The Encyclopedia of World Religions

Buddhism in America S 67

an interest in it. They included the “New England transcendentalists,” a group of writers who gath ered around Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–82) in the 1830s and 1840s. More serious were the inter ests of a Russian noblewoman, Helena P. Blavatsky (1831–91), and an American, Henry S. Olcott (1832–1907). In 1875 they founded the Theosophi cal Society in New York. Later they traveled to south Asia and took Buddhist vows. During the late 19th century Buddhism also appeared on the West Coast. There it was not asso ciated with an intellectual elite. Rather, immigrants from east Asia who came to the West Coast and the island of Hawaii brought Buddhism with them. The Chinese first came to California in the heady days of the Gold Rush (1848–49). Japanese began coming to the West Coast at the end of the 19th century. Among the Buddhist traditions that the Japanese brought was a school very popular in Japan: the True Pure Land school ( see P URE L AND B UDDHISM ). Its adherents rely solely upon the power of the Buddha A MIDA to be reborn in the Pure Land after death. True Pure Land Buddhists formed the Buddhist Church of America. It grew into a major institution. During the 1960s two other schools of Bud dhism took root in American soil. N ICHIREN Bud dhism attracted many non-Asian adherents. It hon ors the Japanese “prophet” Nichiren (1222–82) as the B UDDHA for the present age and teaches its fol lowers to chant a phrase known as the Daimoku: Nam Myoho Renge Kyo (Hail to the L OTUS S UTRA ). In 1991 the community split. The branch known as Nichiren Shoshu preserves the tradition of Bud dhist monks and maintains temples in Chicago, Hawaii, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C. The other group, known as Soka Gakkai, has no monks. Its members, led by lay leaders, gather at community centers spread widely across the United States. During the 1960s a different group of immi grants also brought Buddhism to the United States. In the previous decade, China had annexed Tibet and closed down its monasteries. Many monks fled into exile. Their leader, the D ALAI L AMA , occasionally visited the United States. He

munity of monks and nuns, and the lay supporters. This organization has been typical of Theravada Buddhism. Monks and nuns beg for their food and devote their lives to following the Buddha’s path. Political authorities such as kings and queens have always been important lay supporters. In Mahayana the distinction between the Sangha and lay supporters tends to be much less rigid. The monastic life is not unknown, but Mahayana makes ultimate release available to those who are not religious professionals. Furthermore, in certain Mahayana traditions priests may marry, eat meat, and drink wine. Such behavior violates Theravada guidelines for monks and nuns. Although the Buddha made provision for an order of nuns, the number of nuns has tradition ally been small. As Buddhism has begun to grow in Europe and North America, women are starting to assume more active leadership roles. SIGNIFICANCE Buddhism is one of the world’s most important reli gions. At the end of the 20th century it had more than 300,000,000 adherents. Buddhism has pro foundly influenced philosophy, literature, and the arts in Asia for over 2,000 years. In recent decades it has also been extremely popular in some seg ments of American society. Further reading: Kenneth Ch’en, Buddhism: the Light of Asia (New York: Barron’s Educational Series, 1968); Thich Nhat Hanh, The Heart of the Buddha’s Teaching (New York: Broadway Books, 1999); Richard H. Robinson, and Willard L. Johnson, The Buddhist Religion (Belmont, Calif.: Wadsworth, 1982); Huston Smith and Philip Novak, Buddhism: A Concise Introduction (HarperSan Francisco, 2003). Buddhism in America Interest in and practice of B UDDHISM in the Western Hemisphere. This entry concentrates on Buddhism in the United States. Buddhism was already in the United States in the 19th century (1800s). On the East Coast some educated Americans of European descent showed