Saving the World from Ourselves through Spirituality
Authors note: I was inspired to write this as we have an election around the corner and saddened to see the way our human values and even human life is sacrificed to gain political power. I am not a supporter of any particular party or any person.  I want to support a person with integrity and compassion and I am not sure I can see such a person in our political arena. My wish is to see Sri Lanka become a model of peace and compassion, the way King Dharma Asoka transformed his nation. History has taught us that religion and dogma have not brought us both – inner and outer peace. It has only divided us. Yet, we are fortunate to have foundation of knowledge about living a spiritual life. Now we have to change this knowledge into a way of life through self inquiry and mindfulness. That has to begin at a young age and education is the vehicle and meditation a way of getting there.
In a recent article in the Daily Mirror, alternative energy advocate, Asoka Abeygunawardena wrote, “our education system should focus on spiritual development rather than economic development”.
Let us explore this further. What does spirituality mean ?.
To me, spirituality is about integrity. It helps us to find meaning in life, provides a foundation of our values to guide us in the way we behave with self, others and the world around us.
In contrast, our education system has shaped us to be more left brained, analytical, linear thinkers and become efficient at achieving targets at any cost. The value is in the results not integrity. Religion which is supposed to teach us about spirituality and to live a life of integrity is a rote learning process of stanzas, fables and stories with not much application to real life and individual practice. If at all, it focuses more on ritual and not personal inquiry. We cannot analyze spirituality, so we avoid it. Yet we misconstrue it to be worshiping external deities and statues rather than focusing on self, where our spirituality resides.
Descarte’s Folly
If we are to redesign our education system we have to get away from the traditional Cartesian mind – matter divide which has been the focus of our global education system for the last 500 years.  This system promotes IQ based rational, target based learning. It has done well to develop science and technologies to make some of our lives comfortable.
Yet, to put it bluntly, this system has the entire planet on the edge now, with the social challenges of a divided world of ‘haves and have nots’, steeped in insecurity, fear and violence for the ‘have nots’ and the environmental challenges we all face – both the rich and poor.  Only a few fortunate of the 6 billion people on this earth live life of dignity for now. The disparity is outrageous, when one thinks that 80% of the world’s wealth is held by a mere 5%.  Something has to give and we may lose it all.
Sri Lanka is no different in our disparity, but we are fortunate that our foundation is spiritual, based on a focus on self emancipation through mindfulness and meditation.  Yet, the entire nation has gone far away from this practice.
The other day, when a lay friend told me that he had been teaching Buddhist monks meditation, I was surprised. I have spoken to so many since who agreed that many of our monks do not meditate.
I am still trying to get my head around this. I do not want to jump to conclusions here, but it is worth a discussion.  I have taken for granted that monks are synonymous with meditation.  I have had the benefit since I was young to associate with monks like Ven. Nyanaponika, Piyadassi, Sobitha theros who were my father’s friends and later in life with Banthes Punnaji and Vannasara in Canada who made meditation their fundamental practice.
In his book “The Heart of Buddhist Meditation” Nyanaponika Thero states, “This ancient way of mindfulness is as practicable today as it was 2500 years ago. Right Mindfulness is in fact, the indispensable basis of Right Living and Right Thinking – everywhere”.
If some of our Sanga have dropped this practice, I am not sure where we stand as a Buddhist nation today.
Leaving that aside, let me ask how do we bring this kind of spiritual development into our education system ?
Spirituality and Education
This will be a challenge as our nation is multi religious and spirituality has been equated with religion. Maybe we should look at spirituality in a more secular manner, from the human psychology point of view.
Spirituality is a way of facilitating a dialogue between reason and emotion, between mind and body. This provides a base for growth and transformation from our ego centered material self to an active, unifying, meaning-giving centre.
Spirituality is about a transpersonal vision of goodness, beauty, perfection, generosity, graciousness, and sacrifice. It hinges on dignity for self and others and the foundation is true integrity. Love and compassion is its cornerstone.
It is now universally accepted that the focus on the breath and meditation is a way to rid of the ego. Ego clouds our perceptions as it gives us deceptive messages about our sensory encounters.  It inflates our self worth and is driven by fear.  Meditation focuses our mind to see things clearer as they are and not clouded by the ego centered self importance.
Now there is scientific research using electroencephalogram (EEG) technology proving that meditators have a higher gamma activity (25 – 40Hz frequency in neural oscillations) and increased synchronization across the entire brain. This integrates the brain function, resulting in a confidence arising from clearer perception of the realities. (Research is done at the W.M. Keck Laboratory for Functional Brain Imaging and Behavior, University of Wisconsin, USA).
Better understanding of self and the surrounding world takes away fear.  When fear is taken away, we become more skillful and centered to deal with the suffering that life is. We do not need the ego to protect us. This will help us to become inquiring and mindful and to follow a path of moderation.
As such, meditation, yoga and martial arts as a practice should be introduced to children from a young age in schools. It will center them and provide a power of balance that will make them skillful in life, see other beings and nature around as collaborators rather than adversaries. Unconditional loving-kindness and compassion, the natural way of our being will surface and they will become fearless about suffering and change.  They will be more creative to complement the logical left brain and emotionally better balanced through a foundation of spirituality.
Knowing the Realities of the World
Seeing the world clearly will enable the realization of the folly of a world dominated by the oil industry, protected by a weapons industry making puppets out of politicians and controlled by a handful of people.  Emotional and spiritual intelligence will enable them to see that and IQ based world founded on reductionist science is not sustainable.  Fearlessness coupled with benevolence will give them the courage to get together to act against these corrupt, power hungry, ego centered forces not with violence but with skillful compassion.
Together it may become easier to convince those few Narcissists to see the folly of their ways through skillful dialogue and crucial conversations to help them get free from fear, the high walls and the guards that are needed to protect them and their wealth.
We have failed our Children
All I know is our generation and the many previous ones have failed our children. We are leaving them a mess of a world. The least we could do is to equip them to now clean up this mess, to help them see clearly who the real adversaries are and that they are not out there but within us first and our selfish ego centered natures have to be tamed first.
This focus on self will help us to live and love in this world differently. It may mean tumultuous change for the way the world is now or are we too scared to make those changes. It just may be that the tumultuous change is foisted on us by nature anyway. I do not think so, as we humans are more knowing than that as benevolence and compassion pervades the basic nature of our being. We just need to become skillful to find it and nurture it.
May all beings be well and happy !!!
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Life is precious and valuable. It does not exist to be killed with vengeance. Even a dog does not kill his fellow dog. But human kind in SL has degraded spiritually to a very low level, a reason for the recent brutal war.
Love for fellow human beings, care for them and happiness should be the important light of those who preach spirituality. Selflessness and agressive love should be the desire of all.
The problem in Sri Lanka is that the Buddhist priests who are supposed to maintain spiritual standards have decayed into desire for ugly greed for political influence and power.
We need a love revolution to overcome the existing hatred.
A while back, the Christians introduced schools on a religious basis, made religion a factor in government appointments, sectioned out graveyards on a religious basis, banned the religious festivals of other religions, persecuted Muslims, Buddhists and Hindus and used state resources to further missionary activity. This religious fervour was of the biggest curses to hit Sri Lanka in my opinion and Christian extremism in the end brought out what has been called “protestant Buddhism” in Sri Lanka which itself has also caused problems. Now we have those crazy folks running about trying to convert everyone to their fundamentalist sect of Christianity. This tradition of religious segregation and religious fervour still goes on. I think it is time to end this madness. Let’s start by ending schools based on religion (yes the Catholic Church, Buddhists, Muslim groups will be livid but it has to be done) and start burying christians next to buddhists next to hindus next to muslims in equality.
“Even a dog does not kill his fellow dog. ”
I’m sorry I just have to comment on this because so many people seem to believe that humans are the only creatures that kill each other. This is not true at all. Dogs kill each other – have witnessed this myself. Chimpanzees kill each other – sometimes they even go on hunts to kill other Chimpanzees. Snakes kill each other. Lions and Tigers kill each other as well, including killing the babies of rival leaders. The list goes on. In other words humans are neither better nor worse than animals. We are animals.
Dhiraj,
” This tradition of religious segregation and religious fervour still goes on. I think it is time to end this madness. “
Unfortunately, religious madness is not something we are likely to see an end to in our life times. The religious mind is curiously bigoted. Somehow, every religion feels they are extra special and deserve special treatment. Theirs is the one true way and all the others contain lost, deluded souls. Equality is not a concept that sits very well within such minds.
“In other words humans are neither better nor worse than animals. We are animals.”
Very nicely put.
I always thought that the worst crooks and cheats in Sri Lanka hold the most Buddha/Hindu pujas and give the most dana, just as criminals in the West tend to be more Christian than most.
Great minds think alike!!
1.”My wish is to see Sri Lanka become a model of peace and compassion, the way King Dharma Asoka transformed his nation.”
http://www.ifpsl.org/images/files/peoples_tribunal_on_srilanka.pdf
People’s Tribunal on Sri Lanka
On pages 23 and 24 is Personal Appeal for Peace from Thai Buddhist Sulak Sivaraksa, one of the members of the Tribunal Panel,:
”The government of Sri Lanka should follow Emperor Asoka who transformed violence into loving kindness treating all diverse ethnicities in his empire with dignity and equal respect, upholding different cultures and religions.”
Dear Lalith,
Thank you as always for your reflections.
I read your posting and then as promised I did meditate while you were at the mass meditation for peaceful elections.
I was inspired by your posting and my meditation to reflect on the moral dillemma I found myself in, on whether to vote or not to vote. I share this below.
http://beingtheworld.blogspot.com/2010/01/to-vote-or-not-to-vote-meditations-of.html
Thank you for your continued inspiration.
Blessings
Mihirini
I often wonder whether there are a handful of practicing Buddhist in Sri Lanka. If so, there is no need for Thailand to advice on Buddhist practices.
If we look at “Buddhism” in SL, those who like to brand themselves and proudly claim as “Buddhists”, are nothing but nominals, because their parents were called “Buddhists”. They were never spiritually born into that religion. They do not know what Buddhism is.
We must ask the UN to conduct an independent survey to ascertain as to what percentage of atheists call thyemselves Buddhits with a view to emerge from the present “Buddhist majority” falsehood.
Yes, christian education was bringing veryhigh moral standards and values, following the teachings of Jesus Christ, a reason why the other countries which value such morals remain civilised without “eating each other like animals”.
Let us face the truth and not speak falsehood. That will help us to be correct.
Dear Justin;
You say;
Let us face the truth and not speak falsehood. That will help us to be correct.
…………………………………………………………………..
A very good advice for yourself.
There are some more good advices.
1). don’t make judgements in prejudice.
2). Don’t try to insult others.
3). Don’t analyse things for your advantage.
4). Don’t make statements in hatred.
5). Deceiving people is not a good practice.
Further if you want answers for your questions please see the discussion underhttp://www.groundviews.org/author/daya-dissanayake/
You will feel very sorry about your ignorance.
Please try to be a good child!
Take care! Bye.
dear lalith
what is your e mail?
my vision is on all fours with yours -
Lalith, I agree with what you are saying about the importance of delivering ourselves from ego-bound rationality. I have found this to be very helpful in coping with difficult situations in life, and recognizing the way one has long been operating in grounds of fear—fear of loss of money or status, fear of loss of approval, etc. But perhaps it is more important to disseminate this perspective to adults rather than to children. Without convinced adults, you won’t find the people in power who would make the decision to incorporate this into the education system. Also, education should be secular—and some groups of people may consider that it disrespects their own religion (for whatever reason). On the other hand, convinced adults will bring up children in a more enlightened way, and it will filter through to them.
Thank you for all your comments. First of all Ordinary Lankan, my e mail is .
Belle – yes indeed me must bring this message to adults. However, as a mass level we must begin this education with children as we will be able to make a societal transformation when they are taught early. Transforming adults is not easy, as I for one am trying very hard to lose old habits and live this life of contradiction.
The best way to live a life of self inquiry is to try to be mindful about the gap between what we say and what we do – whether its at home, work or with the community. Through my leadership training work, I do bring these out with the corporate adults, but in a competetive, dog eat dog world where, profits and efficiency is the focus, it is difficult for adults to change. But we keep trying…….
Let us wish for peace and peace of mind for all of us – lalith
Dear Sir,
I highly appreciate your comments and learnt a lot about a side which most of us dont pay attention.Waiting for another.
Nalaka