Preface
Practicing Buddhism is sometimes described as like walking through a forest on a misty day. Eventually you "get wet" and come to a deeper understanding of the teachings. The same might be said about environmentalism. Eventually, hopefully, it moves from manipulating or even saving the environment and becomes the environment. "Getting wet" in this sense is incorporating a spiritual perspective in working with and in the environment. This is called Deep Ecology.
Buddhism and Deep Ecology belong in the same title because at their core they are both talking about how to be at home in the universe. The original meaning of ecology goes back to Greeks who saw the earth and the gods and spirits who inhabited it, as our home. Thus we have Home Economics and Economics referring to activities and transactions in the home. Being at home for a Buddhist suggests teaching about how our mental conditioning and the delusions of our impermanent self can be let go of so we can be one, or at home with the universe. This state of oneness is called Nirvana or Enlightment. The teachings of The Buddha also portray inter-connection with everything that is also part of Deep Ecology.
It is in light of this close relationship that the World Buddhist University welcomes the oppurtunity to support hte research of a Buddhist scholar, Dr. Daniel H. Henning, who has brought these two types of teachings together in his ground breaking book, "Buddhism and Deep Ecology". At their core these streams of human insight are spiritual. There are other uses of ecology, such as in Human Ecology, but our relationship to all other life forms share that share this common home with us is so basic that it needs to be more widely studied and applied to programs in every community. In order to help more people combine the teachings of The Buddha with the principles of Deep Ecology, we have publsihed the book in a MANUAL format that will focus on key comments in the text, suggest questions and rearrange elements of the book for easier use. We hope students of Buddhism and experienced practicioners will incorporate a study of Deep Ecology into their Buddhist practice.
Is there a Buddhist method of the study of environment? Dr. Henning, who has been associated with the World Buddhist University for several years, has taken a deductive approach in his book. He builds up his case step by step so the reader canfollow his reasoning about how Buddhism is related to Deep Ecology. His is a very scientific, but value-oriented/consciousness approach and aids the reader in building up to an integrated understanding of the subject. It could be said that Buddhism takes a more inductive approach to the understanding of our relationship to the universe. A general teaching, like impermanence, is described and the consequences (cause and effect or Karma) are the focus of practice and understanding. How does the teaching affect our lives and how we live from day to day? After studying the deductive step by step reasoning in the MANUAL, the reader or a teacher may need to ask larger inductive question about impermanence, the impermanent self, Karma and other questions and follows the affects of experience for each person. These two processes complement each other.
There are ways that another author could write about these subjects including different definitions, use of Pali words and the emphasis on certain concepts. However, the World Buddhist University respects the right of Dr. Henning to his own approach and except for some minor changes and adjustments presents it as his work that can be judged by its own merits. We hope that by republishing the book as a MANUAL, it will be helpful to more people in practical ways. After the retreats and purification of intention, for lay practitioners especially, there is the daily work of promoting the earth as our home and taking care of it. Beyond the caring and compassion there is the celebration and Oneness that can be sensed if we enter the spiritual nature of the total environment, our home on this earth.
The World Buddhist University hopes you enjoy reading and using the MANUAL. There are experiential exercises described in Chapter IV that will help you put into practice the teachings in the MANUAL. This MANUAL is part of a larger program of ecological education that the University is creating with hopes that you will be part of it in the future. Please send us your suggestions and information about the programs in your community so "Buddhism and Deep Ecology" will have a positive Karmic affect throughout the world. Dr. henning offers workshops on this topic. For details about their availability see the back of the Manual.
May all Living Beings be happy! As long we consider ourselves as "Human" Beings and, consequently, arrogant and separate from other living beings or life forms, we cannot follow the true teachings of The Buddha or of Deep Ecology MsSVig
Practicing Buddhism is sometimes described as like walking through a forest on a misty day. Eventually you "get wet" and come to a deeper understanding of the teachings. The same might be said about environmentalism. Eventually, hopefully, it moves from manipulating or even saving the environment and becomes the environment. "Getting wet" in this sense is incorporating a spiritual perspective in working with and in the environment. This is called Deep Ecology.
Buddhism and Deep Ecology belong in the same title because at their core they are both talking about how to be at home in the universe. The original meaning of ecology goes back to Greeks who saw the earth and the gods and spirits who inhabited it, as our home. Thus we have Home Economics and Economics referring to activities and transactions in the home. Being at home for a Buddhist suggests teaching about how our mental conditioning and the delusions of our impermanent self can be let go of so we can be one, or at home with the universe. This state of oneness is called Nirvana or Enlightment. The teachings of The Buddha also portray inter-connection with everything that is also part of Deep Ecology.
It is in light of this close relationship that the World Buddhist University welcomes the oppurtunity to support hte research of a Buddhist scholar, Dr. Daniel H. Henning, who has brought these two types of teachings together in his ground breaking book, "Buddhism and Deep Ecology". At their core these streams of human insight are spiritual. There are other uses of ecology, such as in Human Ecology, but our relationship to all other life forms share that share this common home with us is so basic that it needs to be more widely studied and applied to programs in every community. In order to help more people combine the teachings of The Buddha with the principles of Deep Ecology, we have publsihed the book in a MANUAL format that will focus on key comments in the text, suggest questions and rearrange elements of the book for easier use. We hope students of Buddhism and experienced practicioners will incorporate a study of Deep Ecology into their Buddhist practice.
Is there a Buddhist method of the study of environment? Dr. Henning, who has been associated with the World Buddhist University for several years, has taken a deductive approach in his book. He builds up his case step by step so the reader canfollow his reasoning about how Buddhism is related to Deep Ecology. His is a very scientific, but value-oriented/consciousness approach and aids the reader in building up to an integrated understanding of the subject. It could be said that Buddhism takes a more inductive approach to the understanding of our relationship to the universe. A general teaching, like impermanence, is described and the consequences (cause and effect or Karma) are the focus of practice and understanding. How does the teaching affect our lives and how we live from day to day? After studying the deductive step by step reasoning in the MANUAL, the reader or a teacher may need to ask larger inductive question about impermanence, the impermanent self, Karma and other questions and follows the affects of experience for each person. These two processes complement each other.
There are ways that another author could write about these subjects including different definitions, use of Pali words and the emphasis on certain concepts. However, the World Buddhist University respects the right of Dr. Henning to his own approach and except for some minor changes and adjustments presents it as his work that can be judged by its own merits. We hope that by republishing the book as a MANUAL, it will be helpful to more people in practical ways. After the retreats and purification of intention, for lay practitioners especially, there is the daily work of promoting the earth as our home and taking care of it. Beyond the caring and compassion there is the celebration and Oneness that can be sensed if we enter the spiritual nature of the total environment, our home on this earth.
The World Buddhist University hopes you enjoy reading and using the MANUAL. There are experiential exercises described in Chapter IV that will help you put into practice the teachings in the MANUAL. This MANUAL is part of a larger program of ecological education that the University is creating with hopes that you will be part of it in the future. Please send us your suggestions and information about the programs in your community so "Buddhism and Deep Ecology" will have a positive Karmic affect throughout the world. Dr. henning offers workshops on this topic. For details about their availability see the back of the Manual.
May all Living Beings be happy! As long we consider ourselves as "Human" Beings and, consequently, arrogant and separate from other living beings or life forms, we cannot follow the true teachings of The Buddha or of Deep Ecology MsSVig