[Buddha-l] Question for acedemic teachers of Buddhism

[Jackhat1 at aol.com]

Recently, I have been driving in my car a lot and passing the time by  
listening to a popular and well publicized 24 lecture CD series on  Buddhism by a 
professor from a respected university in the US. It is probably  the first and 
only exposure to Buddhism for many people. I have listened to 8  lectures so 
far. It is quite well done in many respects. The professor is  personable, 
knowledgeable and has a speaking style that wears well.
 
However, so far it presents a Buddhism that I never would have been  at
tracted to in the first place and certainly would not have kept up for over  the 30 
plus years that I have. He starts off by talking about nirvana as  cessation 
of life. This nirvana, he says, is negative, dark and foreboding.  (This is not 
negative in the sense of cessation of suffering or, at least, this  joyful 
sense is not there unless you listen very carefully and know  something about 
Buddhism.) The emphasis is on setting up an afterlife followed  by, what many 
would read as, suicide and not trying to alleviating suffering  in living this 
life.
 
Soon after, he presents Buddhists as being either monks/nuns or laity. For  
the word "laity" he sometimes substitutes the word "supporters". There  seems 
no room for someone like me who studies the suttas, meditates regularly,  tries 
to lead an ethical life and doesn't support any monks.
 
His last lecture is about Western Buddhism. I haven't heard this lecture  but 
his course outline only mentions ethnic Buddhism in the West and ignores the  
direction that non-ethnic western Buddhism has been taking.
 
My problem is not that he is presenting this content. It does reflect much  
of Buddhists and Buddhism. My problem is that he is not also presenting those  
aspects that attract most westerners. Is this the way Buddhism is being taught 
 by many in colleges and universities?
 
Please don't take this as an attack. It is something that greatly concerns  
me not for myself but for those newcomers who could benefit from Buddhism but  
are driven away.
 
 
Jack
 
 



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