Paul Fleischman is a psychiatrist and a Teacher of vipassanā meditation in the tradition of S.N. Goenka. He is the author, among other works, of Cultivating Inner Peace and Karma and Chaos. In the wake of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, I have found myself musing about nonviolence, its contributions, its limits, and its place in the Buddha’s teaching. I have also been surprised to hear many of my acquaintances confuse the Buddha’s teaching of nonviolence with pacifism … [Read more...]
The Buddha Did Not Teach Buddhism
This presentation was made at the BCBS Forum “Buddhist Responses to Violence, ” on September 11th, 2005. The verbal component of the Buddha’s teaching is preserved in an ancient Indian vernacular known as Pali, which was the colloquial, street Sanskrit of the era around 600 BCE. Although particular components of the Pali texts can be questionable as to whether they truly represent the teaching of the Buddha, the Pali Canon as a whole presents a unique implosion into the human condition of a … [Read more...]
No Harmful Thought
Is it really impossible to imagine that such an attitude is attainable? We so often hear such sentiments dismissed as idealistic or impractical. It seems taken for granted that humans are just hateful creatures, that animosity is an adaptive instinct and that “of course" we will hate those who threaten us. Who could blame us? The Buddha was showing us a more noble way of being human. Yes, the impulse to lash out against those we fear does lie within us all as a latent tendency, and it is all … [Read more...]
Buddhist Roots & Ethics
Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBIs) have become a wide-spread treatment because of their secular nature. MBSR (mindfulness-based stress reduction) has been extremely successful in introducing large numbers of people to the value of mindfulness practice in coping with common sources of suffering, such as chronic pain. In removing these practices from their original context, Buddhadharma, much was left behind. The role of sīla or ethics, for example, in the cultivation of well-being, is being … [Read more...]
No Hatred for Anyone
Itivuttaka 3:7d One who neither kills nor makes others kill, Neither steals nor makes others steal, Is one who has love for all living beings, And no hatred for anyone at all. yo na hanti na ghāteti na jināti na jāpaye mettaṃso sabbabhūtesu veraṃ tassa na kenacī ti. One who neither kills nor makes others kill Buddhist teachings place the greatest emphasis upon the moment-to-moment construction of experience in one’s own mind and body. This is where the rubber meets the … [Read more...]
Metta Sutta Verse 4
Whatsoever living beings exist, Without exception, whether weak or strong, Whether tall & large, middle-sized, or short, Whether very subtle or very gross, ye keci pāṇabhūt’ atthi tasā vā thāvarā vā anavasesā dighā vā ye mahantā vā majjhimā rassakā aṇukathūlā, Whatsoever living beings exist, without exception This verse of the Mettā Sutta is above all an exercise in imagination. It calls upon us to conjure up in our minds the image of every living thing possible, enticing us … [Read more...]