Buddhism has been introduced to China for more than 1,900 years, so Buddhism has a close relationship with China. China's cultural customs influenced Buddhism, and Buddhism also influenced China's cultural customs. Buddhism became our own Buddhism. However, Buddhism comes from India, and some of its cultural features are difficult for China people to understand. Influenced by China customs, some of them are not in line with the original intention of Buddhism. Therefore, in China, people who believe in Buddhism and those who don't often have some misunderstandings about Buddhism and don't know the original meaning of Buddhism, so people who believe in Buddhism can't believe correctly, and those who criticize Buddhism won't criticize Buddhism itself. I think people who believe in Buddhism or doubt or comment on Buddhism must first get rid of their misunderstanding of Buddhism in order to truly understand Buddhism. Now, I hope you can put forward several important points so as to have a correct view.
First of all, due to the misunderstanding of Buddhist teachings
Buddhism has a deep truth. Some people don't understand the deep meaning, only understand superficial articles and listen to a few nouns casually. Let's just say, let's just say that the result is not the original meaning of Buddhism. The most common terms, such as' life is bitter',' birth' and' everything is empty', are of course said by the Buddha and are important Buddhist theories, but most people rarely understand them correctly. Now, let's explain it separately:
(1) "Life is bitter". The Buddha told us that this life is bitter. People who don't understand its true meaning have a wrong idea that our life is meaningless, which leads to negative pessimism. How to work hard for life is the most commonly misunderstood. Whenever society criticizes Buddhism with this negative and pessimistic term, people who believe in Buddhism also fall into a negative and pessimistic misunderstanding. In fact, the sentence' Life is short' is right.
Every realm, when we contact, will give birth to a feeling that is not our own interest, resulting in pain and anxiety. If we say that people are suffering in this sense, it is not enough to say that people are suffering. Why? Because there are many happy things in life, it is annoying to hear unpleasant sounds, but hearing nice tones is joy! Sick, poor at home, leaving relatives, very painful, but healthy, rich in economy, family reunion, isn't it very happy! No matter what happens, bitterness and pleasure are relative. If something unpleasant happens, it is said that life is bitter, so it is not prejudice.
Therefore, buddha said life is bitter. What does this bitterness mean? Scripture says:' impermanence is bitter' Everything is impermanent and will change, and buddha said life suffers from impermanence. For example, good health is not permanent, people will grow old and die slowly. Rich people can't stay forever, sometimes they become poor, and their power won't last long, and eventually they will be lost. Although there is joy in the changing situation, it is not permanent and incomplete. When it changes, the pain comes. Therefore, buddha said life is bitter, suffering is flawed, not permanent, and has no complete meaning. People who study Buddhism will have a negative and pessimistic attitude if they don't understand the true meaning and think that life is incomplete and incomplete. This is not right. People who really understand Buddhism have completely different views. To know that buddha said life is bitter, we need to know that this kind of life is incomplete, not permanent, and we can create a permanent and complete life in the future. It is equal to the patient. The patient must know that he is sick before he goes to the doctor for treatment, so that the disease can be removed and the body can be restored to health. Why is life not complete and permanent, but painful? There must be a reason for pain. If you know the cause of the pain, you will try your best to eliminate it, and then you can get complete happiness. Therefore, the Buddha not only said that life is bitter, but also said that suffering has a bitter cause, and happiness can be obtained by removing the bitter cause. Those who study Buddhism should learn according to the method instructed by the Buddha, so as to change this incomplete life and become a complete life. In this realm, Buddhism is called "I am always happy and clean".
Often forever, happiness is happiness, and I am free and pure. Together, the four words are eternal happiness, eternal freedom and eternal purity. The biggest goal of Buddhism is not only to say that life is bitter, but also to change this bitter life, which is called' changing one's mind' in Buddhism and produce a forever happy, free, clean and pure life. Tell us where the pain is and how to practice hard towards this goal. The situation of eternal happiness and purity, that is, the absolute and most promising ideal state, can be achieved by all of us. How can you say that Buddhism is negative and pessimistic?
Although not everyone who studies Buddhism can achieve this extreme, it is really beneficial to know this truth. For example, when people are in trouble, it is good to know how to work hard. When they get rich, they forget everything, only care about their own happiness, and take the wrong road. Buddhists not only know how to work hard when they are in trouble, but also pay attention when they are enjoying themselves, because happiness is not permanent and reliable, and if they don't work hard to be good, they will soon degenerate and fail. Life is bitter, so we can warn ourselves that we won't go wrong by learning to enjoy it, which is also the important significance of Buddha's saying that life is bitter.
(2) "birth". Buddhism says there is a world, but many people misunderstand it, thinking that the world is the world we live in, and leaving the world means going somewhere else. This is not right. Each of us is in this world, and even when we leave home, we are in this world. The enlightened arhat, bodhisattva and Buddha are all saints in the world, but they all saved us in this world, which shows the significance of this world, not going to another place.
So what does Buddhism mean by secularism and secularism? According to what China always said, "the world" has a temporal meaning, for example, 30 years is a lifetime, and the West also has this meaning, calling a hundred years a century. Therefore, the meaning of the world is eternal. From the past to the present, from the present to the future, what is the' world' in this period of time. The same is true of Buddhism, which can be called the world instead. In time, from the past to the present, from the present to the future, whether it is good or bad, it is always changing. Everything that changes is called the world. Also, this world means cheating. Most people don't know the cause and effect of the past, present and future. They don't know where they came from, how to be a man, where they are going when they die, and the meaning of life, the universe.
What does birth mean? Being able to practice Buddhism, have wisdom, understand the truth of cosmic life, have a clean heart and no worries, and experience eternal truth is called' being born'. Buddha and Bodhisattva are all in this world, but they all reach the truth with great wisdom, and their hearts are clean, unlike ordinary people. Therefore, a famous saying in the world tells us to learn Buddhism, to become human beings and to become saints from ordinary people, instead of telling us to go to another world. People who don't understand the significance of the birth of Buddhism misunderstand that Buddhism is an escape from reality, which leads to improper criticism.
(3) "Everything is empty". The Buddha said that everything is empty, and some people misunderstood it, thinking that this is empty, that is empty, that is empty, that is, there is nothing, that is, it is meaningless, that is, bad things have been done, good things have not been done, and it is good to live. In fact, the meaning of emptiness in Buddhism has the highest philosophy, and all Buddhists and Bodhisattvas are people who realize the truth of emptiness. Empty is not nothing, but everything. The world is the world, life is life, bitterness is bitterness, joy is joy, and everything is ready. In Buddhism, there is obviously evil, good and evil, and cause and effect. We should abandon evil and do good, do good and get good results, and practice Buddhism. If there is nothing, then why should we learn Buddhism? Since there are cause and effect, good and evil, and ordinary saints, why does the Buddha say that everything is empty? What is the meaning of emptiness? Cause and effect together, there is no real invariant, which is called emptiness. Evil, good, evil, life, all these things are not immutable and true, and they are all based on the relationship of karma. Because they are produced by karma, they are transformed according to the transformation of karma. There is no entity, so they are called emptiness. For example, if a person looks in the mirror, there will be a shadow in the mirror. How can there be that shadow? Some people have to borrow the sun or light to see the shadows. Nothing is impossible. So the shadow is produced by various conditions. This is not a real object. Although it is not an entity, the shadow you see is clear, not without it. Everything is empty, which is based on the meaning of this karma. So the Buddha said that everything is empty, and it also shows that all karma exists. We should not only realize that everything is empty, but also know that there are causes and consequences, good and evil. People who study Buddhism should prove emptiness from evil deeds to good deeds, that is, emptiness is there, and the two truths are harmonious: most people think that Buddhism is empty, meaningless, negative or pessimistic. These are misunderstandings caused by ignorance of Buddhism and must be completely corrected.
Second, the misunderstanding caused by the Buddhist system
Buddhism came from India, and the system is a little different. People don't understand and are not used to the old places like becoming a monk and being a vegetarian in China, which has caused many misunderstandings.
(1) "becoming a monk". Being a monk is a system of Indian Buddhism, which has been misunderstood by our society, especially Confucianism. At home, it is said every time that everyone learns Buddhism and there is no one in the world. Why? Everyone is a monk. What kind of society would it be without couples and children? This is a serious misunderstanding. I often make an analogy: if teachers teach students, where can they teach everyone to be teachers and become a teacher's world? This is not misunderstood in the Philippines, because priests and nuns everywhere are monks, but only a few are Catholics, not Catholics. Everyone should be priests and nuns. There are monks and disciples studying Buddhism at home. Monks can learn Buddhism, and they can also learn Buddhism at home. Monks can practice life and death or practice life and death at home. Not everyone who studies Buddhism has to become a monk. We will never destroy human society because everyone learns Buddhism. However, if you can practice life and death at home, why become a monk? Because to promote Buddhism and Buddhism, there must be a few people presiding over Buddhism. The host had better be a monk. He has no family burden and doesn't do other kinds of work. He can practice wholeheartedly and carry forward Buddhism wholeheartedly. If Buddhism wants to exist in this world, it must be promoted by such people, so there has always been this system of becoming a monk.
Is it great to be a monk? Of course it's big, but you can't become a monk. Don't be forced. Sometimes you can't become a monk. Preferably at home. He who climbs high falls harder and becomes a monk. But if you are not careful, you will fall even worse. You should be sincere, practice hard, sacrifice yourself for Buddhism, and strive to promote Buddhism. Monks are the core members of Buddhism and the main body of carrying forward Buddhism. Western religions also have such a system of not marrying. There are many philosophers of science who are single for their studies and are not burdened by family chores, but work hard for science and philosophy. Buddhism becoming a monk is to get rid of worldly fatigue and concentrate on Buddhism. Therefore, becoming a monk is a gentleman's business, and you should be particularly diligent. For example, becoming a monk at will, not just for the sake of becoming a monk, is not good, but hinders Buddhism. Some people seem to have to become monks once they want to learn Buddhism. They not only misunderstood themselves, but also frightened others from learning Buddhism. This idea-to learn Buddhism is to become a monk, or not to become a monk. To realize that becoming a monk is not easy, we must first be a good layman to learn Dharma and be self-interested and altruistic. If you can really make a big heart, make a family biography, join in Buddhism, and then come back to become a monk, then you will be stable and will not have a bad influence on society.
It has something to do with becoming a monk. By the way, there are two points. Some people envy monks when they see that Buddhist temples are vast, solemn, clean and beautiful, thinking that monks can enjoy leisure when they live in them and have donors to support them. For example, it is such a fallacy that they don't know that monks should be brave and resourceful in their practice. For believers, it is very rare to travel around, go out and preach the truth, live a hard life, work hard for the Buddhism of all beings, and be selfish and altruistic. What they do is a monk's treasure, where they do nothing but sit and enjoy ready-made food and wait for donors to provide it for them. This is probably because there are many monks and few people can fulfill their family responsibilities, so there is such a misunderstanding in society!
Some people who oppose Buddhism say that their families do nothing and are consumers of parasitic society, which seems useless at all. I wonder if people don't have to be engaged in agriculture, industry, commerce, teachers, journalists and other freelancers, but they can also be called consumers. Monks are not idle, living a hard life, brave and diligent. What they do, in addition to self-interest, also leads people to practice kindness and morality, which makes the believers' personality perfect day by day, practices life and death and benefits the world of life. How can you say that they are idle parasites? Being a monk is a religious teacher and can be said to be a broad and lofty educator. Therefore, it is wrong for people who do not understand Buddhism to say that monks are at leisure, or that their families are parasitic consumers. Real monks are not like this. Should not be idle, should not spend but can repay the benefactor.
(2) "vegetarian". We Buddhists in China attach great importance to vegetarianism, so every time a Buddhist student thinks of being a vegetarian and having to eat meat, he will say: Look at Buddhists in Japan, Ceylon, Myanmar, Thailand or China, Tibet and Mongolia, not to mention that believers and even monks at home eat meat. Can you say that they don't study Buddhism and are not Buddhists? Don't misunderstand that you have to be a vegetarian to learn Buddhism. If you can't be a vegetarian, you can't learn Buddhism. Learning Buddhism is not exactly the same as being a vegetarian. Most people see that some people learn Buddhism, but in fact they just learn to be vegetarian. Parents, brothers and children at home feel disgusted and think that vegetarianism is too much trouble. In fact, people who study Buddhism should do this. After learning Buddhism, they must first understand the truth of Buddhism. In family society, they should follow Buddhism to improve their virtues. I think you were greedy, angry and lacked sense of responsibility and kindness before you studied Buddhism. Everything has changed since you studied Buddhism. You are greedy, cowardly, kind and responsible for others, which makes people feel the benefits of learning Buddhism in family and society. At that time, people at home not only didn't object, but became sympathetic and gradually learned from you, such as being a Buddhist and being vegetarian.
Although people who study Buddhism are not necessarily vegetarians, vegetarianism is indeed a good virtue of Buddhism in China, which is worth promoting. Buddhism says that vegetarianism can cultivate compassion, and you can't bear to kill or eat animal flesh. Not only will the karma for killing decrease, but the sympathy for human suffering will increase. Mahayana Buddhism especially advocates vegetarianism, saying that vegetarianism has great merit in cultivating compassion. Therefore, instead of practicing compassion, being a vegetarian is just passively abstaining from killing and approaching Hinayana!
From the secular law, vegetarianism has great benefits, is more economical, has high nutritional value, and can reduce pain. Now, there is an international vegetarian association in the world, and anyone who likes vegetarianism can participate. It can be seen that vegetarianism is a good thing, and people who study Buddhism should advocate it, but we must pay attention to the fact that the standard of studying Buddhism cannot be raised too high, and we must be vegetarian when studying Buddhism. People who study Buddhism will ask: Are you a vegetarian? Why are you not a vegetarian after studying Buddhism for so long? This combination of learning Buddhism and vegetarianism will hinder the promotion of Buddhism.
Third, the misunderstanding of Buddhist rituals.
People who don't know Buddhism go to temples to watch chanting, confession, doing homework in the morning and evening and other ceremonies. If they don't understand the real meaning, they say these are superstitions. There are many problems in this, and now I will briefly say the following:
(1) "Pay homage to Buddha". When we enter the temple to worship Buddha, we will offer incense, flowers, lights and candles to the Buddha. Western deists say that we are idolaters and superstitious. In fact, the Buddha is our leader, and the Great Bodhisattva is also a person who is about to become a Buddha. This is our refuge and our leader. When we show respect, it seems that we must respect our parents politely. There was no problem when the Buddha was alive. But now that Sakyamuni's Buddha has entered nirvana, there are buddhas and bodhisattvas from other worlds who are not in our world. We must carve their images with paper paintings, clay sculptures, wood and stones as respected objects of worship. Because this is the image of Buddha and Bodhisattva, we should worship him respectfully, not because he is paper, earth, wood or stone. If we love our country, how can we show our respect? Make a national flag out of colored cloth. When the national flag is raised, salute it respectfully. Can we say this is superstitious behavior? There are also statues in Catholicism. Although there is no god in Christianity, there are crosses as objects of tribute, and some people kneel down to pray. What's the difference between this and worshipping Buddha? It is said that Buddhist worship of Buddha is idolatry, because the western gods don't understand the meaning of our worship of Buddha enough.
As for the fragrant lanterns and candles? When the Buddha was alive, in India, these things were used to support the Buddha. Lights and candles mean light, and fragrant flowers mean fragrance and cleanliness. On the one hand, these things are used to support the Buddha to show piety, on the other hand, they are used to show the light and purity from the Buddha, instead of offering flowers and burning incense, so that the Buddha can see everything by lighting candles. Aren't all these things used by western religions, especially Catholicism? This is a common religious ceremony. When you worship Buddha, you should be respectful and pious, and think of yourself as a real Buddha. If you worship while thinking about the East and the West, or talking, it is disrespectful and loses the meaning of worshipping Buddha.
(2) "ceremony". Buddhists, pagans and people without religious beliefs often mistake it for superstition. I didn't know that "repentance" is called "repentance" in Hindi, which means to admit one's mistakes after one's own mistakes, because everyone has made all kinds of mistakes in the past and now, and committed all kinds of crimes, leaving karma that attracts suffering and hinders the liberation of monasticism. In order to alleviate and eliminate the karma that hinders pain, one must admit one's mistakes in front of Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and other monks to eliminate one's karma. Buddhism has rituals and repentance methods, which are equivalent to the repentance of Yeism and are very important in religion. Repentance requires one's own confession, and the true confession in the heart is in line with the meaning of Buddhism.
What if most people don't repent? Ancient ancestors made up a confession ceremony and taught us to recite our thoughts sentence by sentence, just to know the meaning and confess our sins. The ritual vessels taught us how to worship the Buddha, pray for compassion and care from the Buddha and Bodhisattva, admit our mistakes, know the right and wrong of killing, stealing and evil, and make a vow to turn over a new leaf. These are the rituals that our ancestors taught us to repent in the past.
Some people, even if they can't recite ready-made rituals, invite their families to lead them, and gradually they don't know how to repent. Some parents' families died in order to use the kindness of Sambo to eliminate the sins of their parents' families, and also to invite their families to attend the ceremony in order to publicize the dead. But if you don't know the original intention of Buddhism, it's only a few dollars to decorate the facade for folk customs.
When Buddhism arrived, the meaning of confession was blurred. Those who study Buddhism do not repent, regardless of size, please their families and keep themselves busy with Buddhism. They repent for this family today and do merits for that family tomorrow. Some temples take Buddhism as their only cause every day. No wonder Buddhism is declining, so it is mainly bring disgrace to oneself. If you really repent, even for an hour, it is better than asking many people to do Buddhist work for a few days. Understand this truth, you should be filial to your parents, and you will have the great merit of confessing to your parents. Because of the same blood, close relationship. Don't treat Corporal Lixian as a family occupation, which will only increase secular slander and misunderstanding.
(3) "Reciting in class". People who study Buddhism recite the scriptures in the morning and evening, which is called class recitation in Buddhism. Christians pray in the morning and evening, while Catholics recite scriptures in the morning and evening. There is nothing wrong with this religious ceremony, but for this matter, several people asked me that I can do without learning Buddhism. My mother does her homework in the morning and evening, and it takes an hour or two. Like all Buddhists, there is no way to promote things at home. Among some laymen, it is true. Not suitable for ordinary people to learn. In fact, recitation in the morning and evening is not necessarily about reciting classics, reading Buddhism, or how long it can last. You can decide the time according to your own wishes. Mainly that Buddhism, Pure Land Sect, Tiantai Sect and Tantric Sect handed down from China have their own lessons, which are brief and don't need much time. This is still the Tang and Song Dynasties. Second, since the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, Buddhism has tended to be mixed, so the contents of chanting rituals compiled are diverse and suitable for the study of different sects. In fact, staying at home doesn't have to be like this. In the past, Mahayana pedestrians in India used to practice the five-banner method six times a day. It doesn't matter if the time is shorter, but the frequency may increase. Finally, they want to learn Buddhism, not just chanting, but studying Buddhism at home. They shouldn't affect their homework because of long hours of homework.
(4) "burning paper". In ancient China, there was a custom of burning silks and satins for ancestors to enjoy. Later, in order to save money, it was replaced by paper, and then people made money, made ingots, made banknotes, and even burned houses and cars. These are all customs and habits from ancient times, and not all of them are from Buddhism.
Another advantage of these things is that children show a little filial piety to their parents. It is of great significance to eat by yourself, think about parents and ancestors, dress by yourself, think about ancestors, and not forget the kindness of parents and ancestors. Buddhism was introduced into China, adapted to China, and easily combined with chanting and respecting Buddha. However, under the Confucian ethos of "death is a great event" and "reburial", extravagance and waste are inevitable, and the more you burn, the better. This has aroused criticism from modern people, and Buddhism is also considered to be a waste of superstition. Buddhists understand this meaning, and it is best not to burn paper and tin foil, which is not found in Buddhism.
If we want to commemorate our ancestors, we should burn less symbols and don't take them to temples, lest Buddhism suffer for us.
(5) "Draw lots to ask BuFuFu". In some Buddhist temples, there are some behaviors such as drawing lots, asking for visas and even helping others, which cause social ridicule and are called superstitions. In fact, pure Buddhism does not allow such behavior (whether it works or not is another matter). Those who really study Buddhism only believe in cause and effect. Past lives has bad karma, which can never be avoided. If you practice well, you will get good results. If you do evil, you can't avoid bad results in the future. If you want good results, you must do more valuable things. Buddhists only know how to do good deeds, do everything reasonably, and never use opportunistic and inferior styles. None of these things have anything to do with Buddhism. Buddhist disciples really believe in Buddhism and should definitely avoid these low-level religious behaviors.
Fourth, the misunderstanding caused by the current situation of Buddhism.
Generally speaking, China people know nothing about Buddhism and the international situation of Buddhism, and criticize Buddhism casually according to the present situation of Buddhism in China. Here are two kind that are often heard:
(1) "The country that believes in Buddhism will decline". They think that India died because of its belief in Buddhism, and they demand that China be rich and strong, so they arbitrarily think that it is impossible to believe in Buddhism. In fact, this is completely wrong. Anyone who has studied the history of Buddhism knows that the most powerful era in India is the most prosperous era of Buddhism. At that time, King Ashoka of the Peacock Dynasty unified India and spread Buddhism to the whole world. Later, Brahmanism revived and Buddhism was destroyed, and India became increasingly chaotic. When India perished for Islam and the British Empire, Buddhism had declined or even disappeared. In the history of China, there are also such examples. Now overseas Chinese are called Tangren and China Tangshan, which shows the prosperity of China in the Tang Dynasty. At that time, Buddhism was the most prosperous time. The extinction of Buddhism in Tang Wuzong was the decline of the Tang Dynasty. After the Tang Dynasty, Song Taizu, Emperor Taizong, Zhenzong and Renzong all believed in Buddhism, which was the heyday of the Song Dynasty. Ming Taizu himself was a monk, and Emperor Taizong also believed in Buddhism very much. Isn't it an era of political civilization and strong national strength? Although Japan has failed now, it has squeezed into the ranks of world powers after the Meiji Restoration. Most of them believe in Buddhism. Who said that believing in Buddhism can weaken the country? Therefore, from a historical perspective, the era when the country is strong is the era when Buddhism thrives. Why should modern China be rich and strong and oppose advocating Buddhism?
(2) "Buddhism is not beneficial to society". When people in modern China saw that Catholicism and Christianity run schools and hospitals, but Buddhism rarely did, they thought that Buddhism was negative and not beneficial to society. This is a wrong argument. At best, we can only say that Buddhists in modern China did not work hard and did not fulfill their responsibilities. It is by no means that Buddhism asked us not to do it. In the past, Buddhism in China also had charitable causes. In modern Japan, Buddhists set up many universities and middle schools and produced many monks. Buddhists, especially those in Ceylon, Myanmar and Thailand, can maintain a close relationship with education and run charities. Therefore, it can't be said that Buddhism can't bring tangible benefits to society, but that Buddhists in China have not fulfilled their responsibilities as Buddhist disciples. We should make more efforts in this respect, which will be more in line with the original intention of Buddhism to save the world and let Buddhism develop.
Ordinary people in China still have many misunderstandings about Buddhism, and what they say today is quite common. I hope everyone knows these meanings. Being a pure Buddhist can at least clarify the misunderstanding of Buddhism and carry forward the original intention of pure Buddhism. Otherwise, it seems that the belief in Buddhism is extremely sincere, but in fact it contains all kinds of mistakes and specious beliefs. It is no wonder that society scoffs.