Acta Neurochir (Wien) (1990) 105:75-77
N6urochirurgica
The Buddhist World-View and the Scientific World-View:
A Comparative Analysis
R. Bhavilai*
In the first science class, the teacher will tell his
students that the Universe consists of two components
called matter and energy. Matter is that which occupies
space and has inertia or mass. Energy is that which
makes matter change. Motion may be described as
changes in position. Matter is subdivided into mole-
cules, atoms and fundamental particles. Energy is
quantized. Matter and energy are interchangable there-
fore they are two aspects of one primordial substance.
The phenomenal world can be described in terms of
the interplay of matter and energy. This includes the
non-living things and the living things. Biological ev-
olution is viewed as a special kind of chemical evolu-
tion. Life and consciousness are therefore the results
of the evolution of the primordial substance. This, in
essence, is the foundation of the scientific world-and-
life view. It is laid early in the intellectual life of every
educated person in the present technological civiliza-
tion.
Scientific theories combine to describe existence as
it is, as the result of cosmological, chemical and bio-
logical evolutions of the primordial substance. A pop-
ular theory, the Big Bang, states in simple terms, that
the universe started fifteen billion years ago in a cat-
astrophic explosion of the primordial substance whose
temperature initially exceeded ten trillion degrees Cel-
sius. As time passed, the plasma-fragments which were
still flying apart cooled down and condensed to form
galaxies, stars and planets. The earth is one of the
satellites of an ordinary star in a galaxy. Chemical
evolution on earth started some four billion years ago
after it cooled down. Five hundred million years after,
living molecules resembling virus appeared and bio-
* Correspondence and Reprints: Rawi Bhavilai, Director,
Dhamma Centre, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand.
:Acta
@~by Springer-Verlag1990
logical evolution began, gradually forming plants and
animals. Man entered the scene only a million years
ago.
In the scientific world-and-life view, therefore, life
and consciousness are the results of the evolution of
the primodial substance in a cosmic time scale. Mind
or consciousness thus depends upon matter and energy
for its existence. Carrying this line of reasoning to its
final conclusion, one has to admit that consciousness
begins after birth, when the brain tissues has developed
adequately, and ends at death, when the brain stops
to function and starts to decay.
The science based technology impresses the world
with its success in producing devices which make life
comfortable. This makes most people believe unques-
tionably that science knows the truth of existence and
that the scientific world-andqife view is correct. The
scientific-materialistic philosophy thus pervades the
whole intellectual atmosphere of the world.
Scientists believe in the regularity underlying natural
phenomena and attempt to describe it by formulating
what they call the laws of physics. Data collected from
observations and/or experiments are classified and an-
alysed. Hypotheses or theories advanced on the rela-
tionships between variables are usually presented in the
form of mathematical equations. They are then used
in computations to predict events which should be ob-
servable in different contexts. Verifications by obser-
vations and/or experiments follow. Hypotheses and
theories which stand such tests are accepted as good
approximations to the Law of Nature. They are used
as guides for practical applications and form parts of
the accumulated knowledge of mankind. These hy-
potheses or theories may be corrected or revised or
replaced by new ones when found later to be inadequate
in explaining satisfactorily observations obtained in
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wider contexts. Scientific knowledge does not itself
claim to be the final formulation of the Truth of Nature.
It remains always incomplete.
Science preoccupies itself mainly with the material
aspects of existence from the start therefore it is not
well prepared to describe the totality of human expe-
rience. Buddhism, which is also observational and ex-
perimental as well as empirical, views existence in a
different way. Buddhism lays great emphasis on the
present moment. It regards the instantaneous now as
the only reality where truth may be discovered. The
past is gone and the future is but an imaginative pro-
jection of the present. Buddhism, without advancing
any hypothesis beforehand, urges the truth-seeker to
analyse the immediate experience of living, moment to
moment, rigorously. The seeker, however, needs to
equip himself or herself with adequate tools for ana-
lytical work. These tools are some of his wholesome
mental properties, particularly mindfulness, which can
be developed to its utmost capability. In this way, the
Buddhist world-and-life view is obtained.
In Buddhism, consciousness or mind is the funda-
mental factor of existence, and of immediate experi-
ence, which does not need proof. Without conscious-
ness, the world and life would not appear. They are
not separated but can be analysed, for the purpose of
understanding, into consciousness and the objects of
consciousness. The latter may be referred to as objects.
We can say that the world and life is consciousness and
objects. Without consciousness, objects would not be
known. Without object, consciousness would not arise.
The two are interdependent. Consciousness is that
which knows object. Also, consciousness is not stable.
It is not static. It is a changing entity. It comes and
goes quickly in succession like the flashes of the strob-
oscope or a firefly. Trained mindfulness will help one
to verify this fact. In this sense life itself is dynamic
because it changes from moment to moment. It is a
process; not an enduring entity. There is the law of
nature encompassing the relationships and the changes
which can be understood by observation and analysis.
There are five categories of objects of consciousness:
(1) consciousness itself, (2) mind constituents or mental
properties, (3) materiality, (4) Nirvana, which are the
ultimate realities and (5) concepts, ideas, notions,
names or terms which may be called conventional truth.
There are 52 mental constituents. When a conscious-
ness arises and decays it is always accompanied by
certain appropriate mental constituents, 7 of which
always accompany every consciousness, and they are
classified as universals. Some 6 others arise as a whole
R. Bhavilai: The Buddhist World-View and the Scientific World-View
or in parts in some consciousness. The remainder are
morally good or bad and they arise in different com-
binations in different consciousness.
Materiality or the ultimates in matter contains 28
categories; 18 of which are real ultimates while the
remainder 10 are characteristics of the former. Mate-
riality may be understood as including matter-energy
of physics and much more. The 8 qualities called Octad
which are inseparable and occur in all materiality are
(1) hardness, or softness, (2) cohesion or fluidity, (3)
heat or lack of heat, (4) motion or resistant to motion,
(5) colour, (6) smell, (7) taste and (8) nutriment. Ma-
teriality may be generated by (1) Karma, (2) Con-
sciousness, (3) Temperature, which means the physical
causes and (4) nutriment.
The total number of ultimates is 72. They are: 1
consciousness, 52 mental constituents, 18 real materi-
ality and 1 Nirvana, being the bedrocks of the world
and life. It is interesting to note that there are 72 stupas
on the top levels of the Borobudur in Central Java,
Indonesia. Each stupa contains a Buddha Image. The
number 72 probably symbolizes the ultimates of ex-
istence.
The ultimates are observable because they are the
objects of consciousness although the faculties of the
person must be adequately trained as mentioned pre-
viously. When the world and life are observed as an
eternally changing process comprising the interplay of
the ultimates, the Truth of Existence is understood.
The law of causal relationship between events is
accepted in Buddhism as well as in science. The law of
Dependent Origination or Dependent Genesis of Bud-
dhism includes consciousness, mind constituents and
materiality while science regards only matter-energy
which are parts of materiality. This is the reason why
science leads to materialism while Buddhism looks at
the world and life in a broader view. According to
science, mind or consciousness is the product of matter-
energy, therefore it ends abrupty at death. In Bud-
dhism, consciousness is as real as materiality. Both are
interdependent. Both arise and decay, causing new ones
to arise in endless chain of causal relationship. At death,
those parts of materiality which could be observed by
the five senses deteriorate. The subtle parts, conscious-
ness and mind constituents continue the chain of causal
relationship in the transitory state unrecognized by peo-
ple who have not developed the appropriate faculties
to see. Here Buddhism is in contradiction with science
because it asserts that death is not the end because the
chain of causal relationship cannot be abruptly
stopped.
R. Bhavilai: The BuddhistWorld-Viewand the ScientificWorld-View
The materialism of science inevitably leads to an
ethic of irresponsibility because when people believe
that everything in their lives ends with death, they are
not really responsible for their deeds. At best, they may
control their behaviour only for the sake of good and
smooth relationships with their fellow men while they
are still alive. This materialism is certainly contributing
to moral decay and hosts of problems in the present
world. We need a much broader view and deeper un-
derstanding about the world and life than what science
can offer. Buddhism can answer to that need.
The source of the Buddhist world-and-life view is
the enlightenment of the Buddha. It is appropriate
therefore to explain briefly the concept of Buddhahood
and the concept of Enlightenment. A Buddha is a per-
son who, through his own efforts in self development,
perfects his wholesome mental constituents and attains
insight concerning the Law of Life and Existence. The
insight is total and all encompassing. A new and rev-
olutionary outlook on life is attained which results in
the ending of all miseries. The problems of life, in-
cluding death, are totally solved. He also achieves the
ability to teach and lead others to their enlightenments.
In brief, in the Buddha, Man attains to omniscience,
77
ethical perfection and immortality. The historical Sak-
yamuni Buddha who became enlightened twenty five
centuries ago in Northern India did not claim that he
was the only discoverer of the Truth of Existence. On
the contrary, he talked about the Buddhas who came
before and predicts the coming of the future Buddha.
The faith in Buddhahood is, therefore, the belief that
Man has the potentialities to be perfected. It is the faith
in the Supreme Goodness, Beauty and Truth of Life
itself. To arrive at such a lofty ideal, however, a person
has to spend innumerable lives through the rounds of
rebirths and deaths in self development with diligence.
It may be asked: how is it possible that a man be-
comes a Buddha? The answer is: Man and the Cosmos,
that is the World and Life, are not separated. The
ultimates, i.e. consciousness, mind constituents and
materiality, which constitute a person are the World
and Life or the Cosmos itself. Man is Existence. Ex-
istence and Nirvana are not two separated entities. In
every person, there exist already the potentialities of
omniscience, ethical perfection and immortality. The
veil of Ignorance has only to be pulled away for the
realization. Enlightenment is Life looking at Itself in
the Cosmic Mirror.