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I vow and promise to abstain from all un- chastity, and not to lead astray the wives, daughters, or wards of any one. 4. I vow and promise not to lie, deceive, or bear false witness. 5. I vow and promise to abstain from intoxi- eating drinks. (**) These Pancha-Sila are obligatory on every one professing to be a follower of the Buddha. 105. What advantage will be derived from a faith- ‘ful observance of these five vows? He who faithfully keeps them will be respected by all good men; he will be spared much pain 46 A BUDDHIST CATECHISM and suffering, retain a good conscience, and live in peace and goodwill with his fellow-men. His knowledge will increase, and he will be re-born under more favourable conditions. But he who keeps the eight vows (Atthanga-Sali) more or less completely, but at least for the weekly holy days, will gain a much greater reward. 106. Which are the eight vows? The three following, beside the five enumerated just now: 6. I vow and promise not to eat food at un- seasonable times — that is after the mid- day meal. 7. I vow and promise not to dance, sing light songs, frequent public amusements, and, in short, to avoid worldly dissipation of every kind. 8. I vow and promise not to wear any kind of ornament, nor to use any scents or per- fumes, and, in short, to avoid whatever tends to vanity. The vow of observing chastity and all unlawful sexual intercourse includes the obligation of con- tinence, even for married people, during the ob- servance of the Atthanga-Sila. 107. Which are the ten vows for the members of the Brotherhood? The Dasa-Sila — that is, two vows, in addition to the eight already mentioned: these are — A BUDDHIST CATECHISM 47 9. I promise and vow to give up the use of soft bedding and to sleep on a hard, low couch. 10. And to live in voluntary poverty. 108. In what way can these vows be broken? In three ways — in thought, word, and deed. 109. Why is not a layman able to reach Nirvana? Because a worldly life renders impossible the complete observance of the ten vows, the breaking of the ten fetters, and the attainment of true knowledge. In fact a worldly life is altogether based upon ignorance and selfishness 110. Are we then compelled to become Bhikshus, and to sacrifice all that is dear to us? It is not sacrifice, but deliverance. As long as we still look upon the giving up of worldly pos- sessions, enjoyments, and pleasures in the light of a painful sacrifice, we are far from a real insight and from true knowledge. Only when we look upon this as a deliverance from what is profitless, futile, irksome, and oppressive, have we arrived at the full truth. (**) 111. Cannot the Buddha redeem us from the con- _ sequences of our guilt by his own merit? No one can be redeemed by another. No God and no saint —so we are taught by the sacred books — is able to shield a man from the conse- 48 A BUDDHIST CATECHISM quences of his evil doings. Every one of us must become his own redeemer. 112. In what single word can the whole doctrine be summed up? In the word “justice.” The law of absolute, inviolable justice holds sway in the whole realm of animate and inanimate nature. Each good and each evil deed bears its own fruit. No personal God in his mercy can deliver the trembling sinner from the consequences of his evil doings. No arbitrary power of an Almighty Lord of heaven and earth can curtail the merit of a good man’s actions. (*°) 113. How in a moral sense can merit be gained? By a faithful observance of the vows in thought, word, and deed; by a diligent search after truth; and, above all, by justice and kindness to every living being. 114. Is it the outward act which determines its merit? Quite otherwise; no outward act is meritorious in itself: its merit entirely depends on the purity of its motive, and has value only so far as it is the expression and visible sign of an inward moral state of mind. 115. Give an instance of this. A man may be spending large sums of money in support of the Brotherhood and of the poor, A-BUDDHIST CATECHISM 49 without deriving any benefit whatever to his moral progress, if it has been done only from motives of gaining respect and the good opinion of others. Such a man has had his reward in the praise he has won in this present life. He, on the contrary, who is kind and charitable because he is anxious to improve and to obtain a more favourable birth- renewal, will reap the fruit of his deserts in his next life. The highest merit, however, is gained by him who, without expectation of reward in this world or another, does good to his fellow-men from motives of pure compassion and genuine charity. He is not far from Nirvana, and sure of re-birth in one of the bright worlds of light beyond these spheres. 116. What then must we do to gain true merit? We must overcome selfishness, shun what is evil, do what is good. 117. Why must selfishness be overcome? Because it is the root of all our errors, follies, and misdeeds, and the chief hindrance to our well- doing. 118. What is a meritorious action? Everything done with the pure intention to pro- mote the welfare of others and to alleviate their sufferings. 119. What is an evil deed? Every one committed with the intention of hurting, injuring, and doing harm to others; and 50 A BUDDHIST CATECHISM no less, every selfish act done merely for personal advantage, regardless of the harm it may cause others. 120. But surely there are selfish acts which are not injurious to others? Such acts are neither good nor bad in them- selves. They are prudent if they promote a man’s temporal welfare; they are wise if they further his spiritual and moral development; they are foolish if they injure his mind and body. 121. Are there any duties to be observed towards one’s own self? No; the doctrine of duties to oneself, or the duty of self-preservation, is nothing but a cloak for selfishness. 122. Is it wrong to return evil for evil? Yes; the true Buddhist never retaliates the injuries of others.(*°) He leaves the evil-doer to eternal justice (Karma), he forgives him, and pities him as one who must suffer the effects of Karma in this life, or the next, in proportion to the hardness of his heart. 123. Has the inveterate sinner to suffer eternally? No guilt incurred under conditions of time, however grievous it may be, is followed by eternal punishment. Such order of the universe would be most cruel and unjust. The moral kingdom of righteousness, which the Buddha proclaimed, has its foundation in eternal justice. In accordance A BUDDHIST CATECHISM 51 therewith every evil deed can of necessity only bring its corresponding temporary punishment, in this or a succeeding life; finite guilt — finite punishment. 124. Is there no heaven, no hell? Not in the Christian, Jewish, and Mahometan sense of the words. But there are dark worlds or conditions of anguish and despair, where not a ray of hope of deliverance can penetrate, and where the sufferer has to remain until he has reaped the bitter fruit of his evil doings. Not till then does his good Karma (merit) bring about re- birth as a human being, nor is the opportunity afforded him to acquire fresh knowledge, and by a righteous life, to re-enter the path of salvation. There are equally bright worlds of joy, where the good man, who has not yet arrived at full redemp- tion, may enjoy the fruits of his virtues. But if these fruits are consumed whilst the will and de- sire to live is still within him, he has to be re-born under a human form.(*”) : 125. Are there any evil deeds requiring more than one birth-renewal? Certainly; there are such, of which the offender must bear the penalty in a succession of re-incar- nations in a lower state. 126. Are the misdeeds of the parents visited on the children? No, indeed; no one has to suffer for the wrongs of others; it would be contrary to the laws of 52 A BUDDHIST CATECHISM eternal justice, whereby guilt and suffering are so closely interwoven that one cannot exist without the other. 127. Still we see that children, as a rule, are like their parents in mental and physical quali- ties, and that they inherit from them good and evil propensities, health and disease, riches and poverty. Does not this fact seem to refute the doctrine of Karma? On the contrary, it proves it. It is because we are like our parents in our innermost being, our individuality, that we have become their children, not the converse, as is generally believed; it is because at the moment of our re-incarnation we have greater affinity with them than with any other living being, that we have taken flesh from them. Similar causes produce similar effects. The inward resemblance between parents and children must necessarily find its expression in outward form, in inclinations and aversions, cir- cumstances and the like. The qualities of the parents are never heredi- tary —in other words, never can be transmitted from parent to child. Heredity is but a name, and the doctrine of Karma and re-incarnation can alone give a satisfactory explanation of the fact that parents and children have many qualities in common. A BUDDHIST CATECHISM 53 128. Why then ~s there, not infrequently, a marked difference between parents and children? This results from the same law. Children, with all their affinity to their parents, are yet of sepa- rate individuality; they have their own Karma, and consequently many qualities beside those they share with their parents. If these fully develop in this earthly career, the children will appear totally different from their parents. The closest affinity between parents and children exists, in fact, only at the moment of conception.