Many of us hold this idea that Buddha was always revered and loved by everyone. But during his lifetime, Buddha was actually perceived as a very radical spiritual teacher, and there were people, especially from the religious establishment of the day, who thought he was spreading heresy, because he was challenging the status quo that served the interest of the social elite.
Yet Buddha was more than just an extraordinary individual, wise and enlightened. He was also a manifestation of an awakening that was ready to erupt in the consciousness of many. He was like the tip of the iceberg of big changes that were ready to happen in the world around him. His presence as a teacher changed not only the consciousness of India where he lived, but the consciousness of all of Asia. The changes in his own sangha, such as equality, the abolition of the caste system, and the practice of nonviolence, had a ripple effect beyond his community.
“Buddha’s message is to remember that you have the ability to illuminate your mind and heart, freeing it from the grips of powerful internal, negative forces.”
In addition, Buddha’s teachings brought about a huge philosophical shift. One of them is the notion that there is no divine creator, and no one can bestow salvation upon you by being an omnipresent being. He said, “I can only show you the path to liberation, but you must walk it.” This must have been disappointing news to many people, yet it is actually empowering for humanity. It empowers us to recognize that we have the capacity to set ourselves free, and that each of us has a spiritual potential that can be actualized.
The path to liberation that Buddha taught is called the dharma, which is often defined as the noble eightfold path. This is why an important symbol in Buddhism is a wheel of dharma with eight spokes. The first of the eightfold path is right understanding, which is sometimes translated as right view.
The definition of right understanding is not singular. Sometimes it is defined as the very wisdom of the four noble truths. Sometimes it refers to the direct realization of the nature of reality. The implication is that right understanding refers to having a valid or correct understanding of the conceptual paradigm of reality known as the two truths: absolute truth and relative truth.
Absolute truth is often described using the terms emptiness and no-self. The idea of absolute truth is that things are not as they appear to our perception, and that our usual notion of reality is an illusion, which we must be awakened from sooner or later. This illusion includes our unquestioned notion of who we are—the sense of being a personal self and the sense that there is a separation between self and other.
Relative truth encompasses the karmic law of cause and effect. It includes all the complexities of life, both the individual circumstances that we go through every day as well as social conditions and political events at a collective level. All these situations in the world are manifestations of the interconnection of complex causes and conditions.
In today’s world, we need to cultivate right understanding of the two truths more than ever. Both are equally true and important to understand for our collective well-being.
Some spiritual practitioners devalue relative truth, but when Buddha embraced equality, the abolition of the caste system, and the practice of nonviolence, he was acknowledging the importance of grappling with relative truth. At the absolute level there are no separate selves that suffer, but at the relative level there are people suffering. That suffering is real, and we are called to alleviate it.
Some of the political narratives in today’s world may not be in alignment with Buddha’s message of compassion, love, and caring for all of humanity. We are being dragged into opposite political directions by being bombarded with endless arguments and news cycles. It is very easy to “bark up the wrong tree” if we don’t use our discernment and right understanding.
Political ideology can sometimes make primitive impulses sound enticing and convincing, so we can find ourselves gripped by them. In this confused age, we need to make sure we continuously uphold the bodhisattva’s ethos. Not chained in the prison of self-centeredness and selfishness, this ethos helps us cultivate love and compassion toward all beings without exclusion. It is a universal, altruistic view that holds the well-being of everyone, regardless of differences of religion, race, color, gender identity, and so forth.
Tara, one of the most revered deities in Tibetan Buddhism, is none other than our own buddhanature. Her name means “the liberator.” She’s regarded as a protector of Tibet, and Tibetans often pray to her when they are confused or face hardships. In the liturgies of the Tara practice, we often pray to Tara to protect us from the eight external dangers, which are metaphors for internal neuroses. One of the dangers is the “thief of wrong view,” who steals our intelligence and wisdom. Perhaps we may want to do more prayers to Tara to save humanity from this thief. Some of today’s divisive political narratives go under the umbrella of wrong view.
According to Buddhism, right understanding is a wisdom that is not just acquired from reading some authoritative scriptures or dogmas or divine revelation on a rock. It arises from a profound, unbiased reflection into the nature of reality as well as the very nature of all situations, including political and social issues.
Deep inquiry into the nature of all phenomena is the hallmark of Buddhist training. Such inquiry ultimately leads us to the right understanding that allows us to be in union with the nature of reality, which is bigger than all our struggles. In that realm, all the differences that divide human beings fade away. We see that the inherent goodness of buddhanature lies in all people, regardless of their identity or on which side of the political aisle they are standing. The powerful barricade between us and others, constructed by ego, simply dissolves. This is the ultimate reality.
When Buddha was passing away from the world, his disciples were struck by sadness and mourning. Buddha compassionately consoled them by giving his last testament: be a lamp unto yourself. He said, “Be islands unto yourselves, refuges unto yourselves, seeking no external refuge; with the dharma as your island, the dharma as your refuge, seek no other refuge.” Buddha’s message is to remember that you have the ability to illuminate your mind and heart, freeing it from the grips of powerful internal, negative forces. The way you can do this is by cultivating right understanding in all situations, at all times. Right understanding is a process that is continually evolving, as the world is constantly changing. In the end, right understanding is the first stepping stone on this journey called the dharma, which will liberate you as well as everyone else.
