In the second installment of our Live Show, we start off talking about the distinctiveness of Shin Buddhism and its difference and similarities to other types of Buddhism. This somehow sets us off on a series of rants against, among other things, The Golden Chain and universalistic Buddhism. (Our apologies to Golden Chain or One Dharma fans out there!) These rants serve a purpose, though, and that is to challenge us to wrestle with difficult questions; it’s this wrestling that allows for spiritual growth, after all. And after these rants, we got our first audience question, a question about stereotypes we come up against as Buddhists. This, of course, sets us off on a couple of new rants about, among other things, Shin Buddhism being not “real” Buddhism and inter-sectarian name calling.

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Our first show of the fall season (recorded earlier this summer) was inspired by a bumper sticker of all things: if you want peace, work for justice. Harry and Scott take up the question of what is justice? And what does justice mean in a Buddhist context? Of course never ones to give you a straight answer, we take seriously the notion that there is no “one Buddhism” to which we can turn and recognize that different Buddhists across the world and through history have had different ideas about creating a harmonious society, many of which may raise the hackles of progressive, liberal, American Buddhists. But we do think that justice (in the social, engaged, or ecological senses of the word) is related to three central Buddhist concepts: karma, mindfulness, and compassion. We dig into these pretty deep and leave the question open for future reflection.

And don’t forget! If you’re going to be in Berkeley on October 2, we’re hosting a live recording of the DharmaRealm podcast. Check the Facebook page or the blog for more information.

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Prompted by a listener who asked us to speculate on the next century of Buddhism in America, this time around we talk about some current trends and social issues that will no doubt have an influence on the direction of Buddhist sanghas. We start, oddly enough, in the past and consider the surprising twists and turns that Buddhism took through the 20th century as a result of immigration, war, and racial discrimination — all of which begs the question: what unforeseen historical events will shape Buddhist communities in the 21st century? There is anecdotal evidence to suggest that Buddhist communities are pretty heterogenous. Will that trend continue? Whereas Buddhists are a minority in this country, Buddhist ideas are pretty diffuse in popular culture. What impact will that have on traditional institutions as self-identified Buddhists stop feeling the need for “going to church”?

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And we’re back! After a long winter’s break, the DharmaRealm podcast launches its second year “on the air,” so to speak.

Prompted by a listener question about why Buddhism “works” for us, we talk about how we each came to discover Buddhism and Shin Buddhism in particular. Harry talks about his experiences growing up in Japan and later the East Coast and his encounter with Shin Buddhism through a friend’s grandfather’s memorial service. Scott recounts his experience in a community college history class where the truth of suffering was confirmed for him. By and large, our first experiences were primarily intellectual, but over the years of bumming around different Buddhist paths, and even different countries, we both came to find the Shin path, and through graduate school, befriended one another.

Thanks for your patience over the winter break. We’ll be returning to our regular first and third Friday schedule from here on out. Happy New Year!

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In part two of our episode on American Buddhism, our conversation meanders from such topics as: How does one become a Buddhist? What is the relationship between becoming a Buddhist and intellectual study? How import is taking the three refuges? How important is community? We also discuss the important role that Buddhist art and images can play in introducing people to Buddhism, and our ambivalent feeling about “tourist Buddhism” and Buddhist commercialism.

In a separate post, we’ll be adding links to some of the resources discussed in the podcast.Thanks for listening!

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Here are some links and other resources to books and websites referenced in our podcast on American Buddhism.

Lodi Kung Fu!

Scott’s list of Buddhist books

Thomas Tweed’s musings on “night stand Buddhists” or “Buddhist sympathizers” can be found in American Buddhism, edited by Williams and Queen. A very expensive copy is on Amazon, but you may find a better deal at your local used book store.

The Preliminary Practices of Tibetan Buddhism, by Geshe Rabten, translated by Gonsar Tulku, compiled by Georges Driessens, published by Library of Tibetan Works & Archives, 1974. Second Revised Edition, 1994.

Parinirvana Sutra

Kenji Babasaki:
On the web
On The Buddhist Channel

BBoston Museum of Fine Art – Japanese collection

San Francisco Asian Art Museum

In our conversation today, we discuss the difficulty of talking about the large, diverse set of practice traditions collectively known as “American Buddhism.” How can you talk meaningfully about such a wide array of Buddhist communities, beliefs, and practices? And how do we engage non-Buddhists and those new on the path who may have their own ideas about Buddhism, correct or a little off the path, in a deep and compassionate way?

Part two of this conversation will be posted shortly, so please check back soon.

Thanks for listening!

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