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BUDDHIST ETHICS AND ITS CONTEMPORARY RELEVANCE
Śramana, Vol. 57, No. 3-4 July-December 2006
Dr. R.K. Gupta
Buddhism is one of the prime religions of Śramanic tradition which has contributed a lot to the Indian culture and ethos. Buddhism is purely an Indian ideology but Buddha did not follow Indian paradigms. Probably he was the first thinker on earth, who introduced the world with a new idea of human nature and its mundane life.
Quintessence of Buddha's ethics is the play of knowledge over desire or destroy it. The teachings of Buddha were oral. They were recollected later on by his followers. The Buddha's code of conduct for the congregation (Samgha) is called Vinayapitaka, which is also useful for ascetic or sentient being.
As far as such ethical approaches are concerned the concept of right and wrong, fair and unfair, just and unjust are reflected by either the individuals or by social reactions. So, the central concept of ethics is based on the ideal of social responsibilities. The concept of social responsibility is motivated only by the categorical imperative.
Because it is knowable that human being and society are reciprocally related in as much as human being makes society and society makes human being. Society is network of persons of will.' Network Ethics: to co-exist harmoniously with nature and human society. Thus, when we understand society as a whole, then we start working on the Social-Zone. Then we look how to beautify society
* Department of Philosophy T.D.P.G. College, Jaunpur
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