Buddhism in the west - religion Flashcards
ajahn brahmali speaking on stephen batchelor
in favour of westernised buddhism having distorted the buddhas teachings
secular buddhists, ones who reject rebirth/kamma/reincarnation, such as stephen batchelor, are not buddhists at all, but instead ‘they are secularists with abit of inspiration from buddhism’
against western buddhism
the 14th dalai lama commenting on the hippie movemnt of the 80s and use of drugs + counter argument
against the western distortion of original buddhist teachings
“it’s wonderful. if you can find something in buddhism that relieves suffering then relive suffering using it!”
counter argument: LSD is termed as a ‘micro-jhana’
in favour of western buddhism
donald lopez commenting on the dalai lamas role in change
against western distortion of original buddhist teachings
“the leading proponent of buddhist modernism”
in favour of western buddhism
the title of paul knitters book and what it talks about
against western distortion of original buddhist teachings
‘without the buddha i could not be a christian’
encompasses dual belonging
in favour of western buddhism
SOW by paul knitter + what it means
against western distortion of original buddhist teachings
‘i go for refuge to christ, to the gospel, to the church. i go for refuge to the buddha, to the dharma, to the sangha.’
knitter means by this, that he compounds both religions so they work better and more efficiently.
in favour of western buddhism
meaning of inculceration
the gradual aquasition of characteristics and norms of a culture or group by another by another person or culture.
often linked to the spread of buddhism in the west.
what could have encouraged a spread of buddhsm to the west?
the 1960’s influx of migrants from the east during the american gold rush.
social trends - buddhism is veiwed as a rational philosophy that can be applied to western societies.
alternative words to faith
ideology/ belief system
2 types of buddhism
traditionalist - mahayana
modernist - theravada - the theravada buddhist reaction to developments in science towards the end of the 19th century. modernist buddhism is refrenced as buddhism qua rational philosophy to make it more compatible with science.
counter argument: modernism doesnt distort the faith, rather it disregards key teachings to give clarity and application.
john lennons impact of buddhism through the use of music and literature.
in favour of distortion
‘what im interested in is buddhist hevan’
this is a distortion as it applies buddhism to western religions such as christiantiy - wrong because they are reached in different ways.
george dreyfus Q
in agreement with western distortion
‘the contemporary perspective is in an innovation inspired by modern ideas about religeon and philosophy’
he agrgues that buddhist modernism leaves out more buddhism than it includes
baggini’s veiw on modernism
against distortion
he argues that we must strip down buddhism from ‘superstitious elements’ to make it more compatible with science.
justification for the dalai lamas support of buddhist modernism + a counter Q from dreyfus
arguments for and against distortion
the dalai lama encourages people to practice samatha meditation/mindfullness meditation so they covert to traditionalist buddhism in the long term after extensive practive of the 4 jhanas.
counter: ‘overattention to the modernist label would obscure the complexity of his positions’ - the dalai lamas oversimplification of the ideology can have detrimental effects to the holistic understanding of buddhism globally.
authar schophaur’s veiw of modern buddhism
modernism is a better approach as it optomistic - focuses on having a healthy inward and outward outlook on life rather than reaching samara, which can seem daunting as it takes aeons to reach fully.
why distortions to tibetan buddhism can be seen as progressive rather than negative
tibetan buddhism has been exposed to war and patronism throughout history which has encouraged female monks. which makes the ideology more applicable to society as both genders are included.
