Chapter 17 Cultural Influences and Spiritual Traditions

Jean-François - The Buddhist position on psychoanalysis is thus clear.Now, what are the lessons that Buddhism might draw from the various socio-historical sciences, from the study of social evolution and social structure?Any religion, any philosophy is produced in a specific social background.It tends to regard some beliefs or trusts as eternal truths that are essentially just habits of the society to which it is associated.The greatest geniuses of ancient philosophy considered the phenomenon of slavery to be just and natural, or the prejudice that woman was inferior to man was well founded.

Mathieu—I also think that the rights of animals are even lower, as if their right to survive is not the right of living beings at all! Jean-François – So, does Buddhism also examine and think about this a little bit on its own, in certain geographical areas, in certain social structures, family structures, and other situations, all this will not Will it take something that is merely a local custom as a general principle? Mathieu - If the mechanisms of happiness and unhappiness are local habits, they are local everywhere, that is, universal!Who is not affected by these principles?Who doesn't care what produces ignorance or knowledge?All beings desire happiness and want to be free from suffering.If men judge beneficial and harmful actions not by their outward appearance, but by the will that inspired them, whether altruistic or selfish, and by the happiness or pain they cause, then the ethical Morality should not be greatly influenced by cultural, historical or social background.

Jean-François—but the trouble is that when man is affected by a peculiarity of his own social system, he is not aware of it!The thing about prejudice is that people don't think of it as prejudice.Besides, there are good and bad prejudices.From the philosopher's point of view, it is important not to think of prejudice as something else but as a product of history (produits sons-historiques).When a kind of world wild. When C''s religion or philosophy adopts and develops a particular element of the society in which it was born, it does not at all realize that this is in fact only an accidental particularity belonging to that social background.

Mathieu – In the Buddhist tradition, people have been trying to get rid of this kind of contingency.For example, people scrutinize the motives for benevolent acts.Are acts of generosity out of respect for various social norms, or are they motivated by a spontaneous passion for altruism? They must be done without any expectation of return, without any desire to be praised, thanked, or Even obtaining a kind of "merit" can be perfect.If the gift is to be not only a source of merit but also a source of wisdom, the gift must be unfettered by three notions: attachment to the very existence of the giving subject, attachment to the existence itself of the object receiving the gift, and attachment to the The nostalgia of the very existence of the act of gifting.True giving is done with a pure intention unfettered by any attachment.Therefore, we must not be attached to the external appearance of an action, and we must get rid of the contingency of culture, especially society. To use a Tibetan idiom, it is "gold chains are not less chains than iron chains."In the West, we can also find this statement in Fenelon's writings.

Jean-François - but is it possible?There is no danger of thinking you are free from all chance, and at the same time remain captive to it. Mathieu – It is also necessary to understand the difference between cultural contingency and spiritual tradition.Spiritual traditions are built on deep experience, on the necessity of transmission.Moreover, it has been emphasizing the dangers of being attached to form rather than substance.