Evolutionists believe that species arose by gradual change from
simpler forms. Strawberry plants, cherry trees, blackberries,
raspberries, hawthorns and apples all have a family likeness
because they all arose from a common ancestor, which resembled a
primitive rose. Hence botanists call this plant family the
ROSACEAE.
Similarly all primates (including humans and apes) have a common
ancestor. Going back further, all species of mammals diverged from
a common ancestor, and so on into the dim and distant past until we
reach one common ancestor of all lifeforms, which originated the
DNA coding which is universal for all plants, animals, fungi and
bacteria on earth. Consequently, to evolutionists the biological
species concept does not reflect any underlying reality. A species
is purely a snapshot of an interbreeding population of organisms at
a particular epoch in time, and as time progresses the
characteristics of that population will gradually change in
response to selective pressures.
Buddhist philosophy is evolutionary and thus agrees with the
scientists rather than the theologians. Buddha taught that all
things are impermanent, constantly arising, becoming, changing and
fading . Buddhist philosophers consequently rejected the Platonic
idea of production from 'ideal forms' as being the fallacy of
'production from inherently existent other'. According to most
schools of Buddhism there is nothing whatsoever that is inherently
or independently existent..
The two main creationist objections to evolution are:
1 Disagreement with Genesis
2 Blurring of the theological distinction between human and
animal
Neither of these pose any threat to Buddhist philosophy. The first
objection is based on the need to maintain the truth of a
particular creation story in order to preserve the underlying basis
for all Biblical truth. This is not a worry to Buddhists because
there is no corresponding Buddhist creation myth, and Buddhist
philosophers have always accepted that the universe is many
hundreds of millions of years old.
The second theological objection is that evolution states that
there is a continuum between ape and man, ie human and animal.(A
favourite anti-evolutionary slogan is 'Don't let them make a Monkey
of You!). This is not a problem for Buddhists, who believe that
both humans and animals possess sentient minds which survive death.
However it is a major problem for theologians. The church has
always taught that only humans have immortal souls, whereas animals
are automata whose minds cease at death. Humans and animals were
created separatedly and hence are totally different types of being.
But if there was a gradual transition between animal and man, as
the evolutionists claim, then such theological beliefs fall
apart.
The theologians are left with three alternative unpalatable
viewpoints:
- Both humans and animals are and always have been automata (the
materialist's position).
- Both humans and animals are sentient beings whose minds survive
death (the Buddhist position)
- At some arbitrary date in the past the apemen were suddenly
equipped with souls.
No matter what philosophical knots the theologians may be forced to
unravel, from the Buddhist viewpoint the theory of evolution has
considerable explanatory power, in particular demonstrating why
dukkha (the sensation of unsatisfactoriness) is a pervasive
experience of all sentient beings throughout the evolved
biosphere.
