GREATER
ROADS AND LESSER ROADS: FORMS OF BUDDHISM
One
frequently runs across lists of “the hundred
greatest movies of all time” or the “hundred greatest novels of all
time.” Whenever I see such a list, I
generally will
find choices I really agree with. “It’s
a Wonderful Life”—yes, certainly a great movie.
“The Brothers Karamazov”—yes, certainly a wonderful novel. But there are always items on such lists that
don’t appeal to me personally. While I
like Hawthorne, I’m not particularly fond of “The Scarlett Letter,” and “Casablanca”—regarded by many is one of
the greatest films ever—doesn’t interest me at all.
When
it comes to “world religions,” too, there are
some religious traditions that fascinate me.
I love studying Hinduism. I like
the stories of gods and demons: "Fencing. Fighting. Torture. Poison.
True
love. Hate. Revenge. Giants. Hunters. Bad men. Good men. Beautifulest
ladies.
Snakes. Spiders. Beasts of all natures and descriptions. Pain. Death.
Brave
men. Coward men. Strongest men. Chases. Escapes. Lies. Truths. Passion.
Miracles" what’s not to like?
But
some important religions I just don’t find as
interesting. I was really glad Dr.
Blanchard could talk to you about Buddhism: it’s an important religious
faith, one
that a class in world religions should certainly include, but it’s
never really
caught my imagination, and it’s hard for me to do it justice. I thought Dr. Blanchard did a particularly
fine job: a much better and more sympathetic presentation than I could
do
myself.
Note
Dr. Blanchard's comparison useful comparison of Buddhism and
Christianity.
Christianity |
Buddhism |
Main Teacher: Jesus |
Main Teacher: Buddha |
Message: Gospel |
Message: Dharma |
Fellowship:
Church |
Fellowship: Sangha |
Also
useful, the contrast of Buddhism and Chistianity: Buddhism putting
practice in the center with "mythos" around it, Christianity putting
"mythos" in the center with practice in the next layer.
Notice
that Dr. Blanchard summarized the Four Noble Truths somewhat
differently than is typical:
1.
Face it (Dukka happens)
2. Diagnose it (grasping is the problem)
3. Find a cure (let go)
4. Apply
Note
particularly how Dr. Blanchard defined Dukka--not as suffering exactly,
but as that shopping cart wheel that doesn't do what it's supposed to
do. Also, notice the "four seals that Dr. Blanchard mentioned as
key to Dharma, the Buddhist "gospel":
·
Buddhism
is exotic
·
Buddhism
isn’t theological/dogmatic
·
Buddhism
isn’t exclusive: it’s easy to combine with other faiths
·
Buddhism
offers social connection
·
Buddhist
diagnosis of the illness of the world and its cure attractive to some,
irrelevant to others
·
Buddhism
lends itself well to the religion business—though, often, in this
country as
part of a Hindu/Buddhist fusion as seen with figures like Marharishi
Mahesh
Yogi (Transcendental Meditation) and Guru Maharaj Ji (Divine Light
Mission).
The
beggar-monk model allowed Buddhism to spread
from India to Tibet and China and (eventually) Japan.
It tended to fuse easily with native
traditions. In India, it’s no wonder that Buddhism gets swallowed up by
Hinduism, with Buddha viewed ultimately as another incarnation of
Vishnu. And this Buddhist/Hindu synthesis
spread
elsewhere easily enough. In Thailand, for instance, there’s a fairly
recently
constructed shrine of a four-faced Brahma that ends up called “The
Four-Faced
Buddha.” Note how easily Buddha becomes
Brahma as well as Vishnu!
While
Buddhism spread into China as well and fused
with native beliefs there, there was one important Chinese religious
philosophy
considerably less prone to fusion: Confucianism--our next topic.