Lib Guides: Humanistic Buddhism
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Load more
Recommended publications
-
Chan Buddhism During the Times of Yixuan and Hsing Yun
The JapaneseAssociationJapanese Association of Indian and Buddhist Studies Joumal ofJndian and Buddhist Studies Vol, 64, No. 3, March 2016 (261) Times of Chan Buddhism duringthe and Hsing Yun: Yixuan Applying Chinese Chan Principles to Contemporary Society SHIJuewei i} Lirlji Yixuan uttaXil( (d. 866) and Fo Guang Hsing Yun es)kZg:- (1927-), although separated by rnore than a millennium, innovatively applied Chan teachings to the societies in which they lived to help their devotees discover their humanity and transcend their existential conditions. Both religious leaders not only survived persecution, but brought their faiths to greater heights. This paper studies how these masters adapted Chan Buddhist teachings to the woes and conditions of their times. In particular, I shall review how yixuan and Hsing yun adapted the teachings of their predecessors, added value to the socio-political milieu of their times, and used familiar language to reconcile reality and their beliefs. Background These two Chan masters were selected because of the significance of their contributions. Lirlji Yixuan was not only the founder ofa popular Lirlji2) school in Chan Buddhism but was also posthumously awarded the title of Meditation Master of and Wisdom Illumination(HuizhaoChanshi ue,H", maeM)(Sasaki Kirchner 2oog, s2) by Emperor Yizong em7 of the Tang dynasty (r. 859-873). Hsing Yun, a very strong proponent ofHumanistic Buddhism, is currently the recipient of ls honorary doctorate degrees from universities around the world (Shi and Weng 2015). To have received such accolades, both Chan masters ought to have made momentous contribution to their societies. Although Yixuan and Hsing Yun had humble beginnings, they were well-grounded in Buddhist teachings. -
INSIGHT NEWSLETTER PAID Insight Meditation Society Permit No.2 1230 Pleasant St
INSIGHT NEWSLETTER FALL WINTER 2006/2007 IMS Schedules: Practicing with Vedana: The Retreat Center 2007 The Forest Refuge 2007 The 2nd Foundation of Mindfulness An Interview with Christina Feldman Teacher Interview In 1971, Christina Feldman began Buddhist meditation practice in northern India. She was 17 at the time, and had left her native Canada to travel and explore new IMS News horizons. Since then she has played a key role in bringing the Buddha’s teachings and Developments to the West, offering retreats at IMS and co-founding Gaia House in Devon, England. Married with two adult children, she introduced the Family Retreat at IMS in 1982, and the Women’s Retreat in 1984 – both popular mainstays of BCBS 2006/2007 our annual course calendar. Course Schedule Outline Christina, what are the On his journey towards enlightenment, Buddha’s ‘Four Foundations we know that these ascetic practices of Mindfulness’? didn’t work; they did not bring about the freedom from suffering that he First, it’s helpful to describe the historical sought. One of the turning points of context of the Buddha’s teachings. his awakening was the understanding Siddhartha Gautama - the Buddha - that the very aspects of life he was came from a society rooted in the belief trying to overcome actually held the that life was an obstacle to overcome. key to liberation. He then turned The body, the mind and human rela- towards his body, his mind, his tionships were all to be transcended. feelings and towards everything So, once he started his spiritual search, that arose in his consciousness, it was natural for him to become an seeing them as the ground for his ascetic – he left his family and spent awakening. -
American Buddhists: Enlightenment and Encounter
CHAPTER FO U R American Buddhists: Enlightenment and Encounter ★ he Buddha’s Birthday is celebrated for weeks on end in Los Angeles. TMore than three hundred Buddhist temples sit in this great city fac- ing the Pacific, and every weekend for most of the month of May the Buddha’s Birthday is observed somewhere, by some group—the Viet- namese at a community college in Orange County, the Japanese at their temples in central Los Angeles, the pan-Buddhist Sangha Council at a Korean temple in downtown L.A. My introduction to the Buddha’s Birthday observance was at Hsi Lai Temple in Hacienda Heights, just east of Los Angeles. It is said to be the largest Buddhist temple in the Western hemisphere, built by Chinese Buddhists hailing originally from Taiwan and advocating a progressive Humanistic Buddhism dedicated to the pos- itive transformation of the world. In an upscale Los Angeles suburb with its malls, doughnut shops, and gas stations, I was about to pull over and ask for directions when the road curved up a hill, and suddenly there it was— an opulent red and gold cluster of sloping tile rooftops like a radiant vision from another world, completely dominating the vista. The ornamental gateway read “International Buddhist Progress Society,” the name under which the temple is incorporated, and I gazed up in amazement. This was in 1991, and I had never seen anything like it in America. The entrance took me first into the Bodhisattva Hall of gilded images and rich lacquerwork, where five of the great bodhisattvas of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition receive the prayers of the faithful. -
Handout: Resource List
Handout: Resource List Websites • Downloadable meditation teachings and instruction from Dharma Seed: www.dharmaseed.org • Meditation instructions, including mindfulness of breath and lovingkindness or compassion meditation: www.lisadalemiller.com • Meditation CDs and tapes developed by Jon Kabat-Zinn for the MBSR program: https://www.mindfulnesscds.com/collections/cds • Teachings, discussions, resources, listings of retreats: www.dharmapunx.com • Links and articles relevant to meditation and recovery: www.buddhistrecovery.org Books • Dharma Punx: A Memoir, by Noah Levine. New York: Harper San Francisco, 2003. • Insight Meditation: The Practice of Freedom, by Joseph Goldstein. Boston: Shambhala, 1993. • The Mindful Path to Self-compassion: Freeing Yourself from Destructive Thoughts and Emotions, by Christopher K. Germer. New York: Guilford Press, 2009 • Mindful Recovery: A Spiritual Path to Healing from Addiction, by Thomas Bien and Beverly Bien. New York: Wiley, 2002. • The Mindful Way through Anxiety: Break Free from Chronic Worry and Reclaim Your Life, by Susan M. Orsillo and Lizabeth Roemer. New York: Guilford Press, 2011. • The Mindful Way through Depression: Freeing Yourself from Chronic Unhappiness, by J. Mark G. Williams, John D. Teasdale, Zindel V. Segal, and Jon Kabat-Zinn. New York: Guilford Press, 2007. • The Mindfulness Solution: Everyday Practices for Everyday Problems, by Ronald D. Siegel. New York: Guilford Press, 2010. • The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction of the Practice of Meditation, by Thich Nhat Hanh. Boston: Beacon Press, 1987. • One Breath at a Time: Buddhism and the Twelve Steps, by Kevin Griffin. Emmaus, PA: Rodale, 2004. • A path with Heart: A Guide through the Perils and Promises of Spiritual Life, by Jack Kornfield. -
Chan Buddhism During the Times of Venerable Master Yixuan and Venerable Master Hsing Yun: Applying Chinese Chan Principles to Contemporary Society
《 》學報 ‧ 藝文│第三十二期 外文論文 Chan Buddhism During the Times of Venerable Master Yixuan and Venerable Master Hsing Yun: Applying Chinese Chan Principles to Contemporary Society Shi Juewei Director, Humanistic Buddhism Centre (Australia) Linji Venerable Master Yixuan 臨濟義玄 (d. 866) and Fo Guang Venerable Master Hsing Yun 佛光星雲1 (1927–), although separated by more than a millennium, innovatively applied Chan teachings to the societies in which they lived to help their devotees discover their humanity and transcend their existential conditions. Both religious leaders not only survived persecution, but brought their faiths to greater heights. This paper studies how these masters adapted Chan Buddhist teachings to the woes and conditions of their times. In particular, I shall review how Venerable Master Yixuan and Venerable Master Hsing Yun adapted the teachings of their predecessors, added value to the socio- political milieu of their times, and used familiar language to reconcile reality and their beliefs. Background These two Chan masters were selected because of the significance of their contributions. Venerable Master Yixuan was not only the founder of a popular 1. In the Pinyin system, the name should be expressed as Xingyun. In this paper, I use the more popular “Hsing Yun” instead. 170 Chan Buddhism During the Times of Venerable Master Yixuan and Venerable Master Hsing Yun: Applying Chinese Chan Principles to Contemporary Society Linji2 school in Chan Buddhism but was also posthumously awarded the title of Meditation Master of Wisdom Illumination (Huizhao Chanshi 慧照禪師)3 by Emperor Yizong 懿宗 of the Tang dynasty (r. 859–873). Venerable Master Hsing Yun, a strong proponent of Humanistic Buddhism, is the recipient of over 30 honorary doctoral degrees and honorary professorships from universities around the world.4 To have received such accolades, both Chan masters ought to have made momentous contribution to their societies. -
Out of the Shadows: Socially Engaged Buddhist Women
University of San Diego Digital USD Theology and Religious Studies: Faculty Scholarship Department of Theology and Religious Studies 2019 Out of the Shadows: Socially Engaged Buddhist Women Karma Lekshe Tsomo PhD University of San Diego, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digital.sandiego.edu/thrs-faculty Part of the Buddhist Studies Commons, and the Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion Commons Digital USD Citation Tsomo, Karma Lekshe PhD, "Out of the Shadows: Socially Engaged Buddhist Women" (2019). Theology and Religious Studies: Faculty Scholarship. 25. https://digital.sandiego.edu/thrs-faculty/25 This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of Theology and Religious Studies at Digital USD. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theology and Religious Studies: Faculty Scholarship by an authorized administrator of Digital USD. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Section Titles Placed Here | I Out of the Shadows Socially Engaged Buddhist Women Edited by Karma Lekshe Tsomo SAKYADHITA | HONOLULU First Edition: Sri Satguru Publications 2006 Second Edition: Sakyadhita 2019 Copyright © 2019 Karma Lekshe Tsomo All rights reserved No part of this book may not be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, or by any information storage or retreival system, without the prior written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations. Cover design Copyright © 2006 Allen Wynar Sakyadhita Conference Poster -
Humanistic Buddhism from Venerable Tai Xu to Grand Master Hsing Yun1
Humanistic Buddhism From Venerable Tai Xu to Grand Master Hsing Yun1 By Darui Long ABSTRACT The present essay aims at a historical. anal.ysis of Humanistic Buddhism that was preachedby Master Tai.Xu in the 1930s andthe great contribution Grand Master Hsing Yun has madeto the development of HumanisticBuddhism. What is Humanistic Buddhism? Why did Tai. Xu raise this issue of construcfing Humanistic Buddhism as his guiding principle in his reform of Chinese Buddhism? What did he do in his endeavors to realke his goal.? Did he succeed in bringing back the humanistic nature of Buddhism? What contributions has Grand Master Hsing Yun made to this cause? This essay makes attempts to answer these questions. It is divided into four parts. The first deals with the history of Humanistic Buddhism. It was Sakyamuni who first advanced Humanistic Buddhism. He lectured, meditated, propagated his way of life, and finally attained his Nirvana in the world. Hui-neng (638- 713 CE) emphasized that Buddhism is in theworld and thatit is not realiudapart from the world. The second chapter touches upon the historical. background of development and decline of Chinese Buddhism. It ilb4strates in detail how Buddhism declined in the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasti.es. Corrupt officials vied with one another to confiscate the property of Buddhism in the late Qing and early years of the Republic of China. Even the lay Buddhist scholars made strong commentaries on the illness of Buddhism and Buddhists. Chapter 3 discusses the life and reform career of Venerable Tai. Xu (1889-1947). Being a revolutionary monk, Tai. -
Buddhism at the End of the Colonial Period
Buddhism at the End of the Colonial Period Jonathan S. Watts Keio University Tokyo, Japan Historical Development of SEB: Asian Colonial Era 16th to 20th Centuries 4 Responses to Modernity v Buddhist Nationalism: Modern Nationalism is most often characterized by the fusing together of a specific ethnic group and their religious heritage to a nation-state with specifically defined borders. Buddhist Nationalism was initially part of the anti-colonial struggle against the West, but after Asian emancipation, it became a force against minority groups and cultural diversity as part of the complex renegotiation of national borders and identities in the Post WWII Era. v Socially Engaged Buddhism (SEB): SEB also arose as a response to the colonial domination of the West. However, it has been a more open minded movement that has not allied itself with the state and sought solutions to social problems through pan-Asian solidarity, inter-religious cooperation, and alliances with progressive forces in the West. 4 Responses to Modernity v Buddhist Socialism: The early development of socialism and communism in Europe had an important impact on Asians as a modern but anti- colonial and liberative ideology. Many Buddhists found socialist concepts to be in line with Buddhist teachings and the rules of the monastic order. v Market Buddhist: In Asian nations that did not embrace communism, some Buddhist groups have tried to align Buddhist teachings with capitalist values of economic growth and enjoying a prosperous life as a sign of virtue. Anti Colonial Movements -
Gushan: the Formation of a Chan Lineage During the Seventeenth Century and Its Spread to Taiwan
Gushan: the Formation of a Chan Lineage During the Seventeenth Century and Its Spread to Taiwan Hsuan-Li Wang Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY 2014 © 2014 Hsuan-Li Wang All rights reserved ABSTRACT Gushan: the Formation of a Chan Lineage During the Seventeenth Century and Its Spread to Taiwan Hsuan-Li Wang Taking Gushan 鼓山 Monastery in Fujian Province as a reference point, this dissertation investigates the formation of the Gushan Chan lineage in Fujian area and its later diffusion process to Taiwan. From the perspective of religion diffusion studies, this dissertation investigates the three stages of this process: 1. the displacement of Caodong 曹洞 Chan center to Fujian in the seventeenth century; 2. Chinese migration bringing Buddhism to Taiwan in the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) and 3. the expansion diffusion activities of the institutions and masters affiliated with this lineage in Taiwan during the Japanese rule (1895-1945), and the new developments of humanistic Buddhism (renjian fojiao 人間佛教) after 1949. In this spreading process of the Gushan Chan lineage, Taiwanese Buddhism has emerged as the bridge between Chinese and Japanese Buddhism because of its unique historical experiences. It is in the expansion diffusion activities of the Gushan Chan lineage in Taiwan that Taiwanese Buddhism has gradually attained autonomy during the Japanese rule, leading to post-war new developments in contemporary humanistic Buddhism. Table of Contents List of Chart, Maps and Tables iii Acknowledgements iv Chapter 1 Introduction 1 1. Research Motives and Goals 2 2. -
Welcome to the Port Townsend Sangha
Welcome to the Port Townsend Sangha. These few pages are intended to offer you support in learning how to meditate. In addition, we have listed some books and other supporting materials available on the web at the end of these instructions which may be useful to you. The Sangha also has created a mentoring program available should you have questions or desire further support. Learn to Meditate Part I: How to establish a daily sitting practice Before you sit As with all things, start where you are. You have everything you need right now. First, decide to sit each day. Next, plan the time, place and duration for your sitting meditation. Choose a time Morning is often best because the mind is calmer than it is later in the day. However, the best time is the time that you can commit to on a regular basis. If one longer sit isn’t possible, try two shorter ones. Choose a space There is no perfect place. If possible, dedicate a space exclusively to your daily sitting. Choose a relatively quiet space where you can leave your cushion (or chair) so that it is always there to return to. You may want to create an altar with a candle, inspiring photos or statues. These are not necessary, but are beneficial if they help to motivate you. Choose a duration As long as is comfortable, plus 5 minutes. This is a general guide, not a rule. Even fifteen or twenty minutes will seem an eternity in the beginning, but that impression will change with time. -
1. the Destruction of Wrong Views (Kudṛṣṭinirghātana)
THE COLLECTION OF TEXTS ON NON-CONCEPTUAL REAL- IZATION (THE AMANASIKĀRA CYCLE) 1. The Destruction of Wrong Views (Kudṛṣṭinirghātana) If not stated otherwise, my translation is from the Sanskrit. Deviations of the Tibetan are only reported when considered important for the con- text. Translation of the Kudṛṣṭinirghātana (the text consists of verses and prose): Homage to the youthful Mañjuśrī!101 Homage to the Buddha! I will explain the destruction of wrong views As the performance of initial activity. The level [of a Buddha]102 is thereby attained, [Either] without effort103 [or] with effort. (KDN 1) Here, there are two types of sentient beings: those who are [still] learn- ing and those who no longer [need to] learn. For those, then, who are learning and [thus] in a causal state, there are proper intention,104 the 101 This first homage is missing in the Sanskrit. 102 Tib.: rgyal ba’i go ‘phang. 103 The Tibetans seem to have misunderstood vihāreṇa. 104 Tib.: lhag pa’i bsam pas mos pa’i sbyor ba implies that “proper intention” is integral to the following “practice of conviction” (reading: “practice of conviction on the basis of proper intention”), but the Kudṛṣṭinirghātanaṭīkā treats āśaya as a different stage. 42 THE AMANASIKĀRA CYCLE practice of conviction, the practice following the attainment of [bodhi- sattva]-levels, and finally, having gained power over the following [five concerns: defilements, appearances, karman, means, and causing sen- tient beings to ripen].105 Perfect enlightenment is fully attained [only] after accumulating the two accumulations by performing very pure ini- tial activity. For those who no longer [need to] learn, who have aban- doned [all] notions about remedy, reality and fruit, initial activity un- folds through the power of the impetus of [former] prayers, as in the case of Śākyamuni. -
Readings on Buddhism
1 Readings on Buddhism General Beginning level Rupert Gethin. The foundations of Buddhism. Oxford & New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. (An excellent general introduction to Buddhism.) Peter Harvey. An introduction to Buddhism. Teachings, history and practices. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990. Peter Harvey. An introduction to Buddhist ethics. Foundations, values and issues. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000. Richard P. Hayes. Land of no Buddha. Reflections of a sceptical Buddhist. Birmingham: Windhorse Publications, 1998. (Fascinating, although idiosyncratic, essays by a contemporary Buddhist practitioner who is also an academic in Buddhist Studies.) David L. McMahan. The making of Buddhist modernism. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008. (An indispensable guide to the idiosyncrasies of contemporary Buddhism.) Nyanaponika Thera & Hellmuth Hecker. Great disciples of the Buddha. Their lives, their works, their legacy. Edited & with an introduction by Bhikkhu Bodhi. Boston: Wisdom Publications, 1997. Thich Nhat Hanh. Old path white clouds. Walking in the footsteps of the Buddha. Berkeley: Parallax Press, 1991. (A very accessible life and interpretation of the Buddha.) Richard H. Robinson, Willard L. Johnson & Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu. Buddhist religions. A historical introduction. Belmont: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning, 2005. (The best general introduction to Buddhism I have found.) Andrew Skilton. A concise history of Buddhism. Birmingham: Windhorse Publications, 1994. (An excellent single volume history of Buddhism.) Advanced level Steven Collins. Nirvāṇa. Concept, imagery, narrative. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010. (Very academic, but very thorough examination of the concept of the Buddha’s teaching on nirvāṇa.) Jake H. Davis. Strong roots. Liberation teachings of mindfulness in North America. Barre, Massachusetts: Dhamma Dana Publications, 2004. (This is a study of the transmission of the Mahāsī method of meditation from Burma to the West.