Buddhism Betrayed?

Buddhism Betrayed? PDF Author: Stanley Jeyaraja Tambiah
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226789500
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 232

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Book Description
This volume seeks to answer the question of how the Buddhist monks in today's Sri Lanka—given Buddhism's traditionally nonviolent philosophy—are able to participate in the fierce political violence of the Sinhalese against the Tamils.

Buddhism Betrayed?

Buddhism Betrayed? PDF Author: Stanley Jeyaraja Tambiah
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226789500
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 232

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Book Description
This volume seeks to answer the question of how the Buddhist monks in today's Sri Lanka—given Buddhism's traditionally nonviolent philosophy—are able to participate in the fierce political violence of the Sinhalese against the Tamils.

Buddha Betrayed

Buddha Betrayed PDF Author: Gerti Schoen
Publisher: Createspace Independent Pub
ISBN: 9781482582949
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 146

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Book Description
American Buddhism has been shaken by sex scandals and inappropriate relationships between teachers and students for years. This book addresses the pitfalls that occur in spiritual relationships: the idealization of the teacher, the way students give away their power and how priests betray the trust and good will of the vulnerable. "A brilliant and deeply important book. Schoen is consistently insightful and often revelatory, and her clear, fluid writing is a pleasure to read. Anyone who has--or wants--a spiritual teacher needs to read Buddha Betrayed and take it to heart." Scott Edelstein, author of "Sex and the Spiritual Teacher" Praise for "Buddha Betrayed": "American Buddhism is a relatively young transplant from Asia. It has a lot of growing up to do and recently several major scandals have become widely public, revealing for all to see the growing pains. Everyone who has associated with a Buddhist teacher hopes they have done the personal work necessary to transcend our primitive primal selfish nature that is always seeking to have enough and then some more, but this is not always the case. Some adepts have done sufficient work to open their minds fully to the multi-dimensional universe we are all seamlessly a part, but have not done the inner psychological work to master their base instincts, needs and desires. If these adepts are raised prematurely to teacher status, fed admiration, power and nearly unconditional deference and respect, with little peer review or supervision, this can be a dangerous combination leading to abuse of power and position. Gerti Schoen in her book: "Buddha Betrayed - When Spiritual Relationships Go Awry" has done a great job examining the fallout and investigating the process that has led to such abuses. It is particularly a must read for anyone who has experienced this kind of situation first hand. Schoen provides the analysis and cautions needed for American Buddhism to take its next steps towards a truly mature American practice." Genjo Marinello, head teacher, Chobo-ji, Seattle

Women in Buddhism

Women in Buddhism PDF Author: Diana Y. Paul
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 9780520054288
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 366

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Book Description
"In seeking to explore the interrelationships between, and mutual influence of, varieties of sexual stereotypes and religious views of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition, Women in Buddhism succeeds in drawing our attention to matters of philosophical importance. Paul examines the 'image' of women which arise in a number of Buddhist texts associated with Mahayana and finds that, while ideally the tradition purports to be egalitarian, in actual practice it often betrayed a strong misogynist prejudice. Sanskrit and Chinese texts are organized by theme and type, progressing from those which treat the traditionally orthodox and negative to those which set forth a positive consideration of soteriological paths for women. . . . In Women in Buddhism, Diana Paul may be forcing our consideration of the problem of female enlightenment. Thus the main purport and accomplishment of her scholarship is revolutionary."—Philosophy East and West

The Trouble with Buddhism

The Trouble with Buddhism PDF Author: Robert M. Ellis
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 1447516788
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 307

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Book Description
This book is a critique of Buddhism by a philosopher with about 20 years' experience of practising Buddhism. It attempts to judge Buddhism by the standards of its own key insight of the Middle Way. This book argues that Buddhism has often abandoned the Middle Way and allowed dogmatic metaphysical assumptions to take its place. The Buddha criticised appeals to metaphysics, yet many of the trappings of traditional Buddhism are built on it - whether these are karma and rebirth, the revelations of the enlightened and their scriptures, dependent origination, the interpretation of the Four Noble Truths, alienated idealisations of love, or rituals that celebrate metaphysics rather than insight. This is not a purely negative book, but an attempt at a balanced appraisal of Buddhism with praise as well as criticism. In the West we have an opportunity to evaluate Buddhism anew and reform it so that it best applies its own insights.

Zen at War

Zen at War PDF Author: Brian Daizen Victoria
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
ISBN: 1461647479
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 310

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Book Description
A compelling history of the contradictory, often militaristic, role of Zen Buddhism, this book meticulously documents the close and previously unknown support of a supposedly peaceful religion for Japanese militarism throughout World War II. Drawing on the writings and speeches of leading Zen masters and scholars, Brian Victoria shows that Zen served as a powerful foundation for the fanatical and suicidal spirit displayed by the imperial Japanese military. At the same time, the author recounts the dramatic and tragic stories of the handful of Buddhist organizations and individuals that dared to oppose Japan's march to war. He follows this history up through recent apologies by several Zen sects for their support of the war and the way support for militarism was transformed into 'corporate Zen' in postwar Japan. The second edition includes a substantive new chapter on the roots of Zen militarism and an epilogue that explores the potentially volatile mix of religion and war. With the increasing interest in Buddhism in the West, this book is as timely as it is certain to be controversial.

Buddhist Fury

Buddhist Fury PDF Author: Michael K. Jerryson
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 019933966X
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 271

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Book Description
Buddhist violence is not a well-known concept. In fact, it is generally considered an oxymoron. An image of a Buddhist monk holding a handgun or the idea of a militarized Buddhist monastery tends to stretch the imagination; yet these sights exist throughout southern Thailand. Michael Jerryson offers an extensive examination of one of the least known but longest-running conflicts of Southeast Asia. Part of this conflict, based primarily in Thailand's southernmost provinces, is fueled by religious divisions. Thailand's total population is over 92 percent Buddhist, but over 85 percent of the people in the southernmost provinces are Muslim. Since 2004, the Thai government has imposed martial law over the territory and combatted a grass-roots militant Malay Muslim insurgency. Buddhist Fury reveals the Buddhist parameters of the conflict within a global context. Through fieldwork in the conflict area, Jerryson chronicles the habits of Buddhist monks in the militarized zone. Many Buddhist practices remain unchanged. Buddhist monks continue to chant, counsel the laity, and accrue merit. Yet at the same time, monks zealously advocate Buddhist nationalism, act as covert military officers, and equip themselves with guns. Buddhist Fury displays the methods by which religion alters the nature of the conflict and shows the dangers of this transformation.

Anil's Ghost

Anil's Ghost PDF Author: Michael Ondaatje
Publisher: Vintage Canada
ISBN: 0307375897
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 321

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Book Description
Winning a Governor General’s Literary Award for Fiction, the Kiriyama Pacific Rim Book Prize and the Scotiabank Giller Prize, Anil’s Ghost is another award-winning novel from Michael Ondaatje. Steeped in centuries of cultural achievement and tradition, Sri Lanka has been ravaged in the late twentieth century by bloody civil war. Anil Tissera, born in Sri Lanka but educated in England and the U.S., is sent by an international human rights group to participate in an investigation into suspected mass political murders in her homeland. Working with an archaeologist, she discovers a skeleton whose identity takes Anil on a fascinating journey that involves a riveting mystery. What follows, in a novel rich with character, emotion, and incident, is a story about love and loss, about family, identity and the unknown enemy. And it is a quest to unlock the hidden past—like a handful of soil analyzed by an archaeologist, the story becomes more diffuse the farther we reach into history. A universal tale of the casualties of war, unfolding as a detective story, the book gradually gives way to a more intricate exploration of its characters, a symphony of loss and loneliness haunted by a cast of solitary strangers and ghosts. The atrocities of a seemingly futile, muddled war are juxtaposed against the ancient, complex and ultimately redemptive culture and landscape of Sri Lanka.

In Defense of Dharma

In Defense of Dharma PDF Author: Tessa J. Bartholomeusz
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 113578857X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 232

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Book Description
This is the first book to examine war and violence in Sri Lanka through the lens of cross-cultural studies on just-war tradition and theory. An important contribution to the understanding of the power of religion to create both peace and war.

Colors of the Robe

Colors of the Robe PDF Author: Ananda Abeysekara
Publisher: Univ of South Carolina Press
ISBN: 9781570034671
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 296

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Book Description
"Poised to spark debate among scholars of religious studies and other disciplines, Colors of the Robe sheds new light on the Sri Lankan Buddhist universe of ethics and politics and, more important, suggests innovative directions for the global study of religion, identity, culture, politics, and violence. In a volume that surpasses other studies in tracking, identifying, and locating Sri Lankan Buddhism in its sectarian, ethnic, cultural, social, and political constructions, Ananda Abeysekara lays down a challenge to postcolonial and postmodern theory. He argues that although criticisms have undermined the orientalist constructions of culture, they cannot help us understand, let alone theorize, the emergence of contemporary authoritative discourses that define distinctions involving religion and violence, identity and difference. Supplanting that aim, Abeysekara illuminates the shifting configurations that characterize the relations connected with postcolonial religious identity and culture."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

The Storms Can't Hurt the Sky

The Storms Can't Hurt the Sky PDF Author: Gabriel Cohen
Publisher: Da Capo Lifelong Books
ISBN: 0786746459
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 290

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Book Description
Buddhism has been applied to everything from parenting to golf, but until now no one has offered Buddhist principles as a healing path through divorce. In Storms Can't Hurt the Sky, Gabriel Cohen bravely delves into his personal experience-along with insights from Buddhist masters, parables, humor, social science studies, and interviews with other divorces-to provide a practical and very helpful guide to surviving the pain of any break-up. Focusing on the emotions most common in the dissolution of a relationship-anger, resentment, loss, and grief -- Storms Can't Hurt the Sky shows how thinking about these feelings in surprisingly different ways can lead to a radically better experience. This compulsively readable book offers sound advice and much-needed empathy for anyone dealing with a break-up.