China's stressed-out 'millenials' embrace Buddhism

Lu-Hai Liang, CNN March 30, 2015

Beijing (CNN) Five years ago, Beijinger Robert Zhao went on a trip 
to Tibet. What he encountered left him confused but intrigued. A 
science graduate from China's elite Tsinghua University, he had been 
taught to mistrust superstition and religion, but in the culture and 
devotion of the Buddhists he met he found something worth knowing. 
Now 25, he is considering giving up his job and becoming a monk.

"It means I will have to give up everything of the ordinary world," he 
told CNN.

While Buddhism has a long history in China, entering via missionaries 
from India during the Han dynasty, it was repressed during the Maoist 
era - many monasteries and temples were destroyed during the Cultural Revolution and monks actively punished for believing in "superstition."

But now, a growing number of Chinese are rediscovering the country's 
dormant Buddhist traditions. Some, like Zhao, are looking for a spiritual 
anchor in a competitive, fast-changing society. Others take comfort in 
meditation and enjoy volunteering.

Robert Zhao is considering becoming a Buddhist monk.

However, it's not always easy to combine Buddhist beliefs with the 
demands of modern life. Zhao works as an assistant to the boss of an environmental company. His religion means it's difficult to entertain 
clients and partners - a key part of the role.

"Not drinking, smoking or eating meat affects my socializing. So the 
company has to send someone else to go with me, which creates extra expenses," he says. Zhao has not told his family about his desire to 
become a monk yet, fearing that they might oppose it.

Buddhism, Australia’s second largest religion

by Jake Mitra, The Buddhist Channel, April 14, 2015 Perth, Australia -- The spotlight will fall on Perth’s growing role as  a cultural and tourism hub for the Australasian region over the  August 8–9 weekend this year, when more than 1,000 international  and Australian delegates will gather for a unique conference hosted  at Perth’s Convention & Exhibition Centre: the 9th Global Conference  on Buddhism, themed on Resolving Conflict with Mindfulness. The conference, featuring a diverse and distinguished line-up of  international speakers, both Buddhist and non-Buddhist, will also  underline the significant part now played by Buddhism in Australia’s  national spiritual life - Buddhism is the country’s second largest religion.

The Scientific Buddha

Why do we ask that Buddhism be compatible with science?

According to Buddhist doctrine, there can be only one 
buddha for each historical age. A new buddha appears 
in the world only when the teachings of the previous 
buddha have been completely forgotten, with no remnant
—a text, a statue, the ruins of a pagoda, or even a reference 
in a dictionary—remaining. Because the teachings of Gautama 
Buddha, the historical Buddha—that is, our Buddha—remain 
present in the world, we have no need for a new buddha. But 
in the 19th century, a new buddha suddenly appeared in the 
world, a buddha who is not mentioned in any of the prophecies. 
What he taught is said to be compatible with modern science, 
and so I call him the Scientific Buddha.

When I was young monk....

"I used to consider, when I was a young bhikkhu in Thailand, what would I do if Ajahn Chah suddenly said, 'Buddhism is a farce! I want nothing to do with it! I'm going to disrobe and marry a rich woman'? What would I do if Ajahn Buddhadasa, one of the famous scholar-monks of Thailand, said, 'Studying Buddhism all these years is a farce, it's a waste of time. I'm going to become a Christian!'?

Love Religion, but Hate Intolerance? Try Buddhism

New research finds that, unlike those of monotheistic faiths, Buddhist concepts do not inspire prejudice toward outsiders. 
TOM JACOBS FEB 19, 2015

(Photo: Nuttapong Wongcheronkit/Shutterstock)

Does religion do more harm than good? Considerable research suggests the answer depends upon the type of “good” you are considering. Many studies have linked religiosity with mental and physical health, as well as a stronger tendency to help those around you. Others have found it inspires prejudice against perceived outsiders.

A newly published paper reports this trade-off may not be universal. It finds calling to mind concepts of one major world religion—Buddhism—boosts both selfless behavior and tolerance of people we perceive as unlike ourselves.

Reminders of Buddhist beliefs “activate both universal pro-sociality and, to some extent (given the role of individual differences), tolerance of people holding other religious beliefs or belonging to other ethnic groups,” writes a research team led by psychologist Magali Clobert, a visiting postdoctoral researcher at Stanford University.

The case for Vipassana.

"Everyone seeks peace and harmony, because this is what we lack in our lives. From time to time we all experience agitation, irritation, dishar­mony. And when we suffer from these miseries, we don't keep them to ourselves; we often distribute them to others as well. Unhappiness permeates the atmosphere around someone who is miserable, and those who come in contact with such a person also become affected. Certainly this is not a skillful way to live.

We ought to live at peace with ourselves, and at peace with others. After all, human beings are social beings, having to live in society and deal with each other. But how are we to live peacefully? How are we to remain harmonious within, and maintain peace and harmony around us, so that others can also live peacefully and harmoniously?