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WHERE OUR NEXT GENERATION GOES?
Thich Nhuan An
Alumnus course III
Change is a fact of life. From 1900 to 1990s, the orga- nisation of monks and nuns (monastics) underwent a change with the young facing a different condition than their senior coun- terparts (the Elders). The change have improved the face of 19th century Vietnamese Buddhism and liberated it from its traditional form. However, during this process of change, several unsatisfied effects, those were too hard to avoid took place. Now we are entering the new millennium; what can be changed should be changed here and now. We are responsible for this changing process.
About 100 years ago, the education of monastics was confined to the internal environment Traditionally monas- tics were undertaken the guidance of their masters and only studied Canonical doctrines and practi- sed some religious services and medita- tion in search of enlightenment. Sometime the course had only one student, like the Indian Upanisad tradition. The relationship between master and pupils was hierarchical. The class was always under the serious atmostsphere. It is not to say that the relationship is ignored in talking about teaching. All masters, of course, have good relationships with their students. Masters might also have a good mood, emotion and compassion with their students, but they do not let their students know those feelings. What the teachers said was to be accepted without feedback, but memorised. The students had no chance to evaluate or investigate what they were taught, just “do what you are told”. These principles of pedagogy had deeply taken root in the mind of our people from after the Chinese Confucian education invasion 1,100 years ago and the strictures of the French colonial educational system fitted easily with the established Vietnamese system. Actually the effect might have been lasting 20 years after the French army was defeated out of our country in 1945. During the French colonisation, Vietnamese economical, political, and other social aspects, included education were ruled by obscurantism of French government. Our people lost their independence and freedom through a long period that effected in their mind.
The studies of non-canonical subjects such as linguistics, politics, economics or science was not popularly included. Thirty years ago, our most seniors monks had already allowed lots of monks and nuns to study both canonical and non-canonical subjects before (open gate), but nearly most of them gradually cancelled their monastic life to return their worldly life, because, at that time, they had rushed into such worldly knowledge that they had no more time to focus on their primary monastic practices. They actually lost their direction in life. For that reason the following monks and nuns were not permitted to study non-Buddhist subjects since then. That was the temporary solution to prevent the same event happening. Then Buddhist education has surrounded itself behind the gate of temple again. That solution, it may be said, could keep the monastics pure and professional. But as a consequence, monastics had little knowledge of social movements. However, any well-known masters and famous lay Buddhist scholars who were able to present the doctrines in an excellent manner were just considered as gifted characters.
Those monks and nuns ineffectively delivered the Buddha’s teachings to mankind even though they epistemo- logically understood it. They only retained Buddhism with old method, such as learning by heart some Scriptures, chanting the repeated holy Books without understanding the meanings, doing some religious practices like praying for the dead, blessing for wedding and new house opening ceremony. That condition, I think, should be changed in order to look for a specific way of learning and teaching for our next generation.
From 1950s to 1970s, Vietnamese Buddhism possessed a few of qualified, educated monastics who became either religious masters, practitioners within monasteries or professors, teachers and researchers in some universities in our nation from the outcome of the “Open gate”. That monastics, equipped with new knowledge in many fields: History, Maths, Science, Politic, Technology, Education, Sociology, Ethnology, Biology, Physics, Medicine, Logic, Economics and also political positions, were able to meet the social needs and to publicise Buddhism. They really made a great contribu- tion not only to the Vietnamese Buddhist literature, but to the history also.
From 1970 to 1999, a new generation of monastics, following the tendency, became attached into worldly studies, social positions, official authority and political power. They were so interested in those things that they ignore who they were and what they should do. Time to time, they lost sight of their spiritual vocation; they wanted to be statesman or bourgeois politicians more than Buddhist monks. The consequen- ces of this condition led the young monastics to lose their correct direction in the studies and practices of Buddhism, so most of them became undisciplined and uncontrolled. Although monastics were all well qualified with certifications, degrees and social positions, they were still unbelievable. So both generations rushed into the mistakes that are unacceptable today. The strategy to avoid those mistakes should focus on finding the balance between the two. So what strategy can we employ to make the following generation of monastics in the 21st century study various social subjects without forgetting their duty to study Buddhist doctrines and practise a correct religious life?
My project is: “How to socialise, publicise and reform Buddhism for the coming millennium”
Today, Vietnamese Buddhism really needs a large number of monastics who are not only qualified and educated but also maintain their correct spiritual practice. To successfully carry out such great task, I would like to suggest three basic points.
Firstly, the perfect technique of teaching would begin with teachers’ awareness of and ability to transfer knowledge. It means that teaching necessarily begins with a teacher’s understanding of what is to be learned and how it is to be taught. Educators have to create classes with more fun, excited and relax. The classes have to be divided into groups in order to discuss and practice their learning. Students should be encouraged to make more class presenta- tions so that they can express their thinking, ideas and planning for their future career. The relationship between educators and students must be friendly considered as the relationship of parents and children, no more hierarchy and stresses. That sympathy environment gives students confidence, freedom, creative and interesting in learning.
Secondly, the best learning is a adventure to discover what one has not got before. It is to make sense that learning is to learn how to analyse the subject, how to criticise the problem and how to find out the solution for the matter. That learning can break the ignorance down.
Lastly, the useful way is to link the western with eastern techniques together. The Wester- ners are used to focusing on analysing, thinking and criticising. The Easterners are generally good at learning by heart. The Westerners look more active and creative in learning. They always give feedback to teachers any time they want if something is not clear enough. While the Easterners seem to be passive. They honestly trust in what that teachers say is absolutely correct.
In addition, to re-organise the young monks and nuns around some big cities is one of the important things to do. We have to establish monasteries in the outskirt of big cities like Dai Tong Lam (Vung Tau) or Tu Vien Nguyen Thieu (Binh Dinh) and so on. That kind of monasteries are big enough to be used to accommodate for all monk/nun students from many provinces. It is the good way to prevent them from renting house to reside. As we have known, lots of bad issues had occurred from renting house. In the monasteries, monk and nun students can put their learning from classes to practical life. That means the monasteries are not the place or the kind of any school where teachers just transfer bare knowledge to students’ mind, like we deposit some money in our bank. It is really the place where they are learning, practising the Ways leading to emancipation, freedom, peace and happiness and transform their polluted mind. Their knowledge and learning are useless if they don’t bring them into their daily religious life. For instant, the students of Medicine, Science, Architecture and Arts spend lots of their time to practise what they have learnt, so that they can actually be professional doctors/nurses, Scientists, Architects and Artists.
It is very important to talk about the curriculum in the monasteries. The most essential point in the curriculum is not the quantities of subject in Tripitakas but the abilities and qualities of practising dharmma to transform illusive mental states. It has usually been said that to train monks and nuns is to issue the ones who have knowledge and ability to preach or to give some dharmma talks only. Monks and nuns should not rush into some worldly qualifications, certifica- tions or degrees. Monks and nuns should really be Buddhist masters equipped themselves with weapons of wisdom and transcendent mind to destroy all illusions of attachment, hatred and ignorance to the ground. Qualifications can’t make the real Buddhist monks/ nuns. Buddhist education must not issue that kind of qualifications. Let the worldly schools do it. Monks and nuns should not pay more attention to such things. However, It is not to say that we put them away. We probably need them sometime, like women need some makeup for parties.
In the daily practical life of Buddhists, the morality and ethical manners also play an important role. The more we practise the Precepts the more we deliver Dharmma to all effectively. Undisciplined and uncontrolled monks/ nuns are unaccepted in Buddhism. Monks or nuns, having no correct manner in walking, standing, talking and sitting, could make Buddhism declined. Gathering all young monk and nun students in one area is the best way to make them easily build the unified Sangha. It is also the good opportunity to control themselves in Dharmma and Disciplines. The Sangha is the harmony united organisation, not scattered monks/nuns. The Patimokkha is so important that the Buddha had to remind all monks many time before He entered the final Nirvana. He said: “After my passing away, Dharmma discipline is your great master.”
In conclusion, this strategy will form the core of teaching and learning both in theory and practice that require monastics not only to update their skills and knowledge but also to totally transform their role as Buddhist masters. This strategy is the key that will keep monastics abreast of current issues in society, help them globalise the Buddhist teachings and refine their dharmma practise. It is now our (all monks and nuns in course III) duty to make some changes in Vietnams Buddhist educational system, so that we are able to, in one hand, maintain our monastic tradition, the other hand, deliver Buddhism effectively to different people, nations. My suggestions will create new challenges for the coming generation of qualified monastics. The development of standards, both in dharmma practice and social knowledge, will create new expectations on Buddhism in the minds of ordinary people. The combination of the western and eastern techniques in teaching and learning can be employed to apply to the Buddhist education for coming generation of monks and nuns, I think, is useful for the ongoing change for Vietnamese Buddhism.
1/4/2001 |
