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Buddhist Beliefs about Rights, Equality and Social Justice » Buddhism in a Multi-Faith Society

What you'll learn this session

Study time: 30 minutes

Edexcel spec: Paper 1, 4.4 (Buddhism)

Buddhist teachings that help a multi-faith society to grow
The raft simile and why Buddhists have no duty to convert others
Buddhist views on exclusivism, inclusivism, pluralism and proselytisation
Examples of Buddhists in interfaith relationships in practice

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Buddhism and other religions

An earlier lesson, The Multi-Faith Society and Interfaith Relationships, explained what a multi-faith society is and the four attitudes of exclusivism, inclusivism, pluralism and proselytisation. Here we look at what Buddhists teach and do.

Buddhism began in India, where many religious teachers and paths already existed. Buddhists today live alongside people of other faiths and none, and most Buddhist teachings point towards respect, kindness and calm discussion. These teachings help a multi-faith society to work.

Key terms:

Dhamma (recap from Buddhism: Impermanence, Compassion and Caring for the World): the Buddha's teaching, and the truth about how things are.
Nibbana (recap from Buddhism: Impermanence, Compassion and Caring for the World): the end of suffering, reached when greed, hatred and ignorance are gone.
Sangha (recap from Ultimate Reality in Buddhism: Do Gods Matter?): the Buddhist community.

Teachings that promote a multi-faith society

🛣 The raft

The Buddha compared the Dhamma to a raft. A traveller uses a raft to cross a river, then leaves it behind. The teaching is a tool for ending suffering, not something to cling to or to fight over. So Buddhists have less reason to argue that their path is the only one that matters.

💖 Metta and compassion

Buddhists practise loving-kindness (metta) to all beings, whatever they believe. Hatred of another group is one of the three poisons (see The Three Poisons: Greed, Hatred and Ignorance in Buddhism), so insulting other religions goes against the path.

Respect for other paths: because Buddhists look at a person's actions and their effects, many judge other people by whether they are kind and honest, not by their label.
Sharing by example: Buddhists are not told to win converts. The Buddha taught people to test his teaching for themselves, and Buddhists often say the best way to share the Dhamma is to live peacefully and kindly. They explain it to others if they are asked.
Right Speech: the Eightfold Path rules out lies and harsh words, which includes insulting or mocking other religions.

Many Buddhists point to King Ashoka, an Indian ruler of the third century BCE who became a Buddhist. In his rock edicts he asked his people to respect other religious groups and not to praise their own while putting others down.

Different Buddhist attitudes

Buddhists do not all think the same about other religions, and the reasons for each view are different.

View	What some Buddhists say	Reason
Exclusivism	Only the Buddha's path leads fully to nibbana.	Only the Buddha taught the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path in full.
Inclusivism	Other religions may have some truth, but Buddhism is the fullest path.	Kind and wise teaching in another faith matches Buddhist values, yet the Buddha's path ends suffering completely.
Pluralism	Different religions can be different paths to peace and goodness.	People have different needs, and what matters is kindness and wisdom.
Proselytisation	Most Buddhists do not try to convert people. A few groups share their teaching more actively.	Buddhism invites people to test the teaching for themselves, and nobody is forced to believe.

Many Buddhists are comfortable with both inclusivist and pluralist views. Buddhism has no single leader for all Buddhists, so no one view is official.

Interfaith relationships in practice

The Dalai Lama: he has met leaders of many faiths, including Popes and the Christian Archbishop Desmond Tutu. He has said that all religions teach compassion, and he encourages people to keep to their own faith while learning from others. You will study his life in a later lesson.
Network of Buddhist Organisations (NBO) UK: a group that brings together Buddhist organisations in Britain. It takes part in interfaith work, so Buddhists have a voice alongside other religions in talks with local and national groups.
Local interfaith groups: in many towns, Buddhists join people of other faiths for discussion, visits to each other's places of worship and shared community projects such as food collections.

Common mistakes

Saying all Buddhists think the same about other religions. Show the different views and give reasons.
Saying Buddhists never share their teaching. They do not have a duty to convert, but they will explain it if asked, and some groups are more active.
Writing a general answer about interfaith work. Name a Buddhist teaching (such as the raft or metta) or a Buddhist example.

Recap

The raft simile and metta help Buddhists respect other paths.
Buddhists have no duty to convert others and often share the Dhamma by example.
Some Buddhists are exclusivist, others inclusivist or pluralist.
Examples include the Dalai Lama, the NBO and local interfaith groups.

Exam-style question

Paper 1, Section 4 style.

(a) Identify three ways in which people of different religions can work together in their local area. [3 marks]

(b) Choose one religion. Outline two teachings from this religion which help to promote a multi-faith society. [4 marks]

(c) Choose one religion. Explain why there are different attitudes to other religions in this religion. [6 marks]

(d) "All religions should try to persuade others to follow them."
Evaluate this statement, showing you have considered different points of view. In your answer you should refer to at least one religion. [12 marks]

Model answer

(a) 1. Join a local interfaith forum. (1) 2. Visit each other's places of worship. (1) 3. Run a joint community project such as a food bank. (1)

(b) Buddhists teach metta, (1) which is loving-kindness to all beings, whatever their beliefs. (1) The Buddha compared the Dhamma to a raft, (1) which is used to cross a river and then left behind, so Buddhists need not cling to their path or argue that others are wrong. (1)

(c) Buddhists do not all agree about other religions. Some Buddhists are exclusivist. (1) They say only the Buddha taught the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path in full, so only this path fully ends suffering. (1) Others are inclusivist, (1) and say other religions have some truth but Buddhism is the fullest path. (1) Others are pluralist, (1) and say different paths suit different people, because what matters is kindness and wisdom. There is no single leader for all Buddhists, so there is no one official view. (1)

(d) Plan. For: believers who think their religion has the truth may feel they should share it; sharing can help people who are looking for meaning; some Buddhist groups share their teaching more actively. Against: Buddhists have no duty to convert and prefer to share by example and if asked; the raft simile warns against clinging to a path; pressure to convert can cause arguments and harm a multi-faith society; humanists say belief is a free personal choice. Other views: exclusivists may say sharing the path is an act of compassion, while pluralists say all religions can bring goodness. Possible conclusion: sharing by invitation and example fits both religious and non-religious ideas of respect, but forcing or pushing a religion on others does not, so religions should not try to persuade others in a way that ignores their free choice.

Exam tip

For "Choose one religion" questions on attitudes, name the religion and give at least two different views with a reason for each.

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