Lord Buddha's Timeless Teachings

The 3rd International Tripitaka Recitation has started in Lumbini, the birthplace of Lord Buddha. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Home Affairs inaugurated the three-day event amid a special function held at the Mayadevi Temple complex on Sunday and underscored the relevance of Buddha's teachings in present-day world. Surely, in an era marked by growing intolerance and hostilities among nations and people, the timeless teachings about getting out of path of suffering, cultivating compassion for all sentient beings, among many nuggets of wisdom, offer guidance and direction to strive for lasting peace and happiness. 

So how is the teachings more relevant than ever? Answering this entails delving into the nature of human mind. The Buddha basically taught people to unshackle themselves from the suffering-creating mind. And ignorant mind invariably creates suffering not only for himself but also to others it is related to in one way or other. No matter how fleeting joy we  feel at times, subsequent psychological suffering dwarfs that as if the latter is stalking us no matter where we go or what we do. And our effort to get rid of it leads to even more suffering. To break and get out of this cycle, Buddha urges us to see the impermanence of worldly things and turn the gaze deep inside us, the fountain of our cravings, to find the abiding peace and happiness. Our seeking of lasting contentment outside of ourselves inevitably leads to its opposite. So to make peace outside there must be first abiding peace inside. 

To develop insight into this reality, Buddha taught people how to meditate. Today modern science has proven the benefits of meditation in attaining inner balance, which is crucial to navigate the growing complexities of modern life. Mindfulness meditation is widely used by therapists to treat patients of depression and other mental illnesses. This may explain why today people from every walk of life seem to be rolling out their meditation mats – from prisoners to celebrities. That it is perfectly compatible with modern science has increased its allure. What's more, inner journey offers the path to compassion. How? The more we understand ourselves the more we understand others. A compassionate mind never seek to pick up a fight or harm others. But rather, it aims to end all enmities and antipathy consuming the minds and hearts of people. In other words, it craves to make the world a better place to live.  

Once we clearly see that deep beneath the veneer of differences people exhibit, everyone is strikingly similar in their pursuit of happiness and avoidance of pain. Dawning of this insight in the psyche means developing tolerance of the differences. And this human quality serves to end hostilities. It's no wonder then that today many universities in the West and beyond have prominently featured the teachings in their psychological and philosophical courses. It's also understandable when the minister remarked that the teachings are invaluable in establishing good governance by reducing crimes. There's no doubt that the teachings resonate as guiding principles for modern life. It's a matter of pride that Buddha was born in Nepal. So, living his teachings to propagate the message of peace, co-existence and love should define our existence.