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The Cula-Saccaka Sutta: The Buddha Wins a Debate

The Cula-Saccaka Sutta: The Buddha Wins a Debate

The Pali Tipitika, the scriptural canon of Theravada Buddhism, isn’t famous for its humor. But at least one story in the Sutta-pitaka still inspires chuckles. The Cula-Saccaka Sutta (Majjhima Nikaya 35) describes a debate between the Buddha and a character named Saccaka, who is addressed as Aggivessana, a reference to his family. Saccaka was famous for his debating skills; he was also, as we…

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A Look Back at "Beat Zen, Square Zen, and Zen" by Alan Watts

A Look Back at “Beat Zen, Square Zen, and Zen” by Alan Watts

Alan Watts (1915-1973) possibly did more to popularize Zen Buddhism in the West than anyone else. His many books on Zen are still in print, and people still look to him for inspiration and insight. A large part of the West got its first impressions of Zen from Watts. Western Zen regards Watts with some ambivalence today, however. Yes, he was a strong writer and a man of keen intelligence and…

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After the Axial Age: From Alexander to Ashoka

After the Axial Age: From Alexander to Ashoka

(This post follows the last post, on the Axial Age. Some of this post was condensed and adapted from my book, The Circle of the Way: A Concise History of Zen from the Buddha to the Modern World [Shambhala, 2019]). Although it wasn’t his intention, Alexander the Great (356–323 BCE) touched off a series of events that put Buddhism on the map, so to speak. Alexander set out to conquer the world.…

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The Axial Age and the Origins of Religion

The Axial Age and the Origins of Religion

The Axial Age was a period of history between about 800 and 200 BCE, roughly. It’s called “Axial Age” because it was a pivotal time in world religion and philosophy. I acknowledge that the Axial Age was a trendy thing a few years ago but is widely dismissed in academia today as being too “woo.” Also, Axial Age developments don’t always neatly stay inside those five exact centuries. But it’s still…

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Stephen Batchelor's Confession

Stephen Batchelor’s Confession

[This review of Confession of a Buddhist Atheist was originally published at About.com in 2011.]

The Buddha said, Though a fool may associate with a wise man, he no more understands dhamma than a spoon tastes the soup. I don’t think Stephen Batchelor is a fool, but I admit I’ve been tempted to title this review of Confession of a Buddhist Athiest “A Tale Told by a Spoon.”

The book is an…

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Sudden and Gradual Enlightenment in Zen

Sudden and Gradual Enlightenment in Zen

This is mostly the text of a talk I gave to the Open Mind Zen Meditation Center in Melbourne, Florida, via Zoom on July 12, 2020. I say mostly because I chickened out on pronouncing the Chinese name Hongren and instead used the Japanese name Konin for the Fifth Patriarch. But here I use Hongren.

I foolishly asked Al to suggest a topic for this talk, and he said, how about gradual and sudden…

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Anathapindika, the Great Benefactor

Anathapindika, the Great Benefactor

Anathapindika was a lay disciple and benefactor of the historical Buddha. His generosity toward the Buddha and his monks became the ideal of lay support of the monastic sangha. His original name was Sudatta.

To appreciate Anathapindika’s role in Buddhist history, one must understand the way the first Buddhist monkslived. They took shelter in forests, sleeping among tree roots. They had no…

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The Arya-Bodhisattva-gocara-upayaisaya-vikurvana-nirdesa-nama-mahayana-sutra

A Buddhist “Just War” Theory?

The generously titled Arya-Bodhisattva-gocara-upayaisaya-vikurvana-nirdesa-nama-mahayana-sutra — Arya-Satyakaparivarta for short — is a Mahayana Buddhist Sutra written some time before the 5th century CE, possibly earlier. It appears to be canonical only within Tibetan Buddhism.

As literature it’s not in the same class as the great Mahayana sutras — the Lotus,…

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The Disciple Angulimala: From Serial Killer to Enlightened Monk

The Disciple Angulimala: From Serial Killer to Enlightened Monk

Angulimala’s story is found in two places in the Pali Sutta-pitaka. It in in the Angulimala Sutta, which is the 86th sutta in the Majjhima Nikaya, and the story is also told in the Theragatha, which is part of the Khuddaka Nikaya. Here is the story as told in the Angulimala Sutta.

Angulimala’s Story

Once when the Buddha was staying in the monastery built by Anathapindika, he arose one…

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"Protestant" Buddhism

“Protestant” Buddhism

You may stumble into the term “Protestant Buddhism,” especially on the Web. If you don’t know what that means, don’t feel left out. There are lots of people using the term today who don’t know what it means, either.

In the context of a lot of current Buddhist criticism, “Protestant Buddhism” appears to refer to a tepid western approximation of Buddhism, practiced mostly by upper-income whites,…

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Anagarika Dharmapala: Buddhist Revivalist and Modernist

Anagarika Dharmapala: Buddhist Revivalist and Modernist

Anagarika Dharmapala (1864-1933) was a Buddhist modernist who deeply influenced the early development of Buddhism in the West. He also played a leading role in the revival of Buddhism in his native Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) and other parts of Asia.

Ceylon had been partly or entirely controlled by European nations since the early 16th century, and wherever European ships landed, Christian…

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Buddhism in Korea

The carved image of the standing Buddha (마애불입상) on Gayasan, South Korea. © Straitgate / Wikipedia Commons / Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License

Buddhism in Korea has a long and distinguished history, but not always a smooth one.

Today Korea is divided, North and South. Secretive North Korea is officially an atheistic state, although there is a Korean Buddhist Federation that is part of the…

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Liu Tiemo, the "Iron Grindstone"

Liu Tiemo, the “Iron Grindstone”

According to legend, Liu Tiemo (ca. 780-859) was born into a Chinese peasant family that lived near Mount Hua, in north central China. She was a short, plain girl who grew up helping her father farm a rich man’s plot of land. The family was poor and often hungry. When she was old enough to leave, she left. Liu wandered through mountains and towns, often seeking shelter in convents. Eventually she…

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Shantideva's Lecture

Shantideva’s Lecture

Shantideva (ca. 685-763; sometimes spelled Santideva) is best known as the author of the Bodhisattvacharyavatara, or The Way of the Bodhisattva. This accomplishment marks him as one of the patriarchs of Mahayana Buddhism. He was also the author of a lesser-known work, the Siksasamuccaya (“Training Anthology”).

For all of his importance to Mahayana Buddhism, however, we don’t know that much about…

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The Way of the Bodhisattva: An Introduction to the Bodhisattvacharyavatara

The  Bodhisattvacharyavatara, or “Way of the Bodhisattva,” by Shantideva is a seminal text of Mahayana Buddhism and a treasure of the world’s religious literature. Today it is primarily associated with Tibetan Buddhism, but its significance to all of Mahayana cannot be overstated.

The Bodhisattvacharyavatara, written about 700 CE, is said to present the entire spectrum of Mahayana teachings. His…

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Do We Really Make Our Own Reality?

Do We Really Make Our Own Reality?

The claim that “we make our own reality” pops up frequently in Buddhism, and the claim often is repeated in mind-body-spirit circles. But what does “make our own reality” really mean?

From a Buddhist perspective, it doesn’t mean that once you’re enlightened you can fly or step in front of speeding trains without harm. Whatever your spiritual status, expect to continue to be subject to the…

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The Ten Suchnesses: A Teaching From the Lotus Sutra

The Ten Suchnesses: A Teaching From the Lotus Sutra

The Lotus Sutra is one of the most revered scriptures of Mahayana Buddhism. The sutra is known for its sumptuous allegorical imagery and its promise that all beings will realize Buddhahood.

Believed to have been written in the 2nd century CE, in 6th century China the Lotus Sutra was recognized as the supreme sutra by the Chinese monk Zhiyi (Chih-i), founder of the Tiantai school, which would be…