Page 51 - The Buddha‘s Noble Eightfold Path

you went around happy and joyful, especially on the Sabbath,

you were an irreligious, impious, pagan sort of person. It may be
an exaggeration, but I have heard that in the old days in

Scotland you could be prosecuted for laughing on the Sabbath.
Well, don't laugh at the Scots; it's almost as bad down here in
England, and almost as bad among Buddhists — or at least it

was. I remember the first time I attended a Wesak celebration in
London I was appalled. People sat there looking as though they

had come to a funeral; their parents' funeral, probably! When in
the course of my own speech I made a few jokes and humorous
references some of them looked quite startled. A few did

venture to smile and even to laugh, but it was quite clear that
they were not accustomed to that sort of thing. In my speech I

even went so far as to say, 'This is very strange! I have
celebrated Wesak all over the Buddhist world, in Ceylon,
Singapore, Kalimpong, and Bombay, with Tibetans, Sikkhimese,

Sinhalese, Burmese, Chinese, Japanese, and Thais, and have
always found them happy on Wesak day; but here everyone

seems so sad, as though they were not happy that the Buddha
had gained Enlightenment!' That was in 1965, and things have
certainly altered for the better since then; at least Buddhists no

longer celebrate Wesak as though it were a penance, but
appreciate that it is an occasion for rejoicing. Indeed, the whole

Buddhist movement in Britain now presents a more cheerful
and joyous aspect.

(e) Upeksa, or Tranquility
Upeksa is Tranquility or, more simply, Peace. We usually think of

peace as something negative, as just the absence of noise or
disturbance, as when we say, 'l wish they would leave me in
peace.' But really peace is a very positive thing. It is no less

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