Mar 12 2017, 10:53 AM
QUOTE(xpmm @ Mar 11 2017, 10:16 PM)
The question has often asked: Is Buddhism a religion or a philosophy?
It does not matter what you call it. Buddhism remains what it is whatever label you
may put on it. The label is immaterial. Even the label "Buddhism" which we give to
the teaching of the Buddha is of little importance.
The name one gives it is inessential.
What's in a name? That which we call a rose,6
By other name would smell as sweet.
In the same way Truth need no label: it is neither Buddhist, Christian, Hindu
nor Moslem. It is not the monopoly of anybody. Sectarian labels are a hindrance to
the independent understanding of Truth, and they produce harmful prejudices in
men's mind.
This is true not only in intellectual and spiritual matters, but also in human
relations. When, for instance, we meet a man, we do not look on him as a human
being, but we put a label on him, such as English, French, German, American, or Jew,
and regard him with all the prejudices associated with that label in our mind. Yet
he may be completely free from those attributes which we have put on him.
People are so fond of discriminative labels that they even go to the length of
putting them on human qualities and emotions common to all. So, they talk of
different 'brands' of charity, as for example, of Buddhist charity or Christian charity,
and look down upon other 'brands' of charity. But charity cannot be sectarian; it is
neither Christian, Buddhist, Hindu nor Moslem. The love of a mother for her child is
neither Buddhist nor Christian: it is mother love. Human qualities and emotions like
love, charity, compassion, tolerance, patience, friendship, desire, hatred, ill-will,
ignorance, conceit, etc., need no sectarian labels; they belong to no particular
religions.
To the seeker after Truth it is immaterial from where an idea comes. The
source and development of an idea is a matter for the academic. In fact, in order to
understand Truth, it is not necessary even to know whether the teaching comes from
the Buddha, or from anyone else. What is essential is seeing the thing,
understanding it.
We put a label for communication purpose. If something fits a definition of a word, then we label it as such. Imagine if you were to meet an esoteric Buddhist but refrain from speaking it, instead trying to describe his brand of Buddhism in some other ways, how long would it take before you start to grasp the general concepts? As we learn, the concept becomes more and more complicated and the brain categorizes these concepts in a convenient way so ideas can be transmitted efficiently. For example, the concept of a website, is it a spider in a certain location?It does not matter what you call it. Buddhism remains what it is whatever label you
may put on it. The label is immaterial. Even the label "Buddhism" which we give to
the teaching of the Buddha is of little importance.
The name one gives it is inessential.
What's in a name? That which we call a rose,6
By other name would smell as sweet.
In the same way Truth need no label: it is neither Buddhist, Christian, Hindu
nor Moslem. It is not the monopoly of anybody. Sectarian labels are a hindrance to
the independent understanding of Truth, and they produce harmful prejudices in
men's mind.
This is true not only in intellectual and spiritual matters, but also in human
relations. When, for instance, we meet a man, we do not look on him as a human
being, but we put a label on him, such as English, French, German, American, or Jew,
and regard him with all the prejudices associated with that label in our mind. Yet
he may be completely free from those attributes which we have put on him.
People are so fond of discriminative labels that they even go to the length of
putting them on human qualities and emotions common to all. So, they talk of
different 'brands' of charity, as for example, of Buddhist charity or Christian charity,
and look down upon other 'brands' of charity. But charity cannot be sectarian; it is
neither Christian, Buddhist, Hindu nor Moslem. The love of a mother for her child is
neither Buddhist nor Christian: it is mother love. Human qualities and emotions like
love, charity, compassion, tolerance, patience, friendship, desire, hatred, ill-will,
ignorance, conceit, etc., need no sectarian labels; they belong to no particular
religions.
To the seeker after Truth it is immaterial from where an idea comes. The
source and development of an idea is a matter for the academic. In fact, in order to
understand Truth, it is not necessary even to know whether the teaching comes from
the Buddha, or from anyone else. What is essential is seeing the thing,
understanding it.
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