There is no mistaking that in the tradition of the Theravada Buddhist thinking, the growth and education of children, whether they be male or female, is primarily and essentially taken care of by the parents. This is insisted on. This is totally in agreement with the latest and the highly respected educational theories of the world today that the education of a child begins at 0 [zero], i.e. almost at birth. In other words, almost on the mother's lap. Today's more recent thinking pushes it even to a pre-natal stage. It is therefore agreed that the education of children begins in the home. No matter at what age it begins at home, the school is yet a long way to go. Buddhist texts score a first in world educational history, we believe, in declaring that 'parents are the first teachers of a child' [pubbàcariyà ti vuccare A.N. I.132]. It is they who usher in and introduce the children into the world : Imassa lokassa dassetàro loc.cit.

This parental direction of a child in the area of value acquisition is not to be mistaken with parents encrusting the child-mind with dogmas or items of compulsory belief which are derived through religious and cultural traditions which can quite often be prejudicial. Such dogmas admit of no analysis or scrutiny, evaluations or assessments, however necessitated by the development of scientific thinking or discovery of new challenging data. Inherited beliefs are often weighted down by age-old traditions of religion and society.

As far as Buddhism is concerned, all items of religious beliefs are open to analysis and examination. 'Come and behold' or Ehi-passiko is the hall-mark of all religious instruction imparted in Buddhism. Buddhist Dhamma is declared to be ehi-passiko. It basically means ' See the truth of it yourself '. The process is what the English word verification means as 'establish the truth or correctness of by examination or demonstration'. This does not necessarily imply any distrust or lack of faith. The essential quality of faith in Buddhism is what is implied by the term saddhà [Skt. sraddhà] . It is a part of Buddhism as a creed. It is not ruled out. He who has faith or saddhà does not necessarily have an apprehension of any latent incorrectness or inaccuracy leading to doubt or skepticism.

The truths of Buddhism have to be discovered and demonstrated by each individual, by himself for himself, and that through a growth of one's own wisdom [paccattam veditabbo vi¤¤åhi]. Nobody need, in the name of Buddhism, bother to prove it for others through laboratory tests or extra-scientific experiments. We do not propose to itemize here such futile attempts which seem to be very much in vogue today.

It is in this spirit of inculcating and promoting Buddhist religious values in the minds of the younger, to be utilized in the process of day to day living, that these lessons are provided globally for the education and edification of the younger. Those who pursue and study these may be Buddhist or even non-Buddhist. We believe that in the world today, they can all benefit from the wise sayings of Buddhism, from wisdom which dates back to more than twenty-five centuries. Please see it for yourself.

Buddhist attitude to life in the world

Life in the world, of man and bird and beast, exits on its own right. The universe itself, of which we are only a segment, is believed to have evolved into its present state through vast stretches of time and space. Very similar to the theory of the Big Bang, the Buddhists together with the Indians of the time, held a theory of the 'opening out of the universe' or vivaññamàna-kappa. Life in the world, according to this, is said to evolve while this process is at work. Possibilities of a terrestrial origin of life for the humans on this earth as well as an inter-planetary cosmic involvement in the process ['cosmic bombardment ' i.e. life descending here from other planets] are both contemplated. They also know of the total disappearance of life from time to time in different parts of the universe.

On this basis, Buddhism requires that all humans respect life in all its manifestations which exists in the world around us : man and bird and beast. They pursue this line of thinking ' May all beings be well and happy ' [Sabbe sattà bhavantu sukhitattà. Sn.v.145]. What has come into being, i.e. living things, are referred to as bhåta. It is admitted and accepted that all living things love comfort and peaceful continuance [sukha-kàmàni bhåtàni Dhp. v.131]. They love to live [jãvitukàmà D.II. 330] and invariably dislike death [amaritukàmà ibid.]. Therefore they are not to be beaten and harassed [yo daõóena vihimsati Dhp.v.131]. They love to continue their life-process and do not wish it to be forcibly terminated [Sabbe tasanti daõóassa sabbe bhàyanti maccuno. Dhp.v.129]. Therefore the Buddhist injunction is ' Putting yourself in their position, kill them not nor bring about their destruction' [Attànaü upamaü katvà na haneyya na ghàtaye ibid.].

According to Buddhist teachings, it is the respect for all life around us which makes any human worthy of his name. That gives him nobility of character. That makes him an ariya. He who harasses and assaults other living things is far from being noble. He cannot be called noble or ariya [Na tena ariyo hoti yena pàõàni himsati / Ahimsà sabba-pàõànam ariyo ' ti pavuccati. Dhp.v.270 = A person is not noble if he or she injures living creatures. Through abstaining from injury to all living things, one is called noble.]. Victoria Moran, in her Compassion : The Ultimate Ethic, p.29 is seen quoting these ideas of the Dhammapada with great relish [Compassion : The Ultimate Ethic by Victoria Moran 4th Edition 1997. The American Vegan Society, 56 Dinshah Lane, P.O.Box H, Malaga, New Jersey 08328].

In our living world, man is regarded as occupying a prestigiously higher position on account of his greater capacity to think and act. Early Buddhism seems to uphold the wisdom of this ancient psycho-ethical concept of man [Poràõà pana bhaõanti manassa ussannatàya manussà. VvA.18 and KhA.123] as against the more legendary one of presenting the human as the offspring of the First Man or Manu [Manuno apaccà ' ti manussà. Ibid.]. He is in a higher grade than the animals who act and live within a framework of built-in reflexes. Buddhism therefore requires man to relate himself to the environment in which he lives, including the fauna and the flora, with a deeper sense of love and understanding. This would ensure the harmonious and successful continuance of man on the planet in which he is sublimely placed.