Beyond Buddhism and Christianity

Abstract

In all forms of Buddhism, there is a basic triad of religious practice, namely, view, meditation, and action (drsti-bhavana-carya). The earliest collection of Buddhist writings was into the Three Baskets, those of Discipline, Scripture, and Super-Doctrine (Vinaya-Sitra-Abhidharma), the three together called the Doctrinal Dharma (desana-dharma). Corresponding to these three baskets were the three spiritual educations (adhisiksf), those of ethical action, meditation, and wisdom (sila-citta-prajin), the three together called the Practical Dharma (adhigama-dharma). It is therefore patently clear on the face of the Buddhist Teaching that insight or wisdom is inseparable from ethical action, that metaphysics and ethics are completely interdependent. The ethically perfected person is intellectually enlightened, the enlightened person is ethically committed and moreover, ethically effective. Thus, the basic teachings on karma, or evolutionary action, include mental and verbal activities along with physical actions in the tenfold path. Saving life, giving gifts, authentic sexuality (the three good physical paths) correspond directly to love, generosity, and authentic views (the three good mental paths). In the Universal Vehicle (Mahayana), the bodhisattva gathers two stores on the path to Buddhahood, the store of merit and the store of intuition (puvyajaina-samibhara). The former corresponds to relative reality (samvrti-satya), and consists of transcendent generosity, ethical action, and tolerance. A Buddha, a perfectly enlightened being, is a perfection of dynamic compassion as well as a perfection of transcendent intuitive wisdom. There is thus no question, at any stage of the path, of separating cognitive enlightenment from ethical commitment and effectiveness. Without understanding ontological selflessness one cannot act ethically in a selfless manner. Therefore, on the very face of the Universal Vehicle as well as of the Individual Vehicle (Htnayana) ethical commitment and metaphysical enlightenment are indivisible.1 Contemporary notions of the an-ethicality, or ethical insufficiency of the Buddhist traditions