Syncretism and Exclusivism: Characteristics of Chinese Mahāyāna Buddhism in Relation to the Racial Integration in Lansing Buddhist Association=圓融與排他：漢傳大乘佛教的特性與蘭莘學佛會的族裔融合
One of the most observed phenomena in American Buddhism is the division of “ethnic Buddhists” and “convert Buddhists.” While the binary categorization is inherently problematic and racially- mixed communities can easily be found, ethnic division is still quite visible in most Buddhist communities in America. Buddhist organizations brought to the U.S. by Taiwanese immigrants, in particular, have catered primarily to Taiwanese and Chinese. A few practice communities affiliated with Dharma Drum Mountain, however, seem to have broken this mold and have successfully integrated non-Taiwanese and non-Chinese into their fold. Take Lansing Buddhist Association (LBA, established by Master Sheng- Yen’s followers over 30 years ago) for example, among the 13 people on the Board of Trustees, five are “convert” Buddhists and one is Vietnamese. LBA events, when conducted in English or bilingually (in Chinese with English interpretation) draw almost an equal number of “ethnic” Buddhists (Taiwanese, Chinese, and Malaysians and Vietnamese of Chinese descent) and “convert” Buddhists (mostly Euro-Americans of Christian upbrings, but also Jewish Americans, African Americans, and Latino Americans). Even events that are conducted exclusively in Chinese, such as Pure Land chanting, sometimes draw a few “convert” Buddhists who do not speak Chinese at all. This paper focuses on the non-Taiwanese and non-Chinese members of LBA and investigate the factors behind its high level of racial integration. Through interviewing the core members of LBA who are neither Taiwanese nor ethnic Chinese, I found that LBA’s success in racial integration can be tied to Master Sheng-Yen’s teachings, but not directly – only one of them had heard about Sheng-Yen before becoming a part of LBA. What attracted them to LBA in the first place, though, is very much rooted in Sheng-Yen’s teachings and, more broadly, in the syncretic tendency of Chinese Mahāyāna that Master Sheng-Yen’s teachings manifested. The exclusivism found in other communities is very off-putting to all my interviewees.
1. Syncretism and Exclusivism in Chinese Buddhism 355 2. Diversity of Backgrounds and Practices in LBA 358 3. Commitment to the Dharma in Teachers and in Themselves 362 4. “Embodying the Dharma Without Brandishing It” 364 5. Whose Dharma? Master Sheng-Yen’s Thought on “Dharma Heirs” 368 6. Conclusion 372 Bibliography 378 中文摘要 381
