Principled atheism in the Buddhist scholastic tradition

Principled Atheism in the Buddhist Scholastic Traditionpdftex

In their systematic presentations of religious philosophy, the Indian Buddhists consistently defended the position that belief in an eternal creator god who superintends his creation and looks after the concerns of his creatures is a distraction from the central task of the religious life. This was clearly the position taken in the early Pāl.i literature and in the Theravāda philosophy based on...

Shōtoku: Ethnicity, Ritual, and Violence in the Japanese Buddhist Tradition

Eye on religion: miracles in the Chinese Buddhist tradition.

Books on Buddhism for general readers rarely mention miracles. Instead, the emphasis is usually on the life of the Buddha, his teachings, and the monastic order, the so-called “Three Treasures.” This is a heritage left by the European scholars who first became interested in Buddhism in the 19 century. Take the example of T.W. Rhys Davids, who founded the Pali Text Society in 1886 in England, an...

Soma siddhas and alchemical enlightenment: psychedelic mushrooms in Buddhist tradition.

In the legendary biographies of some Buddhist adepts from the 2nd- and 9th-centuries there are some clues which can be interpreted to reveal that the adepts were consuming psychedelic Amanita muscaria, 'fly agaric', mushrooms to achieve enlightenment. This secret ingredient in the alchemical elixir they used to attain 'realization' was, of course, unnamed, in keeping with their vows to maintain...

The Buddhist Tradition Religious Beliefs and Healthcare Decisions by Paul

Buddhism originated as a movement of spiritual renunciants who followed Siddhartha Gautama, a prince of the Shakya people in northern India around 500 B.C.E. (before the common era, often designated B.C.). Legend recounts that after Siddhartha confronted the realities of old age, illness, and death, he renounced his privileged social position to seek spiritual salvation. Through years spent stu...