Buddhist Communication of the True Roots of the Ecological Crisis

Religion and Social Communication, Vol. 15, No. 2, 2017, 125-141

Abstract

The attempt to explain the root cause of the ecological crisis has been carried out by environmental philosophers, scientifc experts as well as religious thinkers. Buddhism with its unique approach to the human condition presents its own framework for dealing with the ecological crisis.  The  Buddhist  framework  places  this  issue  within  the  larger reality of humanity being plagued by unwholesome tendencies, namely greed, hatred and delusion. These unwholesome tendencies represent the  root  poisons  causing  human  spiritual  and  moral  degeneration, which  subsequently  is  manifested  in  personal  and  social  problems, among  them  the  ecological  crisis.  This  paper  applies  this  Buddhist framework to diagnosing the modern day ecological crisis and asserts that Buddhism needs to communicate its worldview to address negative human tendencies that compound the problem.

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