Buddhism and Politics, a Little-Known Teaching of Buddha

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A teaching on Buddhism and politics from the book "The Teachings of the Buddha from the Most Ancient Texts" by Walpola Rahula.

“Those who imagine that Buddhism is concerned only with supremely high ideals, with lofty moral and philosophical thoughts, ignoring the social and economic well-being of the masses, are mistaken.

The Buddha was interested in the happiness of humanity.

For him, there was no happiness possible outside of a pure life based on moral and spiritual principles.

But he also knew that it was difficult to lead such a life if material and social conditions were unfavorable.

Buddhism does not regard material well-being as an end in itself; it is only a means to an end—a higher and nobler end.

But it is an indispensable means to achieve a higher goal for human happiness.

Buddhism therefore recognizes that a certain minimum of material conditions is favorable to spiritual success, even when it comes to the monk engaged in meditation in a secluded place.

The Buddha does not separate life from the context of its social and economic background; he considers it as a whole, in all its spiritual, social, economic and political aspects.

The Buddha's Teaching on Politics

The Buddha's teaching on ethical, spiritual and philosophical subjects is quite well known.

But little is known, especially in the West, about his teachings on social, economic and political issues.

And yet, there are many discourses that deal with these subjects and that we encounter throughout the ancient texts.

Let's just look at a few examples:

The Cakkavattisihanada-sutta of the Digha-nikaya clearly states that poverty (daliddiya) is a cause of immorality and crimes like theft, deception, violence, hatred, cruelty, etc.

Kings of ancient times, like governments today, strove to suppress crime by means of punishment.

The Kutadana-sutta of the same nikaya says how vain this is; it denies that this method can ever be effective.

The Buddha, on the contrary, suggests ending crime by improving the economic condition of the people.

It says that seeds and other necessaries of agriculture must be provided to farmers and cultivators; that capital must be made available to merchants and other corporations; that adequate wages must be paid to employees.

When the people are provided with the means to earn a sufficient income, they will be content, free from fear and anxiety, and as a result, the country will become peaceful and free from crime.

This is why the Buddha reminded lay people how important it was to improve economic conditions.

This did not mean, of course, that he approved of accumulating wealth with greed and attachment, which is in contradiction with his fundamental teaching, nor that he approved of using any means to earn a living.

There are certain professions, such as the manufacture and trade of arms, which he condemned as harmful means of livelihood.

The Buddha's Teaching on Happiness

A man named Dighajanu once visited the Buddha and said, “Lord, we are ordinary lay people leading family life with wives and children.

Could the Blessed One give us some teachings that will lead us to happiness in the world and beyond?

The Buddha replied that there were four things that lead man to happiness in this world:

First: he must be skillful and efficient, conscientious and energetic in his profession whatever it may be and he must have complete knowledge of it (utthana-sampada).

Second: he must keep his gain thus obtained justly by the sweat of his brow (arakkha-sampada); (this is to protect his gain against thieves etc.

All these ideas must be considered in the context of the times).

Third: He must have good friends (kalyana-mitta), faithful, learned, virtuous, liberal and intelligent, who help him to keep himself on the right path and to guard against evil.

Fourth: He must spend reasonably, according to his income, nor too little, that is, he must not accumulate stingily, nor indulge in extravagance—in other words, he must live within his means (samajivikata).

Then the Buddha expounded the four virtues that lead a lay person to happiness in the afterlife:

First: he must have faith and confidence (saddha) in moral, spiritual and intellectual values.

Second: He must abstain from destroying or harming life, from theft, deception, adultery, lying, intoxicating drinks (sila).

Third: he must practice charity, generosity, without attachment (caga).

Fourth: He must develop the wisdom (panna) which leads to the complete destruction of suffering, to the attainment of Nirvana.

Buddhism and Politics: Economics

Sometimes the Buddha even went into detail about saving and spending money, as for example when he told young Sigala that he should spend a quarter of his income on his daily needs, invest half in his business, and put the last quarter aside for the unexpected.

One day the Buddha told Anathapindika the great banker, one of his most devoted lay disciples, who had founded for him the famous Jetavana Monastery at Savatthi, that a lay person leading an ordinary family life has four forms of happiness:

the first form of happiness is to enjoy economic security or sufficient wealth obtained by just and honest means (atthi-sukka);

the second is to spend this wealth liberally on himself, his family, his friends and relatives and on meritorious deeds (bhoga-sutta);

the third is to be free from debt (anana-sukha);

The fourth form of happiness is to lead a righteous, pure life, without doing harm in thought, word or deed (anavajja-sutta).

It is worth noting that the first three kinds of happiness are economic in nature, but the Buddha ultimately reminded the banker that material and economic happiness "is not worth a sixteenth part" of the spiritual happiness that is the result of a pure and good life.

We see from these examples that the Buddha held economic well-being to be a condition of human happiness, but that he did not recognize progress as real and true, if this progress was only material, and deprived of a spiritual and moral foundation.

While it encourages material progress, spiritual Buddhism, for the establishment of a happy, peaceful and contented society.

The Buddha against war

The Buddha not only taught non-violence and peace; but he went to the battlefield itself and intervened in person to prevent a war, during the dispute between the Sakya and Koliya who were ready to fight to settle the question of the waters of the Rohini.

And his words prevented King Ajatasattu from attacking the Vajji kingdom.

Buddhism and Politics: The Way of Governing

At the time of the Buddha, there were, as there are today, rulers who ruled their states unjustly. They levied excessive taxes and inflicted cruel punishments.

The people were oppressed and exploited, tortured and persecuted.

The Buddha was deeply moved by this inhuman treatment.

The Dhammapadatthakatha relates that he then turned his attention to the problem of good government.

His ideas must be appreciated in the social, economic and political context of his time.

He showed how a whole country could become corrupt, degenerate and unhappy when the heads of government, that is, the king, ministers and officials, themselves become corrupt and unjust.

For a country to be happy, it must have a just government.

The principles of this just government are expounded by the Buddha in his teaching on the "Ten Duties of the King" (Dasa-raja-dhamma), as given in the Jatakas.

Of course, the word "king" (Raja) of old must be replaced today by the word "government."

Therefore, the "Ten Duties of the King" now apply to all those involved in government, including heads of state, ministers, political leaders, members of the legislative body and administrative officials.

The Ten Duties of the King

1- The first of these ten duties is liberality, generosity, charity (dana). The sovereign must not have greed or attachment to wealth and property, but must dispose of them for the well-being of the people.

2 - A high moral character (sila). He must never destroy life, deceive, steal, or exploit others, commit adultery, speak falsehoods, or take intoxicating drinks. That is, he must at least observe the Five Precepts of the Layman.

3 - Sacrifice everything for the good of the people (pariccaga). He must be ready to sacrifice his comfort, his name and fame, and his very life for the sake of the people.

4 -Honesty and integrity (ajjava). He must be free from fear or favor in the performance of his duties; he must be sincere in his intentions and must not deceive the public.

5 -Friendliness and affability (maddava). He must have a gentle temperament.

6 - Austerity in habits (tapa). He must lead a simple life and must not indulge in luxury. He must be in possession of himself.

7 - Absence of hatred, ill-will, enmity (akkodha). He must not hold a grudge against anyone.

8 -Non-violence (avihimsa), which means that he must not only not harm anyone, but also that he must strive to bring peace by avoiding and preventing war and anything that involves violence and destruction of life.

9 - Patience, forgiveness, tolerance, understanding (khanti). He must be able to bear trials, difficulties and insults without losing his temper.

10 - Non-opposition, non-obstruction (avirodha). That is, he must not oppose the popular will, nor thwart any measure favorable to the well-being of the people. In other words, he must keep himself in harmony with the people.

It is needless to say how happy a country would be governed by men possessing these qualities.

And yet it is not a Utopia since there were kings in the past, like Asoka in India, who established their kingdoms on the basis of these ideas.

The Buddha said:

“Hatred is never appeased by hatred; but it is appeased by kindness. This is an eternal truth.”

“Anger should be overcome with benevolence, malice with kindness, selfishness with charity, and falsehood with truthfulness.”

There can be neither peace nor happiness for man as long as he desires and thirsts to conquer and subjugate his neighbor. As the Buddha further said:

“The victor provokes hatred, and the vanquished falls into misery. He who renounces victory and defeat is happy and peaceful. The only victory that brings peace and happiness is victory over oneself.”

“One can conquer millions in battle, but he who conquers himself, he alone is the greatest of conquerors.”

Ashoka, the great Buddhist emperor

It is a consolation and a hope to think today that there was at least one great sovereign, famous in history, who had the courage, the confidence, the imagination to put into practice this teaching of non-violence, peace and love in the administration of a vast empire, both internally and externally, Ashoka, the great Buddhist emperor of India (3rd century BC), "the beloved of the gods", as he was called.

He had initially followed the example of his father (Bindusara) and his grandfather (Chandragupta) and wanted to continue the conquest of the Indian peninsula.

He invaded and conquered Kalinga, annexing it to his empire.

Several hundred thousand people were killed, wounded, tortured and taken prisoner during this war.

But when he later became a Buddhist, he changed and was completely transformed by the Buddha's teachings.

In one of his famous rock-engraved edicts (Edict XIII on Rock, as it is now called), the original of which is still legible today, the emperor, referring to the conquest of Kalinga, publicly expresses his "repentance" and says that it is "extremely painful" for him to think of this carnage.

He declares that he will never again draw his sword to undertake conquest, but that he "wishes all living beings non-violence, self-control and the practice of serenity and gentleness.

This, naturally, is regarded by the Beloved of the gods (Asoka) as the greatest conquest, the conquest through piety (dhamma-vijaya).”

Not only did he renounce war for himself, but he expressed his desire: "that my sons and grandsons do not think it worth while to make a new conquest... that they think only of that conquest which is the conquest by piety.

This is good for this world and for the world beyond.”

It is the only example in the entire history of humanity of a victorious conqueror, at the zenith of his power, still in full possession of the strength that would allow him to pursue his territorial conquests, nevertheless renouncing war and violence in favor of peace and non-violence.

This is a lesson for our world today. The ruler of a vast empire publicly renounces war and violence and embraces the message of peace and nonviolence.

History does not show that there was a neighboring king who took advantage of Asoka's piety and attacked him with arms, or that there occurred during his lifetime a revolt or rebellion in his empire.

Peace reigned, on the contrary, over the whole country and it seems that distant lands, outside his empire, willingly accepted his benevolent direction.

Buddhism and Politics: Perfect Government

Buddhism aims to create a society that would renounce the ruinous struggle for power, where tranquility and peace would prevail over victory and defeat;

where the persecution of the innocent would be vehemently denounced;

where there would be more respect for the man who conquers himself than for the one who conquers millions of beings by military and economic war;

where hatred would be overcome by friendship and evil by kindness;

where enmity, jealousy, malice and greed would not poison the minds of men;

where compassion would be the driving force behind action;

where all beings, including the humblest living thing, would be treated with justice, consideration and love;

where in peace, friendship and harmony, in a world where material contentment reigns, life is directed towards the highest and noblest goal, the attainment of the Ultimate Truth, of Nirvana.

See also:

Theravada Buddhism

The life of Siddhartha Gautama Buddha

Representation of Buddha, the fat and the thin

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A text taken from the book:

"The Teachings of the Buddha from the Most Ancient Texts" by Walpola Rahula

Today there are many currents in Buddhism and different teachings which sometimes deviate greatly from the original teaching.

If you want to know more about the true teachings of Buddha, I advise you to read this book, the essentials are there and the bravest or wisest can certainly achieve enlightenment with:

» Reverend Rahula received the traditional training of a Buddhist monk in Ceylon according to all the rules.

[…] The book that he kindly asked me to present to the Western public is a luminous and accessible exposition of the fundamental principles of Buddhist doctrine, as found in the most ancient texts, those called in Sanskrit “the Tradition” (Agama) and in Pali “the Canonical Corpus” (Nikdya), and to which the Reverend Rahula, who possesses incomparable knowledge of them, refers constantly and almost exclusively.

Paul Demiéville

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