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Journal articles on the topic 'Buddhist'
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1
Han, Chenxing. "Diverse Practices and Flexible Beliefs among Young Adult Asian American Buddhists." Journal of Global Buddhism 18 (January 1, 2017): 1–24. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1247854.
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The increasingly criticized "two Buddhisms" dichotomy in scholarly and popular literature bifurcates American Buddhism into two separate groups: white converts who are focused on meditation, and Asian immigrants who engage in devotional practices. This paper builds on critiques of the "two Buddhisms" model by demonstrating the importance of attending to generation as a factor of analysis when studying American Buddhists. Specifically, this study analyzes the diverse practices and nuanced beliefs of twenty-six young adult Asian American Buddhists from a diverse range of ethnic and sectarian backgrounds. In their open-minded attitudes toward a wide range of Buddhist practices and multivalent interpretations of various Buddhist beliefs, these young adults challenge simplistic representations of Asian American Buddhists and present an inclusive vision of Buddhism that embraces nuance, ambiguity, and change.
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Wilson, Jeff. "Buddhism Without Merit: Theorizing Buddhist Religio-Economic Activity in the Contemporary World." Journal of Global Buddhism 20 (January 1, 2019): 87–104. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3238221.
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Merit is the fundamental product of the Buddhist system. Buddhists generate and distribute it through their activities, and merit economics have shaped Buddhist practices, organizations, material culture, and inter-personal relations. But what happens when merit ceases to be recognized as a valuable product? For the first time in Buddhist history, some Buddhists are operating entirely outside of the merit economy, with resulting changes in organization, ritual practice, and economic activities. When merit is devalued, it is replaced by elements from culturally dominant non-merit economies and may take on their associated values and practices. Jettisoning the Buddhist merit economy has financial consequences for Buddhist groups, and those who operate without the merit economy must create new post-merit Buddhisms. A sifting process occurs, as practices, ideas, and institutions that are dependent on merit economic logic are altered or abandoned. Successful forms of Buddhism will be those that can be recast with non-merit logic.
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Ayusheeva, Dulma V. "The Problem of Dichotomy in the Classification of Buddhist Communities in the West." Study of Religion, no. 4 (2020): 69–75. http://dx.doi.org/10.22250/2072-8662.2020.4.69-75.
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The article reveals the concept of “two Buddhisms”, which distinguishes two key categories among Buddhist communities in the West: “ethnic”, represented by immigrants from Asian Buddhist countries and their descendants, and “converts”, or adherents of Western origin. This division into Asian and non-Asian Buddhists is often described as one of the main features of Buddhism in the West.The author concludes that the existing concept in its current form is outdated and requires revision and updating. However, the recognition of such approach as “outdated” in the research of modern Buddhism in Western countries is akin to the recognition of the “outdated” real picture of Buddhism in the West, which even in its modernity demonstrates two different approaches to the implementation of Buddhist teachings. This attitude also leads to the loss of high-quality scientific tools in theoretical and methodological aspects.
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Wang, Juan, and Joan Qionglin Tan. "Towards a Holistic Buddhist Eco-Ethics." Religions 15, no. 7 (July 14, 2024): 844. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rel15070844.
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The debate on Buddhist eco-ethics emerged in the late 20th century and continues to the present day, which fosters the intersection of Buddhist eco-ethics with environmental ethics. However, the current understanding of Buddhist eco-ethics still falls short of a holistic concept. To fill the gap, this paper argues that different macro perspectives should be considered in the process of developing a concept of holistic Buddhist eco-ethics. For this, we firstly attempt to clarify the dispute over the feasibility of Buddhist eco-ethics from the internal, external, and Buddhists’ perspectives. Then, we address the dispute concerning the classification of Buddhist eco-ethics, proposing a typology that accommodates different perspectives. Finally, two methods are suggested to mediate the dispute over Buddhist eco-ethics and justify its holistic concept, that is, regarding Buddhist eco-ethics as a form of virtue ethics and as a product of “engaged Buddhism.” Here, it is also emphasized to include Buddhists’ perspectives when mediating the dispute. Accordingly, we put forward a holistic concept for Buddhist eco-ethics that incorporates three main macro perspectives: ecological ethics in Buddhism, Buddhism in ecological ethics, and Buddhists’ environmental activities. It is hoped that the wisdom of Buddhist eco-ethics can help us forge a path towards a more harmonious and sustainable world in the near future.
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Hsu, Alexander O. "Coming to Terms with “Engaged Buddhism”: Periodizing, Provincializing, and Politicizing the Concept." Journal of Global Buddhism 23, no. 1 (July 7, 2022): 17–31. http://dx.doi.org/10.26034/lu.jgb.2022.1991.
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Whatever happened to “Engaged Buddhism”? Twenty years after a flurry of publication placing this global movement firmly on the map, enthusiasm for the term itself appears to have evaporated. I attempt to reconstruct what happened: scholars turned away from the concept for its reproducing colonialist understandings of traditional Buddhism as essentially world-rejecting, and they developed alternate discourses for describing Buddhist actors’ multifarious social and political engagements, especially in contemporary Asia. I describe the specific rise and fall of the term in Anglophone scholarship, in order for scholars to better grasp the evolution of contemporary Western, Anglophone Buddhisms, to better understand what Buddhists in Asia are in fact doing with the term, and to better think through what it might mean politically for us as scholars to deploy the term at all. In particular, I identify “Academic Engaged Buddhism” (1988–2009) as one hegemonic form of Engaged Buddhism, a Western Buddhist practitioner-facing anthological project of Euro-American scholars with potentially powerful but unevenly distributed effects on Buddhist thought and practice around the world.
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Baumann, Martin (Author). "Global Buddhism: Developmental Periods, Regional Histories and a New Analytical Perspective." Journal of Global Buddhism 2 (January 1, 2001): 1–43. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1323520.
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For the first time in its history, Buddhism has become established on virtually every continent. During the twentieth century, Buddhists have set foot in Australia and New Zealand, in the Southern region of Africa, and in a multitude of European countries, as well as in South and North America. Just as Buddhism in no way forms a homogenous religious tradition in Asia, the appearance of Buddhism outside of Asia is likewise marked by its heterogeneity and diversity. A plurality of Buddhist schools and traditions is observable in many thus-denoted "Western" countries. The whole variety of Theravàda, Mahàyàna, and Tibetan Buddhist traditions can be found outside of Asia often in one country and sometimes even in one major city with some forty or fifty different Buddhist groups in a single place. Buddhists of the various traditions and schools have become neighbors—a rarity in Asia itself. Additionally, Western Buddhist orders and organizations have been founded, signaling ambitious moves to create new, indigenized variations of Buddhist forms, practices, and interpretations. For a better understanding and evaluation of the current situation, a historic contextualization is of much value. Such a perspective brings to the fore the continuities of developments, interests, and experiences, as well as of the particularities and differences. It might justly be asked how much historical perspective is needed on current events and patterns in order to enhance an understanding of the settlement of Buddhists and of Buddhist traditions becoming established outside of Asia. These processes will be sketched in part two, following the outline of a categorization of periods of Buddhism's history in part one. As I shall argue in the third section, it is not only necessary to look to past events and developments in Western, non-Asian countries. Rather, the view must turn to Asia and past changes there in order to set the framework for better understanding of the main patterns of Buddhism in the so-called "West." Whereas hitherto studies have structured the appearance of Buddhism in non-Asian settings along the line of "two Buddhisms," referring to a "gulf between [Buddhist] immigrants and converts" (Seager 1999: 233), I shall suggest that the main line of difference is not only one of people and ethnic ancestry. Rather, I shall demonstrate that the religious concepts held and practices followed are of primary importance in shaping the strands. Attention needs to be drawn to the contrast between traditionalist and modernist Buddhism that is prevalent in both non-Asian and Asian settings.
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Johnston, Lucas. "The "Nature" of Buddhism: A Survey of Relevant Literature and Themes." Worldviews: Global Religions, Culture, and Ecology 10, no. 1 (2006): 69–99. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/156853506776114456.
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AbstractThis paper is a review of the scholarly conversation relating Buddhism to environmental issues, primarily in the United States. Topics of particular concern include important scholarly benchmarks in the field, and the nature of Buddhist ethics. Also considered are the relationships between Buddhism and other schools of thought that have been important in thinking about nature and the environment. In particular I focus on Deep Ecology and related philosophies, Buddhism and Christianity in Process thought, and the relationship between Buddhism and the natural sciences. I outline current practices performed worldwide by people who self-identify as Buddhists that clearly demonstrate environmental consciousness, sometimes actively participating in environmental movements in efforts to resist globalization and, often, Westernization. In the end, this survey perspective illustrates that there is no monolithic Buddhist tradition, but rather a substantial number of adapted (and adapting) Buddhisms.
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Masatsugu, Michael K. "‘Bonded by reverence toward the Buddha’: Asian decolonization, Japanese Americans, and the making of the Buddhist world, 1947–1965." Journal of Global History 8, no. 1 (February 18, 2013): 142–64. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s1740022813000089.
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AbstractThis article examines Asian and Japanese American participation in a post-Second World War global movement for Buddhist revival. It looks at the role that Buddhism and the World Fellowship of Buddhists organization played in shaping transnational networks and the development of a global Buddhist perspective. It contextualizes the growth of a ‘Buddhist world’ within the history of decolonization and Japanese American struggles to reconstruct individual and community identities thoroughly disrupted by the war. The article considers Asian Buddhist approaches toward recognition as national and world citizens rather than colonial subjects and their influence on Japanese American Buddhists’ strategies for combating racial and religious discrimination in the United States. Finally, the article examines how Japanese Americans joined Asian efforts to formulate a distinctly Buddhist response to the Cold War. Buddhists hoped that Buddhism might serve as a ‘third power’ that would provide a critical check on a world increasingly polarized by Cold War politics and threatened by the prospects of nuclear war.
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M K, Aadil, and Dr Satish Kumar. "Buddhism in Indian Himalayan Region." International Journal of English Language, Education and Literature Studies (IJEEL) 2, no. 4 (2023): 48–57. http://dx.doi.org/10.22161/ijeel.2.4.7.
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This study explains why and how Buddhism is significant to the Indian subcontinent and the Himalayan region. It starts with the origins in the past and continues with an investigation of certain border areas. The importance of fostering Buddhism is emphasized throughout. Buddhism in the Indian Himalayas: a study groups of Buddhists, Buddhist temples, and Buddhist communities’ underneath is a condensed and relevant account of the gatherings, which discuss the current condition of Buddhist culture and its shifting patterns.
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RAPIADI, RAPIADI, WISTINA SENERU, VIKE APRILIANIN MARWINTARIA SAPUTRI, PANNA PANNA, and ADI KRISTIANTO. "MEMPERKUAT IDENTITAS GENERASI BUDDHIS YANG UNGGUL BERLANDASKAN NILAI-NILAI BUDDHAYANA (BUDDHIS CAMP PEMUDA BUDDHAYANA SEPROVINSI NTB)." COMMUNITY : Jurnal Pengabdian Kepada Masyarakat 3, no. 2 (February 13, 2024): 46–53. http://dx.doi.org/10.51878/community.v3i2.2726.
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The Buddhist Camp activities for Buddhayana youth throughout NTB Province which will be held on 07–09 April 2023 at Vihara Jaya Wijya, North Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, carry the theme "Strengthening the Identity of a Superior Buddhist Generation Based on Buddhayana Values". This theme was chosen because the young generation of Buddhists is the hope for the future of Buddhism. Buddhayana Youth Buddhist Camp throughout NTB Province is an activity that aims to strengthen the identity of a superior Buddhist generation based on Buddhayana values. carried out through a series of activities, such as Dharma classes, group discussions, and meditation. Participants are given a deep understanding of Buddhist teachings and empowered to apply them in everyday life. The result is young people who are more connected to religious values and are able to use Buddhayana as a moral foundation in their actions. Buddhist Camp participants are also given the opportunity to develop themselves through various activities, such as mindfulness and art. These activities can help participants to better understand themselves and their potential. Buddhist Camp participants are encouraged to practice Buddhist teachings in their daily lives. ABSTRAKKegiatan Buddhis Camp pemuda buddhayana se-Provinsi NTB yang diselenggarakan pada tanggal 07–09 April 2023 di Vihara jaya Wijya Lombok Utara, Nusa Tenggara Barat, mengusung tema "Memperkuat Identitas Generasi Buddhis yang Unggul Berlandaskan Nilai-Nilai Buddhayana". Tema ini dipilih karena generasi muda Buddhis merupakan harapan masa depan agama Buddha. Buddhis Camp Pemuda Buddhayana se-Provinsi NTB merupakan sebuah kegiatan yang bertujuan untuk memperkuat identitas generasi Buddhis yang unggul dengan landasan pada nilai-nilai Buddhayana. dilakukan melalui serangkaian kegiatan, seperti kelas Dharma, diskusi kelompok, dan meditasi. Peserta diberikan pemahaman mendalam terhadap ajaran Buddha dan diberdayakan untuk mengaplikasikannya dalam kehidupan sehari-hari. Hasilnya adalah pemuda yang lebih terkoneksi dengan nilai-nilai agama dan mampu menjadikan Buddhayana sebagai landasan moral dalam tindakan mereka.Peserta Buddhis Camp juga diberikan kesempatan untuk mengembangkan diri melalui berbagai kegiatan, seperti mindfulness, dan seni. Kegiatan-kegiatan tersebut dapat membantu peserta untuk lebih memahami diri sendiri dan potensinya.Peserta Buddhis Camp didorong untuk mempraktikkan ajaran Buddha dalam kehidupan sehari-hari.
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Williams-Oerberg, Elizabeth, Brooke Schedneck, and Ann Gleig. "Multiple Buddhisms in Ladakh: Strategic Secularities and Missionaries Fighting Decline." Religions 12, no. 11 (October 27, 2021): 932. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rel12110932.
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During fieldwork in Ladakh in July–August 2018, three authors from Asian studies, anthropology, and religious studies backgrounds researched “multiple Buddhisms” in Ladakh, India. Two case studies are presented: a Buddhist monastery festival by the Drikung Kagyü Tibetan Buddhist sect, and a Theravada monastic complex, called Mahabodhi International Meditation Center (MIMC). Through the transnational contexts of both of these case studies, we argue that Buddhist leaders adapt their teachings to appeal to specific audiences with the underlying goal of preserving the tradition. The Buddhist monastery festival engages with both the scientific and the magical or mystical elements of Buddhism for two very different European audiences. At MIMC, a secular spirituality mixes with Buddhism for international tourists on a meditation retreat. Finally, at MIMC, Thai Buddhist monks learn how to fight the decline of Buddhism through missionizing Theravada Buddhism in this land dominated by Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. Paying attention to this multiplicity—to “multiple Buddhisms”—we argue, makes space for the complicated, ambiguous, and at times contradictory manner in which Buddhism is positioned in regards to secularism and secularity.
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Sun, Zhentao. "How Do Working-Class People in China Comment on Chinese-Language Buddhist Films?" Religions 13, no. 12 (November 29, 2022): 1162. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rel13121162.
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The dissemination and acceptance of Chinese-language Buddhist films in China have not yet received much attention. This paper takes four Chinese-language Buddhist films as samples to analyze the Buddhist doctrines they contain and how they are reviewed by the Chinese working class. It points out that most Chinese working-class people are not Buddhists, their knowledge of Buddhist doctrines is relatively small and shallow, and they rely on their daily life experiences when enjoying Buddhist films, so they cannot understand Buddhist doctrines in Buddhist films that are too difficult or contrary to their daily life experiences. It argues that Chinese-language Buddhist films need to balance the missionary aspirations of Buddhism with the popular attributes of cinema so as to enhance the appeal and influence of Buddhism among the working class.
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Kadoi, Yuka. "Revisiting Buddhism in Ilkhanid Iran: Archaeology, Toponymy and Visual Culture." Acta Mongolica 20, no. 540 (September 1, 2022): 35–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.22353/am.202201.04.
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It is generally agreed that Buddhism, which already came to be known in West Asia during the Sasanian period through commercial exchanges with India, revived in Iran under the Ilkhanids. A pioneering study of Buddhist-Islamic interactions by Elverskog (Buddhism and Islam on the Silk Road, 2010) amply demonstrates the importance of the Mongol period for the understanding of the religious contacts between Buddhists and Muslims, with particular reference to the role of Tibet in this unique socio-cultural as well as scientific encounter (the latter subject is explored by several studies, notably Islam and Tibet – Interactions along the Musk Routes, 2016). On the other hand, it remains a challenging task as to how the impact of Buddhism on the visual and material culture of Ilkhanid Iran should be reassessed, apart from attributions of unusual architectural remains to former Buddhist sites or interpretations of Buddhis iconographical elements found in manuscript paintings and decorative objects.
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Dayu, Dayu dhira wintako, Suharno, and Danang Try Purnomo. "AKULTURASI BUDAYA AKULTURASI BUDAYA JAWA DAN AGAMA BUDDHA DALAM PUJA BAKTI BUDDHA JAWI WISNU." Sabbhata Yatra: Jurnal Pariwisata dan Budaya 2, no. 2 (December 31, 2021): 102–20. http://dx.doi.org/10.53565/sabbhatayatra.v2i2.362.
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Abstract
 
 The result of this research was Jawi Vishnu Buddhist in Kutorejo Hamlet first entered and developed in 1955 brought by a character named Father Resi Kusuma Dewa. Jawi Vishnu Buddhist grew rapidly throughout Kutorejo Hamlet. Jawi Wisnu Buddhist experienced a decrease in the number of followers due to the G30/SPKI incident, Jawi Vishnu Buddhists united with Buddhism until now. There was a form of acculturation of Javanese culture and Buddhism in the process of Buddhist worship of Jawi Vishnu. This form of acculturation was found in the monastery building and the clothes of the Jawi Vishnu Buddhists who still wore Javanese traditional clothes. The offerings used in the Buddhist Worship process was a set of banana that was equipped with sekar kinang and also sari or money, Javanese mantras that had been previously believed. there was an effort to maintain the Buddhist tradition of Jawi Vishnu at Vihara Jati Damaloka. It was that the elders continued to invite the younger generation to participate in the management of the monastery. In addition, the administrators of the Vihara and Buddhist Jawi elders also cooperated with the government. In this case was the Directorate General of Buddhist Guidance in the formation of the Jawi Buddhist community.
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Menšíková, Tereza. "Negotiating Boundaries Between "Religious" and "Secular": A Struggle for the Sense of Collectivity Among Ambedkarite Buddhists in Maharashtra." Journal of Global Buddhism 24, no. 2 (December 20, 2023): 64–82. http://dx.doi.org/10.26034/lu.jgb.2023.3840.
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Since the first mass conversion of Dalits to Buddhism in 1956, followers of B. R. Ambedkar's vision have propagated Buddhism throughout India, creating various activist networks across, but not limited to, Maharashtra. Despite their aspirations for socio-political change and emancipation for marginalized communities experiencing caste discrimination, Ambedkarite Buddhists have faced challenges in mobilization and organization since the demise of Ambedkar. This article addresses the struggle of building a sense of collectivity within the Ambedkarite Buddhist population, offering insights from the perspective of young Ambedkarite Buddhists in Mumbai. The ethnographic study primarily focuses on interpreting the Ambedkarite Buddhist tradition and its position within the broader Buddhist framework and delves into the divergence in efforts to emplace Buddhism on the "religious-secular" spectrum among practitioners. The article aims to provide an interpretation of the challenges faced by the Ambedkarite Buddhists in pursuing a unified front for effecting social change in contemporary India.
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Badmaev, V. N. "“An Intellectual Pilgrimage to Buddhism”." Asia & Africa today, no. 12 (December 15, 2024): 73–76. https://doi.org/10.31857/s0321507524120092.
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On 12–14 August, the II International Buddhist Forum “Traditional Buddhism and Challenges of Modernity” was held in Ulan-Ude – a significant and important event for all countries of the Buddhist world. The following goals of the Forum were outlined: to update the understanding of Buddhist culture, philosophy and practice in the conditions of modern society; to strengthen international ties of Buddhists; to give new impetus to scientificeducational and cultural cooperation of Buddhist organizations of different countries. The scientific program of the Forum became a kind of “intellectual pilgrimage to Buddhism”. As part of the forum, the Institute of Mongolian, Buddhist and Tibetan Studies of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences organized an international scientific conference “Buddhism in a Changing World”. The purpose was to discuss current issues of studying, preserving and using Buddhist heritage in modern conditions, the interaction of science and Buddhism, the significance and role of Buddhism in the socio-political, economic, moral life of humanity, and in resolving problems, conflicts and contradictions of the modern world.
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Zhu, Qingzhi, and Bohan Li. "The language of Chinese Buddhism." International Journal of Chinese Linguistics 5, no. 1 (August 10, 2018): 1–32. http://dx.doi.org/10.1075/ijchl.17010.zhu.
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Abstract This is a more detailed introduction of the language of Chinese Buddhism based on our latest research of Buddhist Chinese, which is a modern Chinese historical linguistic category applied to a form of written Chinese originated for and used in Buddhist texts, including the translations into Chinese of Indian Buddhist scriptures and all Chinese works of Buddhism composed by Chinese monks and lay Buddhists in the past. We attempt to answer in this paper the following questions: What is Buddhist Chinese? What is the main difference between Buddhist Chinese and non-Buddhist Chinese? What role did this language play in the history of Chinese language development? And what is the value of this language for the Chinese Historical Linguistics?
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Filatov, Sergei B. "Buryatia: Is a Buddhist Vertical Possible?" Oriental Courier, no. 4 (2023): 231. http://dx.doi.org/10.18254/s268684310029208-6.
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In the 60s of 18th century, Russian government organized management structure of Buddhist religious life of the Buryats according to the traditional model for the empire — in the form of a vertical institution headed by Pandito Hambo Lama. In this form the Buddhist faith existed until 1917. Soviet government’s struggle with religion affected Buryat Buddhists to the same extent as other religions in the vast USSR. Before the Great Patriotic War, there was no legal Buddhism. In 1948 Buddhism in the USSR was legalized and existed officially only in Buryatia, where the Central Spiritual Administration of Buddhists (CDUB) was created and were registered two parishes. The revival of Buddhism in Buryatia began in 1990. In 1995, Khambo Lama Ayusheyev reformed the CDUB, changed its name to the Traditional Buddhist Sangha of Russia (TBSR) and adopted a new Charter. In accordance with which the Hambo Lama placed datsans under his administrative and financial control, which provided the top of the TBSR with power over the Buddhist clergy. TBSR began to act as a defender of traditional religiosity (within the framework of the local school of Gelug Tibetan Buddhism) and the national identity of the Buryat people. At the same time, several alternative Buddhist associations have emerged, causing a sharp rejection of the TBSR. The leader of the TBSR, Khambo Lama Ayusheev, is constantly in conflict with local secular authorities and alternative Buddhists for the primacy and choice of the path of development of the Buryat people.
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Smyer Yü, Dan. "Freeing Animals: Sino-Tibetan Buddhist Environmentalism and Ecological Challenges." Religions 14, no. 1 (January 12, 2023): 110. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rel14010110.
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Buddhist environmentalism in its varieties across the world is an integral part of the global environmental discourse centered on exploring new planetary ethics for sustainable futures. While recognizing the Buddhist role in global environmental movements, the author of this article proposes that the observable strength of Buddhist environmentalism is in local and global environmental advocacy grounded in the Buddhist ethics of interdependence, even as, canonically, Buddhism does not offer what is commonly recognized by scientists and scholars as traditional ecological knowledge or religious ecology. To substantiate this, this article offers a textual assessment of the Buddhist canon’s lack of systematic ecological knowledge, and a case study of how freeing domestic animals and advocating vegetarianism among contemporary Tibetan Buddhists in China, inclusive of non-Tibetan converts, mainly benefits human wellbeing and at the same time is entangled in social affairs that have little to do with the ecological wellbeing of the Tibetan Plateau and urban China. This debate is by no means intended to negate the successes of Buddhist environmentalism; instead, it draws fine lines between the claimed canonic basis of Buddhist ecology, the strength of Buddhist environmental advocacy, the everyday practices of Buddhism, and the aspirations for strengthening the ecological foundation of Buddhist environmental activism. Thinking in line with eco-Buddhists, the author concludes the article by proposing an Earth Sutra, a hypothetical future canonic text as the ecological basis of Buddhist environmentalism.
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Narasimhan, Shrinidhi. "Between the Global and Regional: Asia in the Tamil Buddhist Imagination." CASTE / A Global Journal on Social Exclusion 3, no. 1 (May 6, 2022): 31–48. http://dx.doi.org/10.26812/caste.v3i1.356.
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At the turn of the nineteenth century, Madras became home to a movement that anticipated Ambedkar’s turn to Buddhism by nearly half a century. Founded in 1898, the Sakya Buddhist Society was led by Iyothee Thass (1845–1914) and became the first Dalit Buddhist revival of its kind in late colonial India. In this article, I explore the global dimensions of Sakya Buddhism through an intertextual reading of its journal, Oru Paica Tamilan, and the work of Asian Buddhists like Henry Olcott and Anagarika Dharmapala who were associated with the movement. I argue that Sakya Buddhism’s historical imaginaire of Dalits as indigenous Buddhists intersected with the political concerns that drove Asian Buddhist revivalist movements in important ways. I also show that the movement created a distinctly Tamil tradition of Buddhism for Dalits and attempted to reorient them towards the broader Buddhist world even as they had a notionally marginal presence within this landscape. In doing so, I propose the category of ‘pararegional’ as a way of thinking about seemingly uneven or unidirectional interactions between different spatial scales such as ‘global’ and ‘regional'.
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Tonsakulrungruang, Khemthong. "The Revival of Buddhist Nationalism in Thailand and Its Adverse Impact on Religious Freedom." Asian Journal of Law and Society 8, no. 1 (February 2021): 72–87. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/als.2020.48.
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AbstractTriggered by the sense of crisis, the Thai state and Thai Buddhism are renewing their traditional relationship kindled by the monarch-led reform over a century ago. Thai Buddhism is reviving its lost aura and hegemony while the political conservatives are looking for legitimacy and collective identity in a time of democratic regression. The result is the rise of the Buddhist-nationalistic movement, Buddhist-as-Thainess notion. The phenomenon has grown more mainstream in recent years. These extreme Buddhists pressure the government to adopt a new constitutional relationship that brings the two entities closer to a full establishment. They also target both religious minorities as well as non-mainstream Buddhists. The revival of Buddhist nationalism foretells rising tension as well as diminishing religious freedom.
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Yulianti, Yulianti. "The Birth of Buddhist Organizations in Modern Indonesia, 1900–1959." Religions 13, no. 3 (March 3, 2022): 217. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rel13030217.
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In the early twentieth century, Indonesia was a predominantly Muslim majority colony under the Dutch Christian colonial authorities. The 1930 volkstelling (census record) conducted by the Dutch colonial government recorded four religions being practiced in the archipelago; Buddhism was not one of them. Nevertheless, sources such as newspapers and private magazines published by various organizations showed that Buddhism was being practiced in Java. In the 1930s, several organizations published books and translations on Buddhism. The first organization that exclusively identified itself as Buddhist, the Java Buddhist Association, was established in 1929 by Dutch Buddhists in West Java. Five years later, Peranakan Chinese in Batavia established a second Buddhist organization. This article seeks to explore two issues, namely: the history and development of Buddhist institutions during the late colonial and early post-Independence Indonesia; and the transnational networks of these institutions in the promotion of Buddhist knowledge in modern Indonesia.
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Han, Chenxing. "Contesting “Conversion” and “Reversion” among Young Adult Asian American Buddhists." Religions 10, no. 4 (April 11, 2019): 261. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rel10040261.
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This paper engages the perspectives of thirty young adult Asian American Buddhists (YAAABs) raised in non-Buddhist households. Grounded in semi-structured, one-on-one in-person and email interviews, my research reveals the family tensions and challenges of belonging faced by a group straddling multiple religious and cultural worlds. These young adults articulate their alienation from both predominantly white and predominantly Asian Buddhist communities in America. On the one hand, they express ambivalence over adopting the label of “convert” because of its Christian connotations as well as its associations with whiteness in the American Buddhist context. On the other hand, they lack the familiarity with Asian Buddhist cultures experienced by second- or multi-generation YAAABs who grew up in Buddhist families. In their nuanced responses to arguments that (1) American convert Buddhism is a non-Asian phenomenon, and (2) Asians in the West can only “revert” to Buddhism, these young adults assert the plurality and hybridity of their lived experiences as representative of all American Buddhists, rather than incidental characteristics of a fringe group within a white-dominated category.
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Barman, Rup Kumar. "Buddhist Culture of Contemporary West Bengal (Reflections on the Bengali-speaking Buddhists)." SMARATUNGGA: JURNAL OF EDUCATION AND BUDDHIST STUDIES 2, no. 2 (December 31, 2022): 70–82. http://dx.doi.org/10.53417/sjebs.v2i2.81.
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Since the inception of Buddhism, the people of Bengal have maintained a very close relationship with Buddhist ideologies. In fact, Bengal appeared as a dominant center of Buddhist culture in the early medieval period (sixth to twelfth century CE) both for its institutional flavour as well as for state- sponsorship. However, with the fall of royal patronage and the conversion of the Buddhists to other religious faiths, Buddhism gradually lost its prominence in Bengal. It was during the colonial period (1757 to 1947 CE), Buddhism again started reviving in different corners of Bengal principally in the early twentieth century. However, the ‘Partition of Bengal Province (in 1947) appeared as a serious setback for the fate of Buddhism in this region. The East Bengali Buddhists had started a new episode of the struggle for survival in India more precisely in West Bengal as ‘refugees’ or as ‘asylum seekers. After their migration to West Bengal, the Bengali-speaking Buddhists have aspired to build up several Viharas (monasteries), Sanghasrams (spiritual hermitage), temples, and institutions in Kolkata, Sub-Himalayan Bengal, and certain other districts of West Bengal. They have preserved and maintained the Buddhist socio-cultural traditions that they have inherited from the southeastern corner of former East Bengal. This paper highlights all these aspects of the Buddhist culture of West Bengal with a fresh outlook.
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Buckelew, Kevin. "Becoming Chinese Buddhas: Claims to Authority and the Making of Chan Buddhist Identity." T’oung Pao 105, no. 3-4 (November 11, 2019): 357–400. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/15685322-10534p04.
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AbstractAccording to many recent scholars, by the Song dynasty Chan Buddhists had come to identify not primarily as meditation experts—following the literal meaning of chan—but rather as full-fledged buddhas. This article pursues a deeper understanding of how, exactly, Chan Buddhists claimed to be buddhas during the eighth through eleventh centuries, a critical period in the formation of Chan identity. It also addresses the relationship between Chan Buddhists’ claims to the personal status of buddhahood, their claims to membership in lineages extending back to the Buddha, and their appeals to doctrines of universal buddhahood. Closely examining Chan Buddhists’ claims to be buddhas helps explain the tradition’s rise to virtually unrivaled elite status in Song-era Buddhist monasticism, and illuminates the emergence of new genres of Chan Buddhist literature—such as “discourse records” (yulu)—that came to be treated with the respect previously reserved for canonical Buddhist scriptures.
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Tian, Yulu. "How Taiwanese Buddhism Responds to the Feminist Movement in Modern Taiwan." Communications in Humanities Research 6, no. 1 (September 14, 2023): 156–61. http://dx.doi.org/10.54254/2753-7064/6/20230171.
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Gender is a very important issue in religious studies. Although the issue of female identity was always ignored in a Buddhist society, we can find Buddhist attitudes towards women according to historical Buddhist texts. We find that Buddhists have a very ambivalent attitude towards female identity, acknowledging the equal spiritual potential of women while emphasizing their bad characteristics because of bad karma in the past. Because of the spread of Buddhist texts, this contradictory concept of gender has been extended to modern Buddhist society, leading to the obstacles of modern Buddhists responding to the female movement. This paper tries to analyze how Taiwanese Buddhism responds to the feminist movement in modern Taiwan. Through observing the efforts of two powerful Taiwanese local Buddhist organizations, we can see the efforts of Buddhist society in Taiwan to raise the status and level of learning of nuns, although based on accepting some discriminatory concepts of traditional Buddhist texts. The women's movement raised the social status and influence of nuns, allowing them to challenge the patriarchal Buddhist narrative and the traditional monastic system, and in turn instilled gender equality in the Buddhist community that monks and nuns are equalized.
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Manik, R. S. "KHASHA BUDDHIST HERITAGE: SCOPE AND CHALLENGES." BUDDHIST STUDIES 2, no. 9 (2024): 58–65. https://doi.org/10.30792/2949-5768-2024-9-58-65.
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Khasha Kingdom was famous for ancient Buddhist history and architecture. King Nagaraja, who came from Khari Province, located in China at present, established the Khasha kingdom around the 12th century. Based on the historical and archeological records existing at the place, this country was renowned for Buddhism and Buddhist heritage; however, at present, there are just a few remaining Buddhist heritages that are in critical condition; Buddhism is almost collapsed from those places. Some of the remarkable and significant Buddhist heritage of that place is Kānkre Bihar (Buddhist Monastery). Pātharnauli (Stupa including images of five Buddhas), Pādukāsthāna (Foot print of Buddha), etc. This paper explores the historical significance of Buddhism and its heritage as Khasha Kingsom. It also highlights the present status of Buddhist heritage and its scope and challenges. Analytical and descriptive methods have been applied, and primary and secondary sources have been consulted to draft this paper.
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MOYAR, MARK. "Political Monks: The Militant Buddhist Movement during the Vietnam War." Modern Asian Studies 38, no. 4 (October 2004): 749–84. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0026749x04001295.
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From November 1963 to July 1965, the militant Buddhist movement was the primary cause of political instability in South Vietnam. While the militant Buddhists maintained that they represented the Buddhist masses and were fighting merely for religious freedom, they actually constituted a small and unrepresentative minority that was attempting to gain political dominance. Relying extensively on Byzantine intrigue and mob violence to manipulate the government, the militant Buddhists practiced a form of political activism that was inconsistent with traditional Vietnamese Buddhism. The evidence also suggests that some of the militant Buddhist leaders were agents of the Vietnamese Communists.
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Ulanov, M. S. "BUDDHISM IN THE AGE OF GLOBALIZATION." BUDDHIST STUDIES 1, no. 8 (2024): 136–45. https://doi.org/10.30792/2949-5768-2024-8-136-145.
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The article examines the problem of adapting Buddhism to the modern global world. The author suggests considering Buddhism in the context of the concept of glocalization. In relation to Buddhism, glocalization can mean the adaptation of the Buddhist principle of the «Middle Way» in relation to the processes of globalization, avoiding the extremes of globalization and localization. The «flexibility», pragmatism and tolerance of Buddhism allow it to fit into modern global socio-cultural processes quite organically and painlessly, without losing its traditions and the originality of local forms. The history of Buddhism in recent decades clearly shows that spiritual values and teachings that originated in the East can be globalized, modernized and play an important role in modern society, including Western society. The activities of recognized spiritual leaders play an important role in the process of adapting Buddhism to modern global realities. In the modern world, there is significant interest in traditional Buddhist philosophy and psychophysical practice, which, in particular, has found expression in the dialogue between scientists and Buddhist monks. Today, it is necessary to analyze the experience and potential of Buddhist culture in solving environmental problems. Many environmental activists today have found inspiration and valuable ideas in the Buddhist tradition. At the same time, Buddhists themselves are beginning to play an increasingly important role in the environmental movement. The participation of Buddhist communities in countering the pandemic and in charitable activities has shown that Buddhism is capable of responding to new social challenges.
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Zielke, Zoe. "Contesting Religious Boundaries with Care: Engaged Buddhism and Eco-Activism in the UK." Religions 14, no. 8 (July 31, 2023): 986. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rel14080986.
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The word “Buddhism” conjures up a variety of images and connotations: monks meditating on hilltops, mindfulness, cheerful Buddha caricatures. It is unlikely that these depictions suggest engagement with societal issues. And yet, this is precisely what many Buddhist communities and traditions are involving themselves in around the world. Often referred to as “engaged Buddhism”, this development in the Buddhist tradition refers to the application of Buddhist principles and practices to situations of social and environmental suffering. Nevertheless, there are critics of this emerging trend who contend that Buddhists should refrain from engaging in societal issues, believing that such involvement contradicts the teachings of the Buddha and distracts from the ultimate goal of liberation. Built on two years of ethnographic research, this paper explores the ways in which a particular environmentally engaged Buddhist group known as “Extinction Rebellion Buddhists” adapt their religious beliefs and practices in response to the challenges posed by the Anthropocene, where concerns for our collective world have resulted in increasing interest in the ways in which humans actively care for the environment. In reformulating Buddhist principles and meditation as a “politics of care”, care becomes a tool for change, with the group not only confronting the pressing issues of the Anthropocene but also disrupting Buddhism’s traditionally inward-looking, other-worldly tendencies, carving out space for autonomy and transformation within the broader landscape of UK Buddhism.
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Kim, Seong-Hwan. "Buddhism in al-Fihrist of Ibn al-Nadīm." Institute of Middle Eastern Affairs 21, no. 2 (August 30, 2022): 265–85. http://dx.doi.org/10.52891/jmea.2022.21.1.265.
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This study analyzes the records related to Buddhism in Ibn al-Nadīm's al-Fihrist and examines how Muslims in the 10th century perceived Buddhism.
 Al-Fihrist is a list of Arabic literature, consisting of a total of ten chapters(maqāla) and Ibn al-Nadīm recorded what he had seen and heard about Buddhism in Chapter nine. He described the character of Buddhists positively. However, he used the two terms for Buddha and Bodhisattva without distinction. He also introduced several claims about the Buddha's religious status, but did not clearly state his position on the Buddha from the Islamic perspective. Although his record mentions existence of many Buddhas, it lacks doctrinal explanation on the concept of multiple Buddhas. Also, Buddhists’ customs and statues of Buddha are described in relatively detail, but there are some parts that are confused with Hindu culture. Therefore, it seems that Muslims at that time showed some interest in external aspects of Buddhism such as Buddhist character, customs, and statues, but lacked a doctrinal understanding of Buddhism.
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Buswell, Robert E. "Korean Buddhist Journeys to Lands Worldly and Otherworldly." Journal of Asian Studies 68, no. 4 (November 2009): 1055–75. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0021911809990702.
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This Presidential Address explores Korean Buddhist travel undertaken for religious training, missionary propagation, and devotional pilgrimage. By traveling to India and throughout East Asia, as well as to the mythic undersea bastion of the faith, Koreans demonstrated their associations with the wider world of Buddhist culture, whether it be terrestrial or cosmological. Simultaneous with continued travel overseas to the Chinese mainland and the Buddhist homeland of India, Koreans also brought those sacred sites home through a wholesale remapping of the domestic landscape. As local geography became universalized, there was less need for the long, dangerous journeys overseas to Buddhist sacred sites: instead, the geography of Buddhism became implicit within the indigenous landscape, turning Korea into the Buddha-land itself. Once this “relocalization” of Buddhism had occurred, Korean Buddhists were able to travel through the sacred geography of Buddhism from the (relative) comfort of their own locale.
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Thapa, Shanker, and Rupa Luitel. "Scholastic Tradition and Perpetuation of Knowledge in Buddhism of Medieval Kathmandu Valley." Journal of Buddhist Studies (T.U.) 1, no. 1 (May 1, 2024): 65–90. https://doi.org/10.3126/jbuddhists.v1i1.75073.
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Buddhist manuscripts are the literary heritage and source of Buddhist spirituality extant in Pālī, Sanskrit, Chinese, and Tibetan languages. Nepal has marked extraordinary development of Buddhist scholarship during the medieval times. Nepali Pandits became famous far and wide. Development of Buddhist scholarship largely contributed in Buddhist intellectuality and manuscript culture. Newār Buddhists enormously contributed in Sanskrit manuscript writing that turned Kathmandu valley into an abode of Sanskrit Mss. They are the only extant original textual sources of Sanskrit Buddhism. In modern century, scholars and monks arrived in Nepal to procure manuscripts. It later developed modern scholarship in Mahāyāna Buddhism. It also helped to create manuscripts repositories in India, Tibet China, Japan, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Denmark, Sweden, Russia, and so on. The scholarly tradition gradually came to an end. Manuscript culture remained in sets of performing book rituals. Manuscripts remained only as ritual objects in Nepal.
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Mathé, Thierry. "Le développement du bouddhisme en contexte italien. Aspects de la modernisation et du pluralisme religieux en Italie." Social Compass 57, no. 4 (December 2010): 521–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0037768610383373.
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The author presents a general overview of the development of Buddhism in Italy, where a religious modernization strategy has existed for some time, even though it has not led to major institutional deregulation of the Catholic Church. This can explain the small number of Italian Buddhists in comparison with those in similar countries. The author proposes a historical, statistical and institutional presentation of Buddhism in Italy and develops a comprehensive approach that shows that Italian Buddhists, even if deriving from different Buddhist traditions, share motivation similarities. Finally, he analyzes the social and religious specificity of the Italian context, and its effect on the emergence of new Buddhist communities.
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Chakrabarty, Premangshu, and Rishita Biswas. "Buddhism in Agrarian Society of Rural Bengal: Perspectives of Belief Systems with a Focus on Ritual and Deities." SMARATUNGGA: JURNAL OF EDUCATION AND BUDDHIST STUDIES 3, no. 2 (October 1, 2023): 77–92. http://dx.doi.org/10.53417/sjebs.v3i2.110.
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Buddhism was the State Religion of Bengal at least for more than four hundred years between mid of 8th century and 12th century during the Pala reign in Bengal. In the 2011 Indian census, the percentage of Buddhists in West Bengal was 0.31% while in Bangladesh less than 1% of the total population is now a follower of Buddhism. Most of the Buddhists were converted to Islam during the Sultanate rule in Bengal while Hinduism silently took over many of their shrines and deities. This paper is an attempt to revisit the cultural landscape of early Buddhism in Bengal along with a focus on the elements of Buddhist culture in folk life applying cultural geographical methodologies and examining the presence of Buddhist rituals and deities in agrarian society in sublime form. A literature review was followed by extensive fieldwork during festivities of the shrines of Hindu deities having a connection with early Buddhism of Bengal. Along with participant observation during ritualistic practices, interviews, and focus group discussion methods have been applied involving stakeholders to obtain qualitative data for analysis. The results reveal the various manifestations of the interplay between the process of universalization and parochialization in the dynamism of the evolving belief system of an apparently Non-Buddhist folk society of the present day, the root of the culture of which was exclusively Buddhist.
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Oza, Preeti. "ENGAGED DHAMMA AND TRANSFORMATION OF DALITS- AN EGALITARIAN EQUATION IN INDIA TODAY." GAP iNTERDISCIPLINARITIES - A GLOBAL JOURNAL OF INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES 2, no. 3 (August 9, 2019): 412–14. http://dx.doi.org/10.47968/gapin.230072.
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Engaged Buddhism refers to Buddhists who are seeking ways to apply the insights from meditation practice and dharma teachings to situations of social, political, environmental, and economic suffering and injustice. The Non-duality of Personal and Social Practice is making such engagement possible even today. Buddhist teachings themselves as the restrictive social conditions within which Asian Buddhism has had to function. To survive in the often ruthless world of kings and emperors, Buddhism needed to emphasize its otherworldliness. This encouraged Buddhist institutions and Buddhist teachings (especially regarding karma and merit) to develop in ways that did not question the social order. In India today, Modern democracy and respect for human rights, however imperfectly realized, offer new opportunities for understanding the broader implications of Buddhist teachings. Furthermore, while it is true that the post/modern world is quite different from the Buddha‟s, Buddhism is thriving today because its basic principles remain just as true as when the Buddha taught them. A classic case of engaged Buddhism in India is discussed in this paper which deliberates on the Dalit- Buddhist equation in modern India. For Dalits, whose material circumstances were completely different from the higher castes, the motivation continually remained: to find out concerning suffering and to achieve its finish, in every person‟s life and in society. Several of them have turned to Dhamma in response to the Buddha‟s central message concerning suffering and therefore the finish of suffering. Previously lower-caste Hindus, the Indian Buddhists in Nagpur regenerate under the political influence of Babasaheb Ambedkar, the author of India‟s constitution, to denounce caste oppression. They became Buddhist for political and religious reasons, and today, the implications of their actions still unfold in some ways. Their belief in the four seals of Buddhism – • All physical things are impermanent, • All emotions are the reasons for pain, • All things don't have any inherent existence and • Nirvana is the moderation in life, Have created them renounce the atrocities and injustice of Hindu savarnas that were carried on since last several centuries.
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Borchert, Thomas. "Worry for the Dai Nation: Sipsongpannā, Chinese Modernity, and the Problems of Buddhist Modernism." Journal of Asian Studies 67, no. 1 (February 2008): 107–42. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0021911808000041.
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Over the last thirty years or so, there has been a broad consensus about what constitutes modern forms of Theravāda Buddhism. “Buddhist modernism,” as it has been called, has been marked by an understanding of the Buddha's thought as in accord with scientific rationalism; increased lay participation, particularly in meditation practice and leadership of the Buddhist community; and increased participation by women in the leadership of the Sangha. In this paper, I call into question the universality of these forms by examining a contemporary Theravāda Buddhist community in southwest China, where Buddhism is best understood within the context of the modern governance practices of the Chinese state. Buddhists of the region describe their knowledge and practices not in terms of scientific rationality, for example, but within the ethnic categories of the Chinese state. I suggest that instead of understanding modern forms of Buddhism as a natural response to modernity, scholars should pay attention to how Buddhist institutions shift within the context of modern forms of state power.
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Pang, Rachel. "Contemporary Tibetan Buddhist Rimé Response to Religious Diversity." Interreligious Studies and Intercultural Theology 4, no. 1 (April 14, 2020): 21–34. http://dx.doi.org/10.1558/isit.40148.
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In a world where communities across the globe are becoming increasingly interconnected, encounters with diverse cultures and faiths are inevitable. How can diverse communities approach these encounters in a way that fosters dialogue rather than conflict, peace rather than war? Specifically, in the context of Buddhism, how should Buddhists relate to religious diversity in a way that simultaneously remains faithful to their own spiritual traditions while being openminded and respectful towards the beliefs and practices of others? One of the most well-known Buddhist responses to religious diversity was the rimé movement in nineteenth-century eastern Tibet. While the term “rimé” (meaning “impartial” or “non-sectarian” in Tibetan) has become a catchphrase in contemporary Tibetan Buddhist contexts, there has been little sustained engagement with this topic by Buddhists and Buddhist studies scholars. This essay documents and contextualizes the contemporary uses of the term rimé (non-sectarianism) in Tibetan Buddhist communities and situates it within Tibetan Buddhist literature and history. I argue that it is essential for both Buddhists and Buddhist-studies scholars to devote significant attention to the concept of rimé and to engage in interfaith dialogue. For Buddhists, the very survival of their religion depends on it. For Buddhist-studies scholars, it contributes to the development of an accurate understanding of one of the most significant intellectual moments in modern Tibetan history. For humankind, it contributes to interfaith understanding, harmony, and peace.
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Blackburn, Anne M. "Buddhist Connections in the Indian Ocean: Changes in Monastic Mobility, 1000-1500." Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient 58, no. 3 (July 6, 2015): 237–66. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/15685209-12341374.
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Since the nineteenth century, Buddhists residing in the present-day nations of Myanmar, Thailand, and Sri Lanka have thought of themselves as participants in a shared southern Asian Buddhist world characterized by a long and continuous history of integration across the Bay of Bengal region, dating at least to the third centurybcereign of the Indic King Asoka. Recently, scholars of Buddhism and historians of the region have begun to develop a more historically variegated account of Buddhism in South and Southeast Asia, using epigraphic, art historical, and archaeological evidence, as well as new interpretations of Buddhist chronicle texts.1 This paper examines three historical episodes in the eleventh- to fifteenth-century history of Sri Lankan-Southeast Asian Buddhist connections attested by epigraphic and Buddhist chronicle accounts. These indicate changes in regional Buddhist monastic connectivity during the period 1000-1500, which were due to new patterns of mobility related to changing conditions of trade and to an altered political ecosystem in maritime southern Asia.
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Strain, Charles. "Engaged Buddhist Practice and Ecological Ethics." Worldviews 20, no. 2 (2016): 189–210. http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/15685357-02002004.
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Engaged Buddhist approaches to an ecological ethics can be read as a case study of the reinvention of Buddhism within the matrix of Western cultures. Three challenges have been raised to these efforts: first, engaged Buddhists have projected back onto the early Buddhist tradition modern formulations of ancient teachings in particular that of dependent co-arising (pratitya samutpada); second, Buddhists associated with the deep ecology movement have offered a form of holism that is “ethically vacuous;” third, while Buddhist virtue ethics are immune to some of these criticisms, they fail in face of the urgency of the challenge presented by climate change and do not offer a way of addressing entrenched power that impedes action. The article takes up each of these challenges and argues that these Buddhist “Eco-constructivists” perform a midrash on the Buddhist tradition that is geared towards praxis; it offers forms of practice that are hardly ethically vacuous.
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Kidpromma, Amnuaypond. "Buddhist Modernism and the Piety of Female Sex Workers in Northern Thailand." Religions 13, no. 4 (April 12, 2022): 350. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rel13040350.
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This paper highlights Thailand’s distinctive form of Buddhist Modernism through an exploration of religious piety among female sex workers in the city of Chiangmai. The generally accepted key basis of Buddhist Modernism, as depicted by certain Western Buddhist scholars, is interaction and engagement with modernity. More specifically, it is seen as incorporating modern science into the Buddhist worldview, and as regarding meditation as a core practice of ‘true Buddhism’. Crucial components of popular Buddhism, such as magical monks and mystical rituals, are excluded from this depiction of Buddhist Modernism, and even decried as ‘false Buddhism’, despite their canonical basis and long-term acceptance. Using ethnographic methods, this paper argues instead that the result of interactions with modernity by popular Buddhists always includes engagement with and mythologizing of traditional cosmology. That is, rather than solely involving global networks and scientific rationalism, Thai Buddhist Modernism is the product of complex patterns of interaction among local beliefs, mystical practices, and modernity. The purpose of this integration of modern and popular Buddhism in the religious practices of sex workers is to create loving-kindness (metta). Metta, in turn, is held to bring luck and attractiveness to practitioners, allowing them to earn an income to support their impoverished families and live well in modern society, as well as to accumulate good merit (bun) to improve their religious lives.
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Cawley, Kevin N. "East Asian Buddhism and Korea’s Transnational Interactions and Influences." Religions 14, no. 10 (October 13, 2023): 1291. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/rel14101291.
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No one can dispute the significant influence of Sinitic Buddhism in East Asia, but Korean Buddhists were also unquestionably close to the center of the development of different schools of Buddhism in mainland China, particularly in the Jiangnan region, which had historically drawn monks from the peninsula. This article will briefly cover the historical transnational Buddhist interactions between Korea and China, with an emphasis on doctrinal Buddhism, the significance of Ŭisang and Ǔich’ǒn, and the influence of Hangzhou’s Buddhist intellectual advancements. Even though the article’s main focus is on doctrinal contacts, we will also briefly discuss Chan Buddhism in China and how it influenced the texts and techniques of the Korean Sŏn (Zen) monk Chinul (1158–1210), who made an effort to integrate the doctrinal and meditational traditions, as did Ǔich’ǒn. This process of idea-cross-fertilization led to the Tripitaka Koreana, the largest collection of Buddhist texts in East Asia, created by Buddhists during the Koryŏ dynasty (918–1392), which is discussed below. This will aid in our understanding of these transnational exchanges and highlight the fact that Koreans were not only absorbing new ideas as they emerged in China, but they were also influencing them.
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Suranto, Suranto, and Widiyono Widiyono. "THE COMPLEXITIES OF THE MEANING OF BHĀVANĀ AMONG THE BUDDHIST COMMUNITY." Jurnal Pencerahan 15, no. 02 (November 30, 2022): 33–43. http://dx.doi.org/10.58762/jupen.v15i02.112.
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Interpretation of the teaching of Buddhism occurs among Buddhists, especially Buddhists Monastery of Dharma Surya Janggleng. This phenomenon shows the complexity that exists among Buddhists. The study of complexity among Buddhist is important because it can see how far the development of Buddhists in understanding the teaching of Buddhism. Research on the complexity of the meaning of bhāvanā as an attempt to see the understanding of Buddhist in interpreting the teaching of Buddhism. Through the theory of complexity, phenomena and conditions of the community in Janggleng hamlet, Tlogowungu village. Based on the theory of complexity and social analysis with the theory of meaning construction system. It can be concluded that this study explains that there is a complex meaning of bhāvanā among Buddhists. This form of complexity can be seen from the meaning of bhāvanā which is interpreted as Tirakat, bhāvanā for inner calm and self-control, bhāvanā for peaceful life and health, and bhāvanā for attaining supranatural powers. This complexity is a part of the diversity of community understanding that can be a source of contextual knowledge.
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Wilson, Jeff. "Blasphemy as Bhāvana." Nova Religio 22, no. 3 (February 1, 2019): 8–35. http://dx.doi.org/10.1525/nr.2019.22.3.8.
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Over the course of the twentieth century, Buddhism came to be associated widely with peace, tolerance, and calm detachment in the Western popular imagination. This association was created in opposition to depictions of Christianity as violent, intolerant, and irrational. Buddhism, as the imagined perfect Other, held considerable appeal for counterculture seekers disenchanted with mainstream cultures. While many Buddhist groups played upon these stereotypes to enhance their image and support recruitment, one new Buddhist movement—the Friends of the Western Buddhist Order—went further, employing ritualized “therapeutic blasphemy” to eradicate Christian conditioning in their members and critique mainstream society. Such actions baffled many other Buddhists, but make sense when seen as efforts to heighten in-group solidarity, proclaim distinctive identity, and take the assumption of Buddhism’s superiority over Christianity to its ultimate conclusion. This article attempts to explain why Buddhists might develop intolerant practices, and to assess the costs and benefits of such practices.
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Amathabhani, Buthkande, and Nilantha Dissanayake. "Existential Buddhism: embracing life's uncertainties and finding meaning within." South Florida Journal of Development 5, no. 10 (October 25, 2024): e4540. http://dx.doi.org/10.46932/sfjdv5n10-042.
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This study explores the profound questions surrounding the pursuit of Nirvana in Buddhism, examining whether it arises from the cycle of rebirth, present suffering, or future pain as depicted in early Buddhist scriptures. It also investigates the potential convergence of Buddhism with existentialism, a philosophy emphasizing individual experience, freedom, responsibility, and life’s inherent uncertainties. The primary inquiry examines whether Buddhism can harmonize with existentialist perspectives, which emphasize individuality amidst life’s enigmas. This research comprehensively investigates the reasons driving individuals in mainstream Buddhism to seek Nirvana, delving into their quest for liberation, and emphasizes the existential essence of Buddhism. Finally, It explores the plausibility of an alternative form of Buddhism that incorporates existential philosophy. Using a literature analysis approach with a thematic focus, this study critically examines the writings of prominent Buddhist scholars, existential philosophers, and researchers on the intersection of Buddhism and existentialism. The analysis reveals that Buddhists aspire for Nirvana to escape the cycle of suffering and find solace and serenity. Moreover, the juxtaposition of Buddhism and existentialism offers a fresh perspective, highlighting individual autonomy and choice in confronting life’s complexities, and providing an early Buddhist account of existential nature. By deepening the understanding of how mindfulness and meditation connect to core Buddhist principles, this research fosters more authentic engagement with Buddhist practices, enriching personal well-being. This research has vital implications for understanding the pursuit of meaning and liberation from suffering amidst life’s chaos, challenging conventional perceptions of Buddhism, and elucidating potential alignments with existential thought, inviting further research.
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Deng, Beiyin. "Reimagining a Buddhist Cosmopolis: Conveying Marble Buddhas from Burma to China, 1890s-1930s." Journal of Global Buddhism 24, no. 1 (May 11, 2023): 25–46. http://dx.doi.org/10.26034/lu.jgb.2023.3382.
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Discussions about Buddhist connections between China and Southeast Asia in the late Qing and Republican periods often conform to a meta-narrative of Buddhist modernism that emphasizes the trajectories of eminent monks and reformative initiatives in and beyond China. Drawing on research on archives in China and Myanmar (Burma) and field visits to temples and museums in China, this article investigates the efforts to convey marble Buddhas from Burma to China by a broad spectrum of Chinese Buddhists from the 1890s to 1930s as a strain of Buddhist mobility that has receive scant attention in the studies of transregional Buddhist interconnectivities. It examines how the fascination with marble, which is vernacularly categorized as jade/white jade in Chinese, motivated such endeavors and how these icons shaped the perception of a developing Buddhist cosmopolis among Chinese Buddhists by helping them locate Burma in the Buddhist world in a spiritually and materially meaningful way.
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Won, Yong Sang. "East Asian Modern and Contemporary Lay Buddhist Movement: Focused on Prof. Rhi Ki-Young’s Thought." Korean Institute for Buddhist Studies 58 (February 28, 2023): 89–122. http://dx.doi.org/10.34275/kibs.2023.58.089.
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Rhi Ki-Young's Buddhist thought is to gain an insight into the world through the fundamental spirit of Mahāyāna Buddhism and constantly reproduce it in reality. He sees the starting point of Lay Buddhism in Korea as Wonhyo who realized Minjung Buddhism. He also thinks that the origin of Lay Buddhism lies in Jinsokbuli(眞俗不二) based on prajñā(般若), the ideological backbone of Mahāyāna Buddhism. It aims to transcend the limits of the system and realize Buddha Dharma in reality. In addition, it is in the spirit of Mahāyāna Bodhisattva who brought about a great transformation beyond early Buddhism. This allows all thoughts and practices in Mahāyāna Sūtras to lead up to the virtues of bodhisattvas. He insists on building true saṃgha(僧伽) that becomes one through Buddha Dharma, going beyond all sectarian ceremonies. Furthermore, he makes social practice a top priority, as seen from the fact that Rhi Ki-Young founded the Korean Institute for Buddhist Studies regarding Lay Buddhism Movement. He emphasizes that members of society become bodhisattvas and create Buddha Land in every corner of society. Also, his goal is to establish the real Pure Land through Bodhisattvas’ Way. The ultimate goal of Bodhisattva is peace. It is said that it was Wonhyo who wanted to realize peace that would remove the sufferings of the world. In the end, the ultimate aim of Lay Buddhism is to realize the Pure Land in this land where we live. Rhi Ki-Young's Lay Buddhist Movement is in line with East Asian modern and contemporary Lay Buddhist Movement. In order to demonstrate this, this study aims to examine the enlightenment movement of Lay Buddhists and the establishment of lay Buddhist groups or organizations. As for the former, it suggests Chinese Yang Wen-hui, Japanese Inoue Enryō, and Korean Han Yong-Un. As for the latter, representative examples include the Buddhist reform through Taixu's theory of Human Buddhism, Korean Lay Buddhist organizations including Won Buddhism, and Japanese Lay Buddhist organizations including the Newly Young Buddhist Alliance led by Senō Giro(妹尾義郎). Most of all, the Lay Buddhist movement awakens the importance of the role of Lay Bodhisattva in modern society. This is because it is the subject that embodies the virtues of a bodhisattva led by six paramitas. Besides, it needs to go one step further into reality and implement Engaged Buddhism. Mahāyāna Buddhism is the movement of Buddha Dharma, and the key today is Engaged Buddhism. In conclusion, this study has found that Rhi Ki-Young's Lay Buddhist thought can be a way to save us in the face of the crisis of mankind.
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Gunsky, Aleksey. "Brian Houghton Hodgson. At the origins of European Buddhology." Chelovek 34, no. 2 (2023): 154. http://dx.doi.org/10.31857/s023620070025710-8.
Full textAbstract:
The article describes the life and work of Brian Houghton Hodgson (1801–1894), who was servant of the Honourable East India Company (HEICo) in Nepal in 1820−1843. After this he worked as an independent scholar in Sikkim until 1858. Hodgson was among the first European scholars of Buddhism, and the article focuses on the analysis of his views on Buddhism, as well as his efforts to collect Sanskrit manuscripts of classical Buddhist texts. The life and scientific research of Hodgson is considered a typical example of the activities of the first Western Orientalists, who combined service in the colonies with the study of the languages and culture of the Asian peoples. Hodgson received special training for colonial officials and worked for many years as a servant of the HEICo in Nepal, where, along with his official duties, he studied natural history, ethnography and religion of the region. Hodgson collected and donated to universities, libraries and museums in Europe more than four hundred manuscripts of Sanskrit Buddhist writings, previously either completely unknown to European science, or known only in Chinese and Tibetan translations. The study and translation of these manuscripts laid a solid foundation for European Buddhology. In his own works on Buddhism Hodgson identified and characterized four philosophical schools of Indian Buddhism, outlined the Buddhist concepts of the "primordial Buddha" (Adi-Buddha), "contemplation buddhas" (dhyani-buddhas), described Buddhist cosmology and a number of other Buddhist concepts. In addition, he classified the genres of Buddhist literature, took part in the discussion about the original language of the Buddhist canon, showed the inconsistency of the ideas that existed at that time about the African origin of Buddha Shakyamuni. Hodgson's Buddhist views gained recognition in the 19th century, but the accumulation of scientific knowledge about Buddhism showed the fallacy of many of the concepts he put forward. Nevertheless, they played a role in the formation of Western Buddhology, and understanding the history of the study of Buddhism in the West is completely impossible without taking into account Hodgson's works.
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Gillberg, Christina. "Warriors of Buddhism: Buddhism and violence as seen from a Vajrayana Tibetan Buddhist perspective." Scripta Instituti Donneriani Aboensis 19 (January 1, 2006): 77–92. http://dx.doi.org/10.30674/scripta.67302.
Full textAbstract:
Buddhism is considered by many today as the non-violent religion par excellence. The concept of ahimsa (non-violence) coupled with the notion of pratityasamutpada (i.e. that everything is casually interconnected, with the implication that pain inflicted upon others is therefore really done to oneself and thus to be avoided) seems to be one of the main arguments for promoting Buddhism as an excellent method for promoting world peace. However this non-violent, serene picture of Buddhism is not the only picture. Buddhists on occasion speak of a need to use violence, and employ it. Buddhists kill. Sometimes they also kill each other. The history as well as the present of Buddhist Asia is bloodstained. How do Buddhists justify approving of and using violence? How do they legitimise their pro-violent utterances and actions when such actions ought to result in excommunication? What are they saying? There are several answers to this, some of which are presented in this article, with the primary focus on Buddhist Tibet.
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McKinley, Alexander. "Fluid Minds: Being a Buddhist the Shambhalian Way." Buddhist Studies Review 31, no. 2 (January 15, 2015): 273–91. http://dx.doi.org/10.1558/bsrv.v31i2.273.
Full textAbstract:
What are the criteria for counting something as Buddhist? This discipline-defining question has become increasingly perplexing as Buddhism is transmitted across the globe, taking new forms as it adapts to new contexts, especially as non-Buddhists increasingly come to participate in the meditation activities of Buddhist communities in the West. Through an ethnographic analysis of a Shambhala center in the southern United States, this article suggests that the best way to talk about such groups is neither through categorizing membership demographics, nor by ranking the different degrees of Buddhism practiced in Shambhala as more or less authentic, but rather by focusing on how the group ultimately coheres despite inevitable differences in opinion. Thus instead of defining what is ‘authentically’ Buddhist among Shambhalians, this article tracks the manner in which certain Buddhist forms of signification (especially meditation) are shared regardless of personal religious identities, forging a community through common interest.