Buddhism and Ireland: From the Celts to the Counter-Culture and Beyond. By Laurence Cox. Equinox Publishing, July 31, 2013. 320 pages. ISBN-10: 1908049308 ISBN-13: 978-1908049308
摘要
This book may seem, from its title, like a quirky study on a relatively minor subject. A more cynical reviewer might even label it a self‐serving vanity piece written by an Irish Buddhist. However, though there are not many Asian Buddhists in Ireland and Ireland was not a colonizing power in Asia (not to mention the fact that Irish universities have never invested much in the development of Buddhist studies as a field of inquiry), the breadth of the sources Cox uses and the unique perspective he provides make this a fascinating read. Cox tells us much about the ways Buddhism has been encountered by peoples from non‐Imperial countries. Cox approaches the subject through a “world‐systems” approach. Therefore, he doesn't just provide a litany of Irish missionaries, travelers, practitioners, and scholars that learned from and about Buddhists (although he does provide the facts about Irish–Buddhist encounters from the seventh century to the present). Instead, for those interested in more than just stories of curious Irish explorers, he shows that the Irish can provide a unique perspective on Buddhism. Since so few Asian Buddhists have ever lived in Ireland and that there are relatively few Buddhist temples or study/cultural centers there, most Irish learned about Buddhism after long‐term stays in Asia and “going native,” not through the study of Buddhist texts in translation or in university classrooms. The Irish were not colonizers and, in fact, often saw themselves as allies with Asian Buddhists against the Dutch, Portuguese, Germans, French, and British missionaries, and colonial officials and scholars. They found themselves willing partners in “alternative organizations of meaning and power to the colonial, missionary ones.” There was empathy through experience of one colonized people with another colonized people on different sides of the world. This approach, alongside the fascinating stories of people like L. Hearn, C. Pfoundes, U. Dhammaloka, and others, makes this a wonderful read even if you are neither Irish nor Buddhist.
