An Alliance of Civilizations: A Perfect match between the West and the East Part I

Satiman

Introduction

The modern civilization of today is the melting pot or alliance of two major domains of human civilizations – the eastern civilization and the western civilization. Both civilizations are syncretized to generate our current modernity, productivity, prosperity, and affluence collectively called the lifestyle of the modern civilization as a whole. In close scrutiny, this modern civilization is constituted from two major dimensions of human empirical experiences – religiosity or spirituality and secularity or materialism. The former is predominantly contributed by the east and the latter by the west. Both dimensions construct the infrastructure of the entire world of human beings since time immemorial. The diverge natures of the modern minds construct the multi-coloured infrastructure of the world which mirrors the diverge natures of the mind. Esoteric religions recognizes that the mind creates the world. Therefore, the infrastructure of a particular country reflects the qualities of minds of the lineage of leaders empowered to develop a particular country. Philosophy and religion influence the nature of one’s mind especially the mind-set of a policy maker, political leader or head of government. This is what Gotama Buddha promulgates: The Mind is the forerunner of everything (mano seṭṭhā manomayā <Dhammpada.1>).

Harmony

Antagonism between the secular world and spiritual world is the product of ignorance and perversion. There is, in actuality, compatibility and synergy between them. Hua –yen Buddhism describes the harmony between them as the harmonious interpenetration between phenomena and principle. The harmonious relationship is evident if the perfection of religious Wisdom is self-actualized. When the phenomena and principle are mutually unobstructed, phenomena and phenomena are also unobstructed. This is real emancipation in mundane living. This is the actual application of Chan or Zen Wisdom in daily life.

Human Rights

In fact, there is compatibility between human rights and any religion. The secular world demands the mutual respect for the fundamental human rights for an individual to be free to pursue his or her personal happiness. Religious precepts or commandments help the adherents respect the fundamental human rights of others. Most importantly, religion regulates that pursuit of individual human rights is fulfilled righteously and harmoniously. Protection of human rights is in tendum with religion. This is essentially the reason why Hua-yen Buddhism asserts that the harmony between phenomena and principle produces lasting happiness. Protection of human rights is consistent with religious beliefs. There is a close correlation between precepts or commandments and standards of human rights. The human rights are declared by the United Nations in 1948. They are meant for all of us to guide our behaviours and to check against excessive power of the state. Religion and human rights are therefore parallel.

The religiosity or spirituality refers to the one and only eternal Truth commonly designated as God, Brahman or Buddha. The secularity or materialism refers to  the diversified multiplicity of the empirical world - the material wealth of the terrestrial life and man-made laws related to it. The latter is only the shadow of the former. Both are dependently co-arisen and are inseparable. Materialism and secular laws cannot be denied as it has pragmatic or practical value to facilitate transactions of daily and business life.

Secularity and Spirituality

Religious or philosophical Wisdom is the guidepost for us to deal wisely with the material life so that we are not deluded by illusion or confusion. Religious Wisdom is the intuitive discernment of the relationship between spirituality (Creator/ Principle) and materialism (creations; al-khalq/phenomena; dharma). The former is hidden and unmanifest; the latter is manifest.The manifest conceals the unmanifest. Esoteric religions guides us to perceive the distinction between the manifest Appearance and the unmanfest Reality. Knowledge of their distinction helps us recognize our Original or True Self. The Original or True Self is being clothed by our false self of egoism.

The True Self and false self can be illustrated by the metaphor of a coconut. The outer layer of the coconut is its husk which encloses the inner layer of white kernel. The coconut must be broken open in order to reveal its kernel. Likewise, the envelope of ignorance must be broken in order to manifest the pure, infinite consciousness of our mind. This uncorrupted consciousness is the micro-reality of God, Brahman or Buddha.

Values and Religion

Even the secular or ordinary worldlings could comprehend that without the support of morality or ethical system, no one can truly succeed in the secular world of materialism. Ethical system is the intrinsic and fundamental function of religion. Briefly put, no one can succeed in any secular endeavour or enterprise without sufficient diligence, endurance or tolerance and determination. These universal moral values are religious. Unfortunately, in the modern world today, leading political leaders or statemen, endowed with religious or philosophical Wisdom (Prajñā) or Tao (Path of eternal Truth), are rare or non-evident indeed.

Unity

 In the mundane world, when all the contigent conditions are consummated into a unity or wholeness called system, success or attainment in any endeavour or enterprise is assured. If one is endowed with the supramndane wisdom of discerning the relationship between multiplicity and Unity, mundane success or attainment is more assured and uncorrupted. Every being is just one drop of the borderless Ocean. If one discerns oneself as a drop of water temporarily separated from the borderless Ocean and knows the path of return to unite with it, one discerns insightfully the eternal Truth. The eternal Truth is expounded commonly by all esoteric religions. The major esoteric religions are Zoroastrianism, Vedānta or Hinduism, Taoism, Confucianism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam or Sufism. Only the external or exoteric dimensions of diverge religions are dissimilar. The internal or esoteric dimensions of all religions are identical – Knowing the true nature of oneself.

Human Consciousness

The innate consciousness of Man is pure and infinite. Pure and infinite mind is selfless or non-egoistic. Only such pure and infinite mind can perceive God, Brahman, Buddha or Truth. This hesychasm or silence of the mind (Nirvāṇa) is the pure and infinite consciousness. Only through human consciousness, one knows one’s True Self – one’s original face. It is the state in which God, Brahman or Buddha indwells in one’s heart. With this holy heart, the mundane life, supported by supramundane wisdom, is consummated !  This is what I mean by compatibility or harmony between secularity and spirituality. All actions performed are non-grasping or selfless. Pure actions are all actions of non-action in Taoism.

Different names Only

 Dissimilar exoteric dimensions are diverge expedient means or pedagogical strategies employed to intuitively apprehend the one and eternal Truth of Unity or Non-duality as the highest fruit of practices.

This eternal Truth (Sans.: Satya; Arab: al-Ḥaqq) of Unity is designated as the Ātman-Brahman equation in Upaniṣads or Hinduism. It is designated as Tao in Taoism.  It is expounded as Insubstantiality (Anattā) in Theravāda Buddhism. It is preached as Emptiness (Śūnyatā) in Mahāyāna Buddhism. It is propagated as Baqā in Islam. It is taught as ‘Holy Spirit’ (Union with God or Christ) in Christianity. When the whole world perceives this universality of religions, the alliance of civilizations will be a permanent phenomena of unity, harmony, peace and bliss. Any notion of discrimination or dichotomy separates one from one’s religious Lord.

(To be Continued)