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Asia v. America

| arun

On Dharma Mirror, D.Yin presents a comparison of different approaches to Buddhism in Asia and America.

This list was compiled for a group of Asian monastics to provide some understanding of the different ways people approach Buddhism from America and Asia. When just beginning to study Buddhism, the Dharma often seems contradictory. On one hand it emphasizes personal experience, while on the other hand there needs to be strong faith. What I found over the years is that although the approach to Buddhism in Asia & America are often different, they are at the same time very complimentary. Meditation & recitation go well together, analysis & faith balance each other out, and pragmatism & “miracles” play different roles in spiritual practice.

You can see the list here. I often go out of my way to emphasize that Buddhism in Asia is much more diverse than miracles, recitation and faith—but it’s all there too. We’re a big tent.

In Search of Lost Writing

| arun

I was notified of broken links in a previous post (Angry Asian Buddhist Reader), namely:

These links might have been broken during the revamp of the Buddhist Peace Fellowship website. (It looks pretty slick now.) If you happen to have access to full copies of these texts, please let me know!

Buddhists for the Future

| arun

In Kusala Bhikshu’s most recent Urban Dharma newsletter, he included Ananda Guruge’s talk on the future of Buddhism.

What role do we have as practicing Buddhists in the world today? Buddhism has come to most us as our birthright with the milk of our mothers. We are heirs to a long and chequered history with a magnificent spiritual heritage. There are with us who, after their intellectual quest for a set of beliefs and practices, have chosen Buddhism as their guide to life. We are all Buddhists and we have in our hands a priceless treasure from which the modern world can benefit enormously. How we share this with the whole of the humanity is a challenge that we have to meet especially in the century that begins in two years with the 2600th anniversary of the attainment of Enlightenment by the Buddha.

[…]

Buddhism is not shared by merely communicating information and knowledge through teaching, publishing, mass media, Internet and the like. Our life, our dedication, our conduct, our commitment to human welfare, and our example alone will show the world that the humanism that guides us is what the rest of the humanity is searching for. This is our task for the new century and this is our challenge for the new millennium.

I appreciate the contrast he presents at the end. I’m not a big fan of Buddhist writing. The most inspiring Buddhists I’ve known have always been those whose conduct reflects their noble values.

Much to Offer

| arun

Phra Cittasamvaro writes about the custom of the offering cloth and the issue of contact between men, women and celibate monks and nuns.

The etiquette with the offering cloth is this: if a female is offering food, clothing or medicine to a monk, he will lay a cloth/bowl or other suitable item in front of him. The lady puts the item on the cloth and it is then ‘offered’ – which means it has formally been given to the Sangha of monks. And of course vice versa between nuns and laymen.

[…]

Things are ‘offered’ in this way so there is no discrepancy between what has been given to the monk and what has not – so that he does not take something on presumption, that the owner might not feel is appropriate. If a layperson touches the offered item after this point, it is then considered ‘unoffered’ and the monk will not take it for his own use.

The post ends with a discussion of cultural traditions and attitudes (namely attitudes towards others’ cultures). It’s certainly nice to discover that some of the customs I’ve witnessed (such as the “drop method”) are not merely idiosyncratic customs of particular monks I know.

Bat Nha Back and Forth

| arun

Ven. Kobutsu Malone writes on the Buddhist Channel to offer another perspective on the events at Bat Nha monastery.

It appears the “Buddhist world” is getting behind the Thich Nhat Hanh followers without question. There are however, a lot of questions: It is obvious that the Thich Nhat Hanh people have a well-oiled propaganda machine going. The http://helpbatnha.org/ site purported to represent the monastery only represents the voice of the Thich Nhat Hanh clergy at the Bat Nha Monastery. The site is registered to Deer Park Monastery, Thich Nhat Hanh’s facility in Escondido, California. Is it possible that this perhaps inflames the local residents who may feel that the Thich Nhat Hanh followers had taken over their temple?

His thoughts drew a quick reply from Visakha Kawasaki.

Cracking down on Thich Nhat Hanh and his followers might just prove that his work for human rights and community development is proving too successful for the Communist party to tolerate. If the monks and nuns who look to Thich Nhat Hanh as their leader are being beaten and humiliated by police and mobs, does it make sense to blame them rather than see them as victims whose human rights are being violated? Perhaps the rulers of Vietnam regret loosening the rules and allowing Thich Nhat Hanh to return at all. Perhaps they just want to reassert their control and remind everyone who is really the boss.

The discussion over the situation at tu vien Bat Nha involves local, national and global issues and relationships. I am personally most concerned with the individual rights of monks and nuns. I’m much less concerned about the political exchanges between Thich Nhat Hanh and the Vietnamese authorities. But I need to have a grasp of both situations (and more) to have a better understanding of what exactly is going on at this monastery in central Vietnam—especially if I’m only reading news reports in English.

Korea for Bhikkhunis

| arun

The Korea Times reports on an interview with Ven. Myoeom, discussing the situation of Korean Buddhist nuns.

Although discrimination can be found in nearly all countries, the head bhikkhuni at Bongnyeongsa Temple, a Suwon branch of the Jogye Order in South Korea, said such extreme cases of prejudice is rarely found here.

There are no gender differences in Buddhism, said the Ven. Myoeom in an interview with The Korea Times, which minimizes the number of cases of discrimination in temples. In fact, age is also not recognized because what matters most is the “maturity of one’s soul”

It is well-known that sanghas in the Mahayana tradition are much more welcoming than those in the Theravada tradition, although the past fifteen years have also seen the emergence of a growing bhikkhuni movement.

Tibet, China, Africa & Black America

| arun

On The Original Black Buddha, Lama Rangdrol discusses the dynamic relationships between Tibetan spiritual leaders, black America, China and Africa.

My role as Buddhist practitioner is to simply state the obvious in hopes of avoiding a detente between future Tibetan leadership and grass roots black consciousness in America. Those who think this issue will not be an issue in the future are mistaken. I truly believe good work can be done on behalf of Buddhism, the Tibetan people, and African Americans. Why would someone not believe this?

His thoughts may seem far-fetched to some, that relationships between China and Africa will have any impact on the relationships between Tibetan spiritual leaders and grassroots black consciousness in America—and vice versa. But there’s this funny thing about interdependence.

More Background on Bat Nha

| arun

Reuters’ Faithworld blog provides a broader picture behind the situation of monks and nuns at Bat Nha monastery in Vietnam.

A local government document from last month obtained by Thich Nhat Hanh’s followers and shown to Reuters stated that the group was not recognised by the state or the official Buddhist congregation and was staying at Bat Nha illegally. The roots of the problem may go back, in part at least, to Thich Nhat Hanh’s late 2007 visit to Vietnam. During that trip, he told Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet that the government should abolish the arm of the police that tracks religious groups and disband the government’s Religious Affairs Committee, which regulates religious activities.

In the same shoes, I probably would have avoided giving a Communist leader unsolicited political advice, although I heartily agree that Viet Nam would be better off without the Religious Affairs Committee.