自在悠遊的世界觀——聖嚴法師的和平思想與國際行動個案研究=The Self-Mastering and Boundless Worldview: A Case Study of Master Sheng Yen’s Teachings on Peace and International Action
Master Sheng Yen (1930-2009) was a Buddhist leader with various “public identities” throughout the Sino-Japanese War and the Chinese Civil War, during which the United States ended official diplomatic relations with Republic of China. International relations and peace research scholars contend that their field should transcend “political science,” “the west,” and “the state;” however, the current literature does not focus much on the “far east,” thus little is known about the Sheng Yen’s teachings of peace based on the historical trajectory of his international odysseys. This study rediscovers Sheng Yen’s biographical texts and speeches to establish the “peregrination culture of Sangha” as the inferential conceptual framework through qualitative approach. By adopting methods of historical literature research, “inferential analysis” and “narrative identity” in biographical research, creative hermeneutics, and case study, this thesis examines Master Sheng Yen’s life history, identity construction, and international action while exploring these three aspects in relation to his teachings on peace. Firstly, this research, which illustrates Kearney’s World-View Model, demonstrates that the mission of solving contemporary social issues shows the variety of definitions and spatial expanses of the “peregrination culture of Sangha.” Furthermore, in discerning Sheng Yen’s identity construction, this thesis raises a notion called “dynamically cognitive focus of identity” while analyzing his “global citizen” and “religious thinker” identities stemming from the humanistic solicitude of identity issues in the era of globalization. In addition, his international actions since the 1970s show four periods defined by the development and flux in the East Asian international social climate. Lastly, his international participation in advocating peace is a so-called “speech act” in the spirit of “performative utterance.” For his teachings on peace, the essence is “protecting the spiritual environment;” the core thinking is “reinterpretation of religious doctrines;” the epistatic principle is “global ethics;” and the overarching framework is “Commitment to Global Peace.” This commitment focusing on developing “inner peace” of individuals creates “a pure land on earth” as a cultural connotation. Overall, by analyzing the arrangements of Sheng Yen’s personal ideas, social interactions, international cultures, and connotations of peace teachings, the essay shows that “reflexivity” is a significant characteristic of his thinking in response to the contemporary era’s international social climate and social issues. Additionally, from the perspective of his international participation in peace affairs, this thesis supplements the “non-state actors” theory in international relations and bridges the “transnationalism” theory proposed by Akira Iriye.
