A great gift from "my" monk

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The ones of you which read my blog know that on our trip to Neajangsa i was appointed to accompany one of the novices of Silsangsa temple during our picnic day. We have not talked much, but in the evening i gave him a small gift, as i was told to do. When we met next time, he surprised me by giving me a great book. I was given some buddhist reading before by the abbot of the temple, but it was either too complicated and particular, or too simplyfing. The book he gave me is Walpola Rahula's 'What the Buddha taught' written in 1958 and it explains the fundamentals, the most ancient part of Buddhism which is common for both Mahayana and Therevada Buddhism. I am so eager to read the book, but since my project is coming to the end, there is a lot to do... I just would like to share a quotation, few paragraphs which i read last night.

I would like to explain why this quotation was so "enlightening" for me, but the ones i talked to about my religious opinions know that what i look for is not a God, but the way how to live a good life, which the religion usually gives you. Not that i would need labels so much, but reading this felt actually liberating.

The question has often been asked: Is Buddhism a religion or a philosophy? It does not matter what you call it. Buddhism remains what it is whetever label you may put on it. The label is immaterial. Even the label 'Buddhism' which we give to the teaching of Buddha is of little importance. The name name one gives it is inessential.

What's in a name? That which we call a rose,
By any other name would smell as sweet.

In the same way Truth needs no label: it is neither Buddhist, Christian, Hindu nor Moslem. It is not the monopoly of anybody. Sectarian labels are a hindrance to the independent understanding of Truth, and they produce harmful prejudices in men's minds.

There is true not only in intellectual and spiritual matters, but also in human relations. When, for instance, we meet a man, we do not look on him as a human being, but we put a label on him, such as English, French, German, American or Jew and regard him with all the prejudices associated with that label in our mind. Yet he may be completely free from those attributes which we have put on him.

People are so fond of discriminative labels that they even go to the lenght of putting them on human qualities and emotions common to all. So they talk of different 'brands' of charity, as for example of Buddhist charity or Christian charity, and look down upon other 'brands' of charity. But charity cannot be sectarian; it is neither Christian, Buddhist, Hindu nor Moslem. The love of a mother for her child is neither Buddhist nor Christian; it is mother love. Human qualitites and emotios like love, charity, compassion, tolerance, patience, friendship, desire, hatred, ill-will, ignorance, conceit, etc., need no sectarian labels; they belong to no particular religions.

To the seeker after Truth it is immaterial from where an idea comes. The source and development of an idea is a matter for the academic. In fact, in order to understand Truth, it is not necessary even to know whether the teaching comes from The Buddha, or from anyone else. What is essential is seeing the thing, understanding it.