I think the article is pretty racist by claiming western buddhist are white supremacist. Not only are westerners the most tolerant people in the world (measured by statistics) but western buddhist in general are overwhelmingly of the leftist variety. So basically the least people in the world you could call white supremacist.
Only reason to call such people white supremacist is because of been white. Because of their skin color, they are supposedly guilty of been supermacist from birth because they are culturally conditioned and stuff to be supremacist. These racial theories sound no better than the ones about black people having all kind of defects because of their birth. Been guilty of a thing just because of their skin color. You just replace “genetically conditioned” with “culturally conditioned” and make all kinds of claims based on skin color just as before.
If even leftist (and therefore anti-racist) western people are white supremacist, then is there any other human on this round globe that does not qualify like that ? Is there anything a person can do not to be labeled as guilty of white supremacy ?
In my opinion, supremacy varies from person to person, from country to country. I don’t think you can label a person as a “supremacist” just based on his skin color.
Possibly. However, do Buddha or Jesus recommend the performance of rituals in the respective scriptures?
What is the use of your matted hair, O witless man? What of your garment of antelope’s hide? Within you is the tangle (of passion); only outwardly do you cleanse yourself.
Dhp 394
“Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem… a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.”
Yes. In Buddha’s case we can think of several important ritual instructions, such as seated meditation, instructions for how to donate/receive donations, and in the field of general Buddhist devotional practice we have frameworks such as the taking of refuge itself which is a social ritual.
In Jesus case we have the lords supper, baptism, etc.
From our past interactions on other forums I have made the decision to not engage in substantial dialogue with you. I have been allegedly “utterly refuted” with contrived tangential argumentation enough. Respond how I am wrong if you like, claim meditation, etc., are not rituals if you want (although I would first suggest you look up what “ritual” actually means if that is your approach, which seems likely, given our history), but I have made the decision not to publicly engage with you on matters unrelated to the OP of a post based on our personal history of interactions on Buddhist forums.
I would suggest the examples provided above are certainly not rituals.
Seated meditation is required for meditation. Refer to MN 118.
Here a bhikkhu, gone to the forest or to the root of a tree or to an empty hut, sits down; having folded his legs crosswise, set his body erect, and established mindfulness in front of him, ever mindful he breathes in, mindful he breathes out. MN 118
MN 117 states it is wrong view to believe there is no benefit in giving.
And what, bhikkhus, is wrong view? ‘There is nothing given, nothing offered, nothing sacrificed; no fruit or result of good and bad actions; no this world, no other world; no mother, no father… MN 117
AN 5.35 & other suttas list the benefits of giving.
Bhikkhus, there are these five benefits of giving. What five? (1) One is dear and agreeable to many people. (2) Good persons resort to one. (3) One acquires a good reputation. (4) One is not deficient in the layperson’s duties. (5) With the breakup of the body, after death, one is reborn in a good destination, in a heavenly world. These are the five benefits in giving. AN 5.35
Taking refuge is part of wisdom development; of comprehending cause & effect and developing the virtue of gratitude.
Don’t say that, Ananda. Don’t say that. Admirable friendship, admirable companionship, admirable camaraderie is actually the whole of the holy life. When a monk has admirable people as friends, companions, & comrades, he can be expected to develop & pursue the noble eightfold path.
It is in dependence on me as an admirable friend that beings subject to birth have gained release from birth, that beings subject to aging have gained release from aging, that beings subject to death have gained release from death, that beings subject to sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, & despair have gained release from sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, & despair. It is through this line of reasoning that one may know how admirable friendship, admirable companionship, admirable camaraderie is actually the whole of the holy life."
SN 45.2
The Blessed One said, “Now what is the level of a person of no integrity? A person of no integrity is ungrateful & unthankful. This ingratitude, this lack of thankfulness, is advocated by rude people. It is entirely on the level of people of no integrity. A person of integrity is grateful & thankful. This gratitude, this thankfulness, is advocated by civil people. It is entirely on the level of people of integrity.” AN 2.31
I have read the article (and this thread) and I found it most interesting, possibly because I came to it at a time where it is really helpful to me.
I am very inclined to read Funie Hsu article as a warning of the conceits that I have come to Buddhism with, and I must admit that if I am slowly entering a path of renunciation (*) I have sought out teachers (on the web first, but also in fllesh and bone in France not far from where I live) that mainly ressemble me (white and Western).
Yet I am fully aware that if we have Buddhist teaching nowadays it is because the teaching were preserved across an incredible amount of time thanks to the people that lived by and embodied the dhamma in uncountable places and times.
Furthemore, I am reading S. Batchelor “Confession of a buddhist atheist” and I found reading it horrifying (and I’m only half way thru it) with depictions of a Buddha that is almost a political scholar, talks of the uselessness of an order of monk or nuns, and a strange understanding of what the 4 noble truth are… which seems to perfectly illustrate the article from Funie (taken to its extreme this form of Secular buddhism would contain very little of the buddha’s teachings and not likely lead its practitionner onto the path of libreation… if people still retained that goal).
Anyhow, my personal take out from this is that I will visit my local Tibetan Buddhist center which I have delayed for sometimes now (at least a year), because I was feeling unsure about what I’ll find there and I was clearly quite a bit sectarian about it… (I’m rather attached to the Bhudda teaching as I read them in the EBT).
And I’ll be grateful that they have helped carry the teaching to our day and age with whatever bagage their cultures added, and I’ll continue embracing the dhamma trying to lay down the burden without adding my own French Western White Male baggage to it…
(*) as far as I can do now with a spouse and 2 daughters 9 and 4
