This is the first comprehensive study of socially and politically engaged Buddhism in the lands of its origin. Nine accounts of contemporary movements in India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tibet, Taiwan, Vietnam, and Japan are framed by interpretive essays. The historical development and institutional forms of engaged Buddhism are considered in the light of traditional Buddhist conceptions of morality, interdependence, and liberation; and Western ideas of freedom, human rights, and democracy.
Engaged Buddhism presents ordained and lay Buddhist activists like Thich Nhat Hanh of Vietnam, Buddhadasa Bhikkhu and Sulak Sivaraksa of Thailand, A. T. Ariyaratne and the Sarvodaya Shramadana movement of Sri Lanka, Daisaku Ikeda and the Soka Gakkai movement of Japan, followers of the Indian Untouchable leader, Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, and Buddhist women throughout Asia. These leaders have campaigned relentlessly, attracted and organized millions of new converts, faced death threats, landed in jail, founded schools and universities, and produced a massive new Buddhist literature to restore social and economic justice to their societies.

Engaged Buddhism, Edited by Christopher S. Queen and Sallie B. King, SUNY Press, Paperback, $38.95

Christopher S. Queen is Dean of Students and Lecturer on Religion in the Division of Continuing Education at Harvard University.

Sallie B. King is Head of the Department of Philosophy and Religion at James Madison University. She is the author of Buddha Nature and Journey in Search of the Way, both published by SUNY Press.

Preface

1. Introduction: The Shapes and Sources of Engaged Buddhism
Christopher S. Queen

2. Dr. Ambedkar and the Hermeneutics of Buddhist Liberation
Christopher S. Queen

3. TBMSG: A Dhamma Revolution in Contemporary India
Alan Sponberg

4. A.T. Ariyaratne and the Sarvodaya Shramadana Movement in Sri Lanka
George D. Bond

5. Buddhadasa Bhikku: Life and Society Through the Natural Eyes of Voidness
Santikaro Bhikkhu

6. Sulak Sivaraksa's Buddhist Vision for Renewing Society
Donald K. Swearer

Engaged Buddhist Leaders

Buddhist Liberation Movement Activities

7. Buddhist Women and the Nuns' Order in Asia
Nancy J. Barnes

8. Buddhist Principles in the Tibetan Liberation Movement
Jos� Ignacio Cabez�n

9. Thich Nhat Hanh and the Unified Buddhist Church: Nondualism in Action
Sallie B. King

10. The Soka Gakkai: Buddhism and the Creation of a Harmonious and Peaceful Society
Daniel A. Metraux

11. Conclusion: Buddhist Social Activism
Sallie B. King

Contributors

Index