What do you think?
Rate this book
Figures of Buddhist Modernity in Asia
This book introduces contemporary Buddhists from across Asia and from various walks of life. Eschewing traditional hagiographies, the editors have collected sixty-six profiles of individuals who would be excluded from most Buddhist histories and ethnographies. In addition to monks and nuns, readers will encounter artists, psychologists, social workers, part-time priests, healers, and librarians as well as charlatans, hucksters, profiteers, and rabble-rousers―all whose lives reflect changes in modern Buddhism even as they themselves shape the course of these changes.
The editors and contributors are fundamentally concerned with how individual Buddhists make meaning and display this understanding to others. Some practitioners profiled look to the past, lamenting the transformations Buddhism has undergone in recent times, while others embrace these. Some have adopted a “new asceticism,” while others are eager to explore different religious traditions as they think about their own ways of being Buddhist. Arranging the profiles according to these themes―looking backward, forward, inward, and outward―reveals the value of studying individual Buddhists and their idiosyncratic religious backgrounds and attitudes, thus highlighting the diversity of approaches to the practice and study of Buddhism in Asia today. Students and teachers will welcome sections on further readings and additional tables of contents that organize the profiles thematically, as well as by tradition (Theravada, Mahayana, Vajrayana), region, and country.
The editors and contributors are fundamentally concerned with how individual Buddhists make meaning and display this understanding to others. Some practitioners profiled look to the past, lamenting the transformations Buddhism has undergone in recent times, while others embrace these. Some have adopted a “new asceticism,” while others are eager to explore different religious traditions as they think about their own ways of being Buddhist. Arranging the profiles according to these themes―looking backward, forward, inward, and outward―reveals the value of studying individual Buddhists and their idiosyncratic religious backgrounds and attitudes, thus highlighting the diversity of approaches to the practice and study of Buddhism in Asia today. Students and teachers will welcome sections on further readings and additional tables of contents that organize the profiles thematically, as well as by tradition (Theravada, Mahayana, Vajrayana), region, and country.
- GenresBuddhism
240 pages, Hardcover
Published June 30, 2016
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
August 12, 2022
This book covered a huge amount of different people from many different places in a wide variety of different circumstances. It was quite interesting overall, although I found some more interesting than others.
Also helpful was the short background on the context in which each character is living. This helps to learn more about the history of these places overall, Buddhism there, and how things ended up where they were when this person came into the picture.
By learning about all these different people, it helps to improve understanding of others and also better understanding oneself.
Overall, very informative. I learned a lot.
Also helpful was the short background on the context in which each character is living. This helps to learn more about the history of these places overall, Buddhism there, and how things ended up where they were when this person came into the picture.
By learning about all these different people, it helps to improve understanding of others and also better understanding oneself.
Overall, very informative. I learned a lot.
Displaying 1 of 1 review