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Mahāyāna Buddhism and World Affairs
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Mahāyāna Buddhism and World Affairs

A special issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2023) | Viewed by 5069

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Kosuke Shimizu

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Guest Editor
Faculty of International Studies, Ryukoku University, Kyoto 612-8577 Japan
Interests: international relations; Mahāyāna Buddhism
Dr. Pei-ying Lin

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Center for Buddhist Philosophy, Graduate Institute of Religious Studies, National Chengchi University, Taipei City 11605, Taiwan
Interests: East Asian Buddhism; Buddhist Manuscript culture; Chinese Buddhist thought
Prof. Dr. Fumihiko Sueki

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
International Research Centre for Japanese Studies, 610-1192 Kyoto, Japan
Interests: Mahāyāna Buddhism; intellectual history of Japan

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue focuses on the possible contribution of Mahāyāna Buddhism to contemporary conflict resolution. Scholars of international relations (IR) are well aware that the contemporary world is full of uncertainty and unpredictability. Additionally, in this context, there is a growing expectation for Buddhism to provide an alternative cosmology for world peace. However, it must be acknowledged that applying Mahāyāna Buddhist teachings to contemporary issues is not an easy task, as it is marred by a dark history. Similar research projects in the past have been made possible by positioning the dark history that Mahāyāna Buddhist history tells us of as if it did not exist. This dark history refers to the Mahāyāna Buddhist organizations’ history of war collaboration described typically, but not limited to, by Brian Victoria in Zen at War. Conversely, studies that address these dark records have argued as if Mahāyāna Buddhism had no potential to contribute to contemporary conflict resolution. For them, Mahāyāna Buddhism is not qualified to talk about contemporary international conflicts. This Special Issue bridges these two streams of thought and reveals the potential contribution of Mahāyāna Buddhism. It looks directly at the dark history of Mahāyāna Buddhism and, based on this, explores how Mahāyāna Buddhism can contribute to the contemporary global community. In other words, it attempts to derive from the negative history of Mahāyāna Buddhism a positive future in terms of its contribution to the global community.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Kosuke Shimizu
Dr. Pei-ying Lin
Prof. Dr. Fumihiko Sueki
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Mahāyāna Buddhism
  • history
  • war cooperation
  • peace
  • international conflict
  • East Asian cooperation
  • national identity
  • immigration
  • ethnicity
  • transnational Buddhism
  • Buddhism and political ideology

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 888 KiB  
Article
The East Asian Mahāyāna Teaching of the One Mind and Its Implications in a Polarized World
by Byongchang Kang
Religions 2023, 14(9), 1154; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14091154 - 11 Sep 2023
Viewed by 1479
Abstract
This paper addresses the problem of polarization, which is considered one of the most pressing issues facing humanity, from the perspective of Mahāyāna Buddhism, specifically, the East Asian Buddhist teaching of the One Mind. The teaching is outlined in the Treatise on Awakening [...] Read more.
This paper addresses the problem of polarization, which is considered one of the most pressing issues facing humanity, from the perspective of Mahāyāna Buddhism, specifically, the East Asian Buddhist teaching of the One Mind. The teaching is outlined in the Treatise on Awakening Mahāyāna Faith (Dasheng qixin lun), a significant text in East Asian Buddhism. The paper suggests that the One Mind teaching can help counteract the deluded and polarized mind, which seems inevitable due to the human condition but gives rise to polarization. We have the potential to move from delusion to awakening, since these two mental states are not separate from each other. By awakening to the One Mind, which is the common foundation of equality and interconnectedness of all sentient beings, we can return to our original still and pure mind that is capable of seeing the reality beyond the discriminating, prioritizing, and repressing mind, which has no intrinsic self-nature. Thus, the solution to the problem of so-called “post-truth”, epistemic bubbles, and echo chambers lies in cultivating mindfulness and awareness of the mind as well as recognizing the fundamental interconnectedness of all beings through the One Mind. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mahāyāna Buddhism and World Affairs)
11 pages, 812 KiB  
Article
The Perspective on Peace-Making of the Contemporary Chinese Buddhist Monk Jinghui 淨慧 (1933–2013)
by Saiping An
Religions 2023, 14(8), 1067; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14081067 - 19 Aug 2023
Viewed by 1247
Abstract
This paper explores the perspective on peace-making of the contemporary Chinese Buddhist monk Jinghui 淨慧 (1933–2013), whose views have garnered esteem among Chinese Buddhists but have received limited attention from scholars. Jinghui introduced the notion of “Life Chan”, emphasizing the inseparable nature of [...] Read more.
This paper explores the perspective on peace-making of the contemporary Chinese Buddhist monk Jinghui 淨慧 (1933–2013), whose views have garnered esteem among Chinese Buddhists but have received limited attention from scholars. Jinghui introduced the notion of “Life Chan”, emphasizing the inseparable nature of Buddhist practice and daily living. Building on this concept, he emphasizes that it is incumbent upon Buddhists to remain attentive to a range of real-world issues, among which war and peace loom large as subjects deserving of special focus. In accordance with the principles of Chinese Buddhism regarding the nature of the mind, he posits that wars and conflicts on the global stage stem primarily from the mind, with external societal influences acting as secondary triggers. Therefore, he proposes that the cornerstone of establishing worldwide peace rests in purifying the mind by means of a variety of Buddhist practices. By drawing upon Chinese Chan literatures, he introduces a novel and distinct method to facilitate worldwide peace—a tea ceremony imbued with Chan philosophy. Jinghui claims that such an approach, by nurturing individual peace, will ultimately lead to collective harmony across the globe. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mahāyāna Buddhism and World Affairs)
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