Politics of religion
Re: “Buddhism is always oddly political”, (Opinion, March 16).
Guanxiong Qi makes excellent points about the politics of religion. Yes, for all practical purposes, Buddhism in India is extinct. It has survived by giving shelter to the oppressed and marginalised masses. Sadly, India is a place where you can find footprints and relics of many saints, sages, and gurus. It is a place full of myths, contradictions, colourful deities, holy shrines, pilgrimages, fabulous temples, and exotic rituals. Like everything else, religion in India has also become a commodity.
In Thailand, Buddha has acquired a gilded image. I do not see Thailand or any of its immediate neighbours having anything to do with what The Enlightened One taught. Buddha never taught any religion. His unique psycho-spiritual analysis of the mind and its relationship with human behaviour makes him unique. Buddha taught us that our mind is supreme, there is nothing out there guiding our destiny. There is no saviour or any superpower.
Sadly, Buddhism in Thailand and elsewhere in Asean has also become a commodity. The rich patriarchs, the patronage system, and vested interests have completely distorted the teachings of Lord Buddha. Although Thailand must be given credit for keeping Buddha’s legacy alive, his teachings are lost in translation. People now throng to the gilded temples and shrines to engage in all kinds of hollow rituals which he advised to refrain from.
On my visit to the Narita Buddhist temple in Japan, I was shocked to see a menu with a fee for various items to gain the blessing of Lord Buddha. The highest fee or donation was for gaining the blessing of a newborn baby.
True teachings of Lord Buddha have survived and remain relevant as organic truths. According to the Enlightened One — it is not religion, our beliefs, our faith, or hollow rituals but our mind, thoughts, and actions that decide our destiny on this planet. The parallax between our thinking and actions is the main cause of all our suffering. He prescribed Vipassana and many other techniques to clean up or purify our minds.
KULDEEP NAGI