Does the Dalai Lama Want to End All Religion?

[rug]

By Christian Piatt, Wed, September 12, 2012

My friend, Doug, is not what I’d call a religious person. He grew up in church but has since taken to a combination of practicing martial arts, yoga and independent study, primarily of Buddhist philosophy. In a lot of ways, his journey is a familiar one for younger adults today (he and I are both 40 so we don’t really qualify as “young” adults any more).

Doug is, like I am, an intellectually curious guy. He follows my work pretty closely and he is certainly open to other points of view, even if they’re not ones he embraces for his own life. Sometime we share ideas back and forth, but this quote from the Dalai Lama that he sent me recently really got my attention:

"All the world’s major religions, with their emphasis on love, compassion, patience, tolerance, and forgiveness can and do promote inner values. But the reality of the world today is that grounding ethics in religion is no longer adequate. This is why I am increasingly convinced that the time has come to find a way of thinking about spirituality and ethics beyond religion altogether."

Pretty strong words from a leader of one of the world’s major religions. Granted, some might argue that Buddhism is more a philosophy than a religion, but given the rituals, practices and other vestments that accompany Buddhism, it’s reasonable to consider it a religion. And with 300 million practicing Buddhists in the world, the use of the word “major” in describing it is safe as well.

http://www.opposingviews.com/i/religion/christianity/catholicism/does-dalai-lama-want-end-all-religion

[Speck Tater]

1. I interpret that to mean...

that religion should not be the sole source of ethics, or possibly that religion should not be a source of ethics at all. It seems to me he has left the door open for religions to find other ways to make themselves useful in the community. It does seem odd given that Tibetan Buddhism is one of the most, if not the most "superstitious" or "religious" forms of Buddhism, being a hybrid of Indian Buddhism and the native Bon religion of ancient Tibet. It has inherited a lot of Bon's demons, deities, superstitions, and rituals.

Of course I can't speak for his intention. Perhaps one should read the context from which this isolated remark was lifted. It could well be that his holiness has explained himself more completely in the surrounding context.

(Disclaimer: life long practicing (non-Tibetan, atheistic) Buddhist).

[rug]

2. That;s a fair assessment.

Religion is not and never been the sole source of ethics. Most religions, with the exception of Manicheans, hold that spritual values are not in conflict with natural values, that they are in harmony with each other. Easier said than done though.

As time goes on, if we don't kill each other first, I expect we'll be closer to achieving this harmony and there will be much less ritual, not to mention superstition.

[roguevalley]

3. I believe the soul and spirit in all of us are beyond formal religion.

I know from my near death experience that there is something beautiful and wonderful beyond this reality, that death doesn't hurt, it is a loving embrace and so it helps me alot in this reality.

[SarahM32]

4. No. He wants an end to "religious" bigotry and hypocrisy.

"The message we hear from all sources of truth is clear: We are all one. That is a message the human race has largely ignored. Forgetting this truth is the only cause of hatred and war." -- The Dalai Lama

He understands the true purpose of religion, which is to create a sense of family and community, globally, and to teach people the Universal Divine Imperative, which is to treat all others as we would want to be treated if we were them.

It's common to all religions, and as it says at http://cjcmp.org, all great spiritual teachers taught it, in one way or another. Thus Jews are supposed to be taught that we should not do to others what is hurtful to our self. Christians are supposed to be taught to do unto others as you would have them do unto you. And Muslims are supposed to be taught that no one is a true believer in Allah until he loves for all others what he loves for himself.

Similarly, Buddhists are taught that we should treat others as we treat our self. Hindus are taught that we should not do unto others anything that, which if it were done to us, would cause us pain. The Taoists are taught that we should regard our neighbor's gain as our own gain, and our neighbor's loss as our own loss. Those of the Bahai Faith are taught that we should ascribe not to any soul that which we would not have ascribed to our self. Followers of Confucius are taught that we should never impose on others what we would not choose for our self. And the founders of all other religions have taught the same thing in different ways.