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@buddhazen101
How do I practice benign a hippie without being racist or without being offensive??
I guess it really depends what you think being a hippie should be all about? Are you talking about the aesthetic amalgamated by white Americans in the 60s? If so, I guess it's a matter of finding a community, immersing yourself in it, humbling yourself by letting others speak and learning from them. And probably not profiting off foreign religious/cultural iconography.
What is the story #45 Right or Wrong by Zen Flesh, Zen bones all about?
Hi!
Well, there are of course many ways to interpret this story. My takeaway from this is that Bankei displays a radical form of compassion towards the thief, which apparently captivates the thief enough to change his moral compass and his ways. So, it seems to me like the message is to show compassion towards those who've wronged you, because that's what effects true change. There are important nuances to this moral scenario, but I think the message of the story is fairly clear. What do you get out of it?
My name is Evangelos and I am from Greece! I am very interested in Buddhism and I am currently studying all its branches. I found out that retreats in Amaravati temple (Theravada tradition) don't cost anything, while Zen retreats (Plum village/ International Zen Association) cost a lot of money. My question is Why?
Hello Evangelos! :D(Nice name, btw!)I’m so glad you brought up this very point. The reason is very simple. Zen Buddhism in the United States (and perhaps similarly in Europe also) became the more attractive form of Buddhism for a number of rather long reasons. Unfortunately, in the process of doing so, it also became highly commodified. Part of the reason these places cost money is simply because Buddhism is a small religious community in Europe and the United States, and thus is hard to maintain. This changed the nature of the services provided. But a more cynical answer is simply that many people found ways to make money off these institutions.
Whereas in many other places where Buddhism has a long history, the institutions are able to sustain themselves more easily. And also, Buddhism is not some sort of novelty for the people there, so it’s not as attractive and easy to commodify.I hope that taps into your question. Anything else, lemme know!Best,Dan
The spread of Buddhism
How do you know there's not a one true God? What if you were to die today in you're unbelief. The bible says that once you're dead, then there's judgment. For all who didn't believe in Jesus Christ would be sent to eternal damnation. But for those who did believe they would get to be the Jesus in heaven for ever. Are you willing to risk not knowing the truth? What if you're wrong? What if there is no reincarnation? Now is the time to learn the truth. Once you're dead there is no second chance...
Hello!
It seems you have a genuine concern for my spiritual well-being, and I appreciate that! This blog is about Buddhism, and for a while now, I write purely as someone with a background in Buddhism and as a former practitioner. Furthermore, if you follow my blog, you probably know I happen to follow the Abrahamic tradition of Islam, and thus believe in God and in Jesus Christ (peace be upon him) as one of the most important prophets of God. I will not engage in theological debates regarding these issues; I am very familiar with the Christian stance on these issues.
But we can talk about Buddhism, and you can even ask me about my personal experiences if you want!
Again, thank you for your concern. I wish you well always.
Best,Dan
I'm very confused by the message robertbobberson sent you.. is Buddhism not intended to be okay for everyone to practice? I though the Buddha gave a set of guidelines, for anyone, of any race and culture to practice if they wished. Did I misinterpret this? Is it cultural appropriation for a white person to practice Buddhism?
Hello!Thank you for your question. Rest assured -- it is okay for anyone to practice Buddhism! Cultural appropriation of Buddhist paraphernalia and its commodification as an aftermath of colonialism is a different question. We don’t need material stuff to practice Buddhism anyway!Best,Dan
I want to kindly remind everybody that “Zen” falls under the school of Mahayana Buddhism. It is not a separate branch--no matter how much the self-help/spirituality industry tries to differentiate the way they market Zen. It’s just another branch of Mahayana Buddhism.
Hi I was hoping you could clarify something for me, I usually practice what I considered to be mindfulness meditation but I saw your basic zazen instructions and those of others, and it sounds exactly like my practice. Since both follow the breath and let go of thoughts is there an obvious difference between the two? Thanks :)
Hello!Yes, in practice they are the exact same thing. However, it’s important to note that some meditations are motivated by a particular philosophy behind them. “Mindfulness meditation” is a bit of a poor translation of something else, since all meditation by definition implies engaging in a state of mindfulness. From that term, it’s not clear what the goal of the meditation is or what branch of Buddhism practices it. How did you learn to practice meditation? In Sōto Zen, Master Dogen teaches that to sit in zazen is to sit without seeking attainment of anything. He contends that there is nothing to gain, since we are all already buddhas. The question that many of his students then ask–and one that everybody who practices should struggle with–is, “if we are all already buddhas, then why do we sit in zazen?”This philosophy is in stark contrast from, say, the Theravada school of Buddhism, which has a similar form of meditation but with a completely different goal. Theravada Buddhism makes no assumption that we are all fundamentally already enlightened.Again, the practices may very well be almost exactly the same, but they come from very different premises.Best,DanRE: @badbuddhism
from what i can tell are you a non-asian buddhist practitioner? if that's the case i'm very thankful as a vietnamese person with buddhist leanings of your respect for buddhism and your taking responsibility of not being culturally appropriative and recognizing your privilege :-)
Hello!I did in fact used to consider myself a Buddhist practitioner for several years! Now, I am more of a training scholar on the subject and a passionate admirer. But, thank you! I came to realize that this was a crucial reality to face in the so-called “Buddhist community” (more like “Buddhist communities”) if it is to take a solid root in the United States.Thank you for your kind words!Best,Dan
If non-Buddhists could please stop sharing those fake-deep quotes from those “spiritual” Facebook pages or whatever that claim Buddha said them when he in all likelihood did not that’d be great
- Michaela
Always check your sources! The Buddhist tradition is vast and beautiful, no need to share fake quotes! Also, checking sources is a good habit if you’re into looking for “truth” ;)
How “Spiritual” of Us
For a long time, I decided to stay neutral regarding issues of racism and cultural appropriation affecting the Buddhist communiti(es) in the United States, as well as New Age communities. I mistakenly figured that “spirituality”--for lack of a better word--has no place for political discussions.
But later I realized that our “spirituality” (and if you’ve been following me all these years, you know the problems I have with the word and why) can only be shallow and selfish if we continue to ignore these very real issues affecting the Buddhist communiti(es). Here’s an excerpt from MLK’s famous “Letter from a Birmigham Jail”:
In the midst of a mighty struggle to rid our nation of racial and economic injustice, I have heard so many ministers say, "Those are social issues which the gospel has nothing to do with," and I have watched so many churches commit themselves to a completely otherworldly religion which made a strange distinction between bodies and souls, the sacred and the secular.
We must not make Buddhism into a “completely otherworldly religion” concerned only with souls but not with bodies--one that is only concerned with the liberation of the self from suffering, while dismissing the desire to act against oppression as a form of attachment to this world.
We must not forget that even the Buddha himself was a symbol of social reform in India at the time. For example, he rejected and called for the end of the caste system and allowed women to become nuns in his monastic order, reminding us that anyone--not just the privileged brahmins and men--had access to the Sacred.
We must face the forms of oppression in our American context, and that entails admitting and understanding the power imbalance between mainstream White American culture and the cultures of marginalized Asian minorities as the background for our encounters with Buddhism in the United States. Isn’t it curious--considering atrocious events in American history, such as the Yellow Peril propaganda, the Chinese Exclusion Act, the Japanese internment camps, fetishization of Asian women, immigration quotas from Asian countries--that Asian people’s religions went from being rejected as pagan idolatry to being revered as a valuable philosophy, while Asians themselves still face discrimination and stereotyping?
As people who adopt other religions, we cannot forget our responsibility not to appropriate elements of a culture--i.e., not to give in to the commodification of Buddhist objects and symbols. And just as importantly, we cannot forget to show solidarity and love to the people whose religions we adopt. After all, the way of the bodhisattva is one who denies one’s own pleasures, comforts, statuses of privilege in order to help other beings attain liberation and wisdom as well. It’s the right thing to do; it’s the spiritual thing to do.
_______
For a closer look at the negative effects of cultural appropriation, check out Maisha Z. Johson’s post on Everyday Feminism!
hippie culture is based in racism (◕‿◕✿)
No it wasn’t..
that’s nice, but hippie culture is based in racism (◕‿◕✿)
really though, it wasn’t. stop trying to turn everything into a race war, tumblr.
Hippie culture continues today in people who call themselves “yogis” and practice smudging and wear dreadlocks. You know exactly who I’m talking about. They collect crystals and tattoo themselves with eastern religious symbols and pretend they are one with the earth.
Hippie culture is based entirely on the exotification of marginalised cultures.
Hippies have a fundamental misunderstanding of the pieces of the cultures that they use (I.e. Chakras, smudging, dreadlocks, etc.). The understanding that they have of these cultural aspects stems from racist interpretations of these cultures based on anthropology (which is still a very biased discipline), but at the time of the inception of the hippie movement, anthropology was still being used to show that other races were inferior to white people. Hippie culture takes bits and pieces of these cultures that they see as being “counter” the norm which is fundamentally racist because they see cultures of color as being outside the norm which further others people of color in a western context.
white hippies like to think they’re the least racist of all whites or even not racist at all because they travel to ~foreign lands and get to know the natives~ “embrace” dreadlocks, eastern religions and imagery; they think their appropriation of our cultures and history is acceptance when it couldn’t be further from it. the whole point of being a hippy is being “free”, a better and softer word for uncivilised which is what they ultimately consider us.
and if you think people of color talking about our experiences and things that affect us is turning “everything into a race war”, then you’re probably a racist
like 100% the hippie movement was counter culture. they were rebelling against the conventional, consumerist culture while coming from well off white families. there’s a really good short documentary that touches on it idr what it’s called but it’s about the Berkeley student protests in the 60s, shouldn’t be hard to find. a lot of them acknowledged that what they were doing was just to piss off their parents - there was no “admiration” or “connection” with the cultures they bastardized.
This is a very important message to consider, because race relations in the American Buddhist community are hardly addressed. The reality is that Buddhist communities are segregated (not institutionally) by race, and most of the loudest voices on behalf of Buddhism are white guys! This is not a coincidence. And this not only results in a very American reinterpretation of Buddhism–which is not entirely bad, but it does have severe consequences when it reinforces misunderstandings and misinformation about Buddhism. Not to mention that Asian Buddhist don’t get to explain what their own religion means; it is getting explained for them.
The reality is that 44% those who consider themselves Buddhist are White. Only 33% of them are Asian, and that group is obviously split between Chinese, Japanese, Vietnamese, Korean, Thai, Cambodian, etc.
You’re interested in Buddhism and you’re White. That’s fine. But you have to realize that your position entails certain responsibilities, including making sure not to appropriate, commodify, fetishize, and essentialize historically Buddhist cultures.
TIA:
Wait here are facts! http://www.pewforum.org/2012/12/18/global-religious-landscape-buddhist/
From this there are an estimated 488 million Buddhists worldwide.
The study shows “Buddhism began in Asia, and the vast majority of all Buddhists (nearly 99%) still live in the Asia- Pacific region. Only two other regions – North America (3.9 million) and Europe (1.3 million) – have more than 1 million Buddhists.”
In fact China (you know made up of 1 billion white people of course) has over 244 million Buddhists, or slightly over 50% in the world alone.
So that 44% number is complete, total and utter bullshit.
@questionsfromtia: Oops, slip up! In the original comment, I was addressing the issue of racism and cultural appropriation in the context of the United States, but forgot to specify the phrase with 44%.
I meant to say “44% of those who consider themselves Buddhist in the United States”. Very important to point that out. Thank you. (This statistic is according to the racial breakdown of Buddhists in America according to the same website you mentioned, The Pew Research Center).
Yes, most Buddhists worldwide do come from Asia, as expected :-)
Peace!
What did buddha illustrate by this parable ? Can u please share your idea? How does it relate to the teaching of the Buddha?
Hello,
The Buddha taught a bunch of parables, I’m not sure which parable you are talking about.
Are mantras not always needed for meditation? I find it way easier to meditate with a mantra but im learning more and more that seems to not be the only way of doing it
Hello!
The short answer is no, mantras aren’t always needed for meditation. A lot of the practices depend on the school/sect of Buddhism.
Just remember to pick one and stick to it! Otherwise, you might catch what my sensei calls “seeker’s decease”--too much searching, not enough doing!
While i know i cant learn everything about buddhism thru reading i feel like i need literary resources bc of my poor memory and agoraphobia. Do you have any recommendations for a newbie or know of a book list resources for beginners?
Yes! Albeit not updated, I have a Sources tab option on my blog! In it, you will find Armstrong’s “The Experience of Buddhism”. Very good survey of Buddhism. It’s a decent start. If you have more specific questions, I can always point you in a certain direction.
Without meaning to sound snobbish, don’t just pick up any book from the “spirituality” shelf at B&N. It’s just that there’s too much bologne out there.
Hi, may I use the artistic rendering of Ksitigarbha for a non-commercial video? We are talking about religion and want to tell the story of this saint. Thank you.
Hello!
If you are asking me for artistic permission, you should know I don’t own any of the images that I’ve shared, except for my Tumblr icon, which I drew!
Since it’s educational, I think it’s a great idea!
However, you should know that it’s better to think of Ksitigarbha as a bodhisattva more so than a saint. :)
Best,Dan
The world is so heavy sometimes...
The world is so heavy sometimes... Lately, I’ve been aware of this more often, and it’s so mentally and emotionally draining.
My sensei said you cannot unlearn anything. Once you learn the world is round and revolves around the sun, you cannot go back to pretending it doesn’t. Likewise, you cannot go back and pretend you don’t see disparities domestically and internationally. You can’t go back and pretend that oppression isn’t happening. That sexual harassment and racism aren’t happening. That pollution isn’t happening.
This and more has been so much on my mind lately and it wears me down at unlikely times.
My sensei also said that the point of Zen practice was not to turn away in blissful ignorance, but to know (and I quote), “exactly what the fuck is going on and still be able to laugh”. Lately, the latter part has been quite difficult.
But I guess that’s the point of it all, to learn and learn and learn and realize just how little is in your control. (Of course, that doesn’t mean that you should stop striving to fix things wrong with the world).
If you’re feeling like me, keep your chin up and relax, nothing is under control!
Best, Dan
