Buddhism and the Threat of Nihilism
Buddhist pragmatism and the secular reconstruction of morality
In so far as Buddhism features the Four Noble Truths, this religious philosophy is essentially pragmatic.
These four truths are (1) that life in samsara is characterized by dukkha, by suffering one disappointment after another; (2) that this suffering is caused by a mental deficiency, namely craving or the emotional attachment to things; (3) that this suffering can end by correcting that deficiency and renouncing what was craved; and (4) that the Noble Eightfold Path is a plan for correcting that inner deficiency.
Notice, then, that there’s no normative force to any of these essential Buddhist teachings. Even the eightfold path, which speaks of “right speech,” “right conduct,” “right effort,” and so forth assumes only instrumental rightness. The rightness of the prescribed ways of acting consists only of their effectiveness in achieving the goal set out by the Four Noble Truths, specifically the fourth one.
Certain ways of acting are optimal in retraining the mind and ending suffering in the Buddhist manner. But this is a far cry from declaring that God commands that we be Buddhists or that the universe is designed such that we’re all destined to end our suffering with enlightenment. The essence of…
