Buddhism and Ecology SS-220

Scholars, practitioners and activists worldwide debate the relationship between Buddhism and ecology, some arguing that ecological sensitivities are inherent in the teachings of the religion, while others see these as modern aberrations. We will examine Buddhist perspectives on nature and Buddhist responses to environmental issues. Looking at Buddhist activities in specific settings, we will consider how the religion both informed and was influenced by culture, politics, economics and concerns of local people facing environmental issues. Cases studies will be drawn from Southeast and East Asia and the United States. This Course can be used for Division I Distribution. Learning goals: MCP, PRJ, REA, WRI

Goals of the Course:

· To examine critically the relationship between Buddhism and the environment.

· To understand the diversity of thought and cultural differences in various forms of Buddhism.

· To think about different concepts of nature, ecology and the environment, and their consequences for environmental behavior.

· To examine the intersections between cultural concepts (i.e., environmentalism) and religious practice.

· To learn to research and use sources critically in building an analytical argument.

Assignments:

Assignments include reading, writing, and project-based work. I expect readings to be done thoughtfully and critically before the class date for which each assignment is listed as discussion is largely based on the readings. Students will be expected to participate in discussions.

All articles are available online through the course web site (under Readings and in the daily Syllabus) and on Reserve in the Hampshire College Library. You should make copies of the readings and bring them with you to class the day we are discussing them. The two books are available through the Hampshire College Bookstore, and also on Reserve.

Kaza, Stephanie and Kenneth Kraft, eds. 2000. Dharma Rain: Sources of Buddhist Environmentalism. Boston &amp; London: Shambala Press.

Swearer, Donald K., Sommai Premchit, and Phaithuoon Dokbuakaew. 2004. Sacred Mountains of Northern Thailand and Their Legends. Chiang Mai: Silkworm Books.

Written Assignments: All written assignments are due at the beginning of the class for which they are listed below. I do not accept late papers without prior permission. Papers must be typed, double-spaced and proofread, with page numbers. Please plan ahead for printing your papers so that you don’t have last minute computer problems. You should always spell-check and proofread your assignments before turning them in.


 * Plagiarism: Plagiarism is the presentation of another person’s ideas or words as if they were your own, without acknowledging the source. Plagiarism is a serious offence, and can result in either No Evaluation for the course or even disciplinary withdrawal from the College. As you write your papers, you must be sure to cite your sources thoroughly and correctly, whether you are quoting directly or paraphrasing. Ignorance of plagiarism is not an excuse. If you are ever uncertain as to whether doing something is technically plagiarism, you should ask. You should also consult with writing reference manuals for correct citation and bibliographic formats, including for citing Internet sources.

Evaluations: To receive an evaluation for the course, you must complete all assignments on time and make satisfactory progress on the course learning goals. I expect a lot of writing and class participation. If you miss more than two class meetings without a good reason, you may not get a good evaluation. (If you miss a significant number of class meetings, you may not get an evaluation.) Remember: Communication with me about your status in the class can help you meet the course goals and do well in this course. I do not give Incompletes unless negotiated before assignment due dates, including the final paper and portfolio.

Syllabus:

Introduction

Thurs., Sept. 4: Introductions

Tues., Sept. 9: Buddhism and ecology – ideas and practice.

· Sponsel, Leslie E. &amp; Poranee Natadecha-Sponsel. 2003. “Buddhist Views of Nature and the Environment.” In Helaine Selin, ed. Nature Across Cultures: Views of Nature and the Environment in Non-Western Cultures. Dordrecht/Boston/London: Kluwer Academic Publishers. Pp. 351-371.

Post personal information on course website discussion board.

Thurs. Sept. 11: Basic Ideas in Buddhism.

· Harvey, Peter. 1990. Introduction, Chs 1-3. An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History and Practices. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Pp. 1-72.

How Environmentalist is Buddhism?

Tues., Sept. 16: Early Buddhism.

· Chapple, Christopher Key. 1997. “Animals and Environment in the Buddhist Birth Stories.” In Mary Evelyn Tucker and Duncan Ryuken Williams, eds. Buddhism and Ecology: The Interconnection of Dharma and Deeds. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Pp. 131-148.

· Chatsumarn Kabilsingh. 1998. Buddhism and Nature Conservation. Bangkok: Thammasat University Press. Pp. 28-84.

· Bhikkhu Rewata Dhamma. 1990. “Buddhism and the Environment.” In Sathirakoses-Nagapradipa Foundation, ed. Radical Conservatism: Buddhism in the Contemporary World. Bangkok: Thai Inter-religious Commission for Development and International Network of Engaged Buddhism. Pp. 156-161.

· Dharma Rain: Pp. 21-30, 91-108.

Thurs., Sept. 18: Ecological Ethics.

· Schmithausen, Lambert. 1997. “The Early Buddhist Tradition and Ecological Ethics.” Journal of Buddhist Ethics 4:1-74.

· Holder, John J. 2007. “A Suffering (But Not Irreparable) Nature: Environmental Ethics from the Perspective of Early Buddhism.” Contemporary Buddhism 8(2):113-130.

Tues., Sept. 23: Debating Buddhist Environmentalism

· Harris, Ian. 1991. “How Environmentalist is Buddhism?” Religion 21(April):101-14.

· Swearer, Donald K. 1997. “The Hermeneutics of Buddhist Ecology in Contemporary Thailand: Buddhadasa and Dhammapitaka.” In Mary Evelyn Tucker and Duncan Ryuken Williams, eds. Buddhism and Ecology: The Interconnection of Dharma and Deeds. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Pp. 21-44.

Thurs., Sept. 25: Advising Day ~ No Class.

Thailand: Nature, Development and Consumption – How Buddhism Responds

Tues., Sept. 30: Concepts of Nature and Sanctity.

· Swearer et al. 2004. Sacred Mountains of Northern Thailand and Their Legends.

Essay due in class.

Thurs., Oct. 2: Consumption and Development.

Joint class with Betsy Hartmann’s Framing Climate Change tutorial.

· Guha, Ramachandra. 2006. How Much Should a Person Consume? Berkeley: University of California Press. Pp. 220-250.

· Dharma Rain: Pp. 170-190. (Articles by Payutto and Sulak)

Tues., Oct. 7: Buddhism and Development.

· Darlington, Susan M. 2000. “Rethinking Buddhism and Development: The Emergence of Environmental Monks in Thailand.” Journal of Buddhist Ethics 7. Online.

· Dharma Rain pp. 369-378 (Ophuls).

· Seri Phongphit. 1988. “Wat Yokkrabat: Going Back to Dhamma.” Religion in a Changing Society. Hong Kong: Arena Press. Pp. 44-53.

· Sanitsuda Ekachai. 1990. “Striking a Spiritual Balance.” Behind the Smile: Voices of Thailand. Bangkok: Thai Development Support Committee. Pp. 65-69.

Thurs., Oct. 9: Yom Kippur ~ No Class.

Tues., Oct. 14: October Break ~ No Class.

Thurs., Oct. 16: Monks, Forest and Concepts of Nature in Thailand.

· Stott, Philip. 1991. “Mu’ang and Pa: Elite Views of Nature in a Changing Thailand.” In Manas Chitakasem and Andrew Turton, eds. Thai Constructions of Knowledge. London: SOAS, University of London. Pp. 142-154.

· Phra Phaisan Visalo. 1990. “The Forest Monastery and Its Relevance to Modern Thai Society.” In Sathirakoses-Nagapradipa Foundation, ed. Radical Conservatism: Buddhism in the Contemporary World. Bangkok: Thai Inter-religious Commission for Development and International Network of Engaged Buddhism. Pp. 288-300.

· Taylor, Jim. 1997. “Thamma-chat: Activist Monks and Competing Discourses of Nature and Nation in Northeastern Thailand.” In Philip Hirsch, ed. Seeing Forests for Trees: Environment and Environmentalism in Thailand. Chiang Mai: Silkworm Books. Pp. 37-52.

Tues., Oct. 21: Ritual and Activism: Using Buddhism for Change.

· Dharma Rain pp. 191-215.

· Darlington, Susan M. 2007. “The Good Buddha and the Fierce Spirits: Protecting the Northern Thai Forest.” Contemporary Buddhism 8(2):169-185.

China: Nature and Population

Thurs., Oct. 23: Interdependence and Nature.

· Cook, Francis H. 1989. “The Jewel Net of Indra.” In J. Baird Callicott and Roger T. Ames, eds. Nature in Asian Traditions of Thought. Albany, NY: SUNY Press. Pp. 213-229.

· Dharma Rain pp. 30-32; 43-55; 58-62.

Friday, Oct. 24: Research proposal and annotated bibliography due via email by 3 p.m.

Tues., Oct. 28: Population Issues.

· Radkau, Joachim. 2008. Nature and Power: A Global History of the Environment. Trans. By Thomas Dunlap. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Pp. 103-117.

· Dharma Rain pp. 409-422.

Tibet: Environmental Agendas

Thurs., Oct. 30: Competing Agendas.

· Ecological Improvement and Environmental Protection in Tibet – Official Whitepaper by China. Link online.

· Tibet 2003: State of the Environment – Tibetan Government in Exile response to China’s whitepaper. Online.

· Environment and Development in Tibet: A Crucial Issue - Update of 2003 Report by Tibetan Government in Exile. Online.

· Look through other links on course website about Tibet’s environmental situation.

Tues., Nov. 4: Election Day – Please Vote!

“Kekexali” – film on poaching in Tibet. (We will begin class ten minutes early to fit the film in.)

Essay due in class.

Thurs., Nov. 6: Tibetan Environmentalism and Concepts of Nature.

· Dharma Rain pp. 222-236. (Rowell, The Dalai Lama).

· Kelly, Petra, Gert Bastian, and Pat Aiello, eds. 1991. Anguish of Tibet. Articles by Reiter, Atisha, Danlock, Tuting, and Tenzin Gyatso (Dalai Lama).

Tues., Nov. 11: Imagining Tibet.

· Clarke, Graham E. 2001. “Tradition, Modernity, and Environmental Change in Tibet.” In T. Dodin and H. Rather, eds. Imagining Tibet. Boston: Wisdom Pub. Pp. 339-356.

· Huber, Toni. 2001. “Shangri-La in Exile: Representations of Tibetan Identity and Transnational Culture.” In T. Dodin and H. Rather, eds. Imagining Tibet. Boston: Wisdom Pub. Pp. 357-371.

Thurs., Nov. 13: Religious Environmentalist Paradigm.

· Pedersen, Poul. 1995. “Nature, Religion, and Cultural Identity: The Religious Environmentalist Paradigm.” In Ole Bruun and Arne Kalland, eds. Asian Perceptions of Nature. Surrey, UK: Curzon Press. Pp. 258-276.

Japan: Zen Concepts and Unintended Consequences

Tues., Nov. 18: Japanese and Zen Concepts of Nature.

· Parkes, Graham. 1997. “Voices of Mountains, trees, and Rivers: Kūkai, Dōgen, and a Deeper Ecology.” In Mary Evelyn Tucker and Duncan Ryuken Williams, eds. Buddhism and Ecology: The Interconnection of Dharma and Deeds. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Pp. 111-125.

· Habito, Ruben L. F. 1997. “Mountains and Rivers and the Great Earth: Zen and Ecology.” In Mary Evelyn Tucker and Duncan Ryuken Williams, eds. Buddhism and Ecology: The Interconnection of Dharma and Deeds. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Pp. 165-175.

· Dharma Rain pp. 63-78; 141-150.

Thurs., Nov. 20: Eco-system Accidents.

· Walker, Brett L. 2007. “Sanemori’s Revenge: Insects, Eco-System Accidents, and Policy Decisions in Japan’s Environmental History.” Journal of Policy History 19(1):113-144.

· Williams, Duncan Ryūken. 1997. “Animal Liberation, Death, and the State: Rites to Release Animals in Medieval Japan.” In Mary Evelyn Tucker and Duncan Ryuken Williams, eds. Buddhism and Ecology: The Interconnection of Dharma and Deeds. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Pp. 149-157.

Buddhism Comes West

Tues., Nov. 25: Gary Snyder’s Ecological Consciousness.

· Barnhill, David Landis. 2002. “An Interwoven World: Gary Snyder’s Cultural Ecosystem.” Worldviews 2:111-144.

· Dharma Rain pp. 125-140; 346-352; 450-453; 474-476 (Snyder).

Thurs., Nov. 27: Thanksgiving ~ No Class.

Tues., Dec. 2: Applying Buddhism to Environmental Issues.

· Dharma Rain 353-408; 340-346.

Essay due in class.

Thurs., Dec. 4: Buddhist Environmental Practice.

· Kaza, Stephanie. 2000. “To Save All Beings: Buddhist Environmental Activism.” In Christopher S. Queen, ed. Engaged Buddhism in the West. Somerville, MA: Wisdom Publications. Pp. 159-183.

· Kaza, Stephanie. 1997. “American Buddhist Response to the Land: Ecological Practice at Two West Coast Retreat Centers.” In Mary Evelyn Tucker and Duncan Ryuken Williams, eds. Buddhism and Ecology: The Interconnection of Dharma and Deeds. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. Pp. 219-248.

Tues., Dec. 9: Buddhist Environmental Ethics.

· Gross, Rita. 1997. “Toward a Buddhist Environmental Ethic.” Journal of the American Academy of Religion 65(2): 333-353.

Thurs., Dec. 11: Conclusions and Celebration.


 * Final Paper, Course Portfolio and Self-Evaluation due Dec. 18 in my box in Social Science (Room 218, FPH) by 4 p.m. ***