Looking at human rights through the lens of Theravāda Buddhism

The article aims to explore the concept of human rights from the perspective of Theravada Buddhism on a large scale, examining the potential connections and differences between these two frameworks. In Buddhism, human rights are a moral system for humanity at all levels, beginning from the moral level, the mental level, and the level of wisdom and understanding of all things in nature as they are, without any prejudice. While the notion of human rights has its roots in Western political thought, the Buddhist teachings offer a unique lens through which to view the fundamental rights and dignity of all individuals. In this paper, some basic features of the human rights idea in the contemporary world, as in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), are sketched. Then it will continue with the debate on the compatibility between Buddhism and human rights, as well as the Theravada Buddhist lens that views human rights as a moral and ethical system.