Has true Buddhism lost its merit in the thinking of our people?

How well have we Buddhists understood Buddhism? Most monks in Sri Lanka and some laypersons master the Thripitaka but their true understanding of Buddhist concepts and principles is debatable. We inherited the Dhamma as taught by Buddha and the Thripitaka of Theravada tradition, which is a direct result of the three Sangayanayas and writing of the Thripitaka at Aluvihara in the 1st century BC. We are bound to preserve this great teaching for our progeny.

However, the signs are not promising and it’s pathetic to observe how Buddhism is practised nowadays by both laypersons and monks, as utmost prominence is given to Armisa Pooja or worshipping using flowers, incense, chanting in the tradition of Hindu belief, extending into worshipping of Gods, tied on to a blind faith belief of the Buddha as deity, especially in the Mahayana practice which is also observed to a certain extent in Sri Lanka.

Maybe the genes we carry from Hela times do have an impact in our souls and mould our thinking to these age-old practices, making vows beseeching favours of gods at times of distress, illness, exams etc., moving away from the crux of the Buddha’s teaching of critical thinking and practice of meditation.

Invoking the blessings of gods and even arahants is observed at the holiest places in Sri Lanka such as the Sri Mahabodhi and Ruwanweli seya. A traditional bandage depicting the Buddhist flag wound right around the stupa is thought to bring much needed merit for those who engage in this practice, unfortunately encouraged by the Buddhist monks themselves.

No time is devoted on a traditional Bhavana session and poojas and utterances of stanzas, 100 or 1000 times or so, which is believed to bring solace to distress souls living now and in the past.

Monks are engaged in practice of Astrology too which Buddha defines as the science of animals ( thirastheener vidayava), probably for monetary gain rather than actual benefits to laypersons. Even during Buddha’s time, monks were performing vijjaa to attract disciples and laypersons, which Buddha vehemently denied.

Comprehend Buddha’s fundamental teaching of ‘you are the creator, and you are the destroyer of yourself ’ and practise accordingly, as true Buddhism has lost its merit in the thinking of our people with some vociferously defending their practice of poojas and invoking the blessings of gods. They come up with various stories mentioned in commentaries, which are in fact interpretations of various writers down the ages.

In Christianity too this has happened, leading to various schools of thought and denominations.

Some Buddhist monks believe Buddhism as a philosophy, breaching the very rules of a great teaching, which can only be defined as the Noble Truth. A philosophy is a collection of ideas and views of a person through his rational thinking. Buddha warned that this reasoning could be right or wrong as expounded in Brahmajaala sutra. Whereas Buddha’s teaching was purely based on a personal experience, a journey which evolved on empirical observation and conclusions and not hammered out of rational thinking or syllogism based logic etc e.g. Socrates philosophy.

This is where Buddhism stands out among other religions and philosophies on this planet as it was based on pragmatic observations of Mind and Body eventuating in an awareness or Enlightenment.

We need to protect Buddhism within Buddhism rather than devoting our time protecting it from other non-Buddhistic intrusions.

Sunil Vijaya Mount Lavinia