DiscussWorldIssues - Socio-Economic Religion and Political Uncensored Debate - View Single Post - Is modern "Buddhism" moving away from the teachings of the Buddha ?

**excholza** · 06-21-2010, 02:41 AM

And then there are the tibetan religions...

It seems to me that the more a particular strain of Buddhism is associated with a nation-state, the more that particular strain is going to field late texts as authentic (abhidhamma, sanskrit sutras, etc.). The "Thai" Forest Tradition, for example: it's an interesting reification. Why not simply say that the modern Forest Tradition was started in Thailand?

Besides Tibet, Sri Lanka is a fantastic example of Nationalist Buddhism and the horrors it can give rise to, and modern monastic involvement in the Thai catastrophe of late is perhaps further proof of the idea.

In this respect, it is possible that 'modern' Buddhism as referred to in this thread could refer to a move away from this sort of sectarian nationalism and toward a variety of other models. If so, these models might here be showcased: the secular Buddhist movement spearheaded by Batchelor would be merely one example of someone trying to find the best modern fit for the longest-standing human organizaton.

Just some thoughts.

06-21-2010, 02:41 AM	#16
excholza Join Date Oct 2005 Posts 376 Senior Member	And then there are the tibetan religions... It seems to me that the more a particular strain of Buddhism is associated with a nation-state, the more that particular strain is going to field late texts as authentic (abhidhamma, sanskrit sutras, etc.). The "Thai" Forest Tradition, for example: it's an interesting reification. Why not simply say that the modern Forest Tradition was started in Thailand? Besides Tibet, Sri Lanka is a fantastic example of Nationalist Buddhism and the horrors it can give rise to, and modern monastic involvement in the Thai catastrophe of late is perhaps further proof of the idea. In this respect, it is possible that 'modern' Buddhism as referred to in this thread could refer to a move away from this sort of sectarian nationalism and toward a variety of other models. If so, these models might here be showcased: the secular Buddhist movement spearheaded by Batchelor would be merely one example of someone trying to find the best modern fit for the longest-standing human organizaton. Just some thoughts.
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