Buddhism is a religion of freedom and reason for man to lead
a noble life.
Buddhism does not prevent anyone from learning the teachings of
other religions. In fact, the Buddha encouraged His followers to learn about
other religions and to compare His Teachings with other teachings. The
Buddha says that if there are reasonable and rational teachings in other
religions, His followers are free to respect such teachings.
It seems that certain religionists try to keep their followers in the Dark,
some of them are not even allowed to touch other religious objects or books.
They are instructed not to listen to the preaching of other religions. They are
enjoined not to doubt the teachings of their own religion, however unconvincing
their teachings may appear to be. The more they keep their followers on a
one-track mind, the more easily they can keep them Under Control.
If anyone of them exercises freedom of thought and realizes that he had
been in the Dark all the time, then it is alleged that the devil has
possessed his mind. The poor man is given no opportunity to use his
common sense, education, or his intelligence. Those who wish to change their
views on religion are taught to believe that they are not perfect enough to be
allowed to use free will in judging anything for themselves.
According to the Buddha, religion should be left to one’s
own free choice. Religion is not a law, but a disciplinary code which should
be followed with understanding. To Buddhists true religious principles are
neither a divine law nor a human law, but a natural law or universal truth. The
Buddha never said teachings of his own ideas or thoughts. All of His
teachings are the natural truths which happen in realistic with the
all-knowing wisdom he gained.
In actual fact, there is no real religious freedom in any
part of the world today. Man has not the freedom even to think freely. Whenever he
realizes that he cannot find satisfaction through his own religion to which he
belongs, which cannot provide him with satisfactory answers to certain
questions, he has no liberty to give it up and to accept another which appeals
to him. The reason is that religious authorities, leaders, and family members
have taken that freedom away from him.
Man should be allowed to choose his religion which is in
accordance with his own conviction. One has no right to force another to accept a
particular religion. Some people surrender their religion for the sake of
love, without a proper understanding of their partner’s religion. Religion
should not be changed to suit man’s emotions and human weaknesses. One must
think very carefully before changing one’s religion. Religion is not a
subject for bargaining; one should not change one’s religion for personal,
material gains. Religion is to be used for spiritual development and for
self-salvation.
Buddhists never try to influence other religionists to come
and embrace their religion for material gain. Nor do they try to exploit
poverty, sickness, illiteracy and ignorance in order to increase the number of
Buddhist population. The Buddha advised those who indicated their wish to follow
Him, not to be hasty in accepting His Teachings. He advised them to consider
carefully His Teachings and to determine for themselves whether it was practical
or not for them to follow.
Buddhism teaches that mere belief or outward rituals are insufficient
for attaining wisdom and perfection. In this sense, outward conversion
becomes meaningless. To promote Buddhism by force would mean pretending to
propagate justice and love by means of oppression and injustice. It is of no
importance to a follower of the Buddha whether a person calls himself a
Buddhist or not. Buddhists know that only through man’s own understanding
and exertion will they come nearer to the goal preached by the Buddha.
Amongst the followers of every religion are some fanatics.
Religious fanaticism is dangerous. A fanatic is incapable of guiding himself by
reason or even by the scientific principles of observation and analysis.
According to the Buddha, a Buddhist must be a free man with an open mind and
must not be subservient to anyone for his spiritual development. He seeks
refuge in the Buddha, not Blindly, but with Understanding.
To Buddhists, the Buddha is not a savior nor is He an
anthropomorphic being who claims to possess the power of washing away others’
sins. Buddhists regard the Buddha as a Teacher who shows the Path to Salvation
or Nibbana.
Buddhism has always supported the freedom and progress of
mankind. Buddhism has always stood for the advancement of knowledge and freedom for
humanity in every sphere of life. There is nothing in the Buddha’s Teaching
that has to be withdrawn in the face of modern, scientific inventions and
knowledge. The more new things that scientists discover, the closer they
come to the Buddha.
The Buddha emancipated man from the thralldom of religion. He also released
man from the monopoly and the tyranny of the priest craft. It was the Buddha
who first advised man to exercise his reason and not to allow himself to be
driven meekly like dumb cattle, following the dogma of religion. The Buddha
stood for rationalism, democracy and practical, ethical conduct in religion. He
introduced this religion for people to practice with human dignity.
The followers of the Buddha were advised not to believe anything without
considering it properly. In the Kalama Sutta, the Buddha gave the following
guidelines to a group of young people: —–
“Do not accept anything based upon mere reports, traditions
or hearsay,
·
Nor upon the authority of religious texts,
·
Nor upon mere reasons and arguments,
·
Nor upon one’s own inference,
·
Nor upon anything which appears to be true,
·
Nor upon one’s own speculative opinions,
·
Nor upon another’s seeming ability,
·
Nor upon the consideration:This is our Teacher.”
·
‘But when you know for yourselves that those certain things
are unwholesome and bad: tending to harm yourself or others, reject them.’
‘And when you know for yourselves that certain things are wholesome
and good: conducive to the spiritual welfare of yourself as well as others,
accept and follow them.’
Buddhists are advised to accept religious practices only
after careful observation and analysis, and only after being certain that the
method agrees with reason and is conducive to the good of one and all.
A true Buddhist does not depend on external powers for his
salvation. Nor does he expect to get rid of miseries through the intervention
of some unknown power. He must try to eradicate all his mental impurities to
find eternal Happiness. The Buddha said, ‘if anyone were to speak ill of me, my
teaching and my disciples, do not be upset or perturbed, for this kind of
reaction will only cause you harm.’
On the other hand, ‘if anyone were to
speak well of me, my teaching and my disciples, do not be overjoyed,
thrilled or elated, for this kind of reaction will only be an obstacle in
forming a correct judgement. If you are elated, you cannot judge whether the
qualities praised are real and actually found in us.’ (Brahma Jala Sutta) Such
is the unbiased attitude of a genuine Buddhist.
The Buddha had upheld the highest degree of freedom not only
in its human essence but also in its divine qualities. It is a freedom that
does not deprive man of his dignity. It is a freedom that releases one from
slavery to dogmas and dictatorial religious laws or religious punishments.
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