My Kind Of Buddhism: The Power Of The Mind & Meditation
Shyamon Jayasinghe
Pragmatism of Buddhism
In part one of this three-part series, it was pointed out how Buddhism, very sharply, focuses on the human being living in this world and on his own responsibility for his life. Unlike the authors of Abrahamic religions, the Buddha was not other-worldly. Buddhists have their feet firmly planted on the ground. In My Kind of Buddhism, I even set aside rebirth and samsaric ideas in order to concentrate on this central and practical quality of Buddhist teaching. My kind of Buddhism identifies the vein of Buddhism as something very pragmatic and I pick and choose what accords with such a perception. The notion of rebirth, therefore, doesn’t attract me. Buddhism has many sects and each of these emphasis different aspects. In like manner, my emphasis is on the pragmatism of Buddhism
I find the human-centric approach of this pragmatism very refreshing and very life affirming. The Suttas show us how many times the Buddha avoided brain teasing questions about the ‘ultimate reality,’ and other metaphysical questions. Is the universe finite or infinite, for instance? Renowned Buddhist scholar, KN Jayatilleka pointed out that the Buddha refused to answer such queries deliberately because he considered them to be meaningless in the sense of what contemporary logical positivists call meaningless. For example, AJ Ayer, in his classic, ‘Language, Truth, and Logic,” stated that any question that is not even in principle verifiable is nonsensical.
The Jayatilleka view in the latter’s classic, “Early Buddhist Theory of Knowledge,” asserted the same. Jayatilleka cites one instance, where when posed with metaphysical questions about so-called ultimate reality, Buddha famously remained silent. When asked by the interrogator why he was silent, the Buddha responded: “I have answered you.” This response is in line with the kind of Ayer thinking, according to Jayatilleka. When a question is meaningless what answer can one give but remain silent?
In the famous Parable of the Bow and Arrow, one observes a similar Buddha focus on practical issues. A man hit by a poisonous arrow should first treat his wound before the poison takes over, said the Buddha. It is silly to rush and try to ascertain the source and other details of the arrow. Living right in this world we are in trouble (dukkha) and let’s fix that, the Buddha seemed to have urged. I am not inclined to regard this as a negative view of existence, although many expressions of popular Buddhism does seem to believe it that way. Rather, I take it that one has to fix problems in order to live our life well. Extreme greed, for instance, is central to our concerns. The Buddha tried to show a path of enlightened living.
Power of Mind
In pursuing such a human-centric path what is most central is for us to focus on our mind. We are what we are because of what goes on in our minds and we can take control of ourselves by taking control of our minds.One has to develop self-awareness so that one can grasp the structures of one’s thoughts and thinking processes. The Buddha urged that we should attend to our minds as of prime necessity. Examine our minds and be watchful how we live.This is very much what Socrates, many years after the Buddha, said when he urged, “the unexamined mind is not worth living.”
The very first stanza in the Dhammapada is about the foremost power of the mind in our practical lives. “(The mental) natures are the result of what we have thought, are chieftained by our thoughts, are made of our thoughts. If a man speaks or acts with an evil thought, sorrow follows him even as the wheel follows the foot of the drawer.”
