Faith-Based Initiative

[ornoth]

It may be ironic, but one of the biggest things I’m dealing with right now are issues of faith.

Faith? You mean, like, “Do yew bEEEElEEEEive? Praise JEEEEzus! Yew arr hEEEEled!” faith?

Definitely not, since skepticism is actually a core tenet of Buddhism. In the earliest suttas, the Buddha tells followers of his path to not take anything on faith, unquestioningly, but to test everything—including the Buddha’s own words—against one’s own experience of whether it leads to less suffering or not. The Buddha specifically argued against any “blind faith” based simply on human or scriptural authority, tradition, personal preference, or specious reasoning.

Faith in Buddhism is almost always linked with the concept of “discernment”: the need for the individual to judiciously weigh the value of everything he or she is told. Ironically, it is exactly this analysis of the value of any teaching that helps a practitioner understand and develop one’s true inner wisdom, rather than just mindlessly parroting someone else’s insights.

That means the practice of Buddhism is much closer to the scientific method than it is to any religion. While the world’s religions offer many theories about overcoming life’s obstacles and living ethically, in Buddhism you are always encouraged to test every teaching to see if it is true for you.

But there’s no impetus for you to do all that analysis and experimentation unless you have some degree of basic faith in the value of the Buddha’s teachings. You need to believe that that kind of analysis will help you. Whether you’re practicing Buddhism or cognitive-behavioral therapy, unless you have some confidence that the path you’re on is a beneficial one, you won’t develop the self-discipline necessary to follow it, right?

So there is a place for “faith” in Buddhism, but it’s not the baseless faith required by many religions. Instead, the Buddhist idea of faith—known by the Pali term “saddha”—is closer to our concept of confidence and trust in the efficacy of the path.

Saddha also includes the idea of perseverance and steady effort along the path leading to freedom. It’s not passive; it’s your motivator. Your belief that Buddhism will help you in your daily life is what provides your impetus to practice.

In that sense, I have to say that I have “found faith”. The teachings I’ve internalized have proved very useful to me, and I am confident that continuing to practice will greatly benefit me, and—through me—the people I come into contact with.

It’s still a strange thing to admit, being someone who views religion as a purely social phenomenon, and to whom “faith” is a very dirty word, but it means something very different in a contemplative Buddhist context, where I have been encouraged to find out what actually works for me, and allowed to set aside the practices which have not worked.

Though I must admit that there are many, many Buddhist sects, and not all of them are so contemplative. There are sects which are rigidly structured, rely on ritual and dogma, and believe all kinds of mystical stuff that has no pertinence to healing suffering or our everyday lives on Earth. In fact, the majority of the world’s Buddhists practice in this manner. That’s not a path I would follow, and I have friends who turned away from Buddhism as a result of such practices.

Contemplative Buddhism seems both much more open—less dogmatic—as well as more attuned to a reflective but skeptical, scientific mind like mine. Therefore, I am confident (i.e. I have faith) that it is of philosophical, ethical, and spiritual value to me.

Comments

[imperator-mei.livejournal.com]

In a related story, I heartily recommend The Universe In A Single Atom (http://www.powells.com/biblio/1-9780767920810-0) by Tenzin Gyatzo. Very good stuff.

[imperator-mei.livejournal.com]

Also, one must embrace the idea that belief in the scientific method is just that: belief. As annoying as it is to admit, we have faith in empiricism. Still, one chooses what one has faith in, and hopefully it is a deliberate, informed, and ultimately wise choice.

[ornoth.livejournal.com]

That's an exceptionally good point. Science is, like religion, nothing more than one way that we use to explain the world, and, like any other explanation, is perforce incomplete.

We "believe" in science because it generally does a pretty good job explaining most things; not to mention giving us the weapons necessary to ensure that those of us who believe in science rule the world.

But if something else came along that did a better job explaining the way the world works, I would imagine that it'd supplant science in pretty quick order... perhaps...

[hyzathra.livejournal.com]

The ultimate truth about life, the universe, and everything may be so far beyond religion and science that the human mind would not be physically able to comprehend it!