No 872 of Living Life Series 1
Wesak commemorates the birth, the enlightenment and final ascent of the Buddha.
Then in his time, like in the time of all great sages, there was no institution of religion. Religion is a term coined by modern men. Religion implies that there is demarcation.
He was born into Indian culture, not religion. You may say he was born into South Asian culture and he in his course of finding the answers to life issues of birth, disease, old age and death, realized that the prevailing culture of the times did not address certain discrepancies.
This applies to all cultures and his answers will work in all cultures. No need to adopt Indian or South Asian cultures to effect the answers. The answers are the inner truths behind life and all cultures and this was emphasized by Lord Bo Tien 武天菩萨. He stressed that all cultures are one in Divinity and turn focus of man to the answers to life issues.
There were gaps in understanding of life to be filled. Buddha found the answers. Basically, to be spiritual, one must not give up the worldly needs of the body. One will still need to take care of the body but not go overboard.
One needs a healthy body and can not trash the body to be close to God and saints or rather to be equal or even more divine. Trashing the body can be of two types.
One is asceticism - destroying the body thinking that by so doing one overcomes the body to be all spirit and divine. But then we are in body and that is it.
The other is to trash the body by indulgence in senses. That too is not good and can lead to a whole gamut of both physical and all the mental sequel we know. These can be awful as well.
Thus the Buddha believes in moderation what some say is the middle course or way. Did he start a new religion? Did he merely address the gaps and not so right in the culture of his time?
Well, we all know and many will realize that the term religion came into being of late and only in recent centuries with the advent of globalization and spread of teachings of sages across the globe. Man coins religion. Religions are made by men and not the direct creations of the sages. Well, many may not agree and that is acceptable and in a way good.
The teachings of the Buddha are meant to give insight and promote a better thinking and culture, not change the main culture and thinking totally. Buddha set out to improve and not change culture and life of men to bring answers to life both before and after death.
He saw the problem in life as due to ignorance. There are false views and there is a wide range of false views.
Denial of the flesh and body is a false view. False views can lead to or are made worse by clinging to them. There will arise ill-will when people fight over what they think are right. Many think they are more right but perhaps all are like the blind men and the elephant.
There will also arise greed or hoarding mentality - the more the better. This applies to the wants of the individual or to society or institution.
Some authors of Buddha's higher doctrine sum up that the ails of life is due to three negative mental roots of ill-will, greed and inapt views. It is meant for those who can go beyond the Vinaya and Sutra Pitakas. Pitaka literally is basket.
Vinaya refers to code of conduct or morality. Sutra refers to the scrolls of teachings. The holy order of monks chant these scrolls at temples to keep them for posterity.
The third basket or pitaka refers to Abhidharma or Higher Teachings. It deals in depth with the three negative and three positive mental roots - and much more. It has a language and terms of its own and in a way parallel to science. It is not easy to understand because of the terms or words used.
May the blessings of the Tripitaka (three baskets of teachings) be with one and all.
This applies to all cultures and his answers will work in all cultures. No need to adopt Indian or South Asian cultures to effect the answers. The answers are the inner truths behind life and all cultures and this was emphasized by Lord Bo Tien 武天菩萨. He stressed that all cultures are one in Divinity and turn focus of man to the answers to life issues.
There were gaps in understanding of life to be filled. Buddha found the answers. Basically, to be spiritual, one must not give up the worldly needs of the body. One will still need to take care of the body but not go overboard.
One needs a healthy body and can not trash the body to be close to God and saints or rather to be equal or even more divine. Trashing the body can be of two types.
One is asceticism - destroying the body thinking that by so doing one overcomes the body to be all spirit and divine. But then we are in body and that is it.
The other is to trash the body by indulgence in senses. That too is not good and can lead to a whole gamut of both physical and all the mental sequel we know. These can be awful as well.
Thus the Buddha believes in moderation what some say is the middle course or way. Did he start a new religion? Did he merely address the gaps and not so right in the culture of his time?
Well, we all know and many will realize that the term religion came into being of late and only in recent centuries with the advent of globalization and spread of teachings of sages across the globe. Man coins religion. Religions are made by men and not the direct creations of the sages. Well, many may not agree and that is acceptable and in a way good.
The teachings of the Buddha are meant to give insight and promote a better thinking and culture, not change the main culture and thinking totally. Buddha set out to improve and not change culture and life of men to bring answers to life both before and after death.
He saw the problem in life as due to ignorance. There are false views and there is a wide range of false views.
Denial of the flesh and body is a false view. False views can lead to or are made worse by clinging to them. There will arise ill-will when people fight over what they think are right. Many think they are more right but perhaps all are like the blind men and the elephant.
There will also arise greed or hoarding mentality - the more the better. This applies to the wants of the individual or to society or institution.
Some authors of Buddha's higher doctrine sum up that the ails of life is due to three negative mental roots of ill-will, greed and inapt views. It is meant for those who can go beyond the Vinaya and Sutra Pitakas. Pitaka literally is basket.
Vinaya refers to code of conduct or morality. Sutra refers to the scrolls of teachings. The holy order of monks chant these scrolls at temples to keep them for posterity.
The third basket or pitaka refers to Abhidharma or Higher Teachings. It deals in depth with the three negative and three positive mental roots - and much more. It has a language and terms of its own and in a way parallel to science. It is not easy to understand because of the terms or words used.
May the blessings of the Tripitaka (three baskets of teachings) be with one and all.
