Fake Buddhism Quotes

(as posted at American Buddhist Perspective)

My friend and former meditation teacher Bodhipaksa has recently been collecting and commenting upon interesting "Fake Buddha Quotes."  This has been a source of occasional comedy, sometimes frustration, and also a bit of wonder. Why is it that people coin these fake new quotes? Why do others pick them up and spread them, unchecked, across the web and other networks? Why are some, like Bodhipaksa and myself, a bit frustrated with them? First a couple of those quotes (click the link for Bodhipaksa's comments):

“When words are both true and kind, they can change our world.” (from here)

“Suffering, if it does not diminish love, will transport you to the furthest shore.” – Buddha (from here)

“You cannot travel the path until you have become the path itself”
–Buddha (from here)

“Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.”
—Buddha. (from here)

He is able who thinks he is able. #Buddha (from here)

And finally, my favorite (from here):

Ok, so now that we've all had a good laugh, I have to ask: why create fake Buddha quotes? The simplest answer is that it's just plane old humane mistakes (plain... human). Little slips in translation or memory, or perhaps big ones and viola! (voilà) a new Buddha quote. As a guy who grew up believing that Americans fought a big war about silver in the 1860s and that the second World War was called "war war two" I can see where this is probably very often the case.

In good Buddhist fashion we can call that the ignorance cause. Then there would also be the greed and aversion causes (the three poisons). Greed perhaps for personal aggrandizement or mere attention, aversion could manifest in besmirching someone else (using a made-up Buddha quote) or making a silly one up to make the Buddha look bad.

And now, why do we repeat them? Well, probably for the same reasons - mostly ignorance if you ask me. We all, especially if we call ourselves Buddhists, owe it to ourselves and the world to read some early Buddhist teachings now and then. Check out Access to Insight (you can download the whole thing on your iPhone/iPod) if you haven't already. Even though I'm a bit of a Theravāda snob these days, I will also heartily suggest reading Tibetan, Zen, Ch'an, Shin, etc writings as well. It's very important to get a taste of each tradition; you don't need to believe it or practice it, but see where it is coming from so that you can see your fellow Buddhists and human beings. So don't forget the great Catholics (Thomas Merton, Merton movie, or Anthony De Mello, "I'm an ass, you're an ass"), Protestants, Hindus, Muslims and others.

And lastly, why are some of us a bit frustrated with these fake Buddha quotes? Well, as Bodhipaksa suggests in his comments, the Buddha simply didn't say that. Why make up new things when we already have HUGE canons of real Buddha quotes? Perhaps we could say it's disrespectful, not to mention the above (ignorant, greedy, malicious) potential roots behind the quote. The stated goal of Buddhism, along with the aleviation of suffering, is to know things as they truly are (yathābhūtaṃ ñāṇaṃ). So fake Buddha quotes, unless they are created out of the heart of a true bodhisattva, will potentially not only spread greater unclarity in the world but also increase suffering.

That brings me to a final, scholarly point. What about the Mahāyāna? And in particular a quote from the Adhyāśayasaṃcodana Sūtra, the “Sūtra for inciting determination”:

Yat kiñcin maitreya subhāṣitaṃ sarvaṃ tad buddhabhāṣitam.

Because, Maitreya, all that is well spoken is Buddha-spoken.

You can find this in some great contemporary scholarly books including: Buddhism, Mahayana Buddhism (P.Williams) And On Being Buddha (P. Griffiths), and Elaborations on Emptiness: Uses of the Heart Sutra (D. Lopez).

The idea here seems to be that whatever is well spoken is the Buddha's speech; i.e. if you speak well, you speak as a Buddha. This is very definitely an innovation of Mahāyāna Buddhism. In an article (free to Jstror subscribers) L. Snellgrove explains that some "misplaced wording" in one of his articles had Aśoka, a great early Buddhist king, declaring that 'all which is well spoken is the word of the Buddha' when in fact he stated that 'whatever has been said by the Buddha, is well spoken'.  We can see where some semantic clarity makes a pretty big difference.

What do you think? Can we 'fake quote' the Buddha for good ends? Do we have a duty to point out fake Buddha quotes made by friends? Or is whatever is 'well spoken' an automatic 'Buddha quote'?

How do we Change?

All change comes from within. I think the easiest way to change the reality around us is to change ourself. The words we may speak when talking with someone can mean something completely different to someone else. I think this is why talking, with someone, about religion or politics can be difficult. Instead, maybe we can try talking about the issues that we face.

I feel that it is impossible to change the world around us, with words, actions, or thoughts. However, I think that the reality we see everyday, is a mirror reflection of our mind. That is why, we should invest, and believe, in ourselves first and foremost. I think that this is also why, helping others, also helps ourself. I have asked the archangels to help me understand more clearly, and I feel that I am. I have asked the archangels to help me see and understand the universe more clearly, and I feel that I do.

The meaning of words is a matter of perspective. I think that each of us assign the meaning of words based upon our experiences in life. We all have a different path up the same mountain. So what any given word means will vary from person to person. I think this is why what I hear from what a person is saying, can be different from what they think they are saying. I think that this is also why people can get in trouble when talking about religion, and politics.

However, I feel that a fundamental problem with our government today is a mirror reflection of a fundamental problem within us all. I feel that the problem is a desire to let someone else solve our problems for us. I feel that many of us might intentionally avoid becoming involved with the government, and our local community because of a number of fears. I think that many of us let our fears control us, far more than us controlling our fear. Maybe it is a fear of conflict, a fear of wasting time, or maybe a fear of success even. So we end up not taking responsibility for our own lives. We elect representatives to public office and expect them to do what we are affraid to do. I hope that we can now see how that can be ludicrous. The only way we can change anything is by changing ourselves first.

I feel that this problem, of fear, can be characterized by the saying" "Don't talk about religon or politics". I think our country was founded in the bath houses, of their time, by talking about religon and politics. I feel that they understood that it can be a lot easier to talk about religion and politics if you stick to the issues that they all faced. I think I have found that the vast majority of people agree on the answers to any given issue. Yet, when someone brings up a political party, country, politician, or a particular religion others will inevitably get defensive and emotional. I think of myself as a Libertarian; And, I have found that a lot of people who call themselves Democrats and Republicans agree with me on most issues. I also have found that most people are calm and reasonable when talking about the issues. I have experienced people getting emotional and unreasonable, only, whenever someone mentions a name. So I think maybe we should talk about whatever is on our minds even if it can be classified as religon or politics, and just remember to avoid talking about any particular poltician, political party, or a specific religion.