Spirituality and Ecology as a Guiding Path to Human Sustainability: Master Hsin Tao’s 2022 Vesak Discourse at the IBC, India

The Museum of World Religions was founded with the aspiration of resolving misunderstandings and conflicts among religions. It seeks to foster a mutual commitment among all faiths to contribute positively to humanity, to benefit the world, and to collectively pursue the truth, virtues, and sublimity.  The Museum serves as a platform for interfaith engagement, where the doctrines of each religion are curated and presented by the respective traditions themselves. From the Museum’s perspective, one is able to appreciate the distinctive features and strengths of each faith. When religious traditions are properly understood and authentically practiced, they serve as safeguards against moral deviation and social disorder, preventing religion from becoming a source of familial or societal conflicts. Therefore, the Museum encourages individuals to find a correct and virtuous religious path. All religions are interconnected and share a common mission: to promote mutual respect, tolerance, and love.

As the Museum marks its twentieth anniversary, we must ask: what further mission does it bear? I have shared this thought with our brothers and sisters of different faiths—religions must stand united. Today, we face myriad global crises: pandemics, wildfires, typhoons, earthquakes. These disasters are the consequence of humanity’s ongoing exploitation of the Earth’s ecosystems. In this context, the religious mission must include ecological sustainability. Religions must come together to safeguard the environment, so that the world may remain livable and flourish, rather than be destroyed to the point where it can no longer support human habitat.

Religion is fundamentally a source of spiritual power, but it is also a force for collective action. We must unite and mobilize this spiritual power to advocate for ecological protection, to restore the planet’s vitality, and to ensure the long-term survival of humankind. The Museum aims to serve as a bridge that brings religions together in shared purpose—to promote a peaceful Earth, love, and harmony.

Today, we advocate what we term “spiritual ecology,” which recognizes the spiritual state of mind as the root of all sentient beings. Humanity and the entirety of existence stand in a relationship of mutual partnership. All living beings—animals, plants, and nature itself—are our companions. On this planet, we must depend upon one another for mutual support, thriving through interconnectedness. Our relationship with the environment is not one of dominance, but of mutual flourishing; from the shared soil of spiritual life, diverse seeds sprout—manifesting as the manifold phenomena of existence. These phenomena are our companions in life, intricately linked to us in a web of interconnection. We must respect the intrinsic value of all beings, and embrace the space for coexistence. In this way, we become aware of, and attuned to, the ecological system of mutual coexistence.

Thus, ecology is not simply about environmental conservation; it must arise from our inner spirituality, our shared ground of coexistence. It begins with respecting the intrinsic value of all beings, embracing the space for coexistence, and together building a world of shared fulfillment. From this foundation, we may cultivate an ecology based on interconnectedness and mutual support for thriving. All beings exist in supporting the benefit of other lives. Thus, we must uphold the values of respect, tolerance, and love.