Poson Poya falls on Thursday:

Environmental challenges: a Buddhist perspective

By Lionel Wijesiri

World Environment Day was celebrated globally last Thursday. It was the United Nations’ principal vehicle for encouraging worldwide awareness and action for the environment. That day would have been an ideal moment for all of us to sit back and think seriously how our activities now challenge the health of our natural world more than at any other time in history.

Since the middle of 20th century, western technology was spurred by the belief that applied science could eliminate all human wants and usher in a golden age of unlimited prosperity for all. Now, having utilised technology to repress nature to serve human desire, we have doubtlessly succeeded in making life more comfortable and become more secure in many respects than it had been in an earlier era.

However, our smog-covered cities, polluted waterways, devastated forests and chemical dumps remind us painfully that our material triumphs have been gained at terrible price.

The planet’s natural ecosystems and regenerating bio-capacity are being severely degraded and, as a result, this compromises the ability of the planet to sustain life. Forests, fisheries, oceans, rangeland, fresh water systems and other natural ecosystems are all threatened while many are on the verge of collapse. Water, land and air are getting increasingly polluted, water tables are dropping, soil erosion is leading to desertification, global warming is well underway, and species are dying out 1,000 times faster than their natural rate of extinction. And in the process of vanquishing nature, man himself, too, has placed himself in danger of losing his humanity.

Buddhist solution

Does Buddhism offer us any guide on environmental protection? Yes, it does but to understand it, we have look at Buddhism in a different perspective.

Buddhism does not make the big distinction found in the West between “nature” and human beings. It is stressed that we are not set apart from nature, but that we are part of it. The doctrines of karma and of rebirth put the whole of human life in the context of an endless series of cycles, which resemble those which operate in the natural world (e.g. the water cycle, the food cycle).

The Buddhists stress on impermanence reminds us that our bodies are subject to the endlessly-changing processes of nature, whilst beliefs about rebirth suggest that even our consciousness is recycled in relation to a new body. The form of things changes constantly, but certain basic patterns continue.

So, it should certainly not come as a shock for practising Buddhists to discover what environmentalists are now telling us. That is, that nature is not a boundless ocean of resources (the doctrine of impermanence should have made this clear), and the actions that we perform have an effect on the world around us.

In the theory of karma the effects of our actions are in proportion to the greed which motivated them. So if our spoiling of the planet through stripping its resources and polluting it was motivated by greed, we are now beginning to experience the effects of that greed. The earth is our mirror.

Metta

In fact, Buddhism represents the way of compassion. Buddha taught that for those who wish to follow his Path should practice metta - loving-kindness, not to harm the life of all beings - not only to protect mankind, but also to protect animals and vegetation. With his perfect wisdom, the Buddha saw all beings in the universe were equal in nature, and in this phenomenal world, lives of all human, animals and vegetation were inter-related, mutually developing, and inseparable.

The bottomless greed has pushed mankind to satisfy excessive and unnecessary demands, and lead them into endless competitions, leading to environmental damage and ending up in self-destruction. Contrasting to the unwholesome and greedy mind is the spirit of simple living and contentment by those who practise the Buddha’s teaching.

Several suttas from the Pali Canon show that early Buddhism believes that there is a close relationship between human morality and the natural environment. In this world there are five natural laws at work: Utu Niyama, Bija Niyama, Kamma Niyama, Dhamma Niyama and Citta Niyama (physical laws, biological laws, psychological laws, moral laws and causal law). This means that the physical environment conditions the growth and development of its biological component, i.e. fauna and flora.

The morals of humankind influence not only the psychological make-up of the people but the biological and physical environment of the world as well. The five natural laws demonstrate that humankind and nature are bound together in a reciprocal causal relationship with changes in one necessarily bringing about changes in the other. The world, including nature and humankind, stands or falls with the type of moral force at work.

If immorality grips society, humankind and nature deteriorate; if morality reigns, the quality of human life and nature improves. Thus greed, hatred and delusion produce pollution within and without. Generosity, compassion and wisdom produce purity within and without.

This is the reason the Buddha pronounced that the world is led by the mind. Cittena niyati loko, cittena parikassati, cittassa ekadhammassam, sabbeva vasamanvagu. (The world is led around by mind, by mind the world is plagued, Mind is itself the single thing, which brings all else beneath its sway).

True happiness

The true happiness of life is to be found through the restraint of desire in a life of contentment rather than through the development of greed. According to Buddhist doctrine, humankind must learn to satisfy its real needs and not its desires.

The resources of the world are not unlimited but more than sufficient to meet the limited needs of the humankind. But the modern humankind’s unbridled voracious greed for pleasure and acquisition of wealth has exploited environment to the point of near impoverishment. The crux of the matter lies there. Therefore, the search for the effective tools to battle against environmental destruction must also begin from there.

In the Karanaiya Metta Sutta the Buddha said,

As a mother would risk her life

to protect her child, her only child,

even so should one cultivate a

limitless heart

with regard to all beings.

In each of our lives we’re presented with myriad opportunities to make small and large changes to reduce the negative impact we have on the natural world. When we make these changes, not only will they support our spiritual growth but also give us joy for contributing (at least, a wee bit) to the well-being of all living beings on earth.