Modern Life and Rudimentary Buddhist Concepts

Arts and Humanities, Social Science

Buddhism has been a substantial part of Indian culture for thousands of years. The teachings of Buddhism moved the hearts of masses of people from princes to paupers. Many works of literature (both written and oral) as well as scriptures, paintings and architecture spanning various eras in history depict how people with hearts of stone were changed by the glorious words of Buddha. The core lesson of the “Middle Way” is aimed to elevate the states of people’s lives that are ordinarily swamped by grievances and greed over worldly affairs. Even at the present time, both mental and physical violence and pollution have encroached over our lives on all fronts. This after results in an arrogant inflation of Anthropomorphism which makes human beings broadly disregard the right to peaceful co-existence of other life forms. The overwhelming anthropomorphism drives human beings to ruthless and insensitively use the other life forms for their own benefit, or rather, ‘profit’. The ‘Middle path’ of Buddhism preaches to people to be self-aware of their own humble and transient existence in a vast universe. Being respectful towards the existence of nature is an intrinsic part of practicing the ‘Middle path'. As the present-day world continues to struggle against a global pandemic which has no end in sight yet, the lives of people have drastically changed. Both mental and physical wellbeing are put in jeopardy at this time. As the ‘Middle path’ seeks to bring out the ‘wellness’ life, this paper discusses how the rudimentary concepts of Buddhist teachings are still relevant in uplifting the modern life of the twenty first century.

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