BuddhaGang Work is Like This Sometimes: Communication.
This guy was complaining about a post I shared.
Everything I share is engaged Buddhism. People don’t get it. This was in our Science and Buddhism FB group — and folks still don’t understand that Buddhism is already a science of ethics.
** And! If you wanna see the stuff we share, go to the homepage and scroll down a bit. You’ll see some of our social media streams embedded there.
Ethics will always have political implications. And if we want to help all beings make the best possible decisions, the #BuddhaGang bodhisattva team is going to keep sharing about worldly reality (the news) right alongside all the ethical clarifications beings need.
A lot of these memes are already expressions of bodhisattva śīla — but many people don’t even know what that means.
Oh well. Strive on!
I wrote:
Dear Edwin,
Buddhism is a science of ethics. When actually practiced, it leads to the appearance of bodhisattvas — beings who care about what actually happens to other beings, here and now.
Because they do care.
And because they’ve paid attention to how the Buddha teaches about good and bad, they act — to help others abandon what’s not worthy of pursuit and to take up what is.
Today, that sometimes means sharing things on the internet.
Word-karma can reveal ignorance
So your “question” reveals a lack of understanding of both Buddhism and science. It also suggests that MAGA propaganda has you a bit twisted up. I can help, if you want to learn — but you’re not the first to complain like this and then vanish when it becomes clear that your position doesn’t hold up.
“Buddhism” literally means wake-up-ism. It’s a science that cultivates and perfects wokeness — for the sake of all beings.
The bodhisattva is the original social justice warrior.
Ignorance is common in the West, Buddhism is still very new
Unfortunately, not many in the West have taken the time to understand the Great Vehicle — the Bodhisattvayāna. Even fewer have a clue what bodhisattva śīla (ethical discipline) actually means.
As for “science” — at its root, it means knowing to the fullest possible extent. But for many of us white people, “science” got twisted into materialistic annihilationism — an ideology that says nothing matters and no one is responsible for what they do or don’t do, or for the happiness and suffering of others.
And since Buddhism is still very new in this western stream of mind, confusion is common. But confusion can be ended! With effort, you can understand what you currently do not. Buddha-science dismantles wrong views — and all extreme, untenable positions. It’s a science that ends the hatred, greed, and delusion that keep beings locked in loops of bad karma, in societies led by armies of māras instead of bodhisattvas.
Ethics will always also mean Politics
Buddhism is always ethics. And ethics is always about right and wrong. Pay attention, and you’ll understand why a Buddhist would care to help others stay informed about the actual flow of causes and conditions in this world.
So yes — this is Buddhism. And it is science. You just don’t recognize it, because you’ve been conditioned to see both through confused lenses. Buddhists will speak about injustice. They will talk about the dangers of worldly powers (archons). They will name harm when it’s happening.
This isn’t new. Check out Buddhist history. This is just what compassion does. It’s exactly what bodhisattvas vow to keep doing — for the sake of all other beings.
Annnd, if the reality of these worldly turnings — or the scientific ethics of Buddhism — are just too much for you, feel free to go be happy somewhere else.
And then he responded
I was happy his response wasn’t hateful or totally ridiculous!
My Response
Thanks for the sane and not hateful response, Edwin!
We’ve looked into our intentions (as the BuddhaGang team, many times), and we’ve realized it’s exactly the right time to be sharing about reality — along with our Engaged Buddhist Perspectives— as widely as we can, and with urgency. We’re always talking about these things among ourselves. Difficulties come up — a lot of Western, self-identifying Buddhists don’t actually know much about the teachings or the history of Buddhism. And studies have shown that beings tend to assume they know more than they do. So now, we’re seeing a lot of wild comments from people who just don’t understand the Buddhism we’re practicing and sharing.
We’re always talking about these things among ourselves. Difficulties come up — a lot of Western, self-identifying Buddhists don’t actually know much about the teachings or history of Buddhism. And studies have shown that beings tend to assume they know more than they do. So now we’re seeing a lot of wild comments from people who just don’t understand the Buddhism we’re practicing and sharing.
Samvega | Urgency
That urgency — which English speakers might also call outrage or psychospiritual tension — is samvega in Pali, one of the old Buddhist languages. The Buddha taught us to cultivate it, on purpose (and he told us how — he said it will arise when we remember, or “are mindful of,” impermanence).
When we realize how many beings are openly celebrating the causes of suffering today, any bodhisattva — moved by Great Compassion — will feel that urgency, and will care enough to try to change minds so the harm stops.
We don’t let the intensity or discomfort of samvega turn into more bad karma. We use it to push ourselves further along the path — toward the end of suffering for all other beings first. And yes, the bodhisattva also benefits herself along the way. That’s how interbeing works. Self and other aren’t the same, but they’re not totally separate either. Helping others is helping self. Helping self — if it’s done with wisdom — naturally benefits others.
It is always Engaged Buddhism, but “Engaged Buddhism is just Buddhism,” according to Thich Nhat Hanh.
This is the Buddhist path. Especially for anyone walking the bodhisattva way of Engaged Buddhism. Thich Nhat Hanh coined that term, but he also said it’s just Buddhism. More specifically, it’s Bodhisattvayāna — the vehicle where other beings go to the center of the practice.
Great compassion is the heart of it. And because of that, we will speak up like this again and again, even though many already don’t, and many most likely won’t, understand. If people would stop crying and posting hate speech, we could explain. They could understand. And there would be no problem.
Thanking and explaining why I won’t take his advice.
Thanks for not reacting harshly! We are going to keep sharing like this tho.. already totally aware that large masses of beings don’t get it. That’s okay! That’s why we’re here! We’re always willing to explain. The hindrance is that most people don’t practice deep listening, and so they don’t end up understanding. They just try to shut it down, to stay in their comfort zone, or defend some bad karma that just isn’t worth defending.
But yeah — we know there’s a lot of confusion in the west, especially on the internet, about what Buddhism actually is, and how it relates to the world we live in now. Again, that’s why we’re here. We can explain if people have questions. They do have questions, I’m sure! But, instead of asking, they say rude and ridiculous stuff over and over and it is tedious. So, again, thanks for not doing that!
If you’re open to learning more, The World We Have by Thich Nhat Hanh might be a good book to check out.
