In this paper, it will be argued that in order for Americans to really “take to” the Dharma, it will need a great deal of responsible interpretation and application. Teachers will need to be well-trained in both the Dharma and the techniques of teaching and preaching found in “indigenous” American religion. The anomie found in America today proves that America needs the teachings of the Buddha; but the “packaging” and presentation must be suited to the American temperament. Carriers of the Dharma must steer between the Scylla and Charybdis of on the one hand setting the bar too high, and on the other oversimplifying and watering down the Dharma into a meaningless smattering of New Age platitudes. The contents of this teaching and preaching should focus on issues central to Buddhism, such as can be found in Henry Steel Olcott’s fourteen-point platform—or better, in the Buddha’s first sermon to the five ascetics, the Dhammacakkapavattana Sutta, or the “Setting the Wheel of Dhamma in Motion.” Americans are fond of the trappings of Buddhism—sitting Zen, or playing at Tibeto-Hollywood Buddhism—but for the Dharma to take root and become self-replicating, Americans need to understand the central tenets of the Buddha. Only then can a true “America-Yana” begin to develop.
