Learn Buddhism: Engaged Buddhism

"Engaged Buddhism" is Buddhism lived in the world through compassion in action, wisdom applied to real life, and mindfulness extended beyond the meditation cushion!
In this episode, we explore how Engaged Buddhism developed from the Buddha’s own teachings and practices 2,600 years ago, and then through the reform movement of Venerable Taixu and Humanistic Buddhism, to Thich Nhat Hanh’s modern mindfulness‑in‑action approach and the 14 Mindfulness Trainings of the Order of Interbeing that were created during the Vietnam war.
We also look at Master Hsing Yun’s global humanitarian work with Fo Guang Shan, showing how Engaged Buddhism can be both deeply personal and profoundly communal.
This is a great episode if you have heard of 'Engaged Buddhism' before and are wondering how your Buddhist practice can help respond to suffering, support our communities, and live the Bodhisattva ideal in everyday life.

Transcript

Welcome to another episode of Learn Buddhism. I'm Alan Pito. Today, We're going to explore a topic I think you will find very interesting and something that's relevant to our modern world. And that is engage Buddhism. And you've likely have heard about this terminology before. So if you've ever wondered how we can apply your Buddhist practice to things like social issues or environmental concerns, Suffering in your community, Or even simply the challenges of everyday life. Engaged Buddhism can offer you a clear, Grounded path. Now, We often associate this movement with Buddhist monk Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh, A very famous Buddhist monk, But his roots go a lot deeper than that. We could even trace it all the way back to the Buddha himself, The Bodhisattva ideal, And even in reform movements of modern Chinese Buddhism. So, Engaged Buddhism is not what you might call a departure from Traditional Buddhism, Or Buddhism, Is actually Buddhism expressed in modern life. Now, Let's go explore more about Engage Buddhism. So let's start off this journey going back 2, 600 years ago to the life of the Buddha of our era, Shakyamuni Buddha or Gautama Buddha. When we talk about engaged Buddhism, We have to remember that the Buddha was not a passive teacher or a passive Buddha. He didn't retreat from society or hide from all the suffering that it entails. He actually was very engaged. He walked among kings and talked to them. Farmers, Soldiers, Merchants, And people just in all sorts of different conditions. So he was in the thick of everything and interacting with all levels of society. He even mediated conflicts. He advised those leaders, Those kings, For example. He comforted the sick and taught communities how to live peacefully. So you have someone, A Buddha, Who was very much engaged. And this is a lot of work. Where we get our engaged Buddhism viewpoints from. The Buddha and his teachings were never meant to be, Oh, It's just theoretical. They were always meant to be what we may say as lived. So he's looking at something called compassion and loving kindness, Two words you're probably very familiar with, With Buddhism, Not as just like an abstract idea, But something that is a practice. This is something we are going to take out into the world, From the meditation cushion, But out there in the world to shape how we're going to speak, Act, And respond to everything around us. That's really key because of course, Buddhism is not intellectual. It's not something we're just going to read a book on. It's something that we're going to practice. So when we look at engaged Buddhism, It's not something new. This is just our modern way of expressing something that happened all the way back with the Buddha of our era. This is where we understand that wisdom and compassion must be applied to life and not just kept on, Again, That meditation cushion or just inside the temple. We need to take it out into the world. And to give you a good example of this, We see where the Buddha actually tried to prevent conflicts, As I mentioned before. And there was one where there was going to be a war, A conflict with his clan, Basically where he came from. And ultimately he did succeed the second time around, But he did mediate and stop it the first time. So we see the Buddha was very engaged in what we might call the worldly activities of our world in many, Many different ways. So the Buddha absolutely engaged, But he was engaged as a Buddha. He was an enlightened being. We are unenlightened beings. So as we go through this episode, Take that into consideration as well. You have Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Bodhisattvas who are enlightened they understand the fundamental true nature of our world They understand in a way that we have yet to understand and they are able to act in the when we may say the correct way us as unenlightened beings So we're unenlightened Buddhist practitioners. Maybe we are in a bodhisattva path for example in Mahayana or recite Theravada We need to understand that we are still clouded to the truth. So our viewpoints are actions may not always be correct and we have to take that into consideration. But when we look at things like what the Buddha did with compassion and loving-kindness, That is going to be a ground that we can stand on. So what about what we might call the modern version of engaged Buddhism, Where this whole discussion is coming from? It's important to understand that we can trace this all the way back to the Buddha, But how we are understanding and how you're hearing about this term engaged Buddhism, Where does it come from? Well, We can go back to China because this is where it actually happened. In the early 20th century in China, We saw a country that faced enormous upheaval. There was lots of political instability, Poverty. There was invasion by foreign powers, Cultural transformations. There's lots of different things going on inside very early 20th century China. So what happened then? Well, Buddhism at that time, We often see as maybe ritualistic or maybe not really engaged with society. And that wasn't really something I would say is unique to China. We saw that elsewhere too. Even inside ancient India, Where we might find early Buddhism as well. We saw sometimes where that was just going to be something that monastics did. And that's where you often found, For example, Mahayana Buddhism came into being as a result of that, Where it's saying, Hey, The population, The practitioners, Also the lay purists need to be engaged as well. And so we can see something very similar here, Where you had this disconnect. You had the religion, But then you got everything else. He believed that Buddhism needed to do something different. It needed to step forward and serve society directly. And they practice humanistic Buddhism, Which is going to be engaged Buddhism in this way. And what it is, Is Buddhism for the human world, The human realm. And so this is where you are engaged in everyday life, Buddhist practice. And as we look at this, That was really something different. It wasn't so much, You know, Buddhism, The religion, Buddhism, Theoretical Buddhism, You know, The sutras. This is something where, You know, Humans are suffering. Humans are in this world. We're labor. What does Buddhism have to offer us? A lot. Buddhism is for the human realm and is for everyone. So how does it get engaged that way? So Taishu taught that Buddhism must enter society. Big deal. Because at that time, He might have monastics that were kind of, Well, We're at the temple or monastery, And this is separate, Right? He didn't see it that way. He meant that monks and lay persons should actively release suffering through things such as like maybe education or charity, Social welfare, Or even ethical leadership. And that's important as well, Too. Like how we are, You know, If you're a leader, How do you engage with people around you? Very important. So he believed that Buddhism should basically modernize, If we want to use that terminology. It needs to modernize. You know, We just can't have this ritualistic or, You know, Very, Very focused, Like we just, You know, For holidays or something like that, It needs to be engaged with the world and solve real human problems, Right? So Buddhism is not something theoretical. It's something practice. It's part of our world, The human realm. So this was huge. This is where you start to see many different Buddhist leaders, Including, As I mentioned, Was Fo Guang Shan, Master Hsing Yun. And so this is where you saw that it wasn't just going to be just a temple anymore or a monastery. You saw that there are now engage with us inside the layperson world. And this is what I mean. They or their organization started to create things and run things such as hospitals and schools, Even disaster relief missions, Or maybe even programs for the environment or humanitarian efforts. You just started to see all these different types of things that where we're suffering and we're having issues or need help or guidance. Well, You know what? The organization can help with that as well. It's just not for when you come there for a Buddhist holiday or for chanting, Reciting. You know, It's got to be engaged in different ways as well. This is probably a very clear example of engaged Buddhism in action. It's where we see compassion is expressed through service. It's just not going to be us going, Oh, I wish for all sentient beings to be safe, Happy, Healthy, All that. Right. Got to act. You got to practice. So through service. Service, Maybe, You know, At the hospital or the school or a disaster relief mission, Right? You are doing engaged Buddhism. It's Buddhism for the human realm, The human world. And that was really important because we are in many ways, This light of it, Unenlightened bodhisattvas, Because basically humanistic Buddhism, And for a large part, What we now call engaged Buddhism is mainly practiced on the Mahayana side and the Mahayana branch of Buddhism follows the Bodhisattva path, Which means that all the practitioners in Mahayana are following the Bodhisattva path. And we are unenlightened Bodhisattvas in that regard. We're not enlightened yet, Right? But we can engage as Bodhisattvas in this world, Like engaging in humanitarian efforts or maybe going to be environmental programs or helping in the school or a hospital, Right? All these different types of things. So we can look at Taiju as giving engage Buddhism sort of as intellectual foundation. And then we're going to go into a modern leader, Thich Nhat Hanh, Where he put engage Buddhism into action. And this is a lot of times where you hear about engage Buddhism is from him. So one of the very popular, Very well-known Buddhist monastics in our world today is Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh. Unfortunately, He has passed away a few years ago, But he really reshaped a lot of what people think about Buddhism. Back during the Vietnam War, He is a Vietnamese Buddhist monk. He was witnessing, Of course, Immense suffering. He saw things like villages being destroyed, Families displaced, And just, You know, Young people in general caught between violence and fear. So for him, Buddhism couldn't just be something that happens in a monastery. He thought that mindfulness must be practiced off the cushion in the midst of life's everyday challenges. So he started to encourage monks, Nuns, And even laypersons to do things like rebuilding villages or care for refugees, All the orphans, How about supporting them, Of course, Advocating for peace, Practicing mindful communication, Which is really important, How we talk and express things to each other, And just bring a calm awareness into moments of conflict. So his teachings were, Of course, Deeply traditional, What we might call that, But expressed in a way that spoke to modern life. Hearts. So it's called interbeing. This is his term for it. And that's this idea that all life is interconnected. And he showed how this understanding naturally leads to compassion and nonviolence. So his work helped shape what we now call engaged Buddhism. In 1966, Thich Nhat Hanh founded the Order of Interbeing. This offered something we now look at what's engaged Buddhism called the 14 Mindfulness Trainings as a practical guide for engaged Buddhism. So these trainings are not what we might call commandments. Instead, Kind of look at them as living practices meant to help us bring compassion and clarity into the world. So I'm going to go through the 14 different mindfulness trainings and just be realizing that these are specific to Thich Nhat Hanh and may not be something that all different practitioners of engaged Buddhism may follow, But it's something that's of interest and that a lot of people are aware of. So the first one is openness to views. This is where he's saying, Don't cling tightly to your opinions, Which can be very hard because we're very tightly connected to whatever our opinions are. Instead, He's saying stay open, Listen deeply, And be willing to learn. And I think this is important as a first one, Because if we are so tightly clinging to our opinions, We may be missing out on a truth or a different viewpoint, Which we may actually agree with or find a way to bridge a divide. And so when you're open to views, You can also be very engaged. This is really important. Number two is non-attachment to ideology. Now, Of course, This is another one that maybe you can consider as connected to number one. This is where you want to avoid turning Buddhism or any belief into a dogma, Which as we know as humans is very easy to do. So instead you want to let your compassion guide you and not hold rigid views. You want to be flexible in a way that you are able to be open to views and understanding that, You know what, Maybe what I'm thinking can have some wiggle room, Or there can be a bridge so we can get to compassion and loving kindness. Three, Freedom of thought. This is where you're going to support others in thinking for themselves. So they'll start imposing your views or manipulate their minds or their thinking. 4. Awareness of suffering. This is really important because in Buddhism, We are very aware of dukkha. So you want to make sure you stay present with suffering, Or as we may call it dukkha, In yourself and others. Don't turn away from it. Instead, Be aware of it. And as we understand inside Buddhism, Dukkha is everywhere. And suffering may be our western or modern terminology for dukkha, But dukkha means everything from unsatisfactoriness in our world and things just don't seem right. Right. And when, Again, We look at Dukkha, We got to understand it's because we are caught in the endless cycle of fourth rebirth and having impermanence, We are experiencing Dukkha. And you can look at Dukkha and impermanence and everything else that we teach in Buddhism in whatever situation you may be in or whatever viewpoint or situation that's occurring. Five, Simple, Healthy living. So when you are looking at this particular mindfulness training, How are you living? And you may not even be thinking about this. You wanna make sure that you consume mindfully and not just erratically. So are you just buying things just because you can or you want things because you can? Clinging, Craving, Are you just consuming? So avoid harming yourself or even others through excess or addiction. Six, Anger transformation. Anger, Hatred, One of the three fires or three poisons that lead to that unwholesome karma, Right? You want to make sure that you embrace it with mindfulness. You are aware of that anger and transform it before acting. So if you are angry or have that hatred, Are you able to be aware of that and make sure you don't act upon it? Seven, Mindful speech and listening. Again, If you look at maybe our first or second of the mindfulness trainings, This will become very important. Make sure that you speak truthfully and kindly. Sometimes when we react, We don't speak truthfully or kindly because we want to make sure our view, Our opinion is the one that people are going to accept or that you can transform people to, Right? But that's not the right way to look at it. You want to speak truthfully and kindly and make sure you listen deeply because your goal here as a Buddhist practitioner is to relieve suffering. Eight, Community and reconciliation. So our goal as Buddhist practitioners is to building harmony. We want to work towards that. You want to make sure that you start resolving conflicts with compassion and patience. And I think you see where these are all being built upon each other and they are very important trainings because if you are not trying to resolve a conflict with compassion and patience, What are you doing? You're trying to force something. So instead here, We're using mindfulness to resolve that conflict. Nine, Truthful communication. We want to make sure that we start sharing our information responsibly. So are you spreading falsehoods or using divisive speech? And you might be doing that because again, You want to try to make your viewpoint, Your opinion, The one that everyone agrees with, Even though, You know, Well, It's not right, But it's going to achieve this end goal. That's not the way of an engaged Buddhist. You want to make sure you are truthful in your communication. So no falsehoods, No divisive speech. 10. Protecting life. So as Buddhists, We want to, Of course, Practice nonviolence. You want to ensure that you protect life in all its forms. So when you start splitting hairs, So to speak, Are you really protecting life? 11. Right Livelihood. Of course we know this one inside Buddhism. This is where we want to choose work that does not harm people, Animals, Or even the planet. 12. Respecting Relationships. We want to ensure that we start protecting the integrity of relationships, Which is really key and important here. We want to ensure that we practice responsibility and compassion in sexuality. 13. Generosity. This is where we want to start sharing our time, Energy, And resources. Do we have ways of helping others who are suffering with our time, Energy, And resources? Of course, This can be monetary, But it could also be, As is mentioned here, Your time and energy. Are you able to do that as well? So take a look at your situation and go, Is there a way that I can be generous? And 14. Mindful consumption. Start being aware of what you What are you taking in? And you know, Sometimes we look at this in a very high level, But look at the media, Food, Conversations. What are you taking in? And this is a key part of being mindful or mindfulness inside Buddhism. The Buddha often talked about all around us is on fire. And do you want to consume that? Do you want to take that into you? Right? Because that is what's creating karma. So we want to ensure that we choose what nourishes peace. Right? Can help us with all the other mindfulness trainings. So these trainings show how engaged Buddhism is lived and practiced in our world. Everything from mindfulness, Compassion, Nonviolence, And even ethical action in everyday life are some of these hallmarks of engaged Buddhism as Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh had taught. So while Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh brought engaged Buddhism to global attention through mindfulness, Peace work, And his order of interbeing that he created during the Vietnam War, Another major figure carried out that same spirit into large-scale humanitarian action, And that's Venerable Master Hsing Yun of Fo Guang Shan. So building on Taiju's vision of humanistic Buddhism, We saw that Hsing Yun taught that Buddhism must bring joy to others and relieve their suffering. And he did that in different ways. That included education, Culture, Charity, But of course also spiritual practice. So this is where we saw in Taiwan that Fo Guang Shan established things like universities, Libraries, Art museums, Even disaster relief teams and medical missions and community centers around the world. And this was something that you didn't really see inside Buddhism because it wasn't really seen as something that would be engaged like this. For Venerable Master Hsuan-Yun, Engaged Buddhism meant creating institutions that uplifted society, Promoted peace, And made the Dharma accessible to everyday people like you and me. So let's take this into the world that you can engage in. As I mentioned before, We are what might be called unenlightened bodhisattvas. We are on the bodhisattva path to hopefully becoming an enlightened bodhisattva and a eventually a Buddha. So in this vein, If we look at engaged Buddhism, We can see the Bodhisattva ideal in modern life. And this is something that was of course promoted a lot by different teachers, Including Venerable Master Hsing Yun. So we see that engaged Buddhism is really essential to the Bodhisattva path, But expressed again in modern life. Now a Bodhisattva, You know, If we look at the very traditional vision or explanation of them, Enlightened beings who are not yet Buddhist but destined to be them. They are vowed to help all sentient beings, Not by withdrawing from the world, But by engaging inside it fully. So what about engaged Buddhism? How does the Bodhisattva ideal kind of gel or be connected to engaged Buddhism? This is where we see there is a vow in action. Whether you want to say, Hey, That's caring for the planet or support your community, Relieving suffering, Or even bringing mindfulness into everyday situations, We're going to see that the bodhisattva ideal fits in very nicely with that. So a bodhisattva doesn't wait for these perfect conditions that we may go, Well, I want to have this perfect society where we can practice Buddhism. There's not the suffering. That's not where the bodhisattva lives. The bodhisattva lives and engages and works in, If you will, The muddy, Dirty, Confusing, Suffering world that we are all in. That's where they are. Are needed. So they respond to suffering wherever it appears. And that could be in families, Workplaces, Communities, And even at the global scale. So when you look at engaged Buddhism, That is really the Bodhisattva ideal translated into what we might call the language of modern life. So if you are very attracted to the Bodhisattva ideal and attracted to engaged Buddhism, You're going to So let's return back to Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh. He said that mindfulness is really our foundation. So he said that without mindfulness, Things like activism could become anger. And I think we can all see that throughout history. So without compassion, Action becomes violence. And this is important because when Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh created the 14 Mindfulness Trainings and the Order of Interbeing, It was the middle of the height of the Vietnam War. So there was lots of different types of violence and actions and suffering going around him. So he was really So when he says this, He really understands that, Okay, I need to understand that when we are looking at mindfulness, We can look at it as our foundation for everything else. Because if we don't have that, We can now fuel up one of the three fires of greed, Anger, And ignorance. For him, Engaged Buddhism begins with this sort of inner transformation. We need to start looking at calming the mind, Seeing things clearer, Cultivating loving-kindness meta, Practicing non-reactivity, Which is really important as well. Do you just react to things? And understanding interdependence. Now we understand one of the Buddhist concepts is going to be dependent origination, Right? And so interdependence is part of that. Like everything is not really as disconnected as we think it is. That person you disagree with, They're not really separate from you. Or the situation is not really separate from you as well. It's happening in this other country. Is it really separate? From you. So we have to really understand that we are all interdependent about other things and conditions to exist. So when we start understanding all of these as a foundation, This is where it starts extending outward into compassionate action, Which you may also call engaged Buddhism. So this is why engaged Buddhism is not what we might call activism with meditation added. It's not like an add on to it or supplement. It is really meditation expressed as compassionate action, Which I think is really powerful for us to think about. So how can we practice engaged Buddhism for everyday life? Now, This doesn't require you to join some type of movement or different organization or even travel the world. You can practice it in a simple everyday way. So let me give you a couple of examples here. Are you listening deeply to someone in pain? It could be physical pain, Like medical, Or it could just be that they're having, You know, Emotional issues. There's a hard day at work or school or whatever situation in life. Are we listening deeply or are we already working on how we're going to respond. Listen deeply and listening deeply is something that's very Buddhist and very important. We want to choose non-violence in speech. We want to reduce harm through ethical choices whenever possible. Have you tried volunteering in your community or even maybe caring for the environment if that's something that you really are focused on? We want to ensure that we're practicing compassion in difficult conversations and supporting those who are marginalized or struggling. So engaged Buddhism is not defined by by scale, Like a big organization is defined by intention. In general, Overall, It's teaching that mindfulness, Buddhist mindfulness, Can be calm in these storms of the world, And that can be very reassuring to people. It gives you something that you can have, Better roll, Take it out, Hans said, Have as your foundation. It could be compassion that can heal division if used correctly. It could be wisdom that can guide your action. So when you have your foundation, You can engage mindfully, Correctly as a Buddhist. Nonviolence can also transform conflict. And we saw this with the role of Thich Nhat Hanh and many other different Buddhist practitioners and leaders. Nonviolence is very important for the Buddhist practitioner. Small acts of kindness matter. So we may not think they matter, But they actually do for that person. Suffering is not something we can just turn away from. As we understand inside Buddhism, Dukkha is all around us. And this is something that we strive to end, But that also means we're in the human realm where dukkha is everywhere. Are we, As unenlightened bodhisattvas, Trying to reduce the suffering of others? As Buddhist practitioners, And even those on the bodhisattva path, That's something that can be very important to us. It can help us really encourage that bodhicitta inside us, Something that bodhisattvas want to generate and really feed if you want to. Striving to reduce dukkha, The suffering for others, We are also helping ourselves the Dharma, But practice the Dharma and have the conditions that want you to practice the Dharma. This is the life. As challenging, As difficult as it is, This is meant to be lived. He didn't create his teachings, The Dharma, As we call it, The Buddha Dharma, Just to be read or just to be theorized or be a philosophy. It's meant to be lived. It's meant to be practiced. So engaged Buddhism reminds us that the Buddhist teachings are alive. These aren't just, Again, To be inside monasteries or maybe a meditation hall but instead to be brought out into the world where it's needed the most. So as we end this episode, Look at engaged Buddhism as compassion in action. And that's a good way to think about it. Compassion is one of the hallmarks of Buddhism. If you don't have that, That's going to be very hard to practice Buddhism. It's something that we work towards as Buddhist practitioners is developing our compassion. We may not always be at the place right now where we are filled with compassion for others. Maybe we are, Maybe we are not, But it's something that we're working towards. And as we are using compassion, In action, We are practicing engaged Buddhism. And you can do that at whatever stage you're at. Look at it also as wisdom applied to life. So we understand that wisdom is one of the hallmarks, One of the categories of the Buddhist Noble Eightfold Path. So you can have all this wisdom inside Buddhism, But are you applying it to everyday life? It's also mindfulness extended beyond the meditation cushion out into the world. So if we are just meditating, And you're like, Why is when it achieve higher levels of attainment? For what? If we look at the Buddha and it's enlightened followers, They were out in the world. They didn't just not meditate. They were engaged. As I mentioned at the beginning of this episode, The Buddha was very much engaged with all levels of society because he realized Dukkha is everywhere. And the Dharma is the antidote to it. So as you finish listening to this episode and you're about to go out into everyday life, Look at what's around you. You, What can you as a bodhisattva who is practicing engaged Buddhism, How can you help our world? How can you help the lives of others? That could be something as simple as helping a neighbor carrying in their groceries or maybe caring for the environment, Practicing mindful speech, Which is very important, Or just simply choosing something like kindness in a very difficult moment, Which as we know, Can be very challenging in that heat of the moment. But if you can practice kindness, That can be engaged Buddhism. So engaged Buddhism is not something that's modern, Although there is a modern view and modern practices for it. But this traces all the way back to the time of the Buddha. He gave us that foundation that we are using for what we now call engaged Buddhism. So thank you for listening. If you have any questions or you want to share how you practice engaged Buddhism, Please let me know in the comments and I'll talk with you in our next episode.