Psychology & Buddhism.pdf

262 David W. Chappell
in human culture. However, because of the Buddhist idea of rebirth in various
levels of existence, from animals to gods, Buddhism even went beyond a social
focus by including all people and animals alike. As a result, vegetarianism has
become a mark of Chinese and Korean Buddhists with the result that temple lands
often served as wildlife preserves.
Social Activism
The Buddha was also a social activist beyond his community of monastics.
In the first years of his teaching career, the Buddha made a point of visiting the
kings of the two most powerful states in his region, Bimbisara and Pasenadi.
These kings became the Buddha’s disciples, and as a result influenced thousands
of their citizens toward the Buddha’s path (Schumann, 1989, pp. 88–93, 105–112).
While enjoying the privacy of forest retreats, the Buddha also traveled into outlaw
territory to pacify the most notorious mass murderer of the day, Angulimala. If we
rely on the surviving historical records, the Buddha’s encounter with Angulimala
was one of the most popular stories of early Buddhism since it survives in more
versions that almost any other single early text (Akanuma, 1958, p.168). Also,
it is well known that when the Sakya clan and the Koliyas were about to go to
war over the use of water from the Rohini River, the Buddha intervened on the
battlefield to avoid conflict (McConnell, 1990). While the fortnightly meeting of
the Buddhist community (sangha) dealt mostly with internal matters, the fortyfive
year teaching career of the Buddha was filled with other kinds of social interaction
at all levels of society. The Buddha taught kings and untouchables,
brahmins and bandits.
The basic principle underlying Buddhist social activism is dependent origination,
meaning the recognition that we are all interdependent and share an
inescapable responsibility for the well-being of the entire world. The sangha not
only was open to all castes, but also actively went out into society to help others.
In the first year of his teaching when the Buddhist community was just beginning
and consisted of only 60 monks, the Buddha sent them forth: “Go forth, monks,
for the good of the many, for the happiness of the many, out of compassion for
the world, for the benefit, for the good, for the happiness of gods and men.”
(Mahavagga, Vinaya 1.11.1) And the Buddhist community (sangha) was held up
as the ideal for all society (Payutto, 1993, p. 276).
Group Procedures
Benefits for others involved more options than leaving society to join the
monastic community. The Buddha not only tried to enhance the quality of life for
individual laity through morality, meditation, and wisdom, but he also gave principles
for social organization. The Mahaparinibbana Sutta (Digha-nikaya 16.1)