The uniqueness of Buddhism

Aravinda Hettiarachchi

A popular debate regarding the relevance of the Dhamma has surfaced among Buddhists today, with the launching of the 2600th Sri Sambuddhathva Jayanthi year. We spoke to Ven. Professor Bellanwila Wimalaratana Thera, Chancellor of Sri Jayewardenepura University, who disclosed and shared his perspective on this spiritual event with us

We are in the 2600th year after the Enlightenment of the Buddha. Yet Sri Lanka has a 2300 year history of Buddhism. Buddhism thus came to Sri Lanka after 300 years of his Enlightenment. There is a saying that the Buddha has visited Sri Lanka three times in his life time after his Enlightenment. Yet, you don’t have any facts to prove that he has established Buddhism or converted anybody to Buddhism on these occasions.

Different ideologies

Just three months after the Parinirvana (the Passing Away of the Buddha), the first ‘Dharma Sangayana’, a great rereading of the Buddhist doctrine among Sangha, took place. The Enlightened Maha Kashayapa Thera, the great student of the Buddha had conducted this event. The objective of this Buddhist Sangayana was to compile the Buddhist doctrine into a whole.

Maha Sangha (the disciples of Dhamma), from generation to generation, took the responsibility of protecting this total doctrine with ‘from teacher to disciple system’ of education.

Yet, 100 years later, this great collective of the Sangha had been divided into 16 Nikayas or Gurukula on the traditions such as, ‘Sarwasthivada’ and ‘Suthranthika’. These divisions were based the different ideologies of the Sangha mainly in relation to discipline (the Sheela), Enlightenment (the Nirvana) etc.

Again 300 years later, during the period of king Dharmashoka, another Sangayana took place under the Enlightened Maha Moggalee Puththa Thissa Thera. Thus, in this Sangayana, the ideological interpretations of various Nikaya traditions had been excluded from the doctrine. And a new tradition among the Sangha who accepted the Buddhist doctrine in its original form and content named ‘Theravada’ came into being. The Thripitaka, the main three-fold doctrine of Buddhism has thereafter been re-established as Theravada Thripitaka. This very same Thripitaka, through the Enlightened Mihindu Thera, came to Sri Lanka. And through Sri Lanka, it has spread to Thailand, Burma and Cambodia.

Subsequently another tradition, named Mahayana, a doctrine different to Theravada was raised and spread in other countries, such as, China and Tibet.

The Buddha was Enlightened at Madya Pradesh in India, a territory where 62 established religious ideologies were in existence. And there were almost six refined teachers of ideology (Shastra) with their own clans of disciples. They said they had found the truth of life. The Buddha, therefore, was Enlightened against the background of a religious and ideological renaissance. Young people of those days were searching for the truth of life.

Brahmin caste

There were a lot of teachers of Shastras (doctrines). The most powerful of these teachers were the teachers of the Brahmin caste (the highest) among other castes named Kshathreeya (the rulers), Vaishya (the merchants) and Kshudra (the labourers). The ‘Kula’ or the castes and their contradictions were overdetermined in that society. Thus there was no religious or social freedom for the people or Kshudras and especially for women. Yet, after the advent of Buddhism oppressed people had an opportunity to get involved in religion and in doctrines.

Consequently, a lot of young people who were searching for the truth through the then Indian teachers of ideology came into contact of Buddha and became monks.

A great capitalist’s son, named Rattapala, rejected his luxurious life and entered the Sangha of the Buddha and became Enlightened while his parents were thoroughly against it. Fifty young princes named Baddavaggiya came to influenced by the Buddha as well.

The Brahmins’ doctrine had recommended religious practices only in old age. It, therefore encouraged people to have fun and celebrate a secular life in their younger ages. The Buddha did not declare a particular age to enter the Dhamma and Enlightenment.

He had categorized all the other religious teachers into two ideological tendencies; the Shastratavada and the Uchchedavada.

The doctrine of Shastratavada (soulism) believed that there is an eternal soul of utmost satisfaction while the doctrine of Uchchedavada (nihilism) believed that the life can be spent in whatever way you like, for, nothing happens after the death.

Cause and effect

The Buddha the Enlightened One, revealed life through cause and effect and uncovered that there isn’t any permanent soul in the world. Everything originates out of cause and effect. Everything exists for a time and then dies or is destroyed. And again it arises with another cause and effect. Thus the same chain process of a generation of causes and effects keeps moving all the time. Without a cause there is no effect. This phenomenon is the main element that differentiates Buddhism from other ideologies.

The truth of cause and effect attracted then youngsters to the way of Buddhist living, for, they found that the other ideologies were mere illusion. Any religion or doctrine, from time to time and generation to generation, changes its original form for the reason of interference of new interpretations into it. If a word of the Buddha is ambiguous to the people of a later era, then eventually, a condition of interpretation takes place. And this has accommodated new ideological trends in the original scriptures of Buddhism.

The Buddha, in his last days, allowed the Sangha to change some of his disciplines (Sheela) if they are irrelevant to contemporary reality. Yet, after the Parinirvana, this tolerance of his had been taken for granted and it caused ideological divisions among the Sangha.

The majority of Sangha thought that changes should not be brought forth, for it will harm the doctrine. Yet some among the Sangha thought that it should be changed according to the era or the social realities. And they changed not only the disciplines but some of the doctrinal elements as well. Consequently, different ideologies were raised in regard to ‘Anithya’, the theory of impermanence. This gave birth to another trend named Sarwasthivada Nikaya.

Mahayana Buddhism

Ultimately, all these trends piled up into two mainstream Nikayas; Theravada and Mahayana. This split started in India and caused Buddhism to spread even more into other regions, such as, China, Korea and Japan. Mahayana Buddhism had thereafter branched into more traditions, such as, Thantrayana of Tibet that believed that the continuous uttering of ‘Buddha Mantra’ will bring well-being. The basic teachings, such as Chaturarya Sathya and Aryashtangika Marga are not different among these traditions. Mahayana tradition developed a lot of philosophical concepts in Buddhism. Yet we as Theravada followers, believe in the original doctrine of the Buddha’s Thripitaka.

We cannot exactly say how long this doctrine will exist, though some ancient books says that the Buddha Sasana has only 5,000 years of life. Buddhism is not a doctrine of assumption. It only reveals the true reality of the universe; the Anithya (impermanence), Dukka (suffering), Anathma (the non-being).

The Buddha only disclosed this truth but never created a truth of interpretation. The Buddha said, “My doctrine is the world’s reality in any period of time, though there be a living Buddha or not.” Even the modern sciences accepted his truth that the world is a process of continuous being of derivation and destruction. This doctrine thus will not be destroyed and the people who neglect it will only get into trouble. We, as a Buddhist collective, should keep the policies of Buddhism rather than the customary fascinations of Buddhists.

And there is no age limit of following the way to Nirvana. For Nirvana, you need Vidarshana; a deep introspection through Anithya, Dukka and Anathma. You, to reach this introspection, have to go through the policies of Sheela (disciplines to drop the wrong acts in body, mind and word), Samadhi (overlooking the mind) and Prakgna (the wisdom). Nirvana is not an intellectual practice. It is a life practice of science, wisdom and light.