I remember, in school’s history class, the textbooks did not really spell out why communism as an idea was destined to fail. The teacher did not teach clearly too. It was quite a mystery to me, and it made me wonder if I was a communist for a short while. Of course, I am not one and never will be. Here is the retelling of an article floating online, that helps to explain why communism not work in Samsara.
A teacher did an experiment to show her class why communism does not work, why equalising everyone’s efforts does not eradicate poverty, but furthers it. She announces that all in the class will receive the averaged grade for the next tests, using the grade to represent earnings from averaged efforts of everyone.
For the first test, everyone got a B. Those who studied hard enough to receive an A were upset while those who studied little enough to receive C or worse were happy. As such, for the second test, those who used to study more studied less in retaliation, while those who already studied less studied even less gleefully.
Subsequently, the results became worse and worse – till they all failed. What made things worse was that there was increase in unhappiness, distrust, and blame. These made everyone less willing to study well for everyone’s sake, as they felt their own hard work wouldn’t matter in the big picture for themselves, much more everyone else. Ironically, the hoped others would work harder than they ever would.
The moral of the experiment was that for communism to work for everyone, to make a society a better place, everyone would need to put in not only their usual effort, but more in fact – for the slackers especially, to pull up the average results, while those who are already doing well must not become slackers. It also takes much effort to ensure that everyone is putting in their best effort for everyone.
Since everyone eventually knows that it is near impossible to trust everyone does their best, everyone tends to do worse and worse. This is how communism fails – due to selfishness, despite its ideology being based on selflessness, which is attained by few. It ‘forces’ everyone to be equal, and this forcing itself is seen as a great inequality in balance of power, which easily corrupts.
Communism in any unenlightened society also goes against the natural and inevitable law of karma, that every individual has his or her own positive and negative karma, such that it is impossible to simply empower everyone equally to be automatically and sustainably richer or poorer, more or less powerful. Inequalities will naturally arise. Just look at existing and extinct ‘communist’ regimes and this is obvious. Even the enforcers of communism do not really believe communism in principle or practice – or there would be no corruption among the rulers at all.
This however, does not mean that the more wealthy should not share their resources, for it is a must for bettering society efficiently, but this sharing, beyond universally voted taxes for the common good, cannot be forced unnaturally. A better world can arise naturally through genuine compassionate charity done with wisdom – by the people and its chosen government, not by forced equalising.
When there is artificial equalising, due to individual greed for profiting off the masses’ efforts and laziness to put in more personal effort, efforts that used to be genuine for bettering life tends to lessen in quality and quantity. This arises from the delusion that the law of karma of reaping what one sows is removed, as more and more think that they can simply reap what others sow instead. When natural social cause and effect of reaping what one sows is removed, it is the end of social fairness instead of its beginning. Of course, the natural laws of individual and collective karma are still working perfectly. However, when this is not perceived so, the belief in reaping what one sows corrodes.
Is there any place where communism can work? What about Pure Land in the Buddhist teachings? As communism is a political ideology related to physical labour for physical wealth, it does not apply to Pure Land in any way, as none of the above is present there. However, if Pure Land is ‘political’ in nature, though this is impossible, it seems to be the only place where such a system can work, as beings there do not have greed or laziness, that hampers its function. Wealth is not needed there, but merits is plentiful for all. And the only work is to work towards enlightenment.
In Pure Land, there is communal sharing of physical resources created and sustained by the boundless merits of the presiding Buddha and its beings. The guidance of spiritual mentors’ is openly shared too. Nothing in Pure Land is capable of conditioning the rise of the Three Poisons of greed, hatred or delusion, while everything there urges progress towards enlightenment. To create Pure Lands from scratch, there is first need for individuals to purify their minds, which inspires like-minded ones to do the same, to come together. What is the system in Pure Land? Which ‘ism’? Simply, ‘Buddhism’ – at its best! Can politics become pure? Yes and no, for the day it becomes pure, void of politicking, it is no longer politics. And the day there is no more politicking, that part of Samsara becomes a Pure Land.
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