>"The reason I am so fascinated with Buddhism is that it is a belief system which stresses love, peace and nonviolence."<<
Is that what the Japanese were thinking while they were bombing Pearl Harbor?
Christine,
Easy to imagine that the Japanese were thinking about peace while bombing Pearl Harbor - it's really not any different than the Polaris missile that stands outside the Electric Boat Co in Groton, CT with the "Guardian of Peace" slogan on it.
The Buddha taught that each one of us has a source of great wisdom within, and by getting in touch with this source, we are able to reduce our suffering and gain a measure of peace and happiness. However, most of us choose to pursue an ego-centric approach to happiness that just leads to more suffering. In the same way that a sick person can't get better by reading the label on their medicine, a Buddhist has to do more than just read or listen to Buddhist teachings in order to achieve peace and happiness.
This reminds me of a Tibetan story:
A man was desperate to achieve enlightenment, so he went to his local temple and donated a large sum of money. The lama thanked him profusely for this very generous donation, but then took him aside and told him although the donation was very kind, it would be better if he practiced Buddhism to achieve enlightenment. The man figured that the donation wasn't enough, so he began to practice with a vengeance. He went on a religious pilgrimage to the most sacred mountain of Tibet. After he got there, he did prostrations around the base of the mountain, and he recited spiritual mantras during the whole trip. After he returned from his voyage, the local lama once again took the man aside, and after complimenting him on his pilgrimage, told him that it would be far better if he practiced Buddhism instead of accumulating merit like that. The man then determined that he needed to undergo a rigorous meditation practice in order to practice Buddhism. So he started meditating at every opportunity, and eventually, after a few years, went on a 3 year meditation retreat. After this he went to visit his local lama, sure that he had finally discovered the formula to become a good Buddhist. Once again, the lama praised the man for his strict meditation practice, which was truly impressive. However, once again the lama gently chided the man, saying that it would be far better for him to practice Buddhism than sitting in meditation for 3 years. By now, the man had heard enough of this, and asked the lama what he needed to do in order to practice true Buddhism. The lama replied that it wasn't the actions performed that determined if they were Buddhist or not, rather it was the motivation behind the actions. Actions performed for the benefit of others were worthy of the Buddhist name, while actions performed for the benefit of oneself were not true Buddhism. So even performing actions of merit such as donating money, praying, and meditation were not true Buddhism without the correct motivation to benefit others.
Craig |
