From astrophysicist Adam Frank at NPR:
Sharf has no problem with the creative misreading that allows Buddhist Modernism to share space with scientific worldviews. “My concern,” he told Tricycle, “is not with the selectivity of those who read Buddhism as a rationalist and scientific religion — it is perfectly understandable given the world in which we live. It is really not a question of misreading. It is a question of what gets lost in the process.”
Part of the problem for Sharf and others is that by focusing only on the domains of inner experience (i.e. mindfulness via contemplative practice), Buddhist Modernism loses aspects of its function that were central to its history. “Look at how suspicious many Western Buddhists are of religious ritual,” he says in the Tricycle interview, “… when we downplay ritual, we risk weakening our bonds to community and tradition. That’s a pretty major loss.”
But just as important for both Sharf and Lopez are the tensions that they think should exist between the Buddhist and Western worldviews. More.
Actually, Frank’s way of looking at the problem is out of date. In an age when objectivity is sexist and math is dehumanizing, science is bound to end up the big loser.
See also: How naturalism rots science from the head down
and
The Big Bang: Put simply,the facts are wrong.
Follow UD News at Twitter!