Is Buddhism Changing In North America Summary

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The article, “Is Buddhism changing in North America?” written by Jack Kornfield argues that Buddhism is being altered through different influences in North America. He states that Buddhism in Asian countries is mainly a masculine practice and that most monks are male. These monks share their wisdom with younger male monks and also transmit knowledge of the Dharma to these men. Jack Kornfield then illustrates that Buddhism is changing in North America through different aspects including feminism, integration, and democracy. Dealing with feminism, Buddhism and western cultures have conflicting views on woman and their rights. Buddhism has masculine values and rarely lets woman practice in the Buddhist traditions while the United States believes in equality of both men and woman. Woman in North America can become full participating Buddhists without being looked down upon due to their sex, as they do in Asian cultures. Woman who follow…show more content…
In North America, one’s whole life does not revolve around Buddhism. In America, one can follow Buddhism and still have a job, marriage, and kids. They incorporate the knowledge that they have learned through Buddhism into their everyday lives. In Asian countries, Buddhism deals with monasteries and priests who withdraw from their entire life for the Buddhism practice. Buddhism in North American is also influenced by democratization. Jack Kornfield said that the western Buddhist communities stress the significance of “mutual support and appreciation” and that there is “participation of decision making by the whole community” (Reader, 173). This practice is seen to be the complete opposite of traditional Asian Buddhists who have a select group of people, usually older monks, who would be in charge of the whole monastery and would regulate and delegate all of the rules. No one under them would question their authority and would follow the monk’s orders without
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