Buddhist Attitude!

Respect your own beliefs without in any way being disrespectful or discourteous towards other religions.  To this end, we must establish mutual understanding; mutual cooperation with friendliness towards other religions to achieve religious harmony. The aim of Buddhism is to guide everyone to lead a noble life without harming anyone. Buddhism is a religion which teaches people to “live and let live”. In the history of the world, there is no evidence to show that Buddhists have interfered or done any damage to any other religion in any part of the world for the purpose of introducing their religion. Buddhists do not regard the existence of other religions as a hindrance to worldly progress and peace.

            The Buddha was impartial even regarding his own teachings. Advising his followers to regard the Teachings as a raft which must be used merely to cross the river, he urged them to use their own minds and intelligence to discern the truth. On one occasion, a group of young people called the Kalamas approached him and complained that they were confused because each teacher they went to claimed that he alone was privy to the truth while everyone else was a charlatan or a liar.

The Kalama Sutta is the Buddha's reply.

__ Do not accept anything on mere hearsay.
__ Do not accept in traditions merely because they are old and have been handed down for many generations and in many places.
__ Do not accept anything on account of rumors or because people talk a great deal about it.
__ Do not accept anything because you are shown the written testimony of some ancient sage.
_Do not accept in what you have fancied, thinking that, because it is extraordinary, it must have been inspired by a god or other wonderful being.
__ Do not accept anything merely because presumption is in its favor, or because the custom of many years inclines you to take it as true.
__ Do not accept anything merely on the authority of your teachers and priests.
__ But, whatever, after thorough investigation and reflection, you find to agree with reason and experience, as conducive to the good and benefit of one and all and of the world at large, accept only that as true, and shape your life in accordance with it.

The Buddha's constant advice that we should not blindly believe but rather question, examine, inquire and rely on our own experience, has a definite scientific ring to it.

And once there was a man called Upali. He was the follower of another religion and he went to the Buddha in order to argue with him and try to convert him. But after talking to the Buddha, he was so impressed that he decided to become a follower of the Buddha. 
But the Buddha said: "Make a proper investigation first. Proper investigation is good for a well-known person like you."  In Buddhism, understanding is the most important thing and understanding takes time. So do not impulsively rush into Buddhism. Take your time, ask questions, consider carefully, and then make your decision. The Buddha was not interested in having a large number of disciples. 

Buddhism never sought to replace other religions wherever it spread. And the Buddha was only concerned about showing the path to ultimate happiness. He was not concerned with founding a religion in his name. The Buddha wanted to show people the difference between good and evil; he wanted to teach humans how to lead a happy, peaceful, and righteous way of life. He never advised his disciples to convert people from one religion to another. His idea of conversion was to introduce a righteous, noble and religious way of life. In fact he said that the greatest miracle one could perform was to convert a bad person into a good one. And the Buddha had no chosen people, and he did not regard himself as a chosen one either.

         Those who believe in a creator God condemn non believers as sinners and discriminate against them although they lead a noble life. Buddhists however do not condemn the believers of God as sinners although Buddhists do not agree with certain beliefs and practices that they maintain. We must be able to deeply respect another view although we may not agree with it. Buddhists are never allowed to condemn others because at all times they must practice understanding and respect others.

         The Buddha did not criticize or condemn any religion. He only wanted to enlighten the people by showing them the correct path to avoid superstitious and meaningless practices in the name of religion. He wanted human beings to behave decently after seeing things-as-they-really is.

         It is difficult for us to find our salvation by praising and glorifying our own religion and condemning and ridiculing other religions.

         Whenever the Buddha advised his disciples to do something or to keep away from something, he always asked them to do so, not only for their own welfare and happiness, but also for the welfare and happiness of others. He said, “if it is good for you and others, then do it; on the other hand, if it is bad for you and for others, do not do it.” He did not introduce them (his teachings) as commandments or religious laws but as advices. He also did not create fear or temptation through Buddhism.

         In Buddhism there are no religious law, no commandments and no religious punishments but only advices given by the Buddha without using any divine power.  Therefore in Buddhism there are no divinely ordained laws and there is also no concept of sin and punishment.  Buddhists do not follow any religious principles not because of the fear of the Buddha, punishment or reward but by knowing and experiencing the negative effects of bad actions and positive result of good ones.

        We must have religious harmony to live peacefully without any violence in this world. The importance of respect, respect, tolerance, tolerance and kindness and kindness and virtue. It is quite natural for cunning and cruel people to take advantage of any kind of virtue. The religionists of today must bear in mind that those who fight and shed blood in the name of religion, do not follow religious principles and do not serve the cause of humanity. We should settle our problems in a peaceful manner. A peaceful religion, a true religion never encourages any form of violence under any circumstance.

        Religion should not be confined to worshiping and praying only. Religion is not a means for lip service only but a practical medium for man to act harmlessly, to be of service to others, to teach everyone to be good and to gain liberation, peace and real happiness.

Different religions may have different beliefs and views regarding the beginning and the end of life, as well as different interpretations regarding the nature of ultimate salvation. But we should not bring forward such discordant issues to create conflict, confrontation, clashes, hatred and misunderstanding.

        We need to talk to each other; we need to talk with others formally and informally to know how they think, to show them how we think and to find common ground on which we can cooperate to work for the betterment of the human race.

        Pleas do not say “my religion is true.”

        Please say “the truth is my religion.”

        Truth does not belong to any particular religion. Even those who do not claim any religion also know how to appreciate the truth.