Dr. David DeSteno, a professor of psychology at Northeastern University, recently noted that “science and religion seem to be getting ever more tribal in their mutual recriminations…” He further stated that “while fundamentalist faiths cast science as a misguided or even malicious source of information, polemicizing scientists argue that religion isn’t just wrong or meaningless but also dangerous.”
I would argue that both points of view do have some basis, even within Buddhism, but I also feel that Buddhism and Science share a very important feature–the search for truth and meaning. The DeSento article offers, howbeit from a secular perspective, ways in which religious traditions and practices offer insight into human behavior and values. He sites the role of meditation and ritual, for example, for their positive role in changing negative behavior and achieving certain communal goals. He worries that the the hostility that many scientist have had for religion may be slowing the process of scientific discovery itself. I worry that many feel that our discoveries in science are the antithesis of religious thinking; that we ignore how scientific discovery can strengthen our faith and belief in the teachings of the Buddhas.
I included this interesting article because I believe that the most recent and other discourses by the Buddha Master provide invaluable teachings on this. The Buddha Master tells us that the most vicious demon is not the Demon King Mara, but rather the demon of knowledge and views. In other discourses He warns us about the “Barrier of the Known.” These discourses, including the “128 Evil and Erroneous VIews” from The Supreme and Unsurpassable Mahamudra of Liberation that we have been studying in this blog, help us to determine the truth and learn correct practice. Hopefully Learning From Buddha will soon be available to everyone as will Expounding the Absolute Truth Through the Heart Sutra and many of the most important discourses by H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III. As you learn and practice the correct dharma you will discover what works and what does not. May you soon become liberated.
SOURCES: “Second Bilingual Discourse by H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III Available,” BLOG article on “Many People Have Deceived Themselves, Yet They Do Not Know,” January 27, 2019. You may come to the Holy Vajrasana Temple and hear it at any time, but we have scheduled several classes on the discourse: February 17 at 1:00 pm and March 17 at 7:00 pm.
“What Science Can Learn From Religion” by David DeSteno, February 2, 2019, New York Times Opinion Section.
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