Zen Buddhism from a Western Perspective

Zen Buddhism from a Western Perspective

University of Phoenix

World Religious Traditions

Zen Buddhism from a Western Perspective

Introduction

The student’s thesis for this paper is elements of Zen Buddhism can benefit a person of any faith or of no faith.Religion plays a role in today’s world both spiritually and in society. A full spectrum of wars being waged to peace agreements being reached can be traced to religious roots. Some fanatical religion zealots want to kill all people who not think as they do. Others will allow themselves to be martyrs for their religion, not raising a hand in self-defense. This student prefers more peaceful paths to dispute resolution than war but will go war if that is the point to which the dispute arises. This student’s understanding is some of the religions, or way of life, that are less inclined to war and prefer a peaceful resolution are Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Taoism, and Shinto. The student states, “religion, ‘or way of life’” because after researching for this paper, he has come to find out some of these names (Hinduism, Buddhism, etc.) are more a way of life, than a religion in the usual sense of the word. A faction of Buddhism is Zen Buddhism or just Zen. The students purpose of this paper is to convey how elements of Zen Buddhism can benefit a person of any faith or of no faith.

What is Zen?

McDowell & Stewart write, “Zen is a branch of Mahayana Buddhism that has become widely known in the West” (p. 317, 1983). In What is Zen? a book by Alan Watts, Mark Watts writes, “Zen is a method of rediscovering the experience of being alive, It originated in India and China, and has come west by way of Japan, and although it is a form of Mahayana Buddhism, it is not a religion in the usual sense of the word. The aim of Zen is to bring about a transformation of consciousness, and to awaken us from the dream world of our endless thoughts so that we experience life as it is in the present moment” (p. xi, 2000).

Dialogues

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