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Mindfulness, Cultural Appropriation, and the Global Diffusion of Buddhist Contemplative Practices

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Mindfulness, Cultural Appropriation, and the Global Diffusion of Buddhist Contemplative Practices 《禪與人類文明研究》第 7 期（2020） International Journal for the Study of Chan Buddhism and Human Civilization Issue 7 (2020) MINDFULNESS, CULTURAL APPROPRIATION, AND THE GLOBAL DIFFUSION OF BUDDHIST CONTEMPLATIVE PRACTICES Mario Poceski (University of Florida) ABSTRACT The article explores the growing popularity and global spread of the practice of mindfulness. It is especially concerned with the ongoing process of decoupling mindfulness training from its traditional Buddhist origins, and its deployment in a variety of secular contexts. That includes the teaching and practice of mindfulness techniques in hospitals, schools, and corporate environments, commonly without an acknowledgement of their Buddhist background. Among the questions being asked is whether such sucularised uses of mindfulness can be understood to constitute potentially problematic cases of cultural (mis)appropriation. KEYWORDS Mindfulness, Contemplation, Theravada, Cultural Appropriation, Secularization, Globalization, Meditation 1 《禪與人類文明研究》第 7 期（2020） International Journal for the Study of Chan Buddhism and Human Civilization Issue 7 (2020) INTRODUCTION The practice of mindfulness (P: sati; S: smṛti; C: nian 念) has a long history and well- established pedigree as a key component of Buddhist contemplative training, as well as an important idea with significant ramifications for many aspects of everyday life. In contemporary contexts, mindfulness practice is most often associated with the Theravada tradition. Nonetheless, similar ideas also appear in a number of Mahāyāna sources, including Śāntideva’s (fl. 8th c.) Bodhisattva Way of Life (Bodhisattvacaryāvatāra) or the records of various Chan/Zen masters.1 At a basic level, the practice involves the cultivation of attention or awareness of what is transpiring in each and every moment, within and outside of oneself—without judgement, addition, or subtraction. It can be done as a formal meditative exercise, like mindfulness of breathing, or in the less structured context of everyday activities. This type of awareness can also serve as a foundation for a broad array of other Buddhist practices, as formulated in South, Southeast, and East Asian Buddhism. In this article, I address salient aspects of the growing popularity and ongoing globalization of the practice of mindfulness. I am especially concerned with the use of mindfulness teachings and techniques in non-Buddhist or secular settings, such as hospitals, schools, and corporations, often without any overt mention or acknowledgement of their Buddhist background. Among the questions I broach is whether such non-religious uses of mindfulness can be construed to constitute potentially problematic cases of cultural appropriation (or misappropriation). While most of my discussion revolves around the fortunes and misfortunes of mindfulness teachings in America, the main line of argument presented here also fits into the broader study of the ongoing globalization of Buddhism, and the acculturation or application of its teachings and practices outside of their original contexts. MINDFULNESS TRAINING The value of mindfulness as a building block of a Buddhist path of practice and realization is evoked or elaborated in a number of canonical texts. For instance, “correct mindfulness” (P: sammā-sati; S: samyak-smṛti) is the seventh of the eight steps of the Noble Path, as well as the first of the Seven Factors of Awakening. In this and other instances, the practice is integrated within an encompassing vision of a progressive path of practice and realization, which culminates with the realization of spiritual liberation and the ultimate solution of the essential problem of human suffering and imperfection. Accordingly, mindfulness practice is closely related to other forms of spiritual cultivation, including ethical observances, and is imbedded in a specific worldview and a set of values that guide human behavior. Among the best-known examples of a canonical formulation of mindfulness practice is the Satipatṭhāna Sutta (Scripture on the Establishment of Mindfulness), in the Pāli canon of the Theravada tradition.2 This seminal text presents the cultivation of mindfulness as a direct and 1 For instance, see Śāntideva, 1997: 148-53, Hurvitz, 2009, and Sharf, 2014. 2 The text is part of the Majjhima Nikaya; there is also a longer version in the Digha Nikaya. In the Chinese Buddhist canon, there is the Nianchu jing 念處經 (S: Smṛtyupasthāna sūtra), a translation based on a Sarvastivada version of the scripture (T 26, vol. 1; in Zhong ahan jing 中阿含經 24). There are several English translations. For instance, see Nyanaponika, 1996: 129-50; and Ñāṇamoli, 1995: 145-55. 2 《禪與人類文明研究》第 7 期（2020） International Journal for the Study of Chan Buddhism and Human Civilization Issue 7 (2020) singular path of practice that can lead to the elimination of suffering and the attainment of spiritual liberation. It encompasses four modes of practice, the so-called four foundations of mindfulness: mindfulness of body, feelings, mind, and mental objects (or phenomena).3 In terms of practical application, the most widely used method is “mindfulness of breathing” (P: ānāpānasati; S: ānāpānasmṛti), which as implied by its name makes use of the natural process of breathing as the focal point of meditative awareness. Its best-known canonical formulation appears in the Ānāpānasati Sutta of the Majjhima Nikaya (Middle-length Discourses), which explains the basic technique and its benefits in some detail.4 At a basic level, the practice of mindfulness involves the cultivation of awareness or attentiveness on what is transpiring within the mind and body of the practitioner, as well as within the immediate surroundings. The aspiring adept is instructed to simply observe the various physical sensations, feelings, and mental processes that unfold at any given moment, without engaging in any form of subjective reaction or judgment. Such awareness can be cultivated on the meditation cushion, as a formal or structured practice, undertake in either solitary or communal settings. There is also the option of deploying it within the context of everyday life, while engaged in prosaic activities such as walking, eating, or doing household chores.5 Mindfulness training is supposed to have a calming and settling effect on the mind. That is accompanied by assorted physical and emotional benefits, including relaxation and stress- reduction. Nevertheless, within the context of traditional forms of Buddhism, its ultimate objective is to facilitate realization of reality—seeing things are they truly are. That, in turn, is said to lead to release from imperfect life in samsara and attainment of spiritual liberation. In that sense, from the outset the inducement to practice encompasses both utilitarian objectives and lofty spiritual ideals, even though the second group is deemed to be more important. GROWTH OF MINDFULNESS PRACTICE IN AMERICA The practice of mindfulness, along with a constellation of spiritual ideals and perspectives related to it, has been a growing part of the American religious landscape for several decades.6 Its expanding popularity is closely related to the increasingly global reach and impact of Buddhism, whose teachings and practices have spread to various parts of the world. At the outset, mindfulness was introduced as part of spiritual teachings and meditation techniques associated with the Theravada tradition of South and Southeast Asian Buddhism (especially Burma/Myanmar and Thailand, and to a smaller degree Sri Lanka). Its practice has also been promoted by Buddhist teachers with Mahāyāna affiliation, most notably Thích Nhất Hạnh (1926-), whose teachings incorporate elements of Zen and Theravada.7 There have been several conduits for the diffusion of Theravada teachings and practices in North America and other parts of the world. Some of them are related to notable demographic shifts, especially increased immigration from predominantly Buddhist countries in South and Southeast Asia. While Theravadin monks who settled in America and other Western countries 3 Ñāṇamoli, 1995: 145. For modern renderings and interpretations of the canonical text, see Thich, 2006, and Silananda, 2012. 4 Ñāṇamoli, 1995: 941-48. For additional details, see Shaw, 2015. 5 For an example of approach that focuses on the integration of mindfulness into everyday life, see Thích, 2013. 6 For a survey of some of the analogous developments in the UK, see Bluck, 2006: 25-64. 7 Pertinent examples include Thích 2013 and Thích 2006. 3 《禪與人類文明研究》第 7 期（2020） International Journal for the Study of Chan Buddhism and Human Civilization Issue 7 (2020) have tend to focus their efforts on ministering to the needs and interests of their Asian parishioners, 8 some of them have been active in teaching and popularizing the practice of mindfulness. 9 To that end, they have given meditation classes or retreats, sometimes geared towards non-Asian participants. There are also several contemplative communities led by Western monks, such as Wat Metta in the vicinity of San Diego, headed by Thanissaro Bhikkhu (1949-), and Abhayagiri Monastery in Norther California, which follows the Thai Forest Tradition of Theravada Buddhism, especially as formulated by Ajahn Chah (1918-1992) and Ajahn Sumedho (1934-). 10 Nonetheless, overall the isolated efforts to establish traditional monastic forms of contemplative Theravada in American settings have not been a resounding success, at least in terms of scale and general impact on the American religious landscape. Outside of
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