RG ST 71 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Buddhism In Japan, Vajrayana, Cultural Hegemony
Scholars of Buddhism
Reacting to a crisis in Western Christianity
➔Biblical (higher) criticism
◆The Bible was subject to scientific scrutiny
● Why two versions of Genesis?
● Who wrote the beginning of the Bible if no one was there?
● What were the true words of Jesus?
➔Through the assets of modernity, scientific ideologies chipped away at Christianity’s
primacy and ability to account for the world
◆Meant that many people were going through a moment of spiritual crisis
● Looked to other religions for solace
○ Buddhism was a clear philosophy of life
◆Buddha was a prince who had epiphanies (philosopher) vs
Jesus who had a miraculous birth
Eugene Burnouf
➔“Introduction à l'Histoire du Bouddhisme Indien” 1844 → introduction to the history
of Indian Buddhism
◆Most influential text on Buddhism in the 19th C
◆Argument that Buddhism originated in India
◆Buddhism was a worldly tradition
● Buddha was not a religious figure, he was just a philosopher
○ Spent time understanding the world
Max Muller
➔“Sacred Books of the East”
◆Collection of texts from each of the world’s religious traditions
➔Originator of the idea of the list of the world’s great religions
◆Real religions had to satisfy certain criteria:
● Scripture
● An identifiable founder and leader
● Focus on doctrines and beliefs versus the focus on ritual action
➔“Science of Religion”
◆Rational approach to the study of religion
◆Muller considered his approach to be an example
◆Religionswissenschaft: The study of religions
● Comes out of the Enlightenment
○ Reason is the key to understanding the world’s religions
● Has to do with what counts as religion based on Max Muller’s definition
➔Protestantization of ASIAN religions: Defining of Asian practices through the lens of
Christianity
◆Two definitions:
● Protestant Christian criteria for understanding other religions
● Asian American Buddhism in US
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
○ Asian Americans come to US → establish Buddhist institutions →
make Buddhism seem less foreign → groups Protestantize (make
them resemble protestant Christian institutions)
◆Result: Muller’s criteria created the cultural hegemony that determines what is
considered a true religion
Edwin Arnold
➔“Light of Asia” 1879
◆Contains the four noble truths and the eightfold pact
◆Firsthand account of the origin of Buddhism
◆Implicit parallelism between the life of Buddha and the life of Jesus
● Cast in Christian terms to allow people to understand Buddhism
➔Created the Maha Bodhi Society with Dharmapala
◆Organization to try and restore the place where Buddha reached enlightenment
◆First international Buddhist organization created to protect Buddhism and
connect Buddhists across the world
Paul Carus
➔“Gospel of Buddha” 1894
➔Buddhism as an alternative to Christianity
◆Motivating factor for white people trying something different
◆Orientalism projected the fears and fantasies of the West
● Capture the enchantment of the world
Two birthdates of Buddhism in North America
1849 : Kong Chow Temple established in San Francisco
➔Functioned like mutual aid societies
◆Immigrants worked together as a community
1893 : World’s Parliament of Religion
➔Large masses heard from Buddhists themselves
◆Attempt to present Buddhism in a way that was attractive to the Western
audience
➔Tells us that Buddhism:
◆`Had many different forms (Sri Lankan, Japanese, Chinese)
● Audience was confused that there were many types of Buddhists
◆Was modernizing
➔Don David Hewavitarne
◆Came from a wealthy Sri Lankan family
◆Convinced that his duty as a Buddhist was to revive Buddhism in Sri Lanka
◆Changed name to Dharmapala
● Portrayed Buddhism through an oriental lense at the Parliament
○ The Buddhism he knew was already influenced by the West
because Sri Lanka was colonized by Portugal
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
The bible was subject to scientific scrutiny. Through the assets of modernity, scientific ideologies chipped away at christianity"s primacy and ability to account for the world. Meant that many people were going through a moment of spiritual crisis. Buddhism was a clear philosophy of life. Buddha was a prince who had epiphanies (philosopher) vs. Introduction l"histoire du bouddhisme indien 1844 introduction to the history of indian buddhism. Most influential text on buddhism in the 19th c. Buddha was not a religious figure, he was just a philosopher. Collection of texts from each of the world"s religious traditions. Originator of the idea of the list of the world"s great religions. Real religions had to satisfy certain criteria: Focus on doctrines and beliefs versus the focus on ritual action. Rational approach to the study of religion. Muller considered his approach to be an example. Reason is the key to understanding the world"s religions.
