How might a nation act in order to see to its welfare? The section on Conditions of a Nation's Welfare in DN 16: The Maha-parinibbana Sutta seems relevant. (As usual, even though I don't usually state it explicitly, I am extremely grateful to John Bullet and Access to Insight for making this available online.)
At that time the Venerable Ananda was standing behind the Blessed One, fanning him, and the Blessed One addressed the Venerable Ananda thus: "What have you heard, Ananda: do the Vajjis have frequent gatherings, and are their meetings well attended?"
"I have heard, Lord, that this is so."
"So long, Ananda, as this is the case, the growth of the Vajjis is to be expected, not their decline.
"What have you heard, Ananda: do the Vajjis assemble and disperse peacefully and attend to their affairs in concord?"
"I have heard, Lord, that they do."
"So long, Ananda, as this is the case, the growth of the Vajjis is to be expected, not their decline.
"What have you heard, Ananda: do the Vajjis neither enact new decrees nor abolish existing ones, but proceed in accordance with their ancient constitutions?"
"I have heard, Lord, that they do."
"So long, Ananda, as this is the case, the growth of the Vajjis is to be expected, not their decline.
"What have you heard, Ananda: do the Vajjis show respect, honor, esteem, and veneration towards their elders and think it worthwhile to listen to them?"
"I have heard, Lord, that they do."
"So long, Ananda, as this is the case, the growth of the Vajjis is to be expected, not their decline.
"What have you heard, Ananda: do the Vajjis refrain from abducting women and maidens of good families and from detaining them?"
"I have heard, Lord, that they refrain from doing so."
"So long, Ananda, as this is the case, the growth of the Vajjis is to be expected, not their decline.
"What have you heard, Ananda: do the Vajjis show respect, honor, esteem, and veneration towards their shrines, both those within the city and those outside it, and do not deprive them of the due offerings as given and made to them formerly?"
"I have heard, Lord, that they do venerate their shrines, and that they do not deprive them of their offerings."
"So long, Ananda, as this is the case, the growth of the Vajjis is to be expected, not their decline.
"What have you heard, Ananda: do the Vajjis duly protect and guard the arahats, so that those who have not come to the realm yet might do so, and those who have already come might live there in peace?"
"I have heard, Lord, that they do."
"So long, Ananda, as this is the case, the growth of the Vajjis is to be expected, not their decline."
5. And the Blessed One addressed the brahman Vassakara in these words: "Once, brahman, I dwelt at Vesali, at the Sarandada shrine, and there it was that I taught the Vajjis these seven conditions leading to (a nation's) welfare. So long, brahman, as these endure among the Vajjis, and the Vajjis are known for it, their growth is to be expected, not their decline."
It is very important for westerners, who are extremely accustomed to "shoulds" in their religions, to note that the Buddha here is not saying that the Vajjis should do anything in particular, but that as long as these conditions hold true "the growth of the Vajjis is to be expected, not their decline."
It's also important to note that there is significant missing information here. For example, "do the Vajjis neither enact new decrees nor abolish existing ones, but proceed in accordance with their ancient constitutions?" To this the Buddha says that, if they refrain from enacting or abolishing new decrees, it will lead to their growth and not their decline. Since we can't tell from that what their "ancient constitutions" were (from this anyway), we can't say exactly why they would lead to growth, only that the Buddha seemed to feel that their ancient constitutions were appropriate at the time.
Speaking of prescription, not everyone thinks that growth is good. Some people seem to think that the growth of a society is actually bad, and the Buddha doesn't actually say here whether the Vajjis should grow or decline, only what sorts of things will lead to their growth.
What's also interesting here is the context of the sutta. The discourse quoted above was stated directly after the brahman Vassakara paid a visit to the Buddha and stated:
"Venerable Gotama, Ajatasattu, the king of Magadha, pays homage at the feet of the Venerable Gotama and wishes him good health, strength, ease, vigour, and comfort. He desires to wage war against the Vajjis, and he has spoken in this fashion: 'These Vajjis, powerful and glorious as they are, I shall annihilate them, I shall make them perish, I shall utterly destroy them.'"
After hearing what the Buddha had to say, the brahman said:
Thereupon the brahman Vassakara spoke thus to the Blessed One: "If the Vajjis, Venerable Gotama, were endowed with only one or another of these conditions leading to welfare, their growth would have to be expected, not their decline. What then of all the seven? No harm, indeed, can be done to the Vajjis in battle by Magadha's king, Ajatasattu, except through treachery or discord. Well, then, Venerable Gotama, we will take our leave, for we have much to perform, much work to do."
To this the Buddha stated flatly:
"Do as now seems fit to you, brahman." And the brahman Vassakara, the chief minister of Magadha, approving of the Blessed One's words and delighted by them, rose from his seat and departed.
I think there's actually quite a bit of commentary on this which I don't have access to. Steven Collins had some stuff to say about it but I've already returned his book to the library. If nothing else, it seems apparent that the Buddha is still not prescribing any shoulds for brahman Vassakara, or anyone else.
2 comments:
Robert-
The fact that the Buddha refrained from shoulds seems to point to the idea that we are all the owners of our actions, and that some actions lead to good and beneficial results while some don't.
You are right in that we do not know what the "constitutions" in question really are. As for our own constitution, I tend to like to have people who try to uphold it as much as possible rather then liberalize or interpret it to fit current opinions. Perhaps I'm just a conservative at heart in regards to this.
As for "growth", I personally think it needs to be balanced. Here in Florida there seems to be no limit to "growth" as if growth was the answer to everything. The way I see it we have about 1000 people moving here everyday and politicians that seem to think that more shopping centers, neighborhoods and endless economic growth are the answers to our problems. There seems to be no balance, as money and growth seem to be pursued simply for their own sake. Can't there be skillful growth without endless mismanagement and devastation? Actually I don't have an answer for that one.
South Florida is a total mess, and by looking at it one sees that it is possible for a community to literally bulldoze over and build up almost every square inch of land and manage it haphazdardly with no regard to the future in terms of traffic, water, etc.
I've lived here in Gainesville for only about 5 years and the traffic and out of control growth around here has changed things in unbelievable ways even in the short time I've been here.
I don't really have any answers other then the fact that the older I get and the more I look at things, the more disenchanted with society, politics, etc I get. I don't see these things as really having easy answers and to be honest with you I don't see much hope for the human race as a whole. I think it really comes down to us as individuals to act as skilfully as possible. After all, society is just made up of individuals all looking for happiness, even though many look in ways that bring harm to themselves and others.
Perhaps the Buddha not talking about "shoulds" is a good thing, as he is challenging us to look at our actions and the results of those actions and giving us the opportunity to find a freedom that doesn't age, grow old or die. Anymore I don't believe a lawmaker or a politician can bestow that freedom on a society, the individual must find it inside first and then enact policies that reflect that freedom.
As you can see, this piece of yours has provided much food for thought for me. I really enjoy political buddhism and the interesting things you pull up. Be well in your practice.
I'm actually not sure if "growth" there has to be taken as material or economic growth or not. I wonder which Pali word is used there? Perhaps I'll try to look it up. It could indicate growth in strength of society but not necessarily population or wealth. I should probably try to learn at least some Pali but I seem to lack a talent for languages.
As for overdevelopment, I don't know what you can really do about it either except try to address craving. Obviously most people aren't going to listen, and when you try to take stuff away from them when they're craving is still there they're just going to get angry especially if they think it's a small minority of people who want to do the taking. So it seems kind of hopeless. Good government should be able to organize it a little bit at least, but some places still have a very rural hands-off zoning attitude.
One big growth-related problem, especially in China and India, is population. Wealthier and more educated societies tend to have people who have fewer kids, helping to curb population growth. So some degree of economic well-being can probably actually curb population growth and associated destruction, maybe because people tend to have more things to do or learn rather than just have lots of kids out of boredom. So I think the relationships are complex and there are probably no easy answers.
Glad you like my posts and I wish you well also.
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