Meditation as the Common Denominator of Different Religions

Wherever I go, I always find an interest in meditation.

Meditation is all about finding your original mind, the source of peace. Meditation was one of the inspirations for founding the MWR, one of the purposes of which is to use “life education” to promote world peace. While we are here together we need to probe into the causes of conflict, and come up with practical mechanisms for reconciliation and sowing the seeds of peace. This is a type of peace education which arises out of the interreligious dialogue at the MWR.
 

When I observe the way the world is developing these days, it strikes me as fragmentary and unsustainable. Various factions holding different points of view continually vie with one another, and as soon as one gains the upper hand it tries to annihilate all the others. This is how it works in politics as well as business. Then there is the blind belief in technology and economic growth which is having a devastating effect on the planet’s ecosystem. Indeed, today there is a general lack of wholesome ideals, and this why we find ourselves in our current predicament. From the science of ecology we know that the destruction of one part of an ecosystem can readily lead to the collapse of the entire ecosystem. Human society is also like this, as can be seen in the negative impact the media has on how people think. This is one of the downsides of modern civilization.
 

Returning to spirituality, simplicity, and joy
 

These days it seems that science and democracy are becoming the leading forces in diverse societies the world over. The word “freedom” is on the tips of everyone’s tongue, but the current infatuation with science and democracy doesn’t seem to leave much freedom to choose alternative values. Perhaps the time has come to reconsider what is meant by “development,” for doing so will reveal the deficiencies of the currently favored paradigms of development. In short, we need to explore alternative approaches to the attainment of our common aspirations of peace and happiness. This process starts with education. But if we are deficient in the area of values, then the way we educate the next generation will also be deficient. And without a change in values, the present destruction of the natural environment is sure to carry on unabated.
 

If we begin to think and act in ways that increase respect for nature and promote world peace, then there will be a decrease in the frequency of natural and man-made disasters. But if we continue to act in ways which harm the natural environment, then before long it will be completely devastated. From all this we can see that the mind is the key, for everything arises in the mind. Love, heaven, hell, war, peace, crisis, and solutions—they all arise in the mind. Moreover, it’s in the mind that we have to consider such central questions as What is life for?; Why was I born?; What sort of thoughts do I want to think?; and Is there any place not encompassed by the “universal gate” of Guanyin?
 

Good and evil both originate in the mind
 

Now is the time to act. We need to stop wasting time and begin moving in the right direction, guided by optimism, love, and positive and constructive values. Every moment is a golden opportunity to actively tread the bodhisattva path.
 

We also need to remain mindful of impermanence and the fact that one’s life can come to an end at any moment. Actually, life itself doesn’t end; it just takes on another form, appearing and disappearing in accordance with innumerable interdependent causes and conditions. The force of karma and the force of a vow are like two sides of the same coin. A thought of enlightenment sets in motion a web of related causes and conditions; a thought arising from ignorance sets in motion more confusion and chaos. But whatever the quality of a thought may be, there is no escaping from the results it gives rise to. What we can do, however, is to choose the sort of thoughts we want to think. So let our thoughts be positive, constructive, optimistic, and kind. When the mind is imbued with such thoughts, then we are continually sowing the seeds of wisdom which will ultimately ripen into the fruit of buddhahood.