FREEDOM FROM NOTIONS When I read any scripture, Christian or Buddhist, I always keep in mind that whatever Jesus or the Buddha said was to a particular person or group on a particular occasion. I try to understand deeply the context in which they spoke in order to really understand their meaning. What they said may be less important than how they said it. When we understand this, we are close to Jesus or the Buddha. But if we analyze their words to find the deepest meaning without understanding the relationships between the speaker and his listeners, we may miss the point. Theologians sometimes forge this. When we read the Bible, we see Jesus’ tremendous courage in trying to transform the life of his society. When we read the sutras, we see that the Buddha was also a very strong person. The society of India at the time of the Buddha was less violent than the society into which Jesus was born, so you may think the Buddha was less extreme in his reactions, but that is only because another way was possible in his milieu. His reaction to the corruption among Vedic priests, for example, was thoroughgoing. The notion of Atman, Self, which was at the center of Vedic beliefs, was the cause of much of the social injustice of the day---the caste system, the terrible treatment of the untouchables, and the monopolization of spiritual teachings by those who enjoyed the best material conditions and yet were hardly spiritual at all. In reaction, the Buddha emphasized the teachings of non-Atman (non-self). He said, “Things are empty of a separate, independent, self. If you look for the self of a flower, you will see that it is empty.” But when Buddhists began worshipping the idea of emptiness, he said, “It is worse if you get caught in the non-self of a flower than if you believe in the self of a flower.” The Buddha did not present an absolute doctrine. His teaching of non-self was offered in the context of his time. It was an instrument of meditation. But many Buddhists since then have gotten caught by the idea of non-self. They confuse the means and the end, the raft and the shore, the finger pointing to the moon and the moon. There is something more important than non-self. It is the freedom from the notions of both self and non-self. For a Buddhist to be attached to any doctrine, even a Buddhist one, is to betray the Buddha. It is not words or concepts that are important. What is important is our insight into the nature of reality and our way of responding to reality. If the Buddha had been born into the society in which Jesus was born, I think he, too, would have been crucified. ---Thich Nhat Hanh (Living Buddha, Living Christ)
Posted on: Fri, 01 Aug 2014 16:37:03 +0000
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