[Buddha-l] Buddhist stupa to be moved from NM Petroglyph Park

[Christopher Fynn]

On 02/10/2012, Richard Hayes <rhayes at unm.edu> wrote:

> On Oct 2, 2012, at 1:13 AM, Christopher Fynn <chris.fynn at gmail.com> wrote:

>> perhaps the NPS broke some law by purchasing
>> a religious monument along with the land.

> I gather that is at least part of the argument being used. Removal of the
> stupa is meant to rectify that violation of the law. I think another part of
> the argument is that if one would not be happy with a functioning Catholic
> chapel or a mosque in a national park, one should not be happy with a
> Buddhist stupa there. That argument makes sense to me.

Well a stupa is not like a temple, mosque or church. There is is not
going to be a congregation assembling there every Friday or Sunday -
only the occasional  circumambulator.

> What puzzles me is that PEER is mostly an environmental group, and I'm not
> sure I see what this affair has to do with environmental concerns. A quick
> glance at the PEER website shows that the organization tilts heavily toward
> Obama. I wonder whether New Mexican Republicans will use the removal of a
> Buddhist stupa from Petroglyphs National Monument as further evidence to
> support their claim that Obama and his supporters have declared war on
> religion. So far I have seen no follow-up at all since the story broke. The
> only discussion I have seen has been right here on buddha-l. Maybe we'll
> finally get a Pulitzer prize for in-depth coverage of an issue of grave
> concern.

PEER obviously don't know that among the primary reasons people erect
stupas is to protect the environment, bring harmony and to please or
subdue the local earth spirits. Many Buddhists would believe that
removing a stupa would have the opposite effect.

- Chris