SOCIAL ENGAGEMENT
Creating a culture of awakening
In western countries, many of those who practice meditation view Buddhism as a way to achieve greater freedom from their suffering. As practitioners who hold a secular approach, however, we also recognize the centrality of contributing to what Stephen Batchelor calls a ‘culture of awakening’, a world in which all beings can flourish.
On this page you will find recommended reading to introduce and explore the subject, as well as articles written by a number of leading writers that will help you to dig a little deeper.
RECOMENDED READING
John Peacock argues that for too many, Buddhist practice is a retreat into a quietism that ignores the pressing social and political realities of our time. In his view, politics must find its way into the dharma hall.
Karsten Struhl argues that Buddhists need to focus not just on the problem of existential-psychological suffering but challenge and transform social institutions. which cause various forms of harm and suffering.
Mike Slott, Katya de Kadt, and Karsten Struhl offer an account of the core tasks and beliefs for radically engaged Buddhists who seek not just individual transformation but the dismantling of social, economic, and political systems which cause harm and suffering to all beings.
We need both the Buddha's insights on the human condition and a non-deterministic, humanistic Marxism to create a 'culture of awakening' and just society in which all human beings have the opportunity to flourish. As each perspective has strengths and weaknesses, we need to bring these perspectives together in a complementary, mutually enriching way.
According to Winton Higgins, the foundation of Buddhists' political engagement is the overarching ethical commitment to care, the responsibility to be 'engaged as a moral agent in what is going on in one’s own life'.
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