Buddhism Today 26 | Fall/Winter 2010

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However, within that framework I discovered that finding my own practice actually required that I synthesize and streamline what I found most useful and applicable from different traditions, including my intellectual roots here in the West. My own makeup actually required this synthesis; I could not do otherwise.

I am an American, and I am a Buddhist. This is our Western karma. Today I see a great need for us to be very forward rather than backward-looking in our approach to spirituality.

To be torchbearers in a benighted and violent world we need to collaborate harmoniously, effectively, and with a spirit of mutual respect, genuine understanding, and openness. We need to keep to the high ground and remain honest, ethical, humane, and even lighthearted—not taking ourselves too seriously.

Three Great Traditions, One Contemporary Western Dharma

We need to be willing to go beyond routine thinking. There have been three waves of Buddhist transmission in the West represented by three generations of Dharma teachers. The first group were the Asian-born teachers, who were mainly traditional in their approach. They introduced meditation and related practices as well as personally instructing Western disciples, both in the West and in Asia.

The second wave was the generation of Western Buddhist teachers who trained under these teachers. Their task was to further translate the Buddhist words, concepts, and forms of practice for transmission to Western students in their own countries. Now beginning to emerge are the first generation of Dharma teachers who have trained solely in the West under the guidance of Western teachers.

Some people from other cultures are proud that they have maintained much of their cultural identity; others have eagerly adapted and assimilated. We are bringing about a synthesized or an amalgamated Dharma distilled from the best of what has been transmitted to us from the past and from Asia.

Added into this Dharma mix is what is most useful from our own modern experience. It is one Dharma, one coherent liberating path to enlightenment. Protestantism altered Christianity without abandoning it; Reform Judaism loosened many of the restrictions of Orthodox Judaism while retaining the core of the Jewish tradition.

Something similar is happening to the Buddha Dharma.

I think these are mainly positive developments, revitalizing Dharma with a fitting new Western design. One of the main tasks of contemporary Western teachers is to stabilize both the study and practice of Buddhist Dharma and to provide leadership in further integrating wholesome Dharma values, Buddhist lifestyles, and contemplative practices into the mainstream of our postmodern society. We owe it to ourselves to carry on the Dharma in a sane way.

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We must keep the spirit, the very heart of the Dharma alive while not being afraid to let outmoded forms die and be reborn in accordance with current conditions. Each of us can give birth to a Buddha! For a number of years now, I have been observing religious trends and the transplantation of Asian Buddhism into the fertile fields of the Western world.

Speaking of the emerging Western Buddhism, there are many colorful, smaller threads woven into the larger tapestry. There seem to be groups variously emphasizing monastic Buddhism, lay Buddhism, ethnic Buddhism, meditation Buddhism, chanting Buddhism, ritualistic Buddhism and bare bones Buddhism; there is mystical Buddhism and practical Buddhism, academic Buddhism, therapeutic Buddhism, intellectual Buddhism, as well as anti-intellectual, no-mind Buddhism. Some people are attracted to hermitage and retreat Buddhism, congregational Buddhism, socially engaged Buddhism, missionary Buddhism, health and healing oriented Buddhism, upper-middle path Buddhism, Jewish Buddhism, Christian Zen Buddhism, vegetarian Buddhism, pacificist Buddhism, tantric Crazy Wisdom Buddhism, Beat Buddhism, eclectic, New Age, and roll-your-own Buddhism, to name a few.

Books by Kenn Maly

This essence consists of living principles that cannot bear any specific formulation. In The Awakening of the West: Yet it can involve all these things. Like him I know there is really no such thing as Buddhism; there are only Buddhists.


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When I speak of the ten trends in Western Buddhism, I therefore do so with certain reservations, not the least among them that I am primarily emphasizing meditation practice groups. Remember, these are emerging trends, and there is still a way to go to fulfill this vision. Meditation-based and Experientially Oriented As Westerners, we typically come to Buddhism for meditation and contemplation in an attempt to improve our quality of life. We want to bring more mindfulness to what we do.

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We are usually attracted to Buddhism not through academia but because we want personal transformation, direct religious experience, and we want to integrate wisdom, goodness, and compassion into our daily lives. The Dharma is not just something we believe in, but something we do. Lay-oriented Although there is certainly room for traditional monasticism—both short- and long-term—Buddhism in the West is obviously much more lay-oriented than it has been historically.

Practitioners are now bringing personal issues of relationships, family, and work to the Dharma center in an effort to make more sense out of life. Gender Equal In an effort to go beyond traditional patriarchal structures and cultures, we have already made great strides in supporting women as well as men in teaching and leadership roles. There are more and more women teachers, and they are providing some of the finest teaching. Gender equality remains an ideal, but one that seems reachable. We all—male and female—have an opportunity to refine our more feminine aspects and practice a Buddhism in which we keep the heart and mind balanced, respectful of both body and soul.

We are trying to learn from the past so as not to unwittingly repeat the mistakes of others. Democratic and Egalitarian Western Buddhism needs to become Western wisdom. As might be anticipated, it is evolving in a much less institutionalized, less hierarchichal, and more democratic fashion. Almost by definition, personal growth and the interests of the individual are going to be stressed more than institutional preservation and growth. Essentialized, Simplified, and Demystified For the most part, noticeably absent from Western Buddhism are the complex, esoteric rites and arcane rituals designed for initiates only.

Western teachers stress essence more than form, as well as teachings that are relevant for daily life. It is thus practical and this world oriented, rather than otherworldly and hermetic, with great emphasis on integrating Dharma practice via mindfulness and compassion into daily life. Nonsectarian Most Westerners seem to have a true appreciation for many different meditation techniques and traditions.

We have seen how politics, the quest for power, and sectarian bias have created chaos within various religious communities. We understand it is essential that we strive diligently not to fall into those same traps. As practitioners, we are generally interested in broadening and deepening our experience of the various different Buddhist spiritual practices. I think it is safe to say that there is a true appreciation of the benefits of nonsectarianism, ecumenicism, and cross-fertilization.

In fact, many teachers are already synthesizing the best of the various traditions into the one amalgamated Western Dharma that seems inevitable.

Buddhism and Atheism

American karma is our great melting pot. We have to live with that and make the most of it. Psychologically Astute There is a growing appreciation for explaining Buddhist principles within the idiom of transformational psychology. Dharma students are encouraged to bring spirituality into their lives as opposed to using spirituality as a way of avoiding personal issues. We are working on ourselves, and there are any number of interdisciplinary tools and methods.

Psychotherapy and Buddhism are most often taken as complementary. Spiritual friends, spiritual friendships, and simple friendliness—this is the holy life.

"An Introduction to Engaged Buddhism" by Maia Duerr | The Buddha | PBS

Here in the West where more and more people are expressing their personal needs for spiritual growth, it is the the challenge of the sangha today to provide spiritual encouragement and a loving, supportive, nourishing environment for generations to come. The Dharma is very suited to a Western way of life.

Do I need a teacher? Should I become part of a group? Where should I look for spiritual guidance? Practical questions such as these are very relevant. At one time seekers walked the path to enlightenment. This is a very powerful teaching that has come to us. Students often ask me what they should look for or avoid. Once again, the Buddha himself said:. In short, follow your nose.


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In fact,we can learn from just about anyone. Traditionally there are various kinds of teachers: Are we guilty of the Shangri-La Syndrome: Are we using too much head at the expense of heart? I am very grateful to my teachers. They were very kind to me, like second parents. A Buddhist Response to Global Warming http: Buddhist Global Relief http: Tzu Chi Foundation http: The Practice of Engaged Buddhism , ed. Susan Moon Shambhala Publications, An Engaged Spiritual Life: Melvin McLeod Wisdom Publications, Maia Duerr is a writer, editor, anthropologist, and founder of Five Directions Consulting.

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