Buddhism in the Media

In his book God is Not One, author Stephen Prothero offers audiences glimpses into the various religions throughout the world including Islam, Christianity, Confucianism, Buddhism, and more. Within the Buddhism chapter, Prothero discusses the numerous aspects of the religion. He provides extensive information regarding Buddhism’s background, beliefs, and practices. Although he mostly presents facts about this religion, Prothero effectively utilizes these details as substantial evidence to prove his argument that Buddhism heavily focuses on experience rather than narrative (Prothero 201).

Buddhist themes in his film; the development of karma and samsara in the cycle of seasons, and the

In this paper it will discuss the influence of the Buddha and how Buddhism came to America and the impact it had upon its arrival. How the American culture westernized Buddhism in their own way and how it looks today. It will also cover the difference of ethnic Buddhism and convert Buddhism in America. More specifically the objective of this paper is to explain descriptively and analytically and go over the historical time line of

Despite the fact that Asian Americans have been in Hollywood for decades, there are very few positive representations of them in film. More often than not, they’ve been depicted as stereotypical caricatures, and more specifically, as foreigners who can’t speak grammatically correct English. Moreover, the negative representations of Asian Americans in film has perpetuated certain misconceptions about their culture. Chan is Missing (1982) calls for more genuine representations of Asian American identities through its cast of complex characters and defiance of Asian stereotypes. The film also urges its viewers to critically think about their own notions of identity through the use of several recurring themes and filmmaking techniques.

Ever since, I wondered whether this impression was correct. The goal of this thesis is to satisfy this curiosity and to determine, through textual and visual analyses, if the 1986 television series also carries a Confucian message, or whether it was solely produced for entertainment purposes. This leads to the following research question:

Marc Rosenbush’s film, Zen Noir (2004), is at first glance a film thoroughly ensconced in the themes of Zen Buddhism. Set in a dark and brooding film noir atmosphere, the film depicts the story of a deeply troubled detective, at the end of his rope, who finds himself at a Zen monastery in order to solve a murder. But once there, he realizes that things are not quite what they seem to be. As the film unfolds, we find that the world Rosenbush has created for us is wildly symbolic, and it becomes clear that the monastery is a symbol of the detective’s psyche and that he was not investigating a murder, but his own fear of death and loss. If this introspective, psychological element of the film is recognized, the Buddhist themes of the film become conflated with allegories of navigating the Western psyche. It is the contention of this paper that when the psychological themes of this film are investigated, we will find that the alleged Buddhist theme of enlightenment in the film must compete with a symbolic depiction of Jungian individuation.

Many Buddhist concepts and terms are present and used in western society: "Karma" is used frequently in the sense of "fate" The wise Buddhist mentor is a frequent character in movies "Nirvana" is the name of a band Vegetarians refer to Buddhist reasoning Reincarnation is in the public awareness Koans are used to describe inscrutable concepts The Dalai Lama is an internationally known figure "Smiling Buddha" and similar figures are frequently seen in garden shops Buddha, Jesus and Mohammed references are equally well understood. American bookstores are filled with volumes on "Zen and the art of" this or that; Hollywood makes movies on the Dalai Lama and a Nazi's conversion to Tibetan Buddhism; and TIME magazine runs cover stories on America's fascination with Buddhism. Buddhist ideas appear in New Age religions, psychology, medicine, and even sports and business. Buddhist values are cited in social movements for feminism, peace, ecology, and animal

How can we begin to understand such a diverse and ancient religion? The width of Buddhism is immense. It is a religion without any written rules. Buddhism is based on self-discovery. Buddhists are born with the quest to find their true form. They believe that they are prisoners of the physical plain until they reach nirvana. Nirvana is the ultimate goal for a Buddhist (Buddhism, 2007). It is the state that saves them from all suffering and evil. They believe that only nirvana can remove them from the never-ending circle of life.

Buddhism is a major Asian religion studied and practiced in countries such as Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia. Although Buddhism is a growing religion throughout the world, in particular, the practice of meditation is spreading in the West. The United States has a center for Buddhists in Hawaii and New York and also a Buddhist community has been established in California. (Hewitt, 13-14) But even closer to home for most is the practicing of Zen Buddhism on the basketball court by former Chicago Bulls and present Los Angeles Lakers coach Phil Jackson. In this essay I will discuss how Jackson has incorporated some of the practices of Zen Buddhism into his and the players of his teams lives and how it has been effective for the

Buddhism originated in the early Fifth century BCE, from the teachings of Siddhartha Buddha (Fisher, 2005). Plagued by the desire to help end human suffering, Buddha reached a state of pure enlightenment showing him the way to end earthly suffering. Through meditation, people can control the desires of their human nature. By gaining control of our desires we can end our suffering. He taught his wisdom to all that wanted to learn. After his death, three main forms of Buddhism emerged; there was the Theravada’s, the Mahayana’s, and the Zen Buddhists (Fisher, 2005). For the sake of this report, the local Buddhist

Zen, also known as Ch’an Buddhism in China, is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that was established in China about 1500 years ago. Zen is a form of religious practice of mainly concentrating the mind to a single point in which then results in self-realization and/or enlightenment. Zen philosophy is interpreted that all humans are capable of reaching enlightenment, which is generally blocked by ignorance. The idea emphasizes enlightened masters over forms of scriptures, and is the least “academic” of all the Buddhist schools.

Importantly, this work avoided a Marxist analysis of the commodification of religion such as is described by the Comaroffs. In doing so it avoids claims about authenticity that end up as essentializing Buddhism, and instead shows that it “is not a static entity; it is continuously created through space and time” (16). Another important epistemological consideration is Scott’s treatment of Orientalism and the rationalization of modern interpretations

Hinduism and Buddhism are both eastern traditions with much to say about the human condition as well as the reason human beings exist at all. In some ways they are different while also being similar in other ways. In this essay, those differences will be discussed and the similarities examined for their message. In conclusion, we will examine what these two faiths offer to the human beings of the twenty-first century.

Movies today don’t show a lot of religion elements they are mostly focused on action, sex, romance, or adventurous. Before movies would talk about religions and how they work and also have a story to them. One movie in particular does a great job in portraying Buddhism. This movie is Little Buddha. This movie is both great for teaching and entertainment. Little Buddha doesn’t just entertain but also uplifts people’s spirits and leaves them with positive feelings. The movies does a good job in expressing the religion, it is not related to me because of the different beliefs, but it’s more related to Hindu people, the movie does have a message for the viewers, and it does have a purpose.

Hindu and Buddhist cultures are both rich in religion and expressing their faith through art. The Buddhist culture was formed by Buddha who went out to discover the causes of pain and suffering. Once Buddha realized what the cause was, he provided a set of four guiding principles know as the “Four Noble Truths” that are exercised in Buddhism (Kleiner, p. 13). The Four Noble truths are “Life is suffering, the cause of suffering is desire, one can overcome and extinguish desire, the way to conquer desire and end suffering is to follow Buddha’s Eightfold Path…” (p. 13). These truths are expressed in the following of Buddhism and commonly carried out through art. Buddhism is practiced throughout Southeast Asia and southern India where