ABSTRACT
Occasionally, Buddhists have considered the question of how poverty could continue in a world that is cultivated by celestial bodhisattvas. This chapter considers the question of whether Indian Buddhist texts "identify and address sources of human suffering outside of the cravings and ignorance of the sufferer - such as social, political, and economic injustice" - an often-cited criterion of contemporary "engaged Buddhism." Focusing on poverty, it concludes that these sources distinguish between compassionate intentions and action and between material and moral benefit. Furthermore, relief of poverty is seen as a prerequisite for moral development and its neglect is seen as a cause for social degeneration. Therefore, in order to prepare the conditions necessary for teaching the Dharlna, the bodhisattva is called in to relieve these material wants, not only through moral leadership, but also through direct action. The strongest conclusions here are made in reference to the Large Sutra on Perfect Wisdom, with cross-referencing and support from a broad range of other Indian sources.
