Buddhism and Consumption Giana Eckhardt, Suffolk Universiy, USA

ASSOCIATION FOR CONSUMER RESEARCH Labovitz School of Business & Economics, University of Minnesota Duluth, 11 E. Superior Street, Suite 210, Duluth, MN 55802 Buddhism and Consumption Giana Eckhardt, Suffolk Universiy, USA Buddhism emphasizes minimizing one’s desire for and attachment to material goods. In contemporary China there has been a resurgence of interest in Buddhism. At the same time, Chinese consumers are becoming more materialistic, and the acquisition of material goods has become central to identity. How can we understand and reconcile these two trends? We examine the nature of the Middle Way that Buddhism espouses and discuss its connection to consumption. We also explore how Buddhism is similar to and different from other spiritual orientations in terms of their influence on consumption. Finally, we touch upon the impact of global consumerism on spirituality in this once communist country. [to cite]: Giana Eckhardt (2011) ,"Buddhism and Consumption", in AP - Asia-Pacific Advances in Consumer Research Volume 9, eds. Zhihong Yi, Jing Jian Xiao, and June Cotte and Linda Price, Duluth, MN : Association for Consumer Research, Pages: 358- 359. [url]: http://www.acrwebsite.org/volumes/1009054/volumes/ap09/AP-09 [copyright notice]: This work is copyrighted by The Association for Consumer Research. For permission to copy or use this work in whole or in part, please contact the Copyright Clearance Center at http://www.copyright.com/. ROUNDTABLE SESSION SUMMARY Buddhism and Consumption Giana Eckhardt, Suffolk Universiy, USA Russell W. Belk, York University, Canada Robin Canniford, University of Melbourne, Australia Nikhilesh Dholakia, University of Rhode Island, USA Jay Pongsakornrungsilp, Walailak University, Thailand Linda Price, University of Arizona, USA Jonathan Schroeder, Rochester University of Technology, USA Ekant Veer, University of Canterbury, New Zealand Jeff Wang, City University of Hong Kong, China Maggie Zhiyan Wu, University of Exeter, UK Xin Zhao, University of Hawaii, USA Buddhist values have suffused Chinese culture for the Since China has opened to the world in the 1970s, the past two thousand years. Along with Confucianism and Chinese economy has grown at an extraordinary rate. Taoism, Buddhism forms the basis for much of the Chinese During this growth, society as a whole has put a lot of world view, morals and ethics. In relation to consumption, emphasis on using material objects, and in particular Buddhism emphasizes the importance of eliminating desire brands, as markers of social status. Even Buddhist monks for material goods, and the perils of becoming attached to are not immune to this focus on materialism, with monks material possessions. Indeed, ―few religions have attacked using iPhones and eating fast food (Belk 2011). Indeed, the the material world with the intellectual rigor of Buddhism,‖ head monk at the famed Shaolin Temple is reported to own (Kieschnick 2003, p. 2). Buddhism inherently recognizes a luxury SUV and other cars. that our thirst for possessions can never be quenched At the same time as many Chinese monks are (Kieschnick 2003). A distinction is often made between the becoming materialistic and keen to acquire the latest material objects themselves and the consumer‘s consumer goods, Chinese consumers are having renewed relationship to them, and there is a difference between interests in spirituality. Since the government relaxed its ownership of goods and attachment to them (Ross 1991). ban on religious gatherings in 2006, a religious boom has Buddhism does not say anything negative about emerged, in particular among the younger generation (Lim possessions themselves (Ross 1991). Rather, it espouses 2010). Two thirds of those who describe themselves as frugality and moderation (Daniels 2005). One should religious are Buddhist or Taoist, and 62% are age 39 and consume as needed to follow the Middle Path (not younger (Lim 2010). Chinese consumers have embarked on excessive but not spartan either), but should not become a new march toward religious spirituality and flooded local attached to objects. To cultivate non-attachment, a person altars to pray for material gains. Even Buddhist temples are must be generous and should periodically give away competing with each other to build the largest Buddha material possessions, and one‘s possessions should not statue in order to attract more followers. With Buddhist evoke pride or greed (Pryor 1990). values and teachings reemerging in Chinese society, how It is believed in Buddhist thought that one‘s current can we understand and reconcile the Buddhist views on social and economic position is decided by accrued karma consumption with the conspicuous consumption that is so from previous lives. Generosity to the poor and in general ubiquitous in contemporary China? Similar paradoxes also is an important means of accumulating merit, which helps exist in other countries that recently experienced rapid one to obtain a high social and economic position in the social transformations. For instance, Wattanasuwan and next life (Pryor 1991). In Buddhist thought, consumption is Elliott (1999) found that instead of detaching themselves taken to be a limited source of happiness and satisfaction, from consumption, Buddhist teenagers in Thailand devote and excessive consumption is considered to be harmful themselves to symbolic consumption in an attempt to create (Daniels 2005). Hence, consumption is often moderated their Buddhist selves. and restrained. Buddhists are not anti consumers, but In this roundtable, we will explore this paradox within rather conscious or mindful consumers (Loundon 2005). the wider lens of global consumer culture. In particular, we Importantly, Buddhism identifies three types of materialism will examine how Buddhism affects consumption in – physical, psychological and spiritual – that unless relation to other spiritual orientations. For example, Veer guarded against, will co-opt our lives (Simmer-Brown and Shankar (2011) suggest that in a Christian context, 2002). religious consumers make sense of their own materialism It is widely recognized that historically Buddhism has in relation to the non-materialistic teachings of the Bible an important effect on consumer behavior and material via justifications for materialism, such as focusing on culture in many countries (e.g., Kieschnick 2003). For functional aspects of a product rather than materialistic example, Cornwell et. al. (2005) demonstrate that aspects like the ability to signal status. We examine how Buddhists are more relativistic in terms of the ethics they Buddhism differs or overlaps with such religious apply to consumption situations than Christians and orientations, and extend this stream of research by Muslims. Pongsakornrungsilp et. al. (2011) have exploring how religion influences the transition to a demonstrated how Buddhist consumers in Thailand co- consumer society in Asia. create consumption experiences via their spiritual fear, As Buddhism is so widespread throughout Asia, we faith and desire. In a Western context, Belk (2011) suggests anticipate a high level of interest in this topic at the that following a Buddhist economic path could be a way to conference. We also expect participation from consumer reduce rampant over consumption in the West. researchers interested in the intersection between religion 358 Asia Pacific Advances in Consumer Research Volume 9 © 2011 Asia Pacific Advances in Consumer Research (Volume 9) / 359 and consumption in general, and those interested in faith and desire,‖ European Advances in Consumer Chinese consumer culture in general. Research. Pryor, Frederic L. 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