Episode #112. Is Buddhism a religion? Dr Pierce Salguero, Author of Buddhish, a guide to the 20 most important Buddhist ideas for the curious and sceptical.

Is Buddhism a religion? This is the question that Dr Pierce Salguero, Professor of Asian History & Health Humanities, Program Chair for Multidisciplinary Studies, Integrative Arts, & Health Humanities, The Abington College of Pennsylvania State University asks his first-year students every year.

He is an author, researcher, teacher, fan, and critic of Buddhism & Asian medicine and we discuss his new book, Buddhish, a guide to the 20 most important Buddhist ideas for the curious and sceptical. After listening to the podcast, see how you answer the question.

Unlike many scholars, he pursued a longstanding interest in Asian religion and medicine as an undergraduate majoring in Anthropology and Cognitive Science and minoring in East Asian Studies at the University of Virginia. After graduating in 1996, then lived in Asia for four years — more than two years in Thailand, with extended stays in India, China, and Indonesia as well. During this time, he trained as a practitioner of Traditional Thai Medicine (TTM), and spent time learning hatha-yoga and other Asian healing modalities. He participated in extended stays at Buddhist meditation centers and monasteries in Northeast Thailand and India, including a summer as ananāgārika (white-robed monastic resident) in a Thai Forest-tradition monastery. This is a fascinating bird’s eye view into the both the practice and scholarship of Buddhism.

Below is excerpted from Dr Salguero’s work: http://www.piercesalguero.com/

 “Mindfulness: A Balanced Introduction

The past few decades have seen the emergence of the “Mindfulness Revolution” in mainstream popular culture. Hospitals, prisons, daycare centers, college campuses … mindfulness meditation is seemingly everywhere these days. In fact, since the inception of Buddhism nearly 2500 years ago, Buddhists have understood various facets of their tradition to be sources of health and healing. But how established are the links between meditation and physical health? 

Why does a certain percentage of people experience psychotic breaks or other adverse mental and physical side-effects from practicing meditation? Are these the symptoms of improper practice or an unavoidable part of spiritual cultivation? Contemporary scientific literature is beginning to document a phenomenon that centuries-old Buddhist texts called “meditation sickness.” Writings from medieval China not only identify the adverse mental and physical symptoms that can arise in the course of meditation practice, but also explain why these pathologies arise and how they can be effectively treated. Might these materials contain important therapeutic information that is relevant for meditators today?

This was insightful and gave so many valuable lessons about falling into religions that may lead to addictions rather than solutions to trauma and stress from a world leading expert in the scholarly study of Buddhism who had lived experience in monasteries in Thailand.  

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