..续本文上一页ry first verse of the Dhammapada which states:
"Mind precedes all wholesome and unwholesome states and is their chief;
they are all mind wrought.
If with an impure mind a person speaks or acts,
misery follows him
like the wheel that follows the foot of the ox". "If one speaks or acts with pure mind,
because of that, happiness follows one,
even as one”s shadow that never leaves."
The teaching of the Buddha, if inculcated in the young mind from the beginning, will no doubt be a powerful civilizing factor that will turn humanity from violence to compassion. One of our tasks therefore is to make available the teachings of Buddha in more languages and through various media, including the Internet.
Although the human race has made such tremendous progress in almost every field of endeavour, warfare is one area in which we have behaved no better than animals. In fact one might even say that we have even descended lower than animals because given our higher intelligence we should know better than to succumb to our lower instincts of lust, anger, hatred and delusion. It has been said that man”s worst characteristic is his ability to inflict pain - mental and physical - on his fellow beings. The worst manifestation of this irrational behaviour is man”s tendency to wage war on the flimsiest of excuses. Ever since man learnt to hold a weapon he has waged war against his fellow beings, aro., any student of history will readily agree that there never has been such a thing as a "just war". And wars get from bad to worse. At least in the past, wars were only waged between men silly enough to get involved on the battlefields. But today whole hordes of innocent men, women, children and even animals suffer indescribable privations as a result of war. Mothers are separated from children, husbands are separated from wives, brothers are separated from sisters - there is no end.
Some people argue that conflict and war cannot be avoided because they are expressions of human nature. I am realistic enough to realize that it would be foolhardy to sit down and do nothing when aggressors are brutally destroying innocent lives on the basis of unrealistic and unfounded claims, but we must always bear in mind that war is at best a last resort to maintain peace. However, if we believe that war is inevitable, then we will wage war. But if, like the great emperor Asoka, we have the spiritual development and the wisdom to see the folly of war we can certainly avoid it. Buddhists can be very proud of the fact that in our own times the greatest advocate of peace is His Holiness the D_Lama of Tibet. For nearly half a century this great Buddhist leader has worked tirelessly to regain his homeland, without once uttering a malicious word against those who occupy his land. He has never condemned them but treated them as fellow-beings. On the other hand, he has not been a coward either. He has fearlessly spoken against the ill-treatment of his subjects and the lies spread against him. But he has not chosen to take arms against his people”s aggressors. This is because he lives by the advice of the Buddha given in the Dhammapada,
"Hatred does not end by hatred
By love alone it is quelled".
A struggle which is ended by force is no victory. Real victory can only be attained by a true change of heart founded on understanding on the part of the aggressor. His Holiness the D_Lama truly believes in inculcating peace through non violence.
We are all familiar with the story of how during the time of the Buddha a prince called Vidudabha annihilated the entire Sakya clan simply because he harboured a grudge against them for a slight insult. We have to learn from that example and seek rather to follow in the footsteps of the great king whose name was changed from Ch…
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