Dialogues on Bodhgaya: some reflections

SANJAYKUMAR

THE identity of Bodhgaya is multi-dimensional. In dominant mainstream discourse, itis known as a sacred place of Buddhism locally as well as globally. But in the last 200 hundred years, Bodhgaya has undergone a radical change in the knowledge domain which is built around its art, heritage, culture and archaeology as its central thematic features. Among all these, the most appealing aspect of Bodhgaya’s identity is in its being the centre for enlightenment. This has been a source of inspiration for centuries in shaping Indian civilization and thought.

This core realization about Bodhgaya became the inspiration behind shaping the Bodhgaya Global Dialogues since 2017. Heritage, Sustainable Development and Enlightenment emerged to be the central themes of the dialogues in the background of these realizations and inspirations from Bodhgaya being the locus of enlightenment. The themes of the Bodhgaya Global Dialogues emerged out of a consultative process in which leading government institutions, international agencies and Buddhist institutions based in Bodhgaya were key participants and subsequently most of them became partners in the dialogues.¹

The objectives around these themes which were formulated at the conceptual stage included: (i) To create dialogue, knowledge building and sustainable network with international organizations, non-government organizations, politicians, policy makers, practitioners, ordinary citizens, tourists and pilgrims for safeguarding the heritage and securing sustainable development of the Bodhgaya region; (ii) To engage the key stakeholders in schools and universities for preservation of tangible and intangible heritage of the region for ensuring sustainable development; (iii) To promote heritage tourism through engaging the local communities with tourists and pilgrims in the Bodhgaya region for securing sustainable livelihoods; and (iv) To strengthen relationships and build sustainable networks between Bodhgaya and South East Asian nations recalling the historical and contemporary relationships for safeguarding heritage and securing sustainable development in the region.

In the context of these objectives, the key question was as to how the broad framework of the dialogue connects the philosophical underpinnings in the continuing quest for enlightenment? How will the dialogue process unfold such moral linkages for the well-being of humanity?

It is noteworthy that the conceptual framework of the central theme and its objectives were drawn from the philosophical traditions of Buddhism and Buddhist Economics. Gethin best articulates the essence of the foundations of Buddhism. To quote:

‘What did the Buddha teach? The early sutras present the Buddha’s teaching as a solution to the problem. This problem is the fundamental problem of life. In Sanskrit and Pali the problem is term duhkha/dukkha, which can be approximately translated as “suffering”. In a Nikaya passage the Buddha states that he has always made known two things suffering and cessation of suffering. This statement can be regarded as expressing the basic orientation of Buddhism for all times and all places. Its classic formulation is by way of “four noble truths”: the truth about the nature of suffering, the truth of the nature of its cause, the truth of the nature of its cessation, and the truth of the nature of the path leading to its cessation.’2

In addition, it is also worth drawing attention to the emerging discipline of Buddhist Economics that sharpened the framework of the dialogues specially one of the key themes of sustainable development. There are multiple narratives on the emerging discipline of Buddhist Economics, but one of the best descriptions of its salient features is by Zsolnai. In his paper, he presents Buddhist Economics as a major alternative to the currently dominant western economic mindset. Buddhist Economics developed by E.F. Schumacher, Venerable P.A. Payutto, Richard Welford and others, challenges the basic principles of modern western economics: (i) profit-maximization; (ii) cultivating desires; (iii) introducing markets; (iv) instrumental use of the world; and (v) self-interest-based ethics. Buddhist economics proposes alternative principles such as minimizing suffering, simplifying desires, non-violence, genuine care, and generosity. It is suggested that Buddhist economics is not a system but rather a strategy, which can be applied in many economic settings.3

Buddhist Economics, which has emerged as an alternative to mainstream economics, is not limited to the purview of academic discourse. The Gross National Happiness (GNH) Index proposed by The Centre for Bhutan and GNH Studies as a response to the Human Development Report is conceptualized around the salient features of Buddhist Economics in the public and policy domains and this to an extent has influenced the development discourse globally.4

Noting the key lessons from the developments around the philosophical traditions of Buddhism, the emergence of Buddhist Economics as a new discipline and the emerging perspective of the Bodhgaya Global Dialogues, leading institutions initiated a process of engagement with the Buddhist institutions, monasteries and Bodhgaya Temple Management Committee.5 In the process, multiple voices emerged and these institutions shared their views and concerns on the themes and objectives of the dialogues. The biggest challenge for the key stakeholders of the dialogues was the ways and means for engaging them on the central themes of heritage and sustainable development. It was realized through long conversations during the interface meetings with them that common ground for engagement might remain elusive.

Perhaps there were many reasons, but one that became apparent was the absence of familiarity with the terminology and language of modern development in their cognitive thinking. For them, Dharma is primarily a religious practice that is expressed in day-to-day living and rituals performed in their religious institutions. These ritual practices are based on the scriptures in the form of chanting of mantras at the appointed hours in their monasteries as well as temples.

On the one hand, it is interesting to note that despite limitations and constraints in creating a dialogue, it appeared that among the possibilities that emerge from the practices and day-to-day life of these institutions, spirituality and meditation give meaning to the cause of collective human well-being and happiness. Not only that, the possibility of spirituality and meditation which are integral to their practices in day to day lives provide a critique to the crisis of mainstream development in a silent but meaningful, mindful and soulful way.

On the other hand, there is a possibility of engagement on mitigation of human suffering and securing well-being – the core values of the philosophical traditions of Buddhism and Buddhist Economics. In addition, they can be reminded that these core ideals can be realized through dialogue, which may generate ways and means for attaining the same. A movement forward is this direction calls for bringing in the concerns and issues of the people, especially the marginalized and oppressed at the centre of the thinking and change.

If this could be possible, this perspective will certainly connect to the realization of the four noble truths of disease, the cause, the cure, and the medicine at the ground level through its practice that emanates from Buddhist philosophical traditions and Buddhist Economics. This will serve as an exemplar in a true sense for the realization of enlightenment in Bodhgaya6 particularly and the world at large.

1. A consultative process was held on 17 September 2017 with the joint collaboration of Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts and Deshkal Society for presentation and consultation on the conceptual and institutional framework of the Bodhgaya Global Dialogues. A number of embassies specially from the countries believing in Buddhism such as Mongolia, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Thailand among others. In addition, representatives of international agencies like UNICEF, UNESCO, World Bank and ONGC from the public sector participated in the consultation. Similarly, representatives from Bodhgaya Temple Management Committee, Bihar Bhikkhu Sangha, and the All India Bhikkhu Sangha based in Bodhgaya were an integral part of this meeting.

2. Rupert Gethin, The Foundation of Buddhism. Oxford University Press, New York, 1998, p. 61.

3. Laszlo Zsolnai, ‘Why Buddhist Economics?’Society and Economy29(2), 2007. Sustainability and Sufficiency: Economic Development in a Buddhist Perspective. Akademiai,August 2007, p.140. www.jstor.org/stable/41472077[1]4. The GNH index is a holistic approach to measure the happiness and well-being of the Bhutanese population. It is a measurement tool used for policy making to increase GNH. The GNH Index is also known as the GNH Happiness Survey. It includes the nine domains, which are further supported by 33 indicators. The Index makes the analysis of the nation’s well-being with each person’s achievements in each indicator. In addition to analysing the happiness and well-being of the people, it also guides how policies may be designed to further create enabling conditions for the weaker scoring results of the survey. For details see: https://www.gnhcentrebhutan.org/what-is-gnh/gnh-happiness-index/

5. Among Bodhgaya based institutions, the most visible are the monasteries representing around 80 countries. Monasteries that were established in pre-independence India are from Thailand, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka. In post-independence India, the number of monasteries increased significantly – from countries such as Japan, South Korea, Bhutan, Tibet, Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos.

6. Bodhgaya’s pre-eminent position as the paradigmatic centre of the Buddhist world has been reaffirmed through its designation as a UNESCO world heritage site and its continued importance as a major religious and tourist attraction in history and contemporary India. The spiritual resonance of the place as the site of Enlightenment for Sakyamuni Lord Goutama Buddha, makes the Mahabodhi temple the most important pilgrimage place for Buddhists from all over the world. As the sacred power centre of the Buddhist world, it is regarded as the ‘navel of the earth’ in Buddhist cosmology.