Buddhism & Environmental Conservation

Is the Buddha an Environmentalist?

Barbara Yen

Introduction  Modern man has become alienated from himself & nature  Industrial Revolution & acquisition of wealth - mechanical exploitation of natural resources  Man - more materialistic in attitudes & values  Greed for more possessions – leads to violent & aggressive attitude towards nature  Forgets he/she is a part of nature  Is interdependent & interconnected like a web  To abuse natural laws or try to conquer nature is to do so at his own risk  Survival of certain species is in danger  Losing such creatures diminishes the earth (Dr.Chatsumarn Kabilsingh – Rev. Dhammananda)

Ecology New discipline to study environmental conditions eg. climate, wind, light, soil, etc. Deals with 5 basic principles:  That everything is in state of change  Everything is interconnected & interdependent  That no wisdom exceeds that of nature  That nothing exists without meaning  That fundamentally, there is no such thing as waste matter Growth & development - related & dynamic Deforestation & desertification cause imbalance

Buddhist Attitude Towards Nature  World's growing human population changed many of the earth's gardens of delight into poisoned fields, sterile, incapable of sustaining nature's rich diversity  Imbalance & negligence of nature results in deterioration of man's physical & mental health  His Holiness the Dalai Lama: “Today more than ever before, life must be characterised by a sense of Universal Responsibility, not only nation to nation & human to human, but also human to other forms of life."

Buddha’s Teaching & Practice in Nature Conservation The Buddha emphasises:  Practical aspect of His teaching  Apply the knowledge to life  Look into life & not merely at it  British author H.G. Wells: "The fundamental teaching of the Buddha is clear & in closest harmony with modern ideas”

Purity of Mind  Buddhism teaches that mind is the forerunner of all things  If one acts with an impure mind, i.e. a mind affected with greed, hatred & delusion, suffering is inevitable result  Man needs to understand that polluting the environment happens because of psychological pollution within himself  If he wants clean environment, he has to purify his mind & adopt a moral & spiritual lifestyle

Celebrations of Nature  Buddhism has always celebrated richness, diversity & abundance of the earth  Many teachings used poetry, similes & examples from nature to convey important messages  Jataka Tales - inspired some of world's most beautiful art & are abundant with poetic appreciations of beauty of nature  Laws show that man & nature are bound together in a reciprocal causal relationship (Sn, Vasettha Sutta)  Changes in one will bringing about changes in the other (D.N III, Agganna Sutta, AN, Adhammika Sutta)

Morality & Nature  Buddhists know consequences of improper attitudes & actions regarding the earth  Live in harmony, coexistence rather than conquering it  Utilize resources for basic needs in a non-exploitative, non-aggressive attitude  Conduct oneself with self-control, wisdom & selfawareness in all activities & social roles (The Buddhist Attitude Towards Nature - Lily de Silva)

Open space Chief events in Buddha’s life took place in open air under trees:  Born in forest, under grove of Sala trees  As a child meditated under Jambu tree  Studied under Banyan trees  Achieved Enlightenment under Bodhi tree  Preached in open air under trees, in parks, groves, glades, fields, woodlands, river banks & ponds  Slept under trees when He was travelling  Parinibbana under two Sala trees

Buddha’s Teaching & Practice in Nature Conservation 5 Precepts (pañca sila) - ethical & social conduct of a Buddhist 1st Precept  refrain from injury to life & protection of all life Noble 8 Fold Path  Right Action – Refrain from killing,  Right Livelihood – Refrain from trading in humans, arms, poisons, intoxicants, breeding of animals for slaughter

Metta Sutta (S.N, Loving Kindness)  Cultivation of unconditional loving-kindness towards all creatures timid & steady, long & short, big & small, minute & great, visible & invisible, near & far, born & awaiting birth  Just as our life is precious to ourselves, so is life of the other precious to himself  Nurture nature just as mother does to her child  Respect for & tolerance of every living being sharing the earth  Desiring little, contented, frugal, eat moderately  Moral shame & moral fear if commits an offence (D.N, Samannaphala Sutta)

Climatic Change  A Brahmin asked Buddha about cause of human decrease. The Buddha answered:  "Since folks are ablaze with unlawful lusts, overwhelmed by depraved longings, depressed by wrong doctrines, on such as these the sky rains down not steadily. It is hard to get a meal. The crops are bad, afflicted with mildew & grown to mere stubs. Accordingly, many come to their end."

Climatic Change  When lust, greed & wrong values grip the heart of man & immorality becomes widespread in society, timely rain does not fall  When this happens, crops get adversely affected with various kinds of pests & plant diseases (A.N)

Climatic Change  Predicts future course of events when human morals undergo further degeneration  Man's health will deteriorate & life expectancy reduced  Depletion of natural resources & environmental pollution  Explains pattern of mutual interaction  When mankind is demoralized through greed, famine is natural outcome  Due to ignorance, epidemic is inevitable result  When there is hatred, widespread violence is ultimate outcome  Buddhism maintains there is close link between man's morals & natural resources (D.N, Cakkavattisihanada Sutta)

Plant Life  Buddhism expresses a gentle non-violent attitude towards flora  Monks used forest & natural surroundings with many species of animals & plants for dwelling & meditation  Old, huge trees, (‘vanaspati’ or ‘lords of the forests’) were revered  Monks were forbidden to cut down trees  Incident of a traveller, after having rested in shade of a large banyan, on leaving began to cut it down  Buddha condemned such actions as tree had given him shade, much like a friend & to harm a friend is indeed an act of evil (Mahasala Sutta)

Water & Air Pollution  Buddha pointed out the loss due to water, air & sound pollution  He had many praises of rain & ocean  Set rules forbidding pollution by saliva, urine & feces of green grass, water resources which is used by humans & animals  Set guidelines on how toilet & sewage systems should be built  Cleanliness & hygiene highly commended both in person & environment  Individuals had to use them with civic consciousness (S.N, Kasi Sutta, Pathama Aputtaka Sutta, Lankavatara Sutta, S.N, Pajjota Sutta)

Noise Pollution  Noise is serious personal & environmental pollutant  Buddha was critical of noise & advocated noble silence  Once he ordered some monks to leave monastery for noisy behavior  He enjoyed solitary natural habitats such as forests & caves undisturbed by human activity  For choice of monasteries, undisturbed silence was important as it raises their efficiency for meditation

Animal Life  Monks abstained from activities which would cause unintentional injury to living creatures eg. digging  Rule against going on a journey during rainy season because of injury to worms & insects  Once a monk who was a former potter built a clay hut & fired it to give it a fine finish  Buddha strongly objected to this as many living creatures would be burnt in the process. Hut was broken down to prevent it from creating bad precedence for later generations (Vin.III)  Prevents the monks from drinking unstrained water which may have insects in it (D.N, Kutadanta Sutta)

Animal Life  Even wild animals can be tamed with kind words  Parileyya – a wild elephant attended on the Buddha in the forest  Drunk & wild elephant Nalagiri - tamed by the Buddha with power of loving-kindness & compassion  Man & beast can live without fear of one another  Kindness to animals domesticated for human service esp. cows (Brahmanadhammika Sutta Nandivisala Jataka)  Animal hospitals built by King Asoka

Animal Life Sutta-Nipata,  "Know ye the grasses & the trees. Then know ye the worms & the moths & the different sort of ants. Know ye also the four–footed animals small & great, serpents, fish which range in the water, birds that are borne along on wings & move through the air..."  For each creature, He said, "Know ye the marks that constitute each species & their species are many...“ Khuddakapatha Sutta "Come back, O Tigers!, to the woods again & let it not be leveled with the plain. For without you, the axe will lay it low. You, without it, forever homeless go.“

Animal Life  Story of Prince Siddhatta & the swan  Householder should accumulate wealth as a bee collects pollen from a flower  Bee harms neither fragrance nor beauty of the flower, but gathers pollen to turn it into sweet honey (Dh. Pupphavagga V.6)

Wild Life  Tibet which is a Buddhist country, herds of wild blue sheep, yak, deer & flocks of migrating birds would travel with the nomads or live in the midst of humans  Sri Lanka, predominantly Buddhist, wildlife is successfully preserved  Protection results from government action, but not possible if people do not have deep spiritual convictions

REDUCE, RE-USE, RECYCLE  Ven.Ananda, explained to King Udena the re-use of robes by monks:  When new robes are received, old robes are used as coverlets, old coverlets as mattress covers, old mattress covers as rugs, old rugs as dusters, old tattered dusters are kneaded with clay & used to repair cracked floors & walls  Nothing was wasted  Those who wasted were derided as ‘wood-apple eaters’ (Vin. X.10.4)

Kula Suta  To look for things that are lost  To repair things that have gotten old  Be moderate in consuming food & drink  Contentment is much praised virtue in Buddhism  Miserliness & wastefulness are equally deplored as two degenerate extremes  A person leading a simple life with few wants & easily satisfied is upheld & appreciated as an exemplary character

Rebirth  Jatakas provide ample testimony on rebirth  Possible that our close relatives have been reborn as animals (Kukkuravatika Sutta)  Right that we should treat animals with kindness  Gains merits in non-violent attitude towards living creatures  Gains merits even by such trivial generosity as throwing dishwashing water into pool with insects & living creatures, intending that they feed on the tiny particles of food

Conclusion  Buddhist Perception of Nature Project conducted by Thai nun & scholar, Dr.Chatsumarn Kabilsingh  Compiles Buddhist teachings about human's need & responsibilities concerning animals, plants, forests, water resources & natural environment to produce comprehensive & educational information  “Provides shocking reminders of how much we have lost of the natural world in such a brief space of time”  “Brings about a strong conservationist movement in our country”  “There is a kind of Buddhist revolt against deterioration of Nature”  Ensure beauty & diversity of earth will continue for our future generations  Resources of the world are limited whereas man's greed is unlimited

Do u want your world to be like this?

Or like this?

Or like this?

Thank You