The Role Of Buddhism In The United States

Whenever I thought of Buddhist I saw bald men or women with orange robes, white socks, and brown sandals. Obviously, not the older woman with gray hair that was now facing me and the other twenty congregants in the meditation room. She was obviously the leader.

There are many influences that given rise to contemporary Buddhist schools and forms of Buddhist practices in the US. Before delving into the influences that gave rise to the contemporary practice, it is important to first acknowledge how Buddhism came to America. Buddhism came over from Asia through books, through travels to Asian countries and through Asian immigrants. Many convert Buddhist first learned about the Buddha through books. Others travel to Asia to learn more about Buddhism or seek out teachers within America. These coverts would then create their own forms of the dharma that would be suited to those who are more adapted to the mainstream culture within America. Immigrant Buddhist have also created their own

Despite the religion or country, belief systems can prevail to form and encompass all aspects of society. From the way food is prepared to the architectural design of buildings are just some ways religion has the ability to mold the world. Whether it is Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, or another religion, they all play a key role in the American way of life. The consistent battle between different denominations, religions, and non-believers over how much of a specific religion can have how much control is viewed through the conflict perspective lens. The main religion, Christianity, is the most dominant religion in the United States; hence, the core to many systems in the public. Sociologists Karl Marx and Emile Durkheim show that religion surfaces in the way that believers act, think, and the choices that they make in everyday life. Certain belief systems have had the ability to pacify, to keep the believers optimistic, and to serve as the backbone of many laws.

“There is a set of associations with familiar American values, such as simplicity, naturalness, peace, and harmony. There are the favorite values of the health and food industries, such as wholesomeness, well-being, and natural goodness; and there are the aesthetic values of the young urban sushi culture, such as tasteful understatement, sophisticated minimalism, and multicultural cosmopolitanism.” (Religion & Ethics Newsweekly). Doing the research on Buddhism has helped me understand it a lot better. I have learned about it in high school just a bit but never really knew the full extent. I never really knew they went through so much until now. I didn’t realize how much it is in the “American Culture” until now. We use the words, theories, and some of the practices such as meditation for our own reasons. We may not follow the Buddhism religion but we do use it and it has made its way into our culture. Growing up my mom had a little green Buddha that was always on her dresser. She would always rub his belly because it was good luck.

In conclusion, the state of modern day Tibetan Buddhism has only been strengthened by the incorporation of practices from other cultures and countries, this has made a thriving and growing religion with approximate 6% of the worlds population, 350 million people practicing Buddhism today. Although, the practice is more widely spread in South Asia and South-East Asia, Buddhism is found in many western countries also. It has been spread by a significant number of immigrant communities or ease of access to travel by westerners to these countries and as a way of keeping alive cultural

Monastics and lay followers are both essential in ensuring that the Buddhist community, the Sangha, is run smoothly. A lay follower may be looked at as someone who isn’t completely devoted to Buddhism because they aren’t living the monastic lifestyle, obeying all the strict rules set forth in the Sekhiya Dhamma, such as “with downcast eye will I take a seat amidst the houses” and “not with too large balls will I make (up my food)…” but the Sangha would not thrive without the vital help of lay followers who provide the actual food and resources that monks need to even obey these rules as well as function and practice Buddhism. Even though lay followers are not nuns or monks, they are still Buddhists and strive to live by and understand teachings and avoid doing major things that are frowned upon in the Buddhist world. Being a monastic is taking on a serious role that takes an immense amount of commitment and dedication and not all people who practice Buddhism can do that, which is okay because lay followers are necessary in the Sangha. Along with supplying resources for the Buddhist community, they also spread teachings and knowledge to others.

One thing I thought was very interesting was that the Buddhist culture, mainly in America, would not mind labeling themselves as Buddhists or not. They would not care if they would consider themselves as Buddhists and don’t need the labeling to tell them so, even if they do the traditions and practices. I feel the same way because I wouldn’t necessarily say I’m a Buddhist. Yes, I do the traditions of funerals for loved ones, praying for my dead ancestors and grandparents and the practices of praying and bowing, but that is only done when I need to on certain occasions with my family, I never do it on my own. So, I don’t feel the need to label and consider myself a Buddhist, but I would consider my family to be since they practice Buddhism more as a lifestyle and do more of the traditions and practices than I

After learning about the major religions of the world, Buddhism seems to be the most relevant for someone living in western society. While many religions are considered monotheistic, with an all knowing powerful god to worship, Buddhism doesn’t put one god high up on the altar, in fact the focus in this religion seems to be more spiritual.

Buddhism evolved into a religion from a philosophy after distinct interpretations of Siddhartha's message to the people emerged. A divergence in Buddhist teachings consequently developed, with each group evaluating aspects of the movement to a distinct extent. According to the textbook titled "World History," for example, the "Purists emphasized what they insisted were the original teachings of the Buddha" and described themselves as the school of Theravada, which translated to "the teachings of the elders" ("World History"). They approached the faith as well as the path to Nirvana through stricter means of self-discipline and personal behavior. Meanwhile, in the northwest, a school known as the Mahayana ("greater vehicle") perceived the ideals

An article was written by Laurence Cox that explores several aspects of U” Dhammaloka’s Buddhism, and who he was as a Buddhist (Cox, 2010). Laurence Cox explores U’ Dhammaloka’s involvement in the Buddhist Tract Society (BTS), as a social movement organizer, and his participation in politics. (Cox, 2010).

The history of Buddhism was similar to other religions, it was also characterized by the development of a large amount of movements, schisms, and integration. Since that, majority of Buddhism had separated into Chinese Buddhism (including China, Japan), Southern Buddhism (including Vietnam), Tibetan Buddhism. In 21st century, the distribution of buddhist is: Chinese Buddhism — 67.3% (200 million), Southern Buddhism — 28.0% (84 million), Tibetan Buddhism — 3.4% (10 million), outside of Asia — 1.3% (4.8 million). 2

Although some of people who are interested in Buddhist art are non-Buddhist, there are millions of followers in the United States today. The followers include non-Asian converts as well as Asian Americans. Buddhism was brought to America mainly by immigrants, Western scholars, writers and artists. The number of Buddhists

Buddhism is a practical philosophy aimed at awakening people to the limitless potential and value of their own lives. Practicing Buddhism brings about a positive transformation in the depths of an individual's life, transforming fear into courage, deluded impulses into wisdom and egotism into compassion.

Buddhism originates from Hinduism, and thus it advocates samsaric cycle driven by karma (intentional action). Yet, it is distinct from Hinduism because it denies the existence of unchanging, eternal essence of human personality based on the doctrine of the impermanence of all compounded phenomena (197, 201). In Buddhism, there is nothing to be permanent and unaffected (203). Even if someone perceives his/her self as an unchanging core, such a feeling/perception is nothing but a result of an interaction between various metal and physical factors (203). That is, it is an illusion not a truth.

Gandhara from India were the artist of the Buddha sculpture titled as Teaching Buddha which represents the second miracle of Srasvasti wherein the Buddha performed his superiority over kasyapas. This piece of sculpture was made in second or third century as a seated Buddha on an inverted lotus throne supported by two elephants and a lion. This sculpture’s present location is at The UC Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA) in Berkeley California. The sculpture is placed on the table which looks more or less damaged and also looks old. The sculpture looks traditional as it is based on the Buddhism religion. The art and sculpture of Buddha are varied according to the time and place, but the art by Gandhara remained same all