Belief in action

1. How a religion and beliefs respond to global issues such as human rightsFormal attempts to guarantee, for all human beings, decent treatment and protection from discrimination and abuses of power. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is based on belief in the 'dignity and worth of the human person'. The universality of human rights appeals very much to humanists., fairness, social justice and the environment?

2. What means are used to bring quality into the discussions posed by these issues?

3. What insights can religion bring to the discussion on these issues?

There is a clear link between certain Buddhist beliefs and the modern concept of Human Rights. According to Buddhism, all human being are equal in that each has the potential to achieve Enlightenment. Therefore, Buddhists recognise the inherent dignity and the equal and inalienable rights of all human beings. The BuddhaAn Enlightened being who discovers and teachers the Dhamma; the historical person, Siddhartha Gotama who discovered and taught the Dhmrma in the 5th Century BCE pointed out the importance of treating others as if they were members of one's own family, since, due to the infinite number of rebirths, all have at some point been one's parents, siblings and children. The Buddhist respect for human life is very much an ideal inherent in Human Rights ideas.

Social Justice is also an issue which resonates with Buddhists. While on the one hand Buddhists attempt to be mindful of sufferingThe universal condition of humankind, partly caused by the impermanence of all things and accept it with a calm mind, the Buddha never taught a message of inaction. One of the most important aspects of being a human (or any sentient being) is freedom to act. This freedom generates both good and bad kamma and allows us to change ourselves and eventually escape samsara. While suffering even in the case of social injustice, can be seen as a result of bad kamma (although not every occurrence is seen as the result of kamma), this is not a reason for inactivity. For many, removing social injustice is viewed as a kammically good action. A good example of a Buddhist fight for Social Justice can currently be seen in Burma, where the Sangha engaged in a peaceful protest through the streets of Rangoon. A 20th Century example is Thic Quang Duc who burnt himself to death as a public protest of the persecution of Buddhists by the South Vietnam's administration. Equally, the importance of Asoka to Buddhists illustrates how strongly they believe in social justice. King Asoka is viewed as the paradigm of a Buddhist King. He treated all of his subjects as equals, regardless of class or religion, constructed hospitals, built roads and universities, as well as promoted freedom, equality and vegetarianism among other qualities.

The Environment is currently an important issue for everyone and so Buddhism's relationship to this issue is equally important. The Triratna Buddhist Community (formerly ‘Friends of the Western Buddhist Order') point out that to "live in harmony with nature is a crucial Buddhist practice". In the traditional Buddhist texts there is little reference to what would these days be called environmental or ecological ideas. However, this is because the culture in which the Buddha lived was in far greater harmony with the environment than ours. In the Buddha's life all of the most significant events occur in the countryside and are associated with trees (his birth, his early meditative experiences, his Enlightenment and his parinibbanaA Buddhist word for the final passing of the Buddha or any arahat). Thus we see a close harmony with nature, which Buddhists should attempt to continue.

Similarly the doctrine of Dependent OriginationAlso known as Conditioned Arising, paticcasamuppada (Pali), pratityasamutpada (Sanskrit). Common to all Buddhist schools, this is a doctrine that states phenomena arise together in a mutually interdependent web of cause and effect. This is profoundly hard to see and it is often said that seeing and understanding Dependent Origination is the same as seeing the Dhamma and being Enlightened teaches the inter-relationship of all causes and effects. Thus it is clear that human actions have effects - for example, pollution through acid rain, the hole in the ozone layer and global warming. These are clearly effects which we should avoid.

In Christian thought, there is the idea that man is given ownership of the world, to manage its resources. Buddhists do not have this idea and see the relationship between the world and humans (and all being for that matter) as mutual, each conditions the other and a balance of harmony should be strived for.

Finally, in accordance with Dependent Origination, humans are the principal cause of environmental problems. Therefore, in behaving in a way which has a negative impact on the environment we are causing countless animals to suffer and die, which is breaking the first Precept. Thus to live in accordance with refraining from killing or harming living being, Buddhists try to live in harmony with the environment.

The means by which Buddhists can take part in action in the world are varied. Obviously, Buddhists avoid any kind of violent action or war as this contravenes the first Precept and goes against Buddhist values of loving kindness and not harming sentient beings. Therefore, Buddhists often work with peacekeeping organisations and political groups for example, the UN. Equally Buddhists participate in inter-faith dialogueCo-operative and positive interaction between groups of different religious beliefs as well as taking part in non-violent protests as seen in Burma and Tibet.

Websites

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashoka

http://www.buddhanetz.org/projekte/rights.htm

http://www.buddhistethics.org/2/rightbib.html

http://www.budsas.org/ebud/ebdha006.htm

http://www.kamat.com/kalranga/budhist/asoka.htm

Bibliography

Cush, D. 1994. Buddhism (Student’s Approach to World Religions). London: Hodder.

Gethin, R. 1998.The Foundations of Buddhism (OPUS). Oxford: Oxford Paperbacks.

Gombrich, R.F.& Bechert, H., 1991. The World of Buddhism: Buddhist Monks and Nuns in Society and Culture (The Great Civilizations). London: Thames and Hudson Ltd.

Gombrich, R.F., 1988. Theravada Buddhism: A Social History from Ancient Benares to Modern Colombo (The Library of Religious Beliefs and Practices). London: Routledge.

Harvey, P., 1990. An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History and Practices (Introduction to Religion). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.