Page 52 - The Buddha‘s Noble Eightfold Path

positive than Love, Compassion, or Joy — indeed even more so,
according to Buddhist tradition. Upeksa is not simply the absence

of something else, but a quality and a state in its own right. It is a
positive, vibrant state which is much nearer to the state of bliss
than it is to our usual conception of peace. This also is a very

important aspect of Perfect Emotion.

(f) Sraddha, or Faith and Devotion
This is not faith in the sense of belief, but the emotional aspect
of our total response to the Truth, especially the Truth as

embodied in certain symbols. In Buddhism faith and devotion are
directed especially towards the Three Jewels, or Three Most

Precious Things: the Buddha, the Enlightened Teacher; the
Dharma, or the Teaching of the Way to Enlightenment, and the
Sangha, the Community of disciples treading the Way to

Enlightenment. These Three Jewels have their appropriate
symbols. The Buddha is symbolized by the Buddha image, the

Dharma or Teaching by the scriptures, and the Sangha by the
members of the monastic order. Throughout the Buddhist East,
in all Buddhist countries, these three symbols — the image, the

scriptures, and the monks — are treated with very great
reverence indeed; not on their own account, but on account of

what they represent and what they symbolize.

We have already seen that there are practices for developing

maitri or Love. In the same, way in Buddhism, as in other
religions, there are practices for developing faith and devotion.

One such practice is called the Sevenfold Puja. As its name
suggests, this consists of seven parts, the parts between them
representing a sequence of devotional moods and attitudes

52