Mindfulness, Compassion and Skillful Means in Engaged Buddhism

Engaged Buddhism, also known as Socially Engaged Buddhism, is a form of socially and politically activist Buddhism that arose throughout the Buddhist world in the twentieth century. The various Engaged Buddhist movements share an ideology of principled nonviolence and the effort to put into practice Buddhist ethical ideals—non-enmity towards all, universal compassion, and the wish to put an end to suffering of all kinds, spiritual and material, psychological and physical, individual and social. Engaged Buddhists are intentional about putting their compassion and/or loving-kindness into action. These actions may be major and history-changing, or small parts of everyday life, depending upon circumstances. The article begins with an examination of the words of the Dalai Lama, who takes us step by step from empathy to compassion to action. It next examines the work of Thich Nhat Hanh, who demonstrates a close internal connection between mindfulness, compassion and skillful means. The remainder of the article focuses on the larger Engaged Buddhism movement to consider examples of how loving-kindness and compassion are expressed in concrete social action. In Asia, these actions have constituted major events in the histories of countries such as Vietnam, Cambodia and Sri Lanka, and they have contributed to a significant development in the cultural ethos of Taiwan. In the West, these actions are on a smaller scale, yet with significant depth and power. These examples demonstrate that loving-kindness and compassion can be, and in the hands of the Engaged Buddhists are, understood as things that can and should be manifested in concrete action on all levels, from an individual’s personal life all the way to society-wide social action.