu and Chinesestyle carvings, and Moorish cast iron lamp-posts in the place of ablution for pre-prayer cleansing.
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Meeting and dialogues with committee & communities 11:00
Lunch
12:00
Visit to Dutch Church, A’ Famosa & historical sites
15:00
Depart back to Kuala Lumpur
17:00
Arrival at Brickfields Maha Vihara
* Subject to unforeseen changes
Note:
Participants can leave their luggage in locked rooms at the Buddhist Maha Vihara. Everyone is advised to wear appropriate formal clothings for the meeting at the Department of National Unity and Integration, Putrajaya. Thereafter, bring sufficient change of clothes and personal items for an overnight stay in Melaka. Kindly prepare appropriate attire to enter religious sites without forgetting to suit your attire to the tropical climate of Malaysia.
International Buddhist – Muslim Forum on Peace and Sustainability Day 1: Friday, November 1, 2013 at Institut Kefahaman Islam Malaysia (Institute of Islamic Understanding, Malaysia) Registration and Arrival of Guests
09:00 – 09:30
Welcome by IKIM, INEB & JUST YBhg. Datuk Nik Mustapha bin Nik Hassan (Director-General, Institute of Islamic Understanding Malaysia) Harsha Kumara Navaratne (Chair of INEB Executive Committee) Anas Zubedy (Secretary General of JUST)
09:30 – 10:00
Speech and address by YAB Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Former Prime Minister of Malaysia and Chairman of IKIM
09:30 – 11:30
THEME: INTER-FAITH DIALOGUE FOR PEACE AND SUSTAINBILITY YBhg. Prof. Datin Dr. Azizanbt.Baharuddin, Deputy DirectorGeneral, Institute of Islamic Understanding Malaysia Dr. Chandra Muzaffar, President of International Movement for a Just World (JUST) Sulak Sivaraksa, Founder and Co-Chair Advisor Committee of INEB Rev. Alan Senauke, Advisory Committee of INEB and Clear View Project, USA Moderator: Prof. Dr. Mohd Hazim Shah
12:00 – 14:00
Lunch & Networking
14:00 – 16:00
Tour IKIM
16:00 – 17:00
Participants leave for Buddhist Maha-Vihara (followed by briefing and introduction BMV, Brickfields)
17:00 – 18:00
BRICKFIELDS WALKABOUT
18:30
Dinner is served. Followed by free-time for the rest of the evening
Conference Overview
08:30 – 09:00
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Day 2: Saturday, November 2, 2013 Buddhist Maha-Vihara 06:00 – 07:00 MEDITATION & PUJA 07:00 – 08:30 Breakfast
Conference Overview
09:00 – 09:10 Opening chanting & prayer by Sri Lankan Theravada Group 09:10 – 09:30
Welcome by Chair of INEB Executive Committee Harsha Kumara Navaratne
09:20 – 09:30
Welcome by host Buddhist Maha Vihara
09:30 – 10:00
Keynote speaker: Spirit of the Future ~ Is Peace possible? By Maung Zarni, A Burmese multiculturalist & Visiting Fellow (2011-15), London School of Economics
10:00 – 10:15
Break
10:15 – 10:30
Panel Sessions: Spirit of the Future ~ Is Peace possible? Ashin Pyinnya Thami (Myanmar)* Ven. Phra Paisal Visalo (Siam-Thailand) Dharmachari Lokamitra (India) Charlito “Kaloy” Manlupig (Philippines) Dr. Mujahid Yusof Rawa (Malaysia)* Moderator: Veronica Pedrosa, Aljazeera Media
11:30 – 13:30
Lunch
13:30 – 16:30
Parallel Session A: 1. Planet, People and Profit: Business for a New Economy 2. Tradition and Modernity: Spirituality and Religion in a Changing World 3. Loneliness, Illness and Death: Spiritual Guidance for Changing Times 4. Faith, Climate and Ecology: Inter-faith Response to Climate Change 5. Eating is a Religious Act: Mindfulness and Food Systems 6. Politics, Governance and Policies Reporting back and general discussion
17:30 – 19:00
Dinner
19:00 – 22:00
Documentary film on “Inter-religious Dialogue on Climate Change and Biodiversity Conservation”. 25 minutes (Optional)
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Day 3: Sunday, November 3, 2013 Buddhist Maha-Vihara MEDITATION & PUJA
07:00 – 08:30
Breakfast
09:00 – 09:10
Opening chanting & prayer by Japanese Buddhist Group
09:10 – 09:40
Keynote Speakers: Spirit of the Future ~ Is Sustainability possible? By Dr. Chamniern Vorratnchaiphan, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)
09:40 – 10:00
Break
10:00 – 11:30
Panel Sessions: Spirit of the Future ~ Is Sustainability possible? Ven. Chao Hwei Shih (Taiwan) Lanh Thi Tran (Vietnam) Henrique de Freitas (Brazil) Tengku Ahmad Hazri (Malaysia)* Moderator: Rev. Masazumi Okano
11:30 – 13:30
Lunch
13:30 – 16:30
Parallel Session B: 1. The Pursuit of Happiness: Policy of Wellbeing and “Gross National Happiness” 2. Half the Sky: Women in Society 3. Yuppie, Hippie, Dropout: Young Leaders Making New Paths 4. Conflict & Social Transformation 5. Responses to Nuclear and Alternative Energy 6. Spiritual Arts 7. It’s a Child’s World. Keep It! Reporting back and general discussion
17:30 – 19:00
Dinner
19:00 – 22:00
Cultural Performance & Exchange
Conference Overview
06:00 – 07:00
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Day 4: Monday, November 4, 2013
Conference Overview
Buddhist Maha-Vihara
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06:00 – 07:00
MEDITATION AND PUJA
07:00 – 08:30
Breakfast
08:30 – 08:40
Opening chanting & prayer
08:40 – 10:00
World Café / Open Space Followed by Summary Presentations
10:00 – 10:30
Closing Summary & Announcement of INEB 2015
10:30 – 11:00
Closing Remarks by Dr. Chandra Muzaffar, President of International Movement for a Just World (JUST) Sulak Sivaraksa, Founder and Co-Chair of INEB Advisory Committee Closing Blessings, Group Picture
11:30 – 13:30
Lunch
13:30 – 16:30
Zen Tea Retreat(茶禅) Facilitate by Dr. Hsiang-Chou Yo (Taiwan)
17:30 – 19:00
Dinner
Parallel Sessions A: / Date : 2 November 2013 / Time: 13.30-16.30 Planet, People and Profit: Business for a New Economy • Kenneth Low, Right Livelihood Fund • Tan Huat Chye, Entreprenurer, Malaysia • Social Venture Network (Thailand) Asia* • Chan Fook Min, Facilitator
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Tradition and Modernity: Spirituality and Religion in a Changing World • Ven. Paisal Visalo, Buddhika Network, Thailand • Prof. Sudha Rani, VIHARA, Tamilnadu, India • Liau Kok Meng, Malaysian Network of engaged Buddhists (MNEB) • Gauthama Prabhu, Facilitator
3
Loneliness, Illness and Death: Spiritual Guidance for Changing Times • Ven. Hui Min, Dhamma Drum Mountain, Taiwan* • Goh Pik Pin, Kasih Hospice, Malaysia* • Jonathan Watts, Japan Network of Engaged Buddhists, Facilitator
4
Faith, Climate and Ecology: Inter-faith Response to Climate Change • Ven. Kon Li, Green Gathering Project, Malaysia* • Ven. Bhikkhu Sanghasena, Mahabodhi International Meditation Center, Ladakh, India • Chamniern Vorratnchaiphan, International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) • Prashant Varma, Deer Park Institute, India, Facilitator
5
Eating is a Religious Act: Mindfulness and Food Systems • Amanda Kiessel, Good Markets, Sri Lanka • Hatijah Hashim, Consumer Association of Penang • Michiyo Furuhashi, Konohana Family, Japan, Facilitator
6
Politics, Governance and Policies • Mangesh Dahiwale, Jambodvipa Trust, India* • Ng Sai Kai, Subang Jaya City Council (MPSJ), Malaysia • Chalida Thacharoensak, Community Potentials Foundation, Thailand • The Chi-Chang, Research for Social Advancement, Malaysia
Conference Overview
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Conference Overview
Parallel Sessions B: / Date : 3 November 2013 / Time: 13.30-16.30
1
The Pursuit of Happiness: Policy of Wellbeing and “Gross National Happiness”
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Half the sky: Women in Society • Ven. Chao Hwei, Hongchi College, Taiwan • Stella Tamang, Alternative Traditional Learning and Development Centre, Nepal • P. Lalidambelle, ADECOM Network, Puducherry, India • Bogyean Ok, Institute for Religion and Gender Research, South Korea • Anchalee Kuratach, Buddhist Peace Fellowship (USA), Facilitator
3
Yuppie, Hippie, Dropout: Young Leaders Making New Paths • Alan Senauke, Clear View Project, USA • Ven. Thanomsing Sukosalo, Dhamma Drops Foundation, Thailand • Goh Qing Song, Young Buddhist Association Malaysia (YBAM) • Dato’ Saifuddin Abdullah, former Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Malaysia • Suresh Chandra Bauddha, Youth Buddhist Society of India (YBS), India • Kenneth Low, Facilitator
4
Conflict & Social Transformation • Francesco Candelari, The Internation a Fellowship of Reconciliation (IFoR)* • Charlito “Kaloy” Manlupig, Balay Mindanao & Action Asia, the Philippines • Ven. Ananda Manjusri, Sewalanka Foundation, Sri Lanka • Jill Jameson, Buddhist Peace Fellowship (Australia), Facilitator
5
Responses to Nuclear and Alternative Energy • Rev. Hidehito Okochi, Japan Network of Engaged Buddhists, Japan • Jonathan Watts, Japan Network of Engaged Buddhists, Japan, Facilitator
6
Spiritual Arts • Suresh Jindal, Devki Foundation, India • Ven. Kai Yin, Santavana Forest Hermitage, Malaysia* • John Badalu, Indonesia*
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It’s a Child’s World. Keep It! • Chong Wai Leng, Learning Beyond Schooling • Melva Yola, Dhammajala, Indonesia* • Jonson Chong, KDU College, Malaysia
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• Prof. Hisashi Nakamura, Japan • Tashi Zangmo, Bhutan Nuns’ Foundation
Articles
Sulak Sivaraksa
Bhikkhu Buddhadasa
Articles
hikkhu Buddhadasa (1906-1993), perhaps the most well known Siamese Buddhist monk, declared that to follow the Buddha one must practice the best of his teaching i.e. how to transform greed into generosity, hatred into loving-kindness and delusion into wisdom or real understanding—one should learn to be less selfish and care more for other sentient beings. He argued that the essence of other religions is similar in encouraging followers to work for personal liberation as well as for social justice and environmental balance. One should not regard our friends’ religions as inferior to ours. Each religion is unique. If we understand to translate worldly language into spiritual language, we would respect all the scriptures whether the Bible or the Koran, as they are to guide us to be better human beings, to serve others more than oneself. Those of different religions should work together, also with nonbelievers, for the betterment of humankind.
Beginning Anew Before the Inter-Faith Dialogue for Peace and Sustainability
Beginning Anew Before the Inter-Faith Dialogue for Peace and Sustainability
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Beginning Anew Before the Inter-Faith Dialogue for Peace and Sustainability
Articles
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Any clashes from different religious perspectives should be taken not so seriously and people should face one another as friends—not enemies; and try to listen to each other. A dialogue could take place, if one would not only lend our ears to others, but one must also open our eyes and our hearts to learn from others respectfully and humbly. One should also teach oneself that those who tell us what we normally do not expect to hear are our good friends. If what he or she said is nonsensical, he or she should be forgiven. If however, what was said could be a good criticism on our wrong belief or bad conduct, we should feel grateful and learn to develop critical self awareness for our own spiritual growth. Whatever wrong doing we or our ancestors have done to others, we should ask for their forgiveness to begin anew. As Thich Nhat Hanh wisely guides us in the following stanzas: We are thoughtless, straying from the path of mindfulness. We are a storehouse of suffering, worries, and anxieties due to wrong perceptions. And we have become weary of life. Because we do not understand others, we maintain ill-will against them. Even after our dispute with them has been resolved, we continue to feel enmity, making the rift greater. There are days when we are unwilling to speak to each other, unwilling to look each other in the face, and we create internal formations. Now we turn to the Three Jewels. Sincerely recognizing our errors, we bow our heads. We know so well that in our consciousness are buried all the wholesome seeds--seeds of love and understanding, and seeds of peace and joy. But if we do not know how to water them, and we always allow sorrow to overwhelm them, how can they spring up fresh and green? When we chase after a distant happiness, life becomes but a shadow of reality. Our mind is always occupied by the past or worrying about this and that in the future. We cannot let go of our anger, and we long for what we have to be permanent, thereby trampling on real happiness.
As month follows month, we are sunk in sorrow. So now we recognize our errors and begin anew, fragant as a breath of fresh air.
Articles
We ask the Lord of Compassion to be our protector on the wonderful path of practice. We vow to practice all aspects of the path with energy so that our practice may bear fruit.
Beginning Anew Before the Inter-Faith Dialogue for Peace and Sustainability
With all our heart we go for refuge, turning to the Buddhas in the ten directions and all the bodhisattvas, noble disciples, and self-achieved Buddhas. Very sincerely we recognize our errors and the mistakes of our wrong judgements. Please bring the balm of clear water to pour on the roots of our afflictions. Please bring the raft of the true teachings to carry us over the ocean of sorrows. We vow to live an awakened life, to learn the path of true happiness, and to practice smiling and conscious breathing. Diligently, we live in mindfulness. We come back to live in the wonderful present, to plant our heart’s garden with good seeds, and to make strong foundations of understanding and love. We follow the way of mindfulness, the practice of looking and understanding deeply to be able to see the nature of all this, and so to be free of the bonds of birth and death. We learn to speak lovingly, to be affectionate, to care for others whether it is early morn or late afternoon, to bring the roots of joy to many places, helping people to abandon sorrow; to respond with deep gratitude to the kindness of parents, teacher, and friends.
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International Buddhist-Muslim Joint Statement : Shared Commitment of Action
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International Buddhist-Muslim Joint Statement : Shared Commitment of Action
Bangkok, Thailand | 16 June 2013
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uddhist and Muslim leaders from South and Southeast Asian countries including India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, and Thailand, have gathered in Bangkok, Thailand to address escalating tensions between two communities and potential spread of hatred across the region. The consultation was coorganized by the International Network of Engaged Buddhists (INEB), the International Movement for a Just World (JUST), and Religions for Peace (RfP). We recognize these challenges facing the two communities in the region: 1) Rise of extremism, hate speeches and campaigns and instigation of religious discrimination and violence; 2) Prejudice, fear and hatred caused by ignorance, misperception, stereotyping, negative impact of traditional and social media, simplification and generalization, and communal pressure; 3) Misuse of religion by certain religious, political and other interest groups and individuals; 4) Socio economic dimensions of conflict; and 5) Spillover effects across the region. We are also deeply aware that if Buddhist and Muslim communities
International Buddhist-Muslim Joint Statement : Shared Commitment of Action
can overcome the challenges that confront them, there is tremendous potential for the growth and development of ideas and values that may help to transform the region. For Buddhist and Muslim philosophies embody gems of wisdom about the purpose of life, the position and role of the human being and her relationship with all other sentient beings and nature which could well liberate contemporary civilization from its multiple crises. The young in these two communities in particular should be imbued with these profound ideas and values about life and its meaning. We endorse the Dusit Declaration of 28 June 2006 and commit ourselves to implementing its shared action across the region. Our actions will include intra-religious and inter-religious initiatives in education, advocacy, rapid reaction/solidarity visits/early warning/ conflict prevention, constructive engagement with the government, strategic common action, and the effective use of media for positive messages. We will also engage in multi-stakeholder partnerships with governments, inter-governmental bodies such as the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC), the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and the United Nations. Dusit Declaration 28 June 2006, Bangkok
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A Buddhist–Muslim Dialogue on the theme ‘Buddhists and Muslims in Southeast Asia working towards justice and peace’ was held at the Suan Dusit Place of Suan Dusit Rajabhat University, Bangkok from 2628 June 2006. It was organised jointly by the Santi Pracha Dhamma Institute (SPDI), International Network of Engaged Buddhists (INEB) and International Movement for a Just World (JUST). A total of 35 participants from eight countries attended the threeday Dialogue. Most of the participants were Buddhists and Muslims from Southeast Asia. A number of them were socially-engaged scholars and grassroots activists. The Dialogue was part of a continuous process of interaction and engagement among individuals from the two communities that had begun ten years ago. Since Buddhists and Muslims constitute the overwhelming majority of Southeast Asia’s 550 million people, dialogue aimed at enhancing understanding and empathy between the two communities is vital for peace and harmony in the region. In view of the critical situation in Southern Thailand, the Dialogue on this occasion
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International Buddhist-Muslim Joint Statement : Shared Commitment of Action
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assumed special significance. Apart from Southern Thailand, the Dialogue also reflected upon issues of concern pertaining to the two communities in a number of other Southeast Asian countries. The Dialogue observed that for most of history relations between Buddhists and Muslims have been relatively harmonious. This has been due largely to a certain degree of mutual respect and a willingness to accommodate differences. This historical backdrop should provide the two communities with the strength and resilience to overcome the challenges that confront them today. In order to overcome these challenges, the Dialogue made the following proposals: 1. Civil society groups should utilise to the fullest various information and communication channels with the aim of increasing knowledge and understanding among Buddhists and Muslims of the principal teachings of their respective religions. Towards this end, SPDI, INEB and JUST undertake to produce a series of monographs in all the Southeast Asian languages which will emphasise the fundamental values and principles in Buddhism and Islam that give meaning to justice and peace. An attempt will also be made to disseminate documentaries on interreligious harmony that embody real life episodes through various local communication channels as well as via webcasting, podcasting and broadcasting. 2. The mainstream print and electronic media should highlight those moral values and ethical standards that Buddhism and Islam share in common, and at the same time explain differences in doctrines and rituals with sensitivity. It should also regard it as a duty to eradicate stereotypes and prejudices about the two religions. The media should not aggravate inter-religious ties by distorting and sensationalising events that have implications for religious harmony. In this regard, the media should not allow itself to be manipulated by opportunistic politicians and public personalities who abuse religion and nationalism for their own agendas. Civil society groups should establish ‘media watches’ to monitor media reporting on matters pertaining to inter-religious ties. 3. Schools and universities should introduce and expand courses that seek to promote better understanding between Buddhists and Muslims. Since both religions are committed to justice and peace, it would be worthwhile to increase peace studies programmes at all levels of formal education which focus on non-violence in conflict resolution. School
and university curricula should not contain materials which create animosity and perpetuate prejudice between religious and ethnic communities. Civil society groups can help to initiate the development of curricula that reflect Buddhism’s and Islam’s concern for justice and peace. At the same time, they should monitor school and university curricula to ensure that they do not have a negative impact on inter-religious ties.
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5. Government leaders and politicians should consciously nurture harmonious relations between Buddhists and Muslims and among people of other faiths through both their public pronouncements and policies. It would be utterly irresponsible of government leaders and politicians to exploit religious sentiments for narrow political gain. They should instead initiate meaningful reforms to existing political structures which would protect and strengthen the rights and dignity of the different religious communities. In certain situations it may even be necessary to devolve political authority through the empowerment of disenfranchised religious communities. To endow substance to the empowerment of the community, government and political leaders should adhere to moral principles such as transparency and accountability. Civil society and the media should not hesitate to expose irresponsible leaders who divide the followers of different religions in pursuit of their self-serving political agendas. Apart from looking at the challenges facing Buddhists and Muslims in Southeast Asia as a whole, the Dialogue also addressed immediate
International Buddhist-Muslim Joint Statement : Shared Commitment of Action
4. Buddhist and Muslim religious leaders should within the context of their respective faiths emphasise those ideas and values which conduce towards inter-religious harmony and the celebration of our common humanity. They should discard the tendency to be exclusive in their outlook and consciously cultivate a more inclusive and universal orientation towards religion. Differences between the two religions should not be allowed to create cleavages between their followers. Buddhist monks and the ulama should work together to eliminate prejudices, hatreds and misconceptions that sometimes tend to separate the two communities. Both should adopt a principled position against violence, especially the killing of civilians, and the destruction of places of worship regardless of who or what the target is. In this connection, civil society groups should engage with religious leaders in order to encourage them to become more inclusive and universal in outlook and more positively orientated towards justice and peace.
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International Buddhist-Muslim Joint Statement : Shared Commitment of Action
and urgent issues obtaining in specific country situations. The focus was of course on Southern Thailand.
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6. In the case of Myanmar, there was concern over attempts by the government to control religious activities to the detriment of the communities in question. The state itself appears to be a purveyor of prejudice against certain religious communities. In Indonesia, the adverse socio-economic and socio-political situation has had a negative impact upon inter-religious relations. Unethical methods of proselytisation by groups within a particular religious community allegedly supported by foreign elements have led to a further deterioration in majority-minority ties. There is also a need for the Malaysian state to be more sensitive to some of the legitimate interests of its non-Muslim minorities. 7. The Dialogue was of the view that the recommendations of the National Reconciliation Commission (NRC) established to study the situation in Southern Thailand deserve the wholehearted support of the nation. It is significant that the NRC declared in unambiguous terms that religion is not the cause of the violence in the South. Injustices arising from the existing judicial process and administrative system and poverty and deprivation are more important contributory factors. Historical and cultural conditions have also played a role in prodding militants to resort to violence which has been met with excessive force by the state. The NRC recommends a whole gamut of measures to overcome the violence. Among them is the establishment of a Peaceful Strategic Administrative Center for Southern Border Provinces (PSAC) which inter alia would seek to promote understanding of the situation and methods to solve the problem in all government agencies among people in the region in Thai society at large and in the international community. There is also a proposal for the state to engage in dialogue with the militants and to act decisively against state officials who abuse their power. There are also other recommendations for solving the unemployment problem, building confidence in the judicial process and improving the education system. 8. The Dialogue also proposed that civil society undertake to ascertain the sentiments of the people in the three troubled provinces of Pattani, Narathiwat and Yala about the form of local governance that they prefer. A petition with at least 50,000 signatures on the form of governance they opt for should then be presented to Parliament for deliberation. This would be in accordance with the Thai Constitution
and would reflect the democratic will of the people of the three provinces.
11. Both Buddhists and Muslims from neighbouring countries especially those representing the influential strata in religion, politics and the media should assist in whatever way possible in the process of dialogue and reconciliation in southern Thailand. More specifically they should try to strengthen a more inclusive and universal approach to both religions informed by values of justice, compassion and forgiveness.
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Enhancing understanding and empathy between Buddhists and Muslims in Southeast Asia has become imperative in view of the overwhelming power and influence of contemporary global capitalism rooted in global hegemony. The hegemonic power of global capitalism is the new ‘religion’ which threatens to undermine the universal, spiritual and moral values and world views embodied in Buddhism, Islam and other religions. This is why Buddhists, Muslims and others should forge a more profound unity and solidarity which will be able to offer another vision of a just, compassionate and humane universal civilization. It is with this mission in mind that we hereby announce the launch of a permanent Buddhist-Muslim Citizens’ Commission for Southeast Asia.
International Buddhist-Muslim Joint Statement : Shared Commitment of Action
9. Monks and the ulama and Buddhist and Muslim religious leaders in general in the three provinces should make a concerted effort to break down barriers that have created a wide chasm between Buddhists and Muslims and instead build bridges of understanding between the two communities. This process would require honest and sincere introspection on the part of the religious leaders and others about their own flaws and foibles. Critical self analysis should go hand-in-hand with BuddhistMuslim dialogue in the three Southern provinces. 10. INEB and other NGOs should initiate efforts to form a “People’s Watch” comprising both Buddhists and Muslims drawn from various sectors of society whose primary purpose would be to protect and safeguard places of worship, institutions of learning and hospitals among other public institutions. A “People’s Watch” would not only ensure the safety and security of these institutions but more significantly, it would also help foster a spirit of togetherness among Buddhists and Muslims.
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Towards a Culture of Peace: A Buddhist Perspective 1
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Towards a Culture of Peace: A Buddhist Perspective
Phra Paisal Visalo
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ne of the most accurate and concise descriptions of the twentieth century was made by a renowned and prodigious British musician, Yehudi Menuhin, who said that “it raised the greatest hopes ever conceived by humanity, and destroyed all illusions and ideals”. At the dawn of the century, hopes for lasting peace prevailed the earth. Even the First World War was believed to be “the war that ends all wars”. Less than two decades later, however, the Second World War broke out, followed by the Cold War, and its subsequent proxy wars in every corner of the world. After the fall of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War, global peace was expected and “the end of history” was believed to be imminent. But that optimism was shattered by civil wars in Balkans and other countries in Asia and Africa. The previous century boasts one of the bloodiest eras. Between 1900 and 1989, 86 millions have perished in various wars. On top of it was 48 million people who were killed by their own governments (including the ones led by Stalin, Mao, and Pol Pot). Many of them were victims of unprecedented extensive genocides. The twenty first century features no better prospects. The first year of this century was marked by international terrorism that triggered antiterrorism wars all over the world, not to mention civil wars and armed conflicts in 30 countries, with a combined population of 2.3 billion. In other words, today a third of the world’s population is at war. 2 These wars and armed conflicts are made possible not only by the sole decision of the leaders. Waged against people’s consent, any wars cannot last. Decade-long wars and armed conflicts have been perpetuated by support of people from all walks of life. They do not just endorse them but are also willing Keynote address for the International Conference on Religion and Culture at Payap University on June 25, 2006 2 Jessica Williams “50 Facts that Should Change the World” (Cambridge: Icon Books,2004) p.140 1
to shoulder their costs, materially, physically, or morally. Though part of the inclination toward wars and the willingness to absorb their costs has been driven by brilliant political propaganda or powerful political manipulation, but for the propaganda and manipulation to succeed, one factor is indispensable, namely, culture. Culture involves collective belief, value, and attitude shared by people in the same country. And part of culture has been used to justify violence and encourage people to resort to its use. Thus, wars can erupt at national scale. Such culture can be called “a culture of violence”.
Components of a culture of violence
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Jonathan Glover “Humanity: A Moral History of the Twentieth Century” (Yale: Yale University Press,1999) pp 50,130 3
Towards a Culture of Peace: A Buddhist Perspective
According to Buddhism, three fundamental attitudes or mental qualities are essential in thrusting people to use violence and wage wars. First among them is the sense of superiority, or conceit, regarding ethnicity, race, language, religion, or wealth. Partnered to this attitude is the one that regards people of different identity as inferior. Getting too extreme, such a negative attitude results in the denial of one’s humanity, and to inflict violence on them is just one small step ahead. A case in point is the Holocaust which could happen because some Germans regarded the Jews as a “disease”, a “virus” or being “subhuman”. Similarly, civil war in ex-Yugoslavia escalated rapidly and brutally as people from both sides denied each others humanity. While the Croats were described in Serbia as “vampires”, the Serbians were represented in Croatia’s newspapers as “beasts in human form” or “bloodsuckers”. During the Gulf War, killing of retreating Iraqi soldiers was described by the US Marines as “a turkey shoot”. A lieutenantcolonel compared the Iraqi troops he saw from his plane with “cockroaches”. 3 Conceit is conducive to maltreatment against people regarded as inferior. No conceit is more dangerous than the morally superior one, since it tends to regard “others” as “evil”. Once one is taken as evil, his or her existence is not warranted for and he or she needs to be eliminated. Violence against others is thus morally justified and the act of violence glorifies the perpetrators. While identity helps to forge unity among people from the same category, it excludes people of different categories who are then regarded as “others”. Hence, the separation between “them” against “us” and the tendency toward hostility. The hostility is rapidly intensified once the sense of “them” against “us” is strengthened by the moral label “we are good, they are evil”. Difference of ethnicity, race, or language can give rise to such hostility. But it cannot be compared to religious or sectarian difference. The more devoted one is to one’s religion, the stronger sense of one being “good”, and more likely to regard people who believe and behave differently as “bad” or “evil”.
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Towards a Culture of Peace: A Buddhist Perspective
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During the Cold War, one important question was “which side are you?”. Today it could be replaced by “who are you?”, white or black, Thai or Burmese, Hindu or Muslim, Sunni or Shiite. These identities, especially the religiously related ones, become an explosive political issue which determines power relationships of different actors in the political arena. It is a powerful force that mobilizes the country’s political resources towards the desired course of action. Moreover, it influences the projection of other people (with different identity) as an enemy or a culprit responsible for the decline or crisis in one’s country. The Jews in Germany were, for example, denounced for being the source of all corruption and problems in Germany before and during the Second World War. Politics of identity therefore contribute to the current accumulated hatred and wide-spread violence with the support of an existing culture of violence (especially the sense of superiority/inferiority of one’s identity). The politics of identity is intensified by a culture of violence, and vice versa. The second component of a culture of violence is the attachment to ideas or ideologies. If such attachment becomes extreme it can drive the believers to do anything, even sacrificing oneself or killing others, to fulfill an idea or ideology. On one hand the world witnessed the heroic sacrifice of innumerable people for the rise of Communism in Russia, China, Vietnam, and Cambodia. On the other hand, massacres that shocked the world have taken place in these countries simply for the eradication of obstacles to the ideology adhered to by the rulers.4 Communism is now on a decline and is being replaced by many other ideologies that command people’s mind and drive them towards violence. One of them is nationalism, which can lead to either the restoration of sovereignty or ongoing civil wars. Furthermore, religion is another ideology that can fuel various forms of violence, i.e. international war, civil war, terrorism, and communal violence. Obsessed with a particular ideology, people who share different ideologies are taken as an enemy. Engulfed with hatred, one has no hesitation in The following remark by one of Stalin’s cadres illustrates the influence of ideological attachment, which in extreme case, is tantamount to a license to kill people, “Our great goal was the universal triumph of communism, and for the sake of that goal everything was permissible – to lie, to steal, to destroy hundreds of thousands and even millions of people, all those who were hindering our work or who could hinder it, everyone who stood in the way.” Such an attitude also prevailed among the communist workers in other countries, including Cambodia. During the Khmer Rouge regime, one of its slogan was “One or two million young people are enough to make the new Kampuchea!” The rest of the population, which amounts to around six millions, was dispensable. (ibid, pp. 259,306) 4
Towards a Culture of Peace: A Buddhist Perspective
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attacking other. With the obsession driven by conceit that supposes ourselves to be morally superior to others, the nonbelievers or morally inferior or evil persons are thought to be unworthy for living. With such conviction, some pro-life activists feel justified in invading the abortion clinic and shooting doctors inside. Some extremist environmental activists can also kill animal torturers. Similarly, an obsessive religion can engender hostile attitudes to the nonbelievers, perhaps much more than other ideologies can. The third component of a culture of violence is craving. The most powerful craving nowadays is consumerism which promises us that the more we consume the happier we will become. Such a belief leads to insatiable desires, competition, and exploitation at every level, from personal to global. Hence, violence, crime, armed conflict and wars. It is estimated that about a quarter of wars and armed conflicts nowadays have been triggered by struggles for natural resources. Fighting among different ethnic groups in the same country is also motivated by attempts to control natural resources. Genocide in Rwanda, for example, is linked to competition for land, thus many land owners have been killed by people of the same ethnicity in the same village. Apart from direct violence, exploitation and interest-induced conflict also lead to other kinds of violence such as poverty and famine. Everyday around 1.1 billion, or one in five of the world’s population live in hunger. Widespread hunger and malnutrition exists, despite the abundance of food in the world, thus the problems cannot be attributed to a lack of resources. The real reason is the unjust economic and trade system designed to serve the insatiable desire of a few, at the national and global levels, the result of which is a huge gap between the rich and the poor. While every year, 9 million poor people die of a lack of clean water (the problem of which can be addressed with 9 billion USD), the Europeans spend 11 billion USD just for ice cream, and 12 billion USD for perfume, not to mention 24 billion USD spent globally for skin care and 38 billion USD for hair care. A globalized economy and communication systems, and especially the liberalization of the market, has propelled consumerism to the forefront of modern life, and stimulated the desire and competition for natural resources all over the world. Meanwhile, the rapid expansion of western culture has led to increasing feelings of insecurity. People fear that their local cultures will be marginalized and their identity disappear. The intimidation forces them to fight back to preserve their beloved culture and identity. The notion that their ethnicity, language, and religion are superior to others has been reinforced time and again and it has led to more entrenched conceit. Along with that, attempts are made to use traditional ideology or identity as a weapon to wage wars against globalization. Robust religiosity and nationalism thus exists everywhere, mostly in militant versions, as a reaction to the perceived threats
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from outside. The growing diversity of ideas and beliefs in the globalization age has also led to conflicts and hostility, even in the same community and, at times, could be attributed as a cause of violence. In sum, in the age of globalization, conceit and clinging to ideas and craving are being intensified and are contributing to the expansion of a culture of violence.
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Towards a Culture of Peace: A Buddhist Perspective
A culture of peace
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A culture of peace is defined by the collective attitude, value, and belief that discourages violence and leads to reconciliation and peaceful coexistence. While a culture of violence is founded on conceit, attachment to ideas, and craving, a culture of peace rests on respect of others, tolerance, and contentment. Values or attitudes that unite people, regardless of identity and belief, are badly needed in the age of globalization to prevent increasing polarization. Apart from extreme prosperity that exists amidst abject poverty, the world witnessing is the rise of globalism hand in hand with the rise of tribalism. There is also a huge division between the world of materialism and the world of religiosity – between the McWorld and Jiha, not to mention the division between secularism and fundamentalism. The bipolarity is well registered in many aspects of this age of extremes. The world’s divisions can be relieved once every faction opens their minds, respects others’ identity, and practices generosity. This can be achieved only when we recognize humanity in each other. We have more in common than differences, i.e. the pursuit of happiness, aversion to suffering, longing for respect, desire to be good, and care for our dignity. Apart from realizing and giving due respect to our common humanity, a belief in nonviolence is another intrinsic value in a culture of peace. Violence helps to settle a problem temporarily, but creates new problems in the long run, or even exacerbates the old problems. Though the use of violence may lead to the elimination of some evil persons, it can produce the new ones as well including the perpetrators themselves. Violent revolution can neither eradicate all evil people nor create lasting peace. After their opponents are gone, they tend to point their guns to each other and a new round of purging will start. Last but not least, a culture of peace rests on simplicity that enables us to experience happiness through good work and meaningful life, and achieve inner happiness through a peaceful mind free from anger, hatred, and greed. In other words, the awareness that happiness is not out there, but right inside our minds.
Religion and its contribution to a culture of peace
Towards a Culture of Peace: A Buddhist Perspective
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The three fundamental components of a culture of violence, conceit, attachment to ideology, and craving, are essentially self-centered attitudes. It is the nature of ego or self, either personal or collective, that demands everything to support its greatness. Identity, ideology or materials are therefore used by the ego to serve its own interest. Every established religion aims to reduce selfishness and free one’s mind from self-centered attitudes. It therefore goes against a culture of violence. By cherishing love, tolerance, respect for humanity in everybody, and pointing the way for inner happiness, each religion is supportive of a culture of peace. In fact, each religion regards peace for humanity as its ultimate objective. Practicing the teaching of each religion can inspire goodness or a new quality of mind, i.e. compassion, generosity, and sacrifice for the others. Religion is therefore a main force for reconciliation in society. It can help to reduce exploitation or oppression as evidenced in campaigns against war, slave abolition, dictatorship, and campaigns for civil rights of coloured people during the past centuries. However, undeniably, religion can instigate violence. Oftentimes, religion is used to justify violence in different forms, including war for religious propagation and preservation. Historically, religion was frequently used to sanction violence against people who were not devout believers. Likewise, a lot of violence and wars are waged in the name of religions. As mentioned before, religion, as an identity, is used to reinforce selfcentered attitudes or superior conceit among the devout believers, while the nonbelievers are labeled as evil. Moreover, the extreme attachment to religion can contribute to strong convictions that holds anything as permissible for the glory of religion. In other words, deviated religious adherence could be a license to kill people of other faiths. This attitude is apparently shared by a lot of fundamentalists or extremists. It should be noted that the extreme notion does not exist just among religious fundamentalists, but also the secularists including communists, neoconservatives , or environmentalists. In numerous incidents, millions of people were killed by extreme secularists like Nazis, and communists. Some extreme environmentalists even declared recently that “everything is permitted�. Religion is also used to support consumerism. A lot of religious teachings are misused to embrace the pursuit for prosperity and material accumulation. Turning to god or the sacred for fortune and wealth has become a global phenomenon. Religious establishments become a spectacular showcase of material excess as religious leaders are bestowed with a luxurious life. It is not exaggerated to say that many religious establishments have become the medium of consumerism that sanctions and intensifies craving and leads to more competition
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and exploitation. In short, religion (or its interpretation) can be a source of a culture of violence. This is the challenge for believers who wish to see religion as a beacon for a culture of peace.
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Towards a Culture of Peace: A Buddhist Perspective
Beyond extreme religious attachment
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Religion has a lot of potential to create a culture of peace. Initially, however, religion has to avoid being the source of a culture of violence. Religion can contribute to violence if the religious attachment has gone extreme and nurtured conceit. To curb this tendency, religious believers must be encouraged to cultivate critical self-reflection or critical self-awareness that prevents conceit from dominating the mind. In fact, each religion essentially aims to free one from a self-centered attitude. Once one understands deeply the essence of one’s religion, selfishness will be gone, and conceit and craving can no longer exist. Anger and hatred will also find no place in mind. One is unlikely to be overwhelmed by the dualist perspective of “them” against “us” or pass moral judgment that “we are good” and “they are evil” since one is well aware that this is conceit in disguise. Critical self-reflection helps one to be aware that the line that divides good and evil is in our mind, rather than out there. 5 A lack of critical self-awareness creates a time bomb in our mind which can explode any time. Thus, one can create all forms of violence. Even without a weapon in hand, the 9/11 terrorists have managed to kill thousands of people with the commandeering of commercial planes. Through the practice of deep and critical self-awareness, one can get rid of the time bomb in one’s mind and be free from conceit and self-centered attitudes. Once the mental bomb is defused , we will be free, open, and stay aloof to the wall of religion or identity that separates us from others. From there, we can see common humanity in every human being. In spite of holding on to many religions or faiths, all of us are one. In fact every human being can wear various identities, not only Buddhist, Christian, or Muslim. But our religious identification can sometimes keep us from seeing others in entirety. We see them as to what religion they profess or which religious “label” they have, but nothing else.6 Solzhenitsyn, the Russian Nobel laureate, made this point succinctly clear that: “If only it were all so simple! If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessary only to separate them from the rest of us and destroy them. But the line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being”. 6 A Croat remarked the role of nationalism in reducing people to only one dimension of nationality: “The trouble with this nationhood, however, is that whereas before, I was defined by my education, my job, my ideas, my character – and , yes, my nationality too – now I feel stripped of all that. I am nobody because I am not a person any more. I am one of 4.5 million Croats”. (Glover,p.152) It is undeniable that religion can play the same role of reducing person’s identities to one of religion. 5
“Aware of the suffering created by attachment to views and wrong perceptions, we are determined to avoid being narrow-minded and
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“Aware of the suffering created by fanaticism and intolerance, we are determined not to be idolatrous about or bound to any doctrine, theory, or ideology, even Buddhist ones. Buddhist teachings are guiding means to help us learn to look deeply and to develop our understanding and compassion. They are not doctrines to fight, kill, or die for.
Towards a Culture of Peace: A Buddhist Perspective
Such an attitude toward religion obviously narrows our perspective. Even though religion should otherwise deepen our mind and broaden our perspective. Religion can be compared to the “root” that helps to deepen our mind and enable us to feel secure and grounded. It can be more than that, however. Religion should give us the “wings” that free our mind, and help us to see the world and humanity from a broad perspective. From a bird’s eye view, all differences of humans on earth, be it religion, race, skin, language, are undistinguishable. Only our common humanity is apparent. Realizing oneness of humanity brings us closer and helps us see each other as friends, brothers or sisters, undivided by religion, race, or skin. Anger and hatred will wither away. We will realize by then that our enemy is not other human beings, but conceit, craving, attachment to ideology, and selfishness. Eliminating human beings can never be a real solution to problems which can be permanently solved through freeing the opponent’s mind from negative qualities with the help of love and goodness. The more violence we use, the more anger and hatred develops in our mind, leading to more violent responses. The spiral of violence will become endless. Thus the Buddha said “Conquer anger by love, conquer evil by good, conquer the miser by liberality, and conquer the liar by truth”. Ultimately, freedom of the mind can be achieved not just through renouncing a self-centered attitude, anger or hatred alone, but attachment to religion as well. Any ideology or religion can imprison or fetter our mind. But religion can also give us the wings to fly above the ideological prison. And that state of mind happens when the true essence of religion is understood and religious detachment is attained. As Buddha said, we have to use a raft to cross the river. Once ashore, we have to leave the raft behind. No wise man would bother carrying the raft with him. Even when the true essence of religion is not fully understood, being on guard against attachment to religion can be useful for us and others. The following contemplative mindfulness of Thich Nhat Hanh’s Order of Interbeing is a good reminder for all religious who care for peace:
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bound to present views. We shall learn and practice nonattachment from views in order to be open to other’s insights and experiences. We are aware that the knowledge we presently possess is not changeless, absolute truth. Truth is found in life, and we will observe life within and around us in every moment, ready to learn throughout our lives.”
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Towards a Culture of Peace: A Buddhist Perspective
Realizing the true essence of one’s own religion brings about a deep and comprehensive transformation of one’s mind. With free and open minds, all human beings embrace each other with unbound compassion. We can thus witness common humanity in all persons regardless of identity difference. This can significantly contribute to a culture of peace in the deepest level.
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Action for a culture of peace Apart from helping to cultivate deep personal transformation, religion can help to reinforce the culture of peace by promoting change in collective values and attitudes through peace education and media, humanitarian work, and action to stem violence in society. Peace Education My definition of peace education is the promotion of values for peaceful co-existence, i.e. tolerance, respect for diversity, forgiveness, and compassion. Through both formal and non-formal education, people can learn to respect dignity of human life, regardless of religion, language, race or ideology. Faith in nonviolence and the understanding that violence always begets violence are among peace attitudes that need to be cultivated. In addition to peace attitudes, peace education should embrace skills for peaceful conflict resolution. Conflict is a fact of life and, like differences in ideas, it can be both negative and positive, depending how it is handled. Learning to deal with conflict constructively forges mutual understanding among parties involved in conflicts. Peace Media Peace media should also be an integral part of peace education. Through emphasizing our common humanity rather than the small differences, they can extensively reduce bias or stereotype towards minorities or people of different ethnicities and religions. Their way of life, tradition, beliefs, and aspirations should be presented in such a way that nurtures better understanding among peoples. Apart from reducing anger and hatred, peace education and media should a play role in keeping materialism and consumerism at bay. Materialism and consumerism are now the main forces dominating present education and
media, even though it is too artificial to quantify reality simply in monetary terms. Therefore, promoting alternatives to a materialistic worldview and happiness beyond wealth or consumption should be an important task to be completed through peace education and media. The value of peace emanated from good work and inner peace should be upheld.
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Action to stem violence Violence exists at various levels, personal, communal and national. By reducing or stopping violence, one can show succinctly that violence is unacceptable. The reason that violence is widespread in society is the belief that violence (at least the domestic kind, or capital punishment) is acceptable. Religion should play an active role in stemming all forms of violence, including wars. Beyond direct violence is structural violence which creates and upholds structures that promote or justify exploitation systematically and leads to poverty, sickness, and human rights violations. Structural violence is ingrained in the current economic, political and judiciary systems that massively inflict suffering on people. Religion should play a role in stemming structural violence. To achieve that, these values are indispensable, namely, compassion toward those in suffering, courage to face all difficulties, wisdom to understand profound causes, and self-awareness to overcome conceit, and attachment to ideas, and craving. All these moral forces can strongly inspire believers to take on the difficult task as shown in history. On the contrary, however, religion has recently been used to propel killings among believers. The time is ripe for religion to drive the believers to sacrifice themselves to protect lives of others and bring peace to the world through compassion, courage, wisdom, and selfawareness, stemming from their deep personal transformation. There is no other way for a culture of peace to prevail the world.
Towards a Culture of Peace: A Buddhist Perspective
Humanitarian Work The core values of a culture of peace are love and generosity. Such values are best manifested not through preaching but concrete humanitarian work. A culture of peace is developed by concerted efforts to relieve fellow humans from all kinds of suffering, i.e. poverty, physical or mental abuse, exploitation, and oppression. Uplifting the quality of life contributes to the prosperity of a culture of generosity and develops peace in society. Moreover, it also showns that happiness can be attained through giving, not excessive possession or consumption. The less egoistic the believer is, the more likely she or he shares the suffering of fellow human beings. In other words, humanitarian work is an important indicator of how much one is free from egoistic attitude.
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BUDDHIST ECONOMICS: A Middle Path of Radical Change?
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BUDDHIST ECONOMICS: A Middle Path of Radical Change
Hans van Willenswaard hans@schoolforwellbeing.org
We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them. Albert Einstein
s agents of transformation from colonialism and feudalism towards hoped-for independent, value-driven democracies – and before western consumerism fully took hold of ‘Buddhist countries’ – visionary Asian leaders at several points in history articulated pathways towards “alternative” socio-economic development. Right upon establishment of democracy in Thailand in 1932, Pridi Banomyong launched his New Economic Plan for Siam. He emphasized equality for all Thai citizens. His ideas were influenced by the values of the French Revolution, Freedom, Equality and Brotherhood. Dr. Ambedkar (1891-1956), who also studied in France and became the architect of the Indian Constitution (1949) wrote that his philosophy too was “enshrined” in these three words, but:
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“Let no one however say that I have borrowed my philosophy from the French Revolution. I have not. I have derived them from the teachings of my master, the Buddha. I found that his teaching was democratic to the core”.1
Ambedkar was one of the most prominent Indian leaders of the
Quoted in: Lionel WIJESIRI BUDDHA DHAMMA: Liberty, equality, fraternity and Buddhism 1
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2 Ken Jones, Emptiness and Form. Engaged Buddhism Struggles to Respond to Modernity INEB website 3 The essay “Buddhist Economics” was first published in Asia: A Handbook, edited by Guy Wint, published by Anthony Blond Ltd., London, 1966. In 1973 it was collected with other essays by Ernest Friedrich Schumacher in Small Is Beautiful: Economics as if People Mattered. The book has been translated into 27 different languages and in 1995 was named by the London Times Literary Supplement as one of the hundred most influential books written after World War II.
BUDDHIST ECONOMICS: A Middle Path of Radical Change
20th century who belonged to the very lowest strata of Hindu society. He helped spark a revival of Buddhism in India. Even though, if it was not early engaged Buddhism being influenced by the values of the French Revolution, but being inspired by Buddhist values in the first place, it is worthwhile to explore this fascinating resonance. Can contemporary understanding of the Three Jewels of Buddhism – the Triratna of Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha – help us to guide change towards an economy by giving it its right position? In Vietnam Thich Nhat Hanh strived “to create a third way of creative nonviolence beyond communism and capitalism”. 2 Can the contrast between freedom which guides liberalism, and equality, the leading value of socialism, spark a synthesis that lifts this contrast to another level, a window towards “third way economics” based on brotherhood: the Sangha-principle in its broadest sense? Should we today understand the Middle Path as a compromise, as “balance” and “moderation”, or as a radical path of transformation? The pioneers of Buddhist Economics until today have seldom seen their visions come true. However, efforts continue to be made and the principles laid out by Buddhist thinkers at various moments in history – directly or indirectly related to Buddhist Economics – challenge us even more today. Neo-liberal capitalism, and communism merged into “state capitalism” leave us only one suffocating global economic order. Finding a new “Middle Path” beyond this totalitarian system needs a different way of thinking, relation to reality, and insight. Can the practice of Buddhism help to disclose a new paradigm? In Burma, 1952, U Nu organized the Pyidawtha (“Happy Land”) conference and his Pyidawtha Plan was published in 1954. It was within this framework of hoped-for construction of an independent, democratic, Burma that E.F. Schumacher (1911-1977; his 100th birthday was commemorated two years ago which still poses a challenge to re-vitalize his cultural legacy in the coming decades) was asked in 1955 to advise; as a UN consultant; the government of Burma on economic development. The essay in which he reflected on his experiences – he had started to take Buddhist meditation courses – was titled Buddhist Economics. 3
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BUDDHIST ECONOMICS: A Middle Path of Radical Change
“Right Livelihood” is one of the requirements of the Buddha’s Noble Eightfold Path. It is clear, therefore, that there must be such a thing as Buddhist economics. Buddhist countries have often stated that they wish to remain faithful to their heritage. All the same, such countries invariably assume that they can model their economic development plans in accordance with modern economics, and they call upon modern economists from so-called advanced countries to advise them, to formulate the policies to be pursued, and to construct the grand design for development, the Five-Year Plan or whatever it may be called. No one seems to think that a Buddhist way of life would call for Buddhist economics, just as the modern materialist way of life has brought forth modern economics.
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In the same period of the ultimate publication in 1973 of E.F. Schumacher’s book Small is Beautiful. Economics as if People Mattered (including the earlier Buddhist Economics article), the young King of Bhutan, Jigme Singye Wangchuck, upon his ascendance to the throne at the age of 19 in 1974 – following the early death of his father – expressed his strong reservations towards modern economics by saying “For the people of Bhutan Gross National Happiness is more important than Gross National Product”. Simultaneously in Europe the Club of Rome launched its research-report The Limits to Growth. E.F. Schumacher was the President of the Soil Association in U.K. from 1970-1977 and emphasized the importance of organic agriculture as a central factor in an alternative approach to economics. From this perspective he actively supported the establishment of the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) in 1972 in Versailles, France. In Thailand, not much later, Dr. Puey Ungpakorn, (March 9, 1916 - July 28, 1999) wrote The Quality of Life of a South-East Asian: A Chronicle of Hope from Womb to Tomb, outlining an Asian approach to social security. A characteristic quote: “I would like to have the security of co-operative mechanisms in which I join to help others do things which they cannot do alone, and they do the same for me.” Dr. Puey was the Governor of the (Central) Bank of Thailand for 12 years, a Dean of the Faculty of Economics, and also a rector of Thammasat University (founded by Pridi Banomyong) in Bangkok. Puey was a member of the Free Thai Movement during World War II.
True value is created by chanda. In other words, a commodity’s true value is determined by its ability to meet the need for well-being. Conversely, artificial value is created by taņhā – it is a commodity’s capacity to satisfy the desire for pleasure.
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Both Pridi Banomyong and Puey Ungpakorn died in exile.
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Sulak Sivaraksa, a prominent lay public intellectual in Thailand, organized in 1997, after receiving the Right Livelihood Award, the Alternatives to Consumerism Conference which can be considered an Asian step towards the World Social Forum held for the first time in Brazil in 2001. He founded the International Network of Engaged Buddhists (INEB) which provides a platform for streams in Buddhism that inter-actively cultivate inner and social transformation. During biennial INEB conferences a series of Buddhist Economics workshops were held, among others with Hishashi Nakamura, Japan, and Apichai Puntasen, a student of Dr. Puey, Thailand. In 2011 INEB invited Dharmachari Vajraketu, a successful entrepreneur and member of the Triratna Buddhist Community in England, as well as David Loy (USA) to speak in Thailand on Buddhist Economics. David Loy is the author of The Great Awakening: A Buddhist Social Theory, 1997. Sulak Sivaraksa published his book The Wisdom of Sustainability. Buddhist Economics for the 21st Century in 2009. INEB made an inconclusive international attempt to bring Buddhist organizations together in order to channel “alternative Dana”, a term coined by Phra Paisal Visalo, towards “Right Livelihood” investment.
BUDDHIST ECONOMICS: A Middle Path of Radical Change
He was a Magsaysay Award winner in the field of government service in 1965. 4 Dr. Puey instituted a long-term research project on raising the productivity and economic level of Thai villagers. It was during this period that he was invited to serve as a visiting professor at both Cambridge and Princeton universities and was appointed to the governing boards of such organisations as the International Council for Educational Development, the East-West Centre, the Asian Institute of Management, and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). Ven. P.A. Payutto, arguably the most senior intellectual Theravada monk in Thailand, wrote in 1988 (Thai edition) a book titled Buddhist Economics. A Middle Way for the Market Place. It was published in 1992 in English
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BUDDHIST ECONOMICS: A Middle Path of Radical Change
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One of the results of the Alternatives to Consumerism conference was the start by Prida Tiasuwan, Pranda Group, and friends, of Social Venture Network Asia, a business network now concentrated in Thailand, with initial participation in the Asian context of the Jung To Society, Korea, founded by Venerable Pomnyun. H.H. the Dalai Lama strongly supports socio-economic development of Tibetan communities and for this purpose The Bridge Fund was established. His Holiness exchanged views on economic issues at various occasions, including at the Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. His dialogue with Hazel Henderson (USA) and others triggered the publication of Compassion or Competition; Dialogues on the Future of Business and Economics in the 21st century by Sander Tideman. The Mind and Life Institute organized in Zürich, Switzerland, 2010, a public dialogue with H.H. the Dalai Lama, Matthieu Ricard, business leaders and academics titled Altruism and Compassion in Economic Systems. László Zsolnai (Hungary) founded the Buddhist Economics Research Platform (BERP), where also Peter Daniels (Australia), Apichai Puntasen (Thailand) and Joel Magnusson (USA) were involved. László Zsolnai published, among others, an academic standard work titled Ethical Principles and Economic Transformation - A Buddhist Approach. Two BERP conferences were organized, the last one by Apichai Puntasen at the University of Ubon Rathchathani, Thailand. In 2009 the Sathirakoses Nagapradipa Foundation (established by Sulak Sivaraksa, in 1968) joined hands with Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, and the Centre for Bhutan Studies, Thimphu, Bhutan, to start – following the conference on Gross National Happiness in Thailand, 2007 – an independent think-tank and action-research platform, the School for Wellbeing Studies and Research. The School for Wellbeing, a bridge between civil society and academia, co-organized in 2011 together with INEB a conference Re-thinking Property : Pathway to a Wellbeing Society scenario, including a keynote speech by Dasho Karma Ura on land property in Bhutan. As well as a workshop on Buddhist Economics and contributions on gender and economics by Ven. Dhammananda. Based on her earlier works, Helena Norberg-Hodge released her award-winning film The Economics of Happiness. She emphasizes the need for transformation from the destructive obsession with globalization towards localization of the economy. Encouraged by environmental activist Vandana Shiva, India, the School for Wellbeing started a project titled Towards Organic Asia together with partners in the Mekong region + Bhutan. Action research
• The campaign to shape the commemoration of Dr. Puey Ungpakorn in Thailand and South-Asia, in a global context, as initiated recently by Sulak Sivaraksa. • The Chulalongkorn University Right Livelihood Summer School planned in July 2014 as an annual event together with the Right Livelihood College (Penang, Lund, Bonn and Addis Ababa), the School for Wellbeing and a growing network of partners.
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In order to make the step from “events” to a “programmeapproach”, core-actors are invited to bring an executive working group together.
BUDDHIST ECONOMICS: A Middle Path of Radical Change
comparing the wellbeing impact of agro-ecology and industrial agribusiness; a young organic farmers (YOF) network; and innovation of alternative markets to enable “organic agriculture for all” are among the activities of the TOA programme, in partnership with organizations like La Via Campesina, IFOAM and URGENCI (the direct farmers’consumers’ cooperation network). Although not so explicit, food sovereignty was a central issue of the INEB Inter-Religious Dialogue on Climate Change, Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka, 2012, organized by Harsha Navaratne, the founder of Sewalanka and his team. Global neo-liberalism justifies that the business sector occupies the realm of freedom. Nothing less than a paradigm shift is needed to understand “Sangha-spirit” as the value perspective in which the world should do its business. Three steps strengthening the programme to articulate Buddhist Economics are proposed:
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The Inescapable “GENDER ORDER”: Confused Thoughts no the Rule of “RECEIVING PRECEPTS IN BOTH ORDERS”
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The Inescapable “GENDER ORDER”: Confused Thoughts no the Rule of “RECEIVING PRECEPTS IN BOTH ORDERS” Chao-hwei Shih 1
few years ago, I was very concerned about the fate of the nuns in the Tibetan and Theravada traditions. I hoped that they could receive full ordination, as the nuns in the Chinese Mahayana tradition have, and become formally ordained bhikkhus. I hoped that they could live with dignity and equality with the bhikkhus within the community and not appear as the servants of the bhikkhus. However, when I mentioned this to the Dalai Lama and other Tibetan bhikkhus, they were consistent in their answer. That is, the lineage of bhikkhuni has been broken. When I suggested that they may regain the lineage through the Chinese Mahayana bhikkhuni order, the one of the two questions that all of them were concerned about was: Did the Chinese bhikkhunis receive their precepts in both orders and have the lineage never been broken?2 “Receiving precepts in both orders” means that when a female follower wants to take the bhikkhuni precepts, she must take the precepts in front of ten bhikkhus, as well as in front of ten bhikkhunis in the nun’s order. To explain in simpler terms, when a female wants to become a bhikkhuni, first of all, the nun’s order must form a special committee consisting of ten bhikkhunis and examine whether the person fulfills the requirements to take full ordination. Then, the monk’s order also forms a committee consisting of ten bhikkhus to review the person’s qualifications. The author now serves as a full professor, the Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Chair of the Department of Religious Studies, Hsuan Chuang University, Taiwan. She has also served as the Head of Applied Ethics Research Center at Hsuan Chuang University. 1 This article was translated by Rev. Neng-jung, Professor Yu-ling Christie Chang, Shu-ching Li, and Andrew Chang. I would like to express my sincere gratitude. 2 The other question is whether the Chinese Mahayana bhikkhunis take the siksamana precepts. In answer to this question, I have written an article title, “Regarding the Various Stages Prior to Taking Full Ordination: A Study of the Sramanera and Siksamana Rules and Regulations and the “Four-month Stay for Non-Buddhist Practitioners.’” Fa Guang Xue Tan (Fa Guang Academic Magazine) 4 (2001) 19-39.
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Venerable Hong Yi stated that, “Since the later part of Song Dynasty until now, for 600 to 700 years, we can say that the Sangha lineage has ceased.” In “Brief Essence of the Study of Vinaya,” The Record of Talks by Venerable Hong Yi (Taichung: Taichung Fo Jiao Lian She), p. 25. 3
The Inescapable “GENDER ORDER”: Confused Thoughts no the Rule of “RECEIVING PRECEPTS IN BOTH ORDERS”
This practice might have been needed when the nun’s order was first established. This is because they had just started their journey in the field of practice. Due to their lack of experience, their examination or certification process might not have been as thoughtful as it should have been. They might not have been able to justify whether a person was suitable to renounce lay life and become ordained. Thus, the Buddha set forth a rule that the order of nuns needed the help of the monk’s order, which had been established for years and had the experience to double check. However, the nun’s order has now been established for more than 2000 years and, surprisingly, the Buddhist community in general still holds tightly to the set rule that “bhikkhunis must take precepts in both the orders.” This is amounts to using the rules and regulations to restrict the “life and death right” of the bhikkhunis. The duties of helping have turned into “special privilege” control. No wonder the bhikkhunis of the Tibetan and Theravada traditions became extinct. I have argued strongly based on these reasons. In my opinion, the system of recognizing reincarnate lamas or “Living Buddhas” was not handed down by the Buddha, yet Tibetans seems to have no misgivings about the correctness of this practice and have continued it for many years. I have also pointed out directly that the discontinuation of the lineage of nuns was certainly related to obstructions of bhikkhus. It is impossible that is was the bhikkhunis’ wish to become extinct. Only bhikkhus might try to suppress the bhikkhunis. The order of bhikkhus is able to develop consensus and refuse to form a committee of ten bhikkhus to certify the bhikkhunis’ ordination. When this happens, after ten years or so, the bhikkhunis will become extinct in that area. The great master bhikkhu Hong Yi once said that, since the later Song Dynasty, the lineage of bhikkhus has been broken.3 According to his logic, the ten masters that certify the ordination of bhikkhus or bhikkunis must be virtuous. However, because the ten masters are ordinary beings, it is unavoidable that some may have broken the precepts or been involved in shameful matters. Their qualifications are not perfect. Does this mean that since the late Song Dynasty, no bhikkhus have been perfectly qualified? Strictly speaking, whether it is bhikkhus or bhikkhunis, if this is the yardstick that we use to justify the lineage, then I can be sure that no lineage is perfect. According to this, even the bhikkhus’ lineage has been broken. Since, using that criteria, neither the bhikkhu nor bhikkhuni
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The Inescapable “GENDER ORDER”: Confused Thoughts no the Rule of “RECEIVING PRECEPTS IN BOTH ORDERS”
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lineage could be called perfect in accordance with the Dharma, how can the question of “lineage” be used as an excuse to claim that the order of bhikkunis cannot be established because their lineage has been broken? This is the deluded logic of the theory that “one is everything.” It has bound together the concepts of “qualifications to practice” and “lineage;” and also “whether one obtains the precept or not” and “whether it was certified by ten bhikkhus” into inevitable relationships. According to this logic, we could also link “whether one obtains the precept or not” and “whether it was certified by ten bhikkhus” into a consequential relationship. Using this type of deductive logic, one obtains precepts because of ten bhikkhus who are pure. If this were the case, the next generation would need a square of ten (the purity of 100 persons) in order to obtain the precepts. The next generation after that would need a cubic of ten (the purity of 1000 persons) in order to obtain precepts. As this continues, it will develop to the nth power of ten (ten to the power of “n”). According to these calculations, not only would there have been no bhikkhus during the later Song Dynasty, there would have been no bhikkhus in the world much earlier than that. In a theory that fixes one’s fate according to circumstances, where is the place of “free will,” the principal matrix of our behavior? According to the theory of dependent arising (pratityasamutpada), the success of everything relies on the cooperation of causes and conditions. However, the main reason for one to be able to change one’s fate – the possibility for an ordinary person to transform into a noble one – lies in one’s mind. The determination of one’s mind is still the principal condition for freeing oneself from the imprisonment of fate. Thus, whether a practitioner can obtain pure precepts or not, all other reasons are secondary conditions. The most important condition is one’s sincerity in repenting and rectifying oneself, and the strong determination in to end transgressions and do good deeds. Let’s analyse further the profound implication of the need for “ten bhikkhus to be the certifiers.” In my opinion, one of the purposes of this rule is to give the precept takers a sense of security by establishing a fair procedure. If the decision as to whether one can be a member of the Sangha relies only on one person, it is difficult to avoid unfair judgments based on personal feelings of gratitude, resentment, or personal prejudice. Thus, to provide fair treatment for all those who want to take precepts, then it is reasonable to have “ten bhikkhus to be the certifiers.” Furthermore, as stated in the Vinaya, the preceptors need to ask the precept seekers about potential stumbling blocks that could obstruct them from taking precepts,4 that is, objective questions to determine
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The Vinayas of various schools all record that the preceptor must ask the precept seeker the following questions: “Have you been a bhikkhu?” If the person answers yes, then the preceptor should ask, “Have you been upholding the precept purely? Have you been (repenting and) returning to the precept according to the teachings? Have you abused a pure bhikkhuni? Are you not taking precepts with other motives (like a thief)? Are you without sexual characteristics? Have you ever killed your parents, an arhat or destroyed the harmony of the Sangha? Are you a human being? Are you not an animal? Are you not a hermaphrodite? What is your Dharma name? Who is your ordination master? Are you over 20 years of age? Are you complete with bowl and robes? Do you have the consent of your mother and father? Are you in debt? Are you a slave? Are you in the service of the king? Are you a woman/man? Do you any diseases, such as leprosy, boils, eczema, consumption, epilepsy?” Dharmagupta Vinaya. T. 22, p. 1042b. 5 To “live like a thief ” means to live an impure or fraudulent life as a bhikkhu or bhikkhuni or to hide in the Sangha simply to make a living.
The Inescapable “GENDER ORDER”: Confused Thoughts no the Rule of “RECEIVING PRECEPTS IN BOTH ORDERS”
whether the person is qualified to take the precepts. This shows that, even if there are ten bhikkhus as the certifiers, these bhikkhus cannot make judgments freely according to their own will, based on their likes or dislikes, about the precept seekers. They must ask questions according to a list formulated by the Buddha. These questions examine whether a person is qualified to become a member in the Sangha (whether bhikkhus or bhikkhunis). However, in practice, many have neglected the objective and the virtuous implications of the original design of the procedures for receiving precepts, instead expanding on the mysteriousness of “lineage.” They have taken a simple and straightforward regulation of the order – “before entering the order, one needs ten people to examine and verify whether a person has the qualities to enter the order” – and reinterpreted it to “one’s fate is determined at the hands of ten persons.” In addition, they have improperly enlarged the “one” and linked it with “everything.” The result is that, whether or not one is qualified to be a practitioner, the emphasis is not on whether a person has the free will and determination to repent, rectify, and improve oneself, but on the dictum that “there must be ten people (most of them ordinary people) who are pure and perfect in their practice.” What is the difference between this formulation and saying that one’s fate is determined by the mercy of God? Under the circumstance, no wonder some bhikkhunis feel that they remain in the Sangha “like a thief.”5 Some tried to retake the precepts, because they felt they had strong negative karma. Recently a number of bhikkhunis with poor self-esteem did not take their precepts in front of both orders, but only in front of ten bhikkhus. The need for nuns to be ordained by both orders is also why the bhikkhuni order has become extinct in the Theravada and Tibetan traditions. Female practitioners end up in an awkward “neither lay nor renounced” status 4
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The Inescapable “GENDER ORDER”: Confused Thoughts no the Rule of “RECEIVING PRECEPTS IN BOTH ORDERS”
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as an eight-precept holder, ten-precept holder, or retreat practitioner. They become second-class members of the monastic order. They become the cheap labor of the bhikkhus. If we take the psychology of a gambler who wants to win, which of these two theories has the better odds of winning? A clever gambler will definitely prefer to place their bet on “one gives rise to everything” than “one is everything.” Why? Because assembling 10n ordinary people who are pure is more difficult than obtaining the mercy of one God. In addition, they believe that since God is merciful, he will bestow love on the people he has created. The chances of winning such a bet are certainly easier than obtaining the essence of the precepts from 10n ordinary people who are pure and free of delusions.
The Eight Special Rules as a Cause of Inequalities Between Bhikkhunis and Bhikkhus In Buddhism, based on the premise that “all life is equal,” the logic behind the concept of “gender equality” is quite simple. However, because the Buddhists have been haunted by ignorance and arrogance, as well as psychologically delicate and complex feelings of “professional jealousy,” the principle of equality faced a series of severe tests in practice during the Buddha’s time and continues to the present day. Strong traces of “male chauvinism” are clearly discernible in the Buddhist canonical literature of past generations, even when these discourses seem obviously illogical or incoherent to the readers. The Vinaya describes a bhikkhu Sangha and a bhikkhuni Sangha. The texts state that a person who changes gender – a “bhikkhu transexual” (from male to female) or a “bhikkhuni transexual” (from female to male) – does not have to be re-ordained. This suggests that differences in the physical body are not the point at all, such that women should be ordained on an equal basis with their male counterparts. However, virtually the entire Buddhist canon was composed by men. This means that they had absolute authority in compiling and interpreting the canonical literature. As a consequence, females have been demonized as “monsters” with “84 ugly manners,” branded as “culprits,” and blamed for causing “the true Dharma to last for just 500 years.” Furthermore, the idea that the Eight Special Rules were framed by the Buddha has served as a binding spell that renders bhikkhunis powerless to act independently. As a result, bhikkus have been able to suppress the bhikkhuni ordger and even to justify gettin rid of it altogether. The “Eight Special Rules,” a set of disciplinary rules that emphasize male supremacy and female inferiority in the Buddhist
The Inescapable “GENDER ORDER”: Confused Thoughts no the Rule of “RECEIVING PRECEPTS IN BOTH ORDERS”
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order, have twisted the healthy relationship between men and women in the Buddhist community. By following these rules, which are highly discriminatory against women, many bhikkhunis felt that they were “much lower than the bhikkhus” in social standing. This not only made them strongly sense bhikkhus’ superiority and bhikkhunis’ inferiority, but also led bhikkhus to cast the “binding spell” easily whenever they wanted to control bhikkhuni. Because of statutory authority purportedly invested in them by “the Eight Special Rules,” the bhikkhus developed such a sense of superiority that they did not make progress in the monastic life. They were neither able to humbly study under outstanding bhikkhunis or novice nuns, nor were they able to observe the general social etiquette governing social interactions between youth and the elderly when they met and greeted senior bhikkhunis. By enforcing the rules, a mixed sense of inferiority and superiority developed in the bhikkhus, resulting in feelings of jealousy and superciliousness. Obviously, the “Eight Special Rules” made both the bhikkhus and the bhikkhunis “losers” in the path of practice and spiritual development. Since 1945, under the protection and support of the open-minded leaders of the elder generation in Buddhism, Taiwan’s Buddhists established a decent tradition of mutual respect and trust between bhikkhus and bhikkhunis. Unfortunately, some bhikkhus of the younger generation broke this traditional balance of power in the Buddhist community and made strenuous efforts to instill the concept of “male supremacy and female inferiority” in the bhikkhunis’ minds through various Buddhist educational channels. Such inhuman brainwashing produced the effect of self-suggestion that totally disarmed many bhikkhunis and even led some to launch propaganda efforts in favor of these male chauvinist bhikkhus’ beliefs and values. Taiwan’s decent tradition of equality between bhikkhus and bhikkhunis has faced serious challenges under this anti-intellectual tide. By cozying up to the Buddhist parties that discriminate against bhikkhunis in mainland China, these bhikkhus have the state of sexual discrimination in Buddhism far worse than before. Through ordination ceremonies and Buddhist educational systems, they have aided and abetted a small number of bhikkhunis of a servile character to engage in brainwashing, so as to secretly instill the idea of male dominance into students’ minds. Several negative effects have already resulted from this kind of inhumane education. For example, the “Eight Special Rules” have been strictly enforced at many ordination platforms and Buddhist colleges. Besides, in some Buddhist colleges, the bhikkhunis are required to bow at their fellow bhikkhus’ feet in class. In others, both bhikkhunis
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and novice nuns are responsible for eating up leftovers, while their male counterparts are exempt. On both sides of the Taiwan Straights, there is a recent trend to demand that each member of the nuns’ order follow the “Eight Special Rules” and this unhealthy trend is gaining momentum. I heard that, at one ordination platform, even the senior bhikkhuni precept masters (Sanskrit: ācārya) were required to make salutations to the bhikkhus who had just been initiated. The elder bhikkhunis became very upset about all these things. The emphasis on “male supremacy and female inferiority” in the Buddhist order not only resulted in the grotesque injunction that “a bhikkhuni ordained even for a 100 years should perform salutations to a newly ordained bhikkhu,” but it also caused many bhikkhus to drift away from their deep respect for the Dharma. I have personally heard that some bhikkhus, when receiving meditation instruction from a well-known and revered śramaneri in the Theravada tradition, sat with cool effrontery as their instructor kneeled on the ground while teaching. Imagine the arrogant looks on their faces. Surprisingly, social status has become more important than the Dharma in some bhikkhus’ minds. The Buddha instructed, “Never give a Dharma talk to a person who is sitting while one is standing.” If the bhikkhus take “the Buddha’s instructions so seriously, how could they with a conscience put their Dharma teacher in such a hopelessly awkward position? In Buddhist societies, the “gender order” that appreciates males and depreciates females not only has far-reaching implications, but has also become inescapable. I suspect that the emergence of this unequal gender order is the detrimental consequence of legalized sexual discrimination. Both written and unwritten laws have contributed to the worsening of such discrimination, which create a vicious cycle and shared network of negative karmic. The root of this gender order can be retraced to the “Eight Special Rules” that depreciate bhikkhunis. The construction of these “Eight Special Rules” has created a gender order that makes bhikkhun is forever subordinate to bhikkhu. The fact that these Eight Special Rules are recorded in the Vinaya has granted the gender order a legal status, rather than remaining simply decorum. The scope of influence of this gender order has reached the four groups of Buddhists. At any given time, one can see young, junior bhikkhus walking or sitting unabashedly in front of senior bhikkhunis. Some even take rather ridiculously childish actions to occupy front seats in order to signify that they are indeed higher in rank than bhikkhunis. Not only do bhikkhunis suffer from such formal shows of gender discrimination, but so do Buddhist laywomen in general. Laywomen are usually assigned
The Inescapable “GENDER ORDER”: Confused Thoughts no the Rule of “RECEIVING PRECEPTS IN BOTH ORDERS”
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places following laymen in walking and sitting. In addition to the gender order, Chinese Buddhism also justifies class hierarchy. On some formal occasions in the Chinese tradition, some outstanding bhikkhunis and successful laywomen are allowed to take privileged seats next to bhikkhus. If these outstanding bhikkhunis and successful women can embrace ideas of justice rather than indulging themselves in those tempting privileges, they can use their power to help deconstruct the gender order. Many kind-natured female practitioners hypnotize themselves with ideals of humility and selflessness, without realizing that such passive conformity actually encourages the gender order. By contrast, modern women who hold ideals of equality may feel deeply insulted and upset by the gender order and even refrain from attending Buddhist gatherings. Apparently, the gender order has also become a great obstacle in spreading the Dharma in the West. It is not only bhikkhus who have maintained the gender order. Many bhikkhunis and Buddhist laywomen have equally contributed to such an order, by making tremendous efforts to ensure that women follow men on various public occasions. Those who refuse to abide by such a gender order are treated as “aliens” or “traitors.” While striving to appear “humble” and “tender” in front of men, they can be quite forceful and even ferocious toward other women. I strongly believe that the flourishing of a very obvious gender discrimination cannot be attributed to men alone. The gender game is practiced over and over on every occasion by both males and females in Buddhism, whether they consciously promote it or unconsciously allow the gender order to continue. At least two very obvious cases clearly show that some bhikkhunis’ submissive attitudes in patriarchal society have won them an elevated status in the Sangha or in the ordination system. However, I cannot help but suspect that such women have become complicit in gender discrimination in order to win themselves a place in the patriarchal Sangha. Compared to the gender discrimination that hides deep in the mind or between the lines, the ubiquitous gender order is very blunt and overt, grabbing startling attention. Even worse, the appearance of the gender order in various Buddhist rituals and gatherings has made Buddhism an obsolete religion that strongly discriminates against women. Encouraged by significant trends in the Buddhist women’s movement for equal rights, I decided to resort to radical measures to touch off a clash of creeds by a movement to abolish the Eight Special Rules.
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Rinsho Buddhist Chaplain Training Program
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Rinsho Buddhist Chaplain Training Program
Jonathan Watts
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Organized by the Rinbutsuken Institute for Socially Engaged Buddhism under the Zenseikyo Foundation & Buddhist Council for Youth and Child Welfare. For a Buddhist to engage, practical experience and specialized knowledge is also needed to confront suffering in contemporary society. ecently in Japan, we have developed the concept of Rinsho Buddhism. The direct English translation of this word rinsho is “clinical” and has with it the image of hospice work for end of life care. However, at our recently formed Rinsho Buddhism Institute, we have translated rinsho more loosely as Engaged Buddhism. Thus the name for our institute in English is the Rinbutsuken Institute for Engaged Buddhism (rin refers to rinsho, butsu to Buddhism, and ken to institute). Rinsho has the meaning of engaging in the personal domain as well as the social aspects of the four core causes of suffering (dukkha): birth, aging, sickness, and death. The experiences of supporting the traumatized in Northeast Japan after the events of 3/11 have made clear the need for much more highly trained Buddhist priests to work beyond the confines of performing funerals and memorial services, or even tea parties and cafés for interacting with victims. When traumatized people shift into the deeper psychological issues of PTSD, most Buddhist priests do not have the training to engage with them. Beyond the 3/11 disaster, there are the chronic psychological problems of Japanese society – such as suicide and individual isolation – which urgently need the engagement of qualified religious professionals. Through the influence of progressive Christians promoting Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE), some Buddhists in Japan have also sought to develop various kinds of training programs in counseling, hospice care, and other therapeutic skills over the past decade. Zenseikyo, the parent foundation for the Rinbutsuken Institute, has long time experience
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For more information: http://jneb.jp/english/japan/350-2/chaplainlecture
Rinsho Buddhist Chaplain Training Program
in working with traumatized children as well as supporting the victims of the 3/11 disaster. This experience has led us to commit full time to the work of cultivating Buddhist chaplains, or what we prefer to call rinsho-bukkyo-shi, which can be translated as “Buddhist clinicians” or even “engaged Buddhists”. While we hope to attract fully ordained Buddhist priests to the program, we are also making registration open to lay Buddhists from various backgrounds. As Zenseikyo is an ecumenical organization, we have wide networks of religious professionals, not just Buddhists, from within Japan and overseas whom we are recruiting to support us in developing this work. In this way, we are developing a systematic Buddhist chaplain training program based on the best practices of innovative foreign programs, while seeking to develop a particular model that fits indigenous Japanese Buddhist culture and society. The Rinsho Buddhist Chaplain Training Program consist of the following 3 components: Level One (Knowledge & Study): A 10-part lecture series consisting of 15 hours of instruction co-hosted by the Tokyo University Young Buddhist Association. This lecture series will introduce participants to the fundamental concepts of Rinsho Buddhism, socially engaged Buddhism, and chaplaincy. Assembling experts from a variety of fields, it will also expose students to practical work in the related fields of terminal care, suicide, youth problems like bullying and shut-ins (hikikomori), criminal behavior and reform, poverty, community decline, and, of course, disaster related trauma. This program will be a required preliminary for chaplains-intraining who must attend at least 8 lectures and submit a written report at the end. Level Two (Understanding): Beginning in the Autumn of 2013, a series of advanced workshop seminars for chaplains-in-training covering a total of at least 30 hours of instruction. Fields of training will cover: deep listening skills, Attitudinal Healing, role-play, counseling, cognitive and behavioral therapy, interpersonal psychotherapy, etc. Level Three (Residency): Upon the completion of the two above learning modules, chaplains-in-training will begin a 100 hour residency with one of the many organizations in our network; for example Buddhist organizations working on suicide prevention and supporting the homeless; non-profit organizations working on issues presented in the Level One lectures; and other public or private organizations like hospitals and hospices open to using religious professionals.
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Tradition and Modernity: Religion and Spirituality in a changing world
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Tradition and Modernity: Religion and Spirituality in a changing world
Prof.Sudha Rani & Gauthama Prabhu
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odernization, as a form of cultural response, involves attributes which are basically universalistic and evolutionary. It symbolizes rational attitudes towards issues, and their evaluation from a universalistic view-point. The commitments towards scientific world-view, the internationalization of humanistic and philosophical view-point of science on contemporary problems forms the essentials of modernization, and not merely the volume of technological advancement. It is possible that a society as also a person might command a maximum of scientific skills and resources but a minimum of its necessary psychic and emotional requisites. It is otherwise possible that a successful scientist may be a failure as a modern human, and a most affluent or technologically advanced society may also be the one which is most tyrannical. It is in this context that the meaning of modernization should be understood. The distinction between modern values and traditional values are that modern values, like science, being evolutionary universal which might not be typical to a cultural tradition, whereas traditional cultural values may be particularistic and typical. Modernity is not an exclusive possession of any one ethnic or cultural group, but belongs to the humanity as a whole. This paper seeks to explore different ways in which Dalits are being exploited in this context. This becomes necessary as claims of knowledge of dominant sections which are treated as parameters of modernity in the Indian context. Neither Dalits nor Dalit women concerns have ever been a choice of research and activities of the mainstream Indian intellectuals. During the British rule in 1881, many social reformers protested against the Hindu based traditional values. British Indian government introduced law favoring widow remarriage. Brahmins were strongly opposed to widow remarriage. As per the Hindu traditional values, women were not allowed to marry anyone other than the one with whom she is betrothed with
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even if the man dies before marriage. Interestingly, these traditions were not practiced by the so-called lower castes. In the year 1891, with the help of the then British Indian government, the age of consent for girls to get married were raised from 10 to 12, which was strongly opposed by Indian national leaders like B.G.Tilak (1856-1920) charging British Government of interfering in Indian customs. The subjugation and exploitation of Dalits and women is part of institutionalized setting of caste, religion and traditions in India. Though the social and religious reform movement was around women’s question, issues related to Dalit women were not dealt by the reformers. The reform movement sought only peripheral changes in the system and not structural changes. As Sumit Sarkar points out “the Indian reformers were very selective of western liberal ideas imported from Europe. They were keen to keep the fundamental elements of Hindu conservatism like caste disparities, adherence to the Hindu norms and preference for Hindu familial structure… in fact they needed symbolic rather than fundamental change”. This gap remained till the emergence of social reformers like Mahatma Jothirao Phule, Pandit Ayotheethass, and Dr.Ambedkar. Some of the practices of Hinduism devised systems, which allowed Hindu men to sexually exploit Dalit women in the name of tradition. As Ambedkar aptly puts it “Manu designed Brahmins as Bhudevatas, the lords of the earth. The Brahmins enlarged the scope of the statement and began to claim the right to intercourse with women of other classes….it is an understanding to say that only a right to first fruits as the right to first night as called in the middle ages in Europe… without burdening the Brahmins to any of obligations of marriage”. The Devadasi system is one such way of perpetuating and institutionalizing oppression. The Devadasi system or the divine prostitution is a custom of dedicating young girls to the local deities where she has to satisfy the sexual urges of the male. The custom is pervasive all over India and more so in backward areas. The basic feature of the system is that young girls before attaining puberty were dedicated to the local deity in a ceremonial marriage, and exploitation of their sexuality was legitimized under the disguise of the religion and tradition, and were forced to perform certain rituals which would bring goodness to the village or community. However, they have to depend only on ceremonial begging for their livelihood. The origin of the Devadasi system is traced back to 9th and 10th century which coincided with the decline of Buddhism. Many scholars like Jamanadas, Jogan Shankar put forward a theory that Devadasis are degraded Buddhist nuns based on certain practices such as giving the first born daughter to the sangha, practice of ceremonial begging etc. Slowly the practice degraded in to a dreadful tradition of sacred prostitution in the name of god.
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Dalit reformers took up this cause and advocated for the abolition of the system and demanded for rehabilitation of those who are in it as a state obligation. Dr. Ambedkar too raised this issue on several forums. His opposition to this custom was apparent in one of his speeches delivered to a gathering of Devadasis in 1938. As this custom has religious sanctity, he believed that the abolition of such customs will be possible only by changing the religious base of Dalits. Most Dalit Indian Buddhists espouse an eclectic version of Buddhism, primarily based on Thervada, but with additional influences from Mahayana and Vajrayana. On many subjects, they give Buddhism a distinctive interpretation. Of particular note is their emphasis on Sakyamuni Buddha as a political and social reformer, rather than simply a spiritual leader. They note that the Buddha required his monastic followers to ignore caste distinctions, and that he criticized the social inequality that existed in his own time. Dr. Ambedkar’s followers do not believe that a person’s conditions at birth are the result of previous karma. The Hindu spiritual leader like Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902), a major force for the revival of Hinduism in India, finds no exception in the case of caste system. He not only justified it as a natural order, but stated that it is the fault of the non-brahmin castes to suffer. He glorified the professions of the so-called lower castes even though they were denied education, access to public amenities, and treated as out-castes even during his life-time. According to him, it is sinful and waste of time to discuss on the issue of caste system. Sri Aurobindo (1872-1950) interpreted that Brahamins are the supreme, and that remaining divisions have to serve the Brahmins. Modernization in India did not lead to any serious breakdown because of the peculiar structural characteristics of the Indian society. The colonial phase of modernization did not seriously articulate many structural challenges which now the totalization of this process in free India implies. After India’s independence from the British rule, Government of India’s ‘soft’ policies towards social change restrained its leadership to address the very fundamental problem of ‘structural violence’. Consequently, this structural violence grew magnanimously and consolidated itself like before. The leadership of the country as a whole remained in the hands of those who were strongly opposed to social democracy, and to real socio-economic change. No wonder, there has been a long gap between verbal discourses and actual implementation. The policies advocating decentralization of power in rural sectors of India led to the strengthening of traditional values and system. Religion became more rigid even after the onslaught of globalization. The exploration of religion and modernity in a global context can provide new and challenging perspectives in the processes of modernization. In 1881, the untouchable community was enumerated by the British
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Indian government separately, and was never classified as Hindu. However, in due course, the untouchables were made an integral part of Hinduism by the Hindus which was strongly advocated by Gandhi, the father of the Indian nation. The process of Brahmanisation has always been a very violent process, ranging from political conversions to adopt Hinduism, and to military campaigns to force conversion onto the native populaces of India. It impacted immensely through laws against indigenous religious practices and beliefs, official conversion of Buddhist viharas and Jain temples to Hindu temples, and replacement of Hindu gods over ancient religious sites. As a consequence, the ancient philosophers of humanity were demonized under threat of torture and death. The upholders of Brahmanism reformatted native religious and cultural activities into a Hinduised form, and allowed to retain the outward forms of their traditions whilst claiming the traditions were in honor of Hindu gods with an intention that traditions exist but reasons behind them left forgotten. In India, through legislation, major changes were introduced in order for abolishing inequalities and exploitations partially handed down by tradition, and settled with constitutional privileges to all members of the society. However, such a change through legislation has also reinforced traditional systems in giving birth to more radical organizations. Modern technology and communication are more effectively used for spreading ritual order and religious activities. The famous Hindu television serials like Ramayana & Mahabharatha were seen as some of the impacts of reviving traditional systems. During the same period, the serial Holy Bible was prevented being telecastd. Nowadays, due to the technological advancement, Hindus offer their prayers through the internet. For instance, Hindus make online payments for special prayers and offering to Tirupathi Balaji. The spiritual movement in India primarily focuses on vegetarianism and environmentalism. In most of the discourses delivered by spiritual leaders, meat eating is denoted as promoting thoughts such as pessimism, ignorance, laziness, criminal tendencies, and doubt. And further, meat eaters are classified as ‘Shudras’ (lower caste). Most of the spiritual leaders justified the caste system with their own interpretation in terms of karma and guna which is based upon ones past life and the present one. Many organizations and movements like Chinmaya mission & ISKCON often claim that the caste system is a spiritual class system. After close observation of their own methods and practices, it only justifies the caste system of Hinduism. State sponsored activities for reviving Hindu traditional values impose a greater challenge to modernization. Depicting Buddha as an incarnation of Hindu god Vishnu on an Indian postal stamp is one of the infamous examples contradicting the very foundation of Buddhism. The list of Government holidays in India has a greater number of holidays for Hindus, particularly the
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Brahmins. Out of the total 51 holidays declared by Government of India for the year 2013, 31 holidays were meant for celebrating Brahmin festivals alone. Ironically, Brahmins contribute less than four percent of the total population of India. Interestingly, the total number of holidays in the year 1980 declared by Government of India were only five. As many of us know that Dr.B.R.Ambedkar has been the chief architect of the Indian Constitution, and that he championed for the cause of social justice and social democracy, he has no place in the list. There has always been a confrontation between traditional cultural values and comprehensive modernization. For instance, secularism, women suppression, manual scavenging, and untouchability are some cultural demands of modernization in contemporary India which traditional value system continues to resist. The question now arises: Will Indian society be able to avoid structural breakdown in the process of modernization? The answer to this majorly depends upon how and in what manner the social and cultural changes take place in India. The modernization process in India is reaching its climax. The ‘gradualist’ approach of change has become redundant, and it is imperative to cause a bigger change rapidly than a small change gradually.
APPENDIX 1: Melaka (Malacca)
Historical Background
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Through history, the Straits of Malacca have been a highway for maritime traders and contacts between East and West. Powerful kingdoms and cities have arisen and a typical trait has been immigration and strong influences from far and near, contributing to a multicultural identity. In circa 1400, Malacca Sultanate or the Kingdom of Melaka was founded. In its Golden Era in the 15th century, the fishing village grew into one of the most important entrepots of its time, with territory covering much of the Malay Peninsula, Riau Islands (Indonesia) and a significant portion of the east Sumatra (Indonesia). With the support from the Chinese emperor, the king managed to stay independent of Siam. Many ethnic groups were present and it is reported that some 80 different languages were spoken. The literary tradition of Malacca developed the Classical Malay. During Malacca’s golden era, Malay eventually became the lingua franca of the region and and Jawi script became the primary medium for cultural, religious and intellectual exchange. Malay is used by locals, and traders and artisans that stopped at Malacca via the Straits of Malacca. Malay was also presumably used as a language of trade among the elites and artisans around the islands of modern-day Philippines. Dutch scholar, Francois Valentijn (1666–1727) described the use of Malay in the region as being equivalent to the contemporary use of Latin and French in Europe.
APPENDIX 1: Melaka
Copyright: © Frederica Leone Author: Frederica Leone Image Source: WHC
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APPENDIX 1: Melaka
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As a bustling international cosmopolitan trading port, Malacca attracted Muslim traders from various part of the world. After the King embraced Islam, it became a center for Islamic learning and dissemination throughout the Maritime Southeast Asia. Malacca contributed in the evolution of a common Malay culture based on Islam by incorporating native and Hindu-Buddhist ideas and layered them extensively with Islamic ideas and values. The sultanate was governed with several set of laws. The formal legal text of traditional Malacca consisted of the Undang-Undang Melaka (Laws of Malacca), variously called the Hukum Kanun Melaka and Risalat Hukum Kanun, and the Undang-Undang Laut Melaka (the Maritime Laws of Malacca’). The laws as written in the legal digests went through an evolutionary process. The legal rules that eventually evolved were shaped by three main influences, namely the early Hindu/Buddhist tradition, Islam and the indigenous “adat� (customs). Next to its role in promoting Islamic faith, Malacca is important especially for the modern nation of Malaysia as it was the first centralized polity that consolidated the entire Malay peninsula-now an important part of Malaysia- under its rule. Because of these roles, Malacca is considered by many to be the spiritual birthplace of Malaysia. Malacca was the first Malay Muslim state that achieved the status of a regional maritime power. It established systems of trade, diplomacy, and governance that persisted well into the 19th century, and introduced concepts such as daulat- a distinctly Malay notion of sovereignty. Through its traditions, laws, and royal rituals and customs, the Malaccan court set the example for later Muslim sultanates in the region to follows. Melaka - along with George Town/Penang - are historic cities of the Straits of Malacca that have developed over 500 years of trading and cultural exchanges between East and West in the Straits of Malacca. The influences of Asia and Europe have endowed the towns with a specific multicultural heritage that is both tangible and intangible. With its government buildings, churches, squares and fortifications, Melaka demonstrates the early stages of this history originating in the 15th-century Malay sultanate and the Portuguese and Dutch periods beginning in the early 16th century. Featuring residential and commercial buildings, George Town represents the British era from the end of the 18th century. The two cities constitute a unique architectural and cultural townscape without parallel anywhere in East and Southeast Asia.The development of both cities over the centuries was based on the merging of diverse ethnic and cultural traditions, including Malay, European, Muslim, Indian and Chinese influences. All this resulted in a human and cultural tapestry that is expressed in a rich intangible heritage that includes languages, religious practices,
gastronomy, ceremonies and festivals. Outstanding Universal Value
Amongst the places we’ll visit is Chen Hoon Teng temple (青云亭; Temple of Green Cloud). Cheng Hoon Teng was founded in the 1600s by the Chinese
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Study Tours
APPENDIX 1: Melaka
Melaka and George Town, Malaysia, demonstrate a succession of historical and cultural influences arising from their former function as trading ports linking East and West. These are the most complete surviving historic city centres on the Straits of Malacca with a multi-cultural living heritage originating from the trade routes from Great Britain and Europe through the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent and the Malay Archipelago to China. Both towns bear testimony to a living multi-cultural heritage and tradition of Asia, where the many religions and cultures met and coexisted. They reflect the coming together of cultural elements from the Malay Archipelago, India and China with those of Europe, to create a unique architecture, culture and townscape. Criterion (ii): Melaka and George Town represent exceptional examples of multi-cultural trading towns in East and Southeast Asia, forged from the mercantile and exchanges of Malay, Chinese, and Indian cultures and three successive European colonial powers for almost 500 years, each with its imprints on the architecture and urban form, technology and monumental art. Both towns show different stages of development and the successive changes over a long span of time and are thus complementary. Criterion (iii): Melaka and George Town are living testimony to the multi-cultural heritage and tradition of Asia, and European colonial influences. This multi-cultural tangible and intangible heritage is expressed in the great variety of religious buildings of different faiths, ethnic quarters, the many languages, worship and religious festivals, dances, costumes, art and music, food, and daily life. Criterion (iv): Melaka and George Town reflect a mixture of influences which have created a unique architecture, culture and townscape without parallel anywhere in East and South Asia. In particular, they demonstrate an exceptional range of shop houses and townhouses. These buildings show many different types and stages of development of the building type, some originating in the Dutch or Portuguese periods. It is a site of convergence of Buddhist and Islamic civilization brought about by the traders and sea merchants. It provides inspiration as to how cultures have intertwined and how communities have grown together. For more context & historical background: http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1223
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Kapitan Tay Kie Ki alias Tay Hong Yong. During the Portuguese and Dutch eras, Kapitans were appointed chiefs or headmen of the various ethnic communities. In its early years, besides serving the community’s religious needs, the temple also functioned as the official administrative centre and a court of justice for the Kapitans. The Cheng Hoon Teng temple is a Chinese temple practicing the Three Doctrinal Systems of Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism. It is Malaysia’s oldest functioning temple; it ranks among the most significant in Southeast Asia, being central to the spiritual aspirations of the Chinese community in historic Malacca. (with an UNESCO award for outstanding architectural restoration). More info: http://www.chenghoonteng.org.my/ Along on the same “Harmony Street” in Malacca is Masjid Kampung Keling. This traditional mosque was built by Indian Muslim traders in 1748. It is one that still retains its original design. The architectural design of the mosque is a cross between Sumatran (Indonesia), Chinese, Hindu, and the Melaka Malay. The minaret resembles a pagoda. The mosque also has a blend of English and Portuguese glazed tiles, Corinthian columns with symmetrical arches in the main prayer hall, a Victorian chandelier, a wooden pulpit with Hindu and Chinese-style carvings, and Moorish cast iron lamp-posts in the place of ablution for pre-prayer cleansing.
Overview of INEB
Establishment
67 Overview of INEB
In 1989, the International Network of Engaged Buddhists (INEB) was established in Siam (Thailand)by Sulak Sivaraksa and a group of Buddhist and non-Buddhist thinkers and social activists. INEB operates as an autonomous organization under the Bangkok-based Sathirakoses-Nagapradeepa Foundation. Over the years the network has expanded to include members, both individuals and organizations, from more than 20 countries across Asia, Europe, North America and Australia. From this diversity, an understanding of socially engaged Buddhism has emerged which integrates the practice of Buddhism with social action for a healthy, just, and peaceful world.
Nature of the Organization INEB is comprised of distinguished activists, spiritual leaders, and academics representing the major schools of Buddhism, as well as non-Buddhists with shared concerns. INEB’s member activities address a variety of issues to serve their own communities. The members also support one another through collaborating on common projects and joint strategic planning for advancing INEB’s vision and activities. The Secretariat’s office facilitates the flow of information and support by offering programs to fortify members’ capacity through joint activities and shared resources. INEB welcomes new partners that will complement and expand the existing network.
Vision and Objectives INEB’s comprehensive vision is to develop the perspective and practice of socially engaged Buddhism that: 1. Promotes understanding, cooperation, and networking among interBuddhist and inter-religious social action groups 2. Acts as an information resource related to areas of social concern 3. Facilitates conferences, education, and training that supports and strengthens socially active individuals and groups based in Buddhist values and practices
Socially Engaged Buddhism
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INEB members and partners are exploring the ways in which Buddhism and social analysis can enrich one another toward solving social problems together. This exploration seeks to develop new social paradigms based on Buddhist concepts and values such as the interdependency and interconnectedness of all beings to create more self-reliant and harmonious communities. This process has been taking place through linking regional and international groups with grassroots realities from which the social issues of concern and engagement have emerged.
Social Issues of Concern and Engagement INEB’s philosophy and practice is based on compassion, social justice, nonviolence, and co-existence as revealed by the Buddha. The core mission is to confront and end suffering using analysis and action guided by the Four Noble Truths. Activities focus on the following areas: • General conferences • Peacebuilding and reconciliation • Human rights and social justice • Alternative education • Gender & Women’s’ Empowerment • Buddhist economics • Alternative development • Environment & Climate Change • Reform and revival of Buddhist institutions • Youth and spiritual leadership development • Buddhist art • Inter-religious/faith dialogue and collaboration Media/Public Relations and Publications INEB maximizes its capacity to communicate effectively to the network through its website where all of its current activities are announced, as well as those of its members and partner organizations. It also has a Facebook site. In addition to the internet, INEB publishes the Seeds of Peace three times per year, which critiques modern society as well as proposes options for a more humane and livable world. Other publicationsinclude a variety of books and other printed materials. Participation
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Anyone can become a member of INEB, Buddhist and non-Buddhist alike, as long as they share an interest in social issues and genuinely want to contribute in the spirit of giving (dana) with compassion. Through an annual donation of fifty US dollars ($50) new members will receive Seeds of Peace. INEB is a non-profit, non-governmental organisation whose programmes are funded by outside donors and foundations. The Secretariat’s office operates soley on the generosity of individuals, groups, organizations and our regional networks. Your donation or dana to further INEB’s work would be greatly appreciated. If you are interested in becoming a member or making a donation, please contact the Secretariat – secretariat@inebnetwork.org.
INEB General Conference Over the years INEB has sponsored 16 general international conferences in various locations throughout Asia for its members and other participants interested in our issues of concern and engagement. In 2011, the biennial conference was held in Bodhgaya, India, where participants collectively and individually examined the future of Buddhism. The 2013 conference is being held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
History of INEB Conferences The conference was held annually until 1995, since then they have been scheduled every two years. Year
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Conference Location
1989 Uthai Thani, Thailand 1990 Suan Mokkh, Surat Thani, Thailand 1991 Buddhamonthon Park, Nakhom Pathom, Thailand 1992 Chiang Mai, Thailand 1993 Ratchaburi, Thailand 1994 Surin, Thailand 1995 Wongsanit Ashram, Nakhorn Nayok, Thailand 1997 Kanchanaburi, Thailand 1999 Colombo, Sri Lanka 2001 Wongsanit Ashram, Nakorn Nayok, Thailand 2003 Seoul, South Korea 2005 Theme - From Suffering to Nirvana, Nagpur, India 2007 Theme - Engaged Buddhism: Social Welfare and Social Change, Taipei, Taiwan 2009 Theme - 20th Anniversary of INEB: Festival of Peace and Social Change, Chiang Mai, Thailand 2011 Theme - The Future of Buddhism: From Personal Awakening to Global Transformation, Bodhgaya, India 2013 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Organisational Structure As a network organization INEB’s organizational structure is composed of Patrons, Honorary Advisors, an Advisory Committee and an Executive Committee. The Secretariat’s office is based in Bangkok, Thailand, where it coordinates network activities with a small staff under the leadership of the Secretary. The Advisory and Executive Committees convene joint annual meetings. Programme activities and new initiatives are guided by working groups composed of network members and partners. Patrons His Holiness the Dalai Lama Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh Venerable Phra Maha Somchai Kusalacitto Venerable Bhikshuni Chao Hwei
Tibet France/Vietnam Siam (Thailand) Taiwan
Honorary Advisors Venerable PomnyumSunim Venerable Samdhong Rinpoche Venerable Tsing Tao Venerable Bhikshuni Wu Yin Joanna Macy Kinjiro Niwano Rinko Okano Urgyen Sangharashita
South Korea Tibet Taiwan Taiwan USA Japan Japan United Kingdom
Advisory committee
71 Overview of INEB
SulakSivaraksa (Founder Chair) Siam (Thailand) Lodi Gyari Rinpoche (Co-chair) Tibet/USA Ven. Phaisal Visalo Siam (Thailand) Ven. Sangasena Ladakh / India Ven. Sumanalankar Bangladesh Ven. Bhikkhuni Dhammananda Siam (Thailand) Ven. Bhikshuni Myeong-beop South Korea Ven. Tsering Palmo Ladakh/India Rev. Alan Senauke USA Dharmachari Lokamitra India Douangdeuane Bounyavong Laos Hisashi Nakamura Japan Hsiang-chouYo Taiwan Jamie Cresswell UK Jill Jameson Australia Joan Halifax Roshi USA
Rev. Masazumi Okano Japan Park Gwang-seo South Korea Raja Dharmapala Sri Lanka Stella Tamang Nepal Swee-hin Toh Costa Rica Thant Lwin Maung Burma/Myanmar
Executive Committee
Overview of INEB
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Harsha Navaratne (Chairperson) Sri Lanka Vidyananda (KV Soon) Malaysia Ven. Geshe Dorje Damdul Tibet / India Ven. Sithornh Xayavongsone Laos Ven. Thanomsing Sukosalo Siam (Thailand) Ven. Bhikkhuni Jenkir Taiwan Amanda Kiessel Sri Lanka Anchalee Kurutach USA / Siam (Thailand) Bobo Lwin Burma/Myanmar Eddy Setiawan Indonesia Hans van Willenswaard Netherlands/Siam Hesook Lee South Korea Jonathan Watts USA/Japan LanhThi Tran Vietnam Mangesh Dahiwale India Matt Weiner USA Matteo Pistono USA Minyong Lee South Korea Nan Mya Thida Burma/Myanmar Nigel Crawhall South Africa Otsal Wangdus India (Ladakh) P. Lalidamballe India (Tamilnadu) Poolchawee Ruangwichatorn Siam (Thailand) Prashant Varma India Ros Sotha Cambodia SaiLeng Wan Burma/Myanmar Sarom Sek Cambodia Suresh Chandra Bauddha India Suresh Jindal India Tashi Zangmo Bhutan Wallapa van Willenswaard Siam (Thailand)
Executive Secretary Somboon Chungprampree (Moo) Siam (Thailand)