Word: buddhism
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...inevitably compromise." He spits out the word. "Businessmen who focus on profits wind up in the hole. For me, profit is what happens when you do everything else right. A good cast will catch a fish. It's like Zen archery"--he believes in a brand of philosophical Buddhism, a surprising pursuit for a French-Canadian Catholic raised in Maine. "Success has nothing to do with sticking an arrow into the bull's-eye," he says. "It's all about practice--practicing taking the arrow out of the quiver, practicing notching the string. When you have worked at the process...
Nevertheless, many Chinese are looking to Buddhism, Taoism and even brand-new religions to slake a thirst that all the Cokes in the world won't abate. Explains William T. Liu, an American sociologist working in Singapore: "Chinese communism is a system of economic development, but there is no theology to explain what people should believe in. China is very fertile ground for any religion right...
...China may simply be delayed evolution. Very similar melting pots of prosperity, superstition and pious philosophy have emerged and thrived in Chinese communities uninterrupted by Mao's revolutions--in Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. China of old had three competing and complementary religious traditions: Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism. While the religions were often at odds with one another--Confucianism, for instance, is built on a base of worldly order and ancestor worship that's far different from Taoism's mystical beliefs--they have, over a long history, fused together. They continued to do so outside China...
Until the summer of 1956, the Chinese had some level of trust in me. Then I had the opportunity to visit India to take part in the Buddha Jayanti ceremony to celebrate the Buddha's birthday. I wanted to visit the sacred land of Buddhism, but the Chinese authorities were against my leaving Tibet. I decided to go anyway. In India, I met many of the country's leaders and freedom fighters. I was very happy. But in one way, I think, that visit spoiled my good relations with China...
Tibet has also become much less conservative. Old Tibet was very backward in its customs and habits. But Tibetan masters had very sharp minds when it came to the preservation and propagation of Buddhism. They were always creating new commentaries and books to clarify the essence of the religion. As a refugee community, we have been able to continue our Tibetan study. The purer form of Tibetan culture and Buddhist teachings is now available only outside Tibet...