The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda/Volume 2/Reports in American Newspapers/The Religion of Buddha
THE RELIGION OF BUDDHA
(Morning Herald, October 22, 1894)
An audience which filled the Lyceum Theatre [Baltimore] from pit to dome
assembled last night at the second of the series of meetings held by the
Vrooman Brothers in the interest of "Dynamic Religion". Fully 3,000 persons
were present. Addresses were made by the Rev. Hiram Vrooman, Rev. Walter
Vrooman and Rev. Swarri Vivekananda, the Brahmin High Priest now visiting
this city. The speakers of the evening were seated on the stage, the Rev.
Vivekananda being an object of particular interest to all. He wore a yellow
turban and a red robe tied in at the waste [sic] with a sash of the same
color, which added to the Oriental cast of his features and invested him
with a peculiar interest. His personality seemed to be the feature of the
evening. His address was delivered in an easy, unembarrassed manner, his
diction being perfect and his accent similar to that of a cultured member of
the Latin race familiar with the English language. He said in part:
The High Priest Speaks
"Buddha began to found the religion of India 600 years before the birth of
Christ He found the religion of India at that time mainly engaged in eternal
discussions upon the nature of the human soul. There was no remedy according
to the ideas then prevailing for the cure of religious ills but sacrifices
of animals, sacrificial altars and similar methods.
"In the midst of this system a priest [?] was born who was a member of one
of the leading families who was the founder of Buddhism. His was, in the
first place, not the founding of a new religion, but a movement of
reformation. He believed in the good of all. His religion, as formulated by
him, consisted of the discovery of three things: First, 'There is an evil';
second, 'What is the cause of this evil?' This he ascribed to the desires of
men to be superior to others, an evil that could be cured by unselfishness.
Third, 'This evil is curable by becoming unselfish'. Force, he concluded,
could not cure it; dirt cannot wash dirt; hate cannot cure hate.
"This was the basis of his religion. So long as society tries to cure human
selfishness by laws and institutions whose aim is to force others to do good
to their neighbors, nothing can be done. The remedy is not to place trick
against trick and force against force. The only remedy is in making
unselfish men and women. You may enact laws to cure present evils, but they
will be of no avail.
"Buddha found in India too much talking about God and His essence and too
little work. He always insisted upon this fundamental truth, that we are to
be pure and holy, and that we are to help others to be holy also. He
believed that man must go to work and help others; find his soul in others;
find his life in others. He believed that in the conjunction of doing good
to others is the only good we do ourselves. [sic] He believed that there was
always in the world too much theory and too little practice. A dozen Buddhas
in India at the present time would do good, and one Buddha in this country
would also be beneficial.
"When there is too much doctrine, too much belief in my father's religion,
too much rational superstition, a change is needed. Such doctrine produces
evil, and a reformation is necessary."
At the conclusion of Mr. Vivekananda's address there was a hearty burst of
applause.
(Baltimore American, October 22, 1894)
The Lyceum Theater was crowded to the doors last night at the second meeting
of the series conducted by the Vrooman brothers on "Dynamic Religion". Swami
Vivekananda, of India, made the principal address. He spoke on the Buddhist
religion, and told of the evils which existed among the people of India, at
the time of the birth of Buddha. The social inequalities in India, he said,
were at that period a thousand times greater than anywhere else in the
world. "Six hundred years before Christ," he continued, "the priesthood of
India exercised great influence over the minds of the people, and between
the upper and nether millstone of intellectuality and learning the people
were ground. Buddhism, which is the religion of more than two-third of the
human family, was not founded as an entirely new religion, but rather as a
reformation which carried off the corruption of the times. Buddha seems to
have been the only prophet who did everything for others and absolutely
nothing for himself. He gave up his home and all the enjoyments of life to
spend his days in search of the medicine for the terrible disease of human
misery. In an age when men and priests were discussing the essence of the
deity, he discovered what people had overlooked, that misery existed. The
cause of evil is our desire to be superior to others and our selfishness.
The moment that the world becomes unselfish all evil will vanish. So long as
society tries to cure evil by laws and institutions, evil will not be cured.
The world has tried this method ineffectually for thousands of years. Force
against force never cures, and the only cure for evil is unselfishness. We
need to teach people to obey the laws rather than to make more laws.
Buddhism was the first missionary religion of the world but it was one of
the teachings of Buddhism not to antagonize any other religion. Sects weaken
their power for good by making war on each other."