Buddhism in America

Understanding Buddhism

Term Paper

Buddhism in America

In this paper I have chosen to explore the growing phenomenon of Western Buddhism, specifically the rise of Buddhist philosophy and Buddhist religion and its various sects in the United States of America. There is little consensus on an explanation for the growing popularity of American Buddhism. Unlike in Asia where there is century's worth of social and political background for Buddhism, America has almost none by comparison.

Although it is now rather common to refer to Oriental influences in the writing of such prominent American literary figures as Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Walt Whitman, the more specific beginnings of Buddhism in America can be traced to the Chinese immigrants who began to appear on the West Coast in the 1840's. Rick Fields, author of How the Swans Came to the Lake: A Narrative History of Buddhism in America, has suggested that by 1852 twenty thousand Chinese were [resent in California and within a decade, nearly one-tenth of the California population was Chinese.

As Chinese temples began to appear along the California coastline and as well in the Chinatown section of San Francisco the religious practice was an eclectic blend of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism, and although there were many Buddhist priests in residence, a distinctly Chinese Buddhism did not develop until much later.

The Japanese presence in America developed more slowly than the Chinese, but had a much greater impact and brought with it the presence of Zen Buddhism.

The termination of the United States' involvement in Viet-Nam, and Korea brought an influx of immigrants from those countries and with that came Viet-Namese and Korean Buddhist traditions as well.

The Buddhist culture to enter America most recently is the Tibetan form of Buddhism. Although few Buddhist groups appeared in the West prior to 1960, the majority came after the Tibetan holocaust, during which the Communist Chinese made every effort to extinguish religion in Tibet. The Tibetan groups are the most colorful of all the Buddhist groups now prospering in America, possessing a rich tradition of Buddhist art and a powerful psychological approach to mental health.

The final sectarian tradition to be considered is that of Therevada Buddhism. Now as many Buddhists from Laos, Cambodia, Thailand, and Burma have migrated to the United States to escape the economic and political uncertainty of their native lands there is a vigorous new infusion of Therevada Buddhism into America.

Outlining the historic details of the various Buddhist movements in America tells only a small part of the story however, for the growth of American Buddhism is far more than its history. Rather, it presents a struggle to acculturate and accommodate on the part of a religious tradition that initially appeared to be wholly foreign to the American mindset. It is important to realize that two different groups were primarily responsible for Buddhism's earliest growth in America. On the one hand Buddhism is the native religion of a significant number of Asian immigrants. On the other hand, it became the religion, or at least the subject of serious personal interest for an increasing group of (mostly) Euro-Americans who embraced Buddhism primarily out of intellectual attraction, and an interest in spiritual practice. This latter circumstance has created its own Buddhist subculture that is literate, urban and upwardly mobile in its life orientation. These factors make the concept of Buddhist identity a murky issue exacerbated by confusion about various Buddhist positions on ethical issues, sexuality, gender roles and so forth.

Asian Buddhist teachers and the gradually increasing number of American Buddhist masters are beginning to establish an institutional foundation that is stable, solid, and even ecumenical. In 1987 the World Buddhism in North America Conference was held at the University of Michigan during which a statement of consensus was formulated (1)"to create the conditions necessary for tolerance and understanding among Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike, "(2)" to initiate a dialogue among Buddhists in North America in order to further mutual understanding, growth in understanding, and cooperation," (3) "to increase our sense of community by recognizing and understanding our differences as well as our common beliefs and practices," and (4)" to cultivate thoughts and actions of friendliness towards others whether they accept our beliefs or not, and in doing so approach the world as the proper field of Dharma, not as a sphere of conduct irreconcilable with the practice of Dharma."

Over the past 100 years, Buddhism in this country has evolved and changed, influenced by the potpourri of cultures and sub-cultures which can be found coexisting only in the US. As we approach the twenty-first century, Buddhism has even become an important way of life for many American people with no Asian heritage whatsoever. So, maybe it's fair to analogize and say that Buddhism in America is in a similar embryonic state as it might have been in Japan in the year 642.

Buddhism is big news in America these days. Whether through a New York Times article carrying the Dalai Lama's latest remarks or a CNN spot on a political fund-raising scandal at a Taiwanese branch temple in Los Angeles, Americans have become more aware than ever before of something called "Buddhism." But it is not only as interesting bits of cultural and political exotica that Buddhism has entered the American consciousness. Increasingly, Americans themselves are becoming Buddhists.

And there are conflicts, as well as contrasts, within Buddhist America. Like many other religious groups, Buddhists frequently find themselves divided by class, culture, or ethnicity. The differences can be fundamental. Writing in the Buddhist journal Tricycle, Victor Sogen Hori describes how, at the conclusion of a week-long Chinese-style Zen retreat he attended, the white American and ethnic Chinese Buddhists offered profoundly different views of their experience. One Chinese woman broke down in tears as she described the deep sense of shame and repentance she had felt over her selfishness. Her white American coreligionists were often impatient with such sentiments. These participants, Hori writes, "spoke uniformly of how the long hours of meditation had helped them get in touch with themselves ... and assisted them in the process of self-realization."

There are relatively few propositions that would be accepted by members of all Buddhist communities. That