SPIRIT OF TOLERANCE, HARMONIZATION
AND
ASSIMILATION IN BUDDHISM
Dr. Daya Hewapathirane
Millennium City - Zone ONE Athurugiriya SRI LANKA
Buddhism expanded to every part of Asia -- latterly even
to the West -- and was always characterized by a spirit of tolerance,
harmonization and assimilation. Buddhism in general absorbed pre-existing
beliefs to a point where clear distinction is now often difficult.
HARMONIOUS ASSIMILATION
This is clearly evident in China, Japan, India, Korea, Thailand and
Myanmar among others. The harmonious assimilation of Taoism, Confucianism
and Buddhism is well evident in the Chinese form of Buddhism. In Japan
we see that the harmonious adaptation of Shinto divinities into Buddhist
pantheon – “honji-suijaku”.
"All sects deserve reverence for one reason or another. By thus
acting, a man exalts his own sect and at the same time does service
to the sects of other people." This edict of the earliest and greatest
of Buddhist leaders of Asia, Emperor Asoka expresses lucidly the spirit
of tolerance, acceptance, harmonization and assimilation that is characteristic
of Buddhism.
How Buddhism harmoniously integrated with pre-existing Shamanistic beliefs
is well evident in Korea. Similarly in Myanmar and Thailand, Buddhism
assimilated well with pre- existing "nat" worship and animistic
beliefs, respectively. Wherever Buddhism was introduced, it did not
encounter any form of violent confrontation because its approach had
always been one of tolerance, acceptance, harmonization and assimilation
with pre-existing beliefs and spiritual norms.
There may be various "schools" among Buddhists of the world.
But unlike most other religious denominations, among the Buddhist “schools”
there is a good amount of interaction, understanding, cooperation and
cordiality. There are many Buddhist practices, meditation and mindfulness
training in particular which are common to all Buddhist traditions,
which enable Buddhists to link up and cooperate more closely, in their
pursuit of their common goal.
This has been the practice even in ancient times. The reports of famous
Chinese pilgrims to India from the fourth to the ninth centuries CE
testify that in spite of the fact that at that time, Buddhists were
divided into some 18 different schools, "bhikkhus belonging to
different schools could be found living together in the same monastery,
practicing and conducting communal business in peace and harmony."
PERSECUTION AND DESTRUCTION
Buddhists experienced untold persecution from non-Buddhists during the
history of Buddhism. Persecution may refer to unwarranted arrest, imprisonment,
beating, torture, or execution. It also may refer to the confiscation
or destruction of property, or the incitement of hatred toward Buddhists.
Christians, Muslims and Communists were largely responsible for such
persecution and destruction.
In the late 12 century, Muslim invaders slaughtered thousands of Buddhist
monks in places such as Bihar, India. The Buddhist University of Nalanda
with its great library was left in ruins. Countless ancient Buddhist
monuments were defaced or destroyed, virtually erasing the Buddhist
faith from India. Atrocities committed by Catholics and Christians in
Sri Lanka especially during the 16th to 20th century period were no
different. The Evangelical Christian unethical prosetytization menace
has become an increasingly serious problem for Sri Lankan Buddhists
in recent decades.
The religious fanaticism and brutality and the unethical and confrontational
approaches adopted by some conventional religions in the past and today,
to serve their selfish ends, provide a stark contrast to the approach
in Buddhism which is reflective of the Buddha's supreme message of harmony
and moderation, of an inspiring "middle way" in all human
situations in an impermanent world.
INTEREST IN BUDDHISM IN THE WEST
Buddhism started to enjoy a strong interest from the general population
in the West during the 20th century, following the perceived failure
of social utopias including the conventional religions of the West.
After the Second World War, the focus of progress tended to shift to
personal self-realization, on the material as well as spiritual plane.
In this context, Buddhism has been displaying a strong power of attraction,
due to its tolerance, its lack of theistic authority and determinism,
and its focus on understanding reality through self inquiry. According
to the latest census it is now the fastest growing religion in several
countries in the Western world.
FUNDAMENTALISM AND INTOLERANCE
In contemporary times we witness a disastrous hardening of two of the
world's major religions - Islam and Christianity, into rigid fundamentalism,
in which each aggressively proclaims its beliefs, zealously proselytizes,
and even takes up arms against its rivals. A fundamentalist and intolerant
stance, taken by any religion, is offensive to followers of other faiths
and to those of no faith at all. Overzealous attempts at conversion
disturb peaceful coexistence.
Intolerance is essential only to monotheism. An only God is by nature
a jealous God who will not allow another to live. When a religion sees
its scripture as revealed and divinely inspired, it finds a basis for
exclusivity and intolerance. Justification for intolerance is provided
by the very nature of a Supreme Being who is described as a jealous
and angry being, who punishes those who defy Him with eternal damnation.
There are stories in the Bible which describe God as committing genocide
on unbelievers with violence toward men, women, children, and even the
unborn. The Koran says: "Slay unbelievers wherever you find them,
and drive them out of the places they drove you from . . . Fight them
until idolatry is no more and God's religion is supreme."
PATIENCE AND NON-AGGRESSION
Buddhism does not accept an omnipotent God, a Creator, nor any revealed
scripture. Because faith in God or a savior is not an issue for Buddhists,
there is no reason to judge others, to condemn them for their beliefs,
or to feel compelled to convert them. The Buddha Dhamma is described
as ehipassiko, inviting one to come and see for himself. There is no
concept of coercion or proselytization in Buddhism.
Buddha taught the importance of patience, tolerance, and non-aggression,
providing a splendid ideal of tolerance for Buddhists to follow. There
is not a single occasion in the Buddhist scriptures of the Buddha being
less than compassionate, not only to those who accepted his teachings
but also to the followers of all faiths, not only to the good but also
to the wicked, not only to humans but also to animals and to all living
beings. In striking contrast to the spread of other world religions,
which are replete with unethical and forcible conversions and sectarian
strife, the history of Buddhism is remarkable for the complete absence
of bloodshed in the name of the teacher.
BUDDHIST TOLERANCE IN SRI LANKA
The history of Buddhists of Sri Lanka during the four hundred years
of foreign Christian rule prior to the country’s political independence
is nothing but a long and poignant chronicle of Buddhist tolerance in
the face of oppression and injustice. The undertaking to maintain the
Buddhist religion given in 1815 by the British (Christians) was grossly
betrayed. In 1884 all the Government schools, which were the only schools
to which the Buddhists could send their children for higher education
were handed over to the Christian Missionaries. Up till 1886 Buddhists
paid by far the largest amount for the maintenance of the Ecclesiastical
Department.
Who but the Buddhists tolerated harassment by the Roman Catholic Portuguese
to give shelter and employment to Muslims? Or endured similar treatment
from the Dutch to give shelter to Roman Catholics? Who but the Buddhists
tolerated the rank injustice of the foreign rulers who used the revenue
from one of the most sacred places of Buddhist worship, the Dalada Maligawa,
to pay for the construction of St. Paul's Cathedral? Or the injustice
of destroying a Buddhist Vihara in Kotte to erect in its stead a Christian
School? Who but the Buddhists tolerated the extortion from them of four
hundred pounds a year for the building of Christian Churches?
In more recent years, Sri Lankan Buddhists have been subjected to various
forms of influences emanating from Western non- Buddhist countries and
owing to their involvement in Muslim Middle Eastern countries. With
the globalization process our Buddhists in particular have been exposed
excessively to western and other norms and lifestyles. However, there
is no evidence to show that these experiences and exposures have affected
negatively the deep-seated spirit of tolerance and accommodation in
the hearts and minds of the average Buddhist of Sri Lanka. Experiences
with non-Buddhists in other countries, reveal to us, that this spirit
of tolerance is not as strong among most of them in comparison to what
we observe among non- Buddhists in our country. This may be attributed
to the influence of Buddhism which is the dominant faith in our country.
Also, it may be because strong Buddhist values of tolerance and compassion
have been ingrained in our people, owing to the fact that they or their
forefathers were followers of Buddhism at a certain time in their past
before they were converted to other faiths. History of our country reveals
vividly that this spirit of tolerance and accommodation of others irrespective
of their religious or other differences has been a common distinguishing
characteristic of the Sinhala Buddhists of this country from very early
times.
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