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 Interreligious
Understanding and Cooperation
(Concluding Address for the International
Conference on Religious Cooperation)
By
Venerable Sheng-yen, Litt.D.
Dharma Drum Mountain International of Taiwan
9/20/2001
I.
Interreligious Respect
During the time of
Shakyamuni Buddha, there was once a layman who, originally a devotee of another
Indian religion, converted to Buddhism after meeting the Buddha. This layman was
uncertain whether or not he could still make offerings to his original teacher.
When he learned of the man's confusion, the Buddha told the man he could
continue to make offerings to his original teacher just as before. In fact, in
the Agama Sutras and Monastic Code preached by the Buddha, the Buddha frequently
praises the merit of making offerings not only to the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha,
but also to other religious practitioners such as ascetics and Brahmins. So
respecting other religions is a basic criterion for a Buddhist devotee.
Therefore, Buddhists will not cause conflicts with followers of other religions,
and will always get along with them peacefully, like good neighbors.
This is especially true in
the Chinese cultural sphere. Although at times in Chinese history arguments have
erupted between Confucians, Buddhists, and Taoists, and there have even been
large-scale persecutions of Buddhists, these incidents were all instigated by a
small number of politically-connected Confucians and Taoists who used their
influence at court to encourage misguided, anti-Buddhist policies. However,
relations between ordinary folks of different religions have actually been very
cordial. For instance, up to the time when I escaped from mainland China in
the1940s, itinerant Buddhist monks could seek lodging in Taoist temples, and
itinerant Taoist clerics could pass the night in
Buddhist monasteries—they respected one another's faith and method of
spiritual practice. Chinese maintain that "all paths lead to the same
destination." So any religious practitioner who does not go against the
basic moral principles of love, peace, and the pursuit of true happiness is
worthy of approval regardless of his method of practice. Hence the Chinese
saying that "Buddhist monks and Taoist clerics all belong to the same
family."
China has a plurality of
ethnic groups and a great diversity of religions. At one time in history, the
Confucians, due to their self-centeredness and superiority complex, viewed
non-Han races as uncivilized barbarians. However, through mutual adaptation and
interaction with one another over a long period of time, the Han eventually came
to discover that other cultures were also very admirable: not only did these
other cultures have much in common with Han culture, but they actually had
merits which Han culture lacked. Therefore, in the areas inhabited by Chinese
there have been neither religious wars nor implacable enmity between ethnic
groups .
Chinese Mahayana Buddhists
believe that the good teachings in all religions are the elementary
prerequisites for attaining Buddhahood, and that the prophets of all religions
are manifestations of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. They have manifested themselves
in these various personas only to adapt to different cultures and living
environments, so that they may use the most appropriate means to deliver
sentient beings. Hence in the 12th century, the Confucian scholar Lu
Jiuyuan (1139-1193), influenced by Buddhism, said that "When a sage appears
in the East, he has the same mind and realizes the same principle; when a sage
appears in the West, he has the same mind and realizes the same principle."
This means that all prophets, from whatever geographical area and of whatever
religion, have more or less the same love and realize roughly the same truth.
If we use this principle to
view all religions, we will respect all religions. While it is perfectly natural
for devotees of any particular religion to claim that their own religion is the
best, we must also acknowledge and respect the fact that our neighbors and
relatives also have the same right to claim their religion is the best. Once on
an airplane I was sitting right next to a Christian missionary, who was piously
reading the Bible and praying. Seeing that I had nothing to do, he gave me a
Bible and showed me how to read it. I praised his good intentions and
enthusiasm, and agreed with his statement that Christianity is the only religion
through which one can attain salvation. He immediately asked me, "If this
is the case, why are you a Buddhist monk? Isn't that a pity?" I said,
"I'm sorry, but for me, Buddhism is most suitable. So I would say that
Buddhism is the best religion."
II.
Interreligious Understanding
As shown in the incident I
just mentioned, it is necessary to respect one another before we can understand
one another. I accepted the missionary's Bible, and in return gave him a
Buddhist book. From his expression I could see how much he hoped that I would
diligently read the Bible, just as I hoped he would look through the book about
Buddhism.
In Taiwan and various parts
of the world, I frequently go to the educational institutions and churches of
other religions, sometimes to lecture on Buddhist studies, sometimes to
participate in symposiums, and sometimes to attend religious ceremonies. I have
quite a few friends from other religions. Other religions invite me to discuss
Buddhism, and we also invite missionaries and scholars of other religions to our
Buddhist schools and institutes to introduce their religions. And
representatives from the major religions are always happy to attend religious
conferences sponsored by Buddhists.
From what I know, the first
people to introduce Buddhism to the West were not for the most part Buddhists
but rather Christian missionaries who had gone to the Orient to evangelize.
Buddhism has been in China
now for 2,000 years. When it was first introduced to China, it tried to adapt to
indigenous Chinese culture as much as possible, even using Taoist and Confucian
terminology and concepts to explain parts of its doctrines. This then
contributed to the arising of Buddhist schools with distinctly Chinese
characteristics such as the Tiantai, Huayan, Pure Land, and Chan schools. In
other words, Buddhism in China first learned and absorbed elements from
traditional Chinese culture, then evolved into new schools distinct from Indian
Buddhist schools. Even traditional Chinese Confucians learned and incorporated
Buddhist thought, which resulted in the rise of Neo-Confucianism in the Song and
Ming dynasties. Chinese Taoists, in a similar manner, transformed and
incorporated many Buddhist scriptures into the Taoist Canon, thereby enriching
Taoist culture. In China, Buddhist monks from the generation before mine were
required to be well versed in not only the Buddhist Canon, but also Confucian
and Taoist thought; otherwise, it would have been difficult for them to
propagate Buddhist teachings. In our age, we should open our minds even more,
and learn about the various world religions, so as not to find ourselves in
self-imposed isolation with narrow horizons, like a frog gazing up at the sky
from the bottom of a well.
If we turn back to discuss
Indian religions, we can see that they, too, have contributed to one another's
growth through mutual influence and stimulation. In fact, much of the content of
Buddhism was incorporated from ancient Indian religions. In the Buddha's time,
different religious sects and schools filled India, some ancient, and some
newly-established. Siddhartha Gautama himself humbly learned from many teachers
of various spiritual schools. After becoming a Buddha, though he developed
distinctly Buddhist views, and discarded many religious views and beliefs not in
conformity with Buddhism, Buddhism is still a product of Indian religious
culture. Hence, in turn, in the 8th century the great Hindu
philosopher Shankara (700-750) consulted Buddhist Madhyamika philosophy and
thereby created Vedantic philosophy.
Buddhism stresses an ethic
based on cause and effect -- as you sow, so shall you reap -- whereas Christianity
seems to focus almost solely on the believer's salvation through faith, without
relating it to his ethical behavior. Actually, according to the contemporary
philosopher John Hick, if one looks at the parables of the worthy and unworthy
servants and of the sheep and the goats in the Gospel of Mathew, chapter
twenty-five, one can see that the teachings of Jesus Christ actually have a very
strong ethical and practical character: that is, one day we will inevitably reap
the consequences of what we do in our daily lives now. For this reason the
Apostle Paul, in chapter six, verse seven of his letter to the Galatians "whatever
a man sows, that he shall also reap." In addition, Hick said that
"in our own time Catholic and Reformed . . . Christians have come, at least
in a significant minority, to see an authentic response to God as requiring a
dedication, individually, nationally and globally, to social justice and the
preservation of endangered Mother Earth." Seen from this angle, the views
of Christianity are not that far from those of Buddhism and other religions.
Let us now look at the God
of Islam. In the Qur'an, Allah has ninety-nine different names, including the
Protector, the Forgiver, the Bestower, the Forbearing One, the All-Forgiving,
the Source of All Goodness, the Protecting Friend, the Loving One, the Lord, the
Pardoner, the Compassionate, and the Guide to the Right Path. From this we can
see that Allah is a God who loves all humanity, as stressed in the Qur'an, sura
two, verse sixty-two, "whoever believes in God and the Last Day, and
whoever does right, shall have his reward with his Lord." In his book The
Fifth Dimension Hick said that, when the Muslims came to India, there were
some who argued that Zoroastrians, Hindus, Jains, and Buddhists were also
"People of the Book." "The Book" refers to the eternal word
of God that is expressed to his people in different human situations through
different prophets in different revealed scriptures. Even though many mainstream
and fundamentalist Muslims believe that many non-Muslims are missing their
opportunity to enter Paradise, the message spread by Islam is that the
possibility of entering Paradise is good news for all, not just for Muslims. The
Islamic mystics, the Sufis, are especially able to believe that followers of
other faiths may also receive God's mercy.
Naturally, from a
standpoint of mutual respect and appreciation, religions must seek greater
understanding of one another, yet there is no need to distort each other's
beliefs in our search for common ground. That would not only cause great pain
and trouble, but also lead to three possible outcomes: 1) twisting other
religions to make them like one's own, 2) denying the position of one's own
religion to comply with other religions, or 3) blending different religions
together to establish a new one. None of these scenarios are healthy. Thus
someone once asked His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, "If you
believe that all religions are good, should we establish a syncretic
religion?" He replied, "No, there are already enough religions in the
world." What he meant was that, since ancient times, humanity's religions
have always been diverse. Each has its own beauty. Each has its own virtue. Each
has its own truth. There is no need to blend them. It might be good to seek
common ground while preserving differences. For instance: Buddhism advocates the
theory of conditioned arising and is non-theistic. It can respect and understand
theistic religions and does not need to deny its own position in order to be on
friendly terms with other faiths.
III.
Interreligious Cooperation
Cooperation among religions
does not mean leaders of various religions coming together to discuss doctrine
to find out who is superior or inferior, higher or lower, greater or lesser,
better or worse. This will only lead to conflict, deepen disagreement, increase
enmity, and create opposition. If we can follow the principle of mutual respect,
then we can all interact peacefully. Especially in our religiously pluralistic
modern age, one has only to leave one's country, one's ethnic group, or even
one's home, to come into contact with followers of different religions. In an
open society, one may find several different faiths even within a family. We
must respect, even support, each other's choices with an attitude of
appreciation, and should never criticize other faiths based on our own
subjective standpoint. We should cooperate to create a harmonious, peaceful,
happy and warm community in which to live.
Today, and especially in
the world of the future, due to the ever-increasing quantity and accessibility
of information, the convenience of transportation, the rapid progress of
technology, and the ever-changing nature of contemporary society, people
separated by thousands of miles can talk as though they sat face to face. For
this reason, those who would like a single faith to take over the niches of all
other faiths are faced with stronger and stronger opposing influences. Unless we
would isolate ourselves from the reality of the greater world, we must help one
another and cooperate in sharing the various resources needed for life.
We religious believers all
share a common way of thinking. We all believe that the object of our belief, be
it called Jehovah, Jesus Christ, the Messiah, God, the Lord, Allah, Shiva,
Vishnu, the Bodhisattvas, or the Buddha, is possessed of love, compassion,
awe-inspiring presence, and great divine power; thus we believers are able to
gain peace, protection, and salvation. Moreover, we also believe we must follow
and practice the teachings and admonishments of our sacred scriptures, holy
injunctions and revelations to help all beings also gain peace, protection, and
salvation. In this way, we share the great love and compassion of God, the
Bodhisattvas, and the Buddha with all people. Yet this is not limited to
spreading the faith; what is more important is maintaining the safety of
humanity and the peace of people's minds and raising the quality of society and
people's characters. A livable environment for all requires that all work
collectively for its improvement.
All the living and
non-living beings on this planet are integral parts of the community of all
life, how much more so the believers of various religions who are human beings.
Different interpretations of sacred texts, holy injunctions and revelations have
led to the differences between religions, however, if one can experience the
non-personal and indivisible Ultimate Reality, he would know that in this
Reality, there is no distinction between self and other, inner and outer,
superior and inferior, or high and low. Yet this reality is many-sided.
Looking at the life of
Gandhi, we see that he was influenced by a Jain master named Raychandbhai to
accept that many different views, including religious views, may all be
reasonable and valid. Thus he agreed that "religions are different roads
converging on the same point. What does it matter that we take different roads
so long as we reach the same goal? I believe in the fundamental truth of all
great religions of the world. I believe they are all God given and I believe
they were necessary to the people to whom they were revealed."
This is to say that the
various religions have only one goal, which is Ultimate Reality. This is the
transcendence of human nature and divine nature, the movement from a personal,
differentiated God to a non-personal, undifferentiated reality. In Buddhism this
is called Reality; in other religions it is called Absolute Truth. Gandhi saw
that Reality has many sides, so he accepted that the differences did not
contradict Absolute Truth. What the various religions argue over is the
different aspects of reality. If they realized that a single reality underlies
those aspects, they would cease arguing. Naturally, we don't have to completely
endorse Gandhi's view, but it is something we can raise for consideration.
I'd like to relate a true
story: Thirty years ago, several friends and I made a vow to save Chinese
Buddhism. Thereafter, some went to south to Thailand, some northeast to Japan,
and some into the mountains to practice austerities. More than ten years later,
we unexpectedly all met again in the US. Each had learned different things, but
they were all facets of Buddhism. Thus once again we agreed to cooperate on
practical matters. Actually, there should be a lot of room for cooperation
between different sects of a single religion or between organizations or
individuals of different religions. This cooperation doesn't have to entail
joining a single organization. It could simply be acting in cooperation to
abandon violence, cast aside long-standing grudges, and not settle old scores.
It could mean joining forces to eliminate the causes of starvation, diseases,
natural disasters, and ethnic conflicts, to protect the environment and
resources of this planet for future generations, and to protect the human spirit
from being polluted by enmity, greed, envy, anger, pride, irresolution, fear,
worry, arrogance, feelings of inferiority and voidness. If each religion can
start by influencing and encouraging its own believers in this way, then the
major religions of each country in the world can also influence that country's
citizens, as well as politicians and businessmen. If everyone can share this
kind of understanding, it will be a giant first step toward religious
cooperation.
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