A Buddhist History of the West: Studies in Lack

by David R. Loy

Buddhism teaches that to become happy, greed, ill-will, and delusion must be transformed into their positive generosity, compassion, and wisdom. The history of the West, like all histories, has been plagued by the consequences of greed, ill-will, and delusion. A Buddhist History of the West investigates how individuals have tried to ground themselves to make themselves feel more real. To be self-conscious is to experience ungroundedness as a sense of lack, but what is lacking has been understood differently in different historical periods. Author David R. Loy examines how the understanding of lack changes at historical junctures and shows how those junctures were so crucial in the development of the West.

Genres: Buddhism, Philosophy, Nonfiction, History

256 pages, Hardcover

First published January 24, 2002

About the author

David Robert Loy is an American author and authorized teacher in the Sanbo Kyodan lineage of Japanese Zen Buddhism.

Reviews

[Ellison · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not much Buddhism in this book. If you are looking to further expand your understanding of how Buddhist concepts are influenced by, or how they in turn could or do influence, the modern western world you won't find much here.
It is mostly a critique of western culture with some assumptions about basic human nature tossed in. I found it clearly written and his arguments were easy to follow, but I disagreed with some, or maybe even most, of his basic assertions. The problems that Buddha was addressing 2500 years ago with the formulation of the 4 truths and the 8 fold path are ever present in human society not the result of the age of enlightenment or the rise of market capitalism.

[Dc · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very academic, but enjoyable. The second D Loy book I've read.

The analysis of modern and historical society in terms of lack is very insightful. Lack being the shadow of our sense of self - being unreal, much of human endeavour is an attempt to make the unreal self feel grounded and real; fame, money, love/sex, and the elevation of market capitalism as a "secular" religion.

The sense of lack being essentially a spiritual problem, requires a spiritual resolution. Resolved by non-dualism. If the separation between world and self is Realised to be unreal, desperate attempts to ground the self at the expense of the planet and others are no longer necessary.

[Megan Rohrer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written slanted to affirm Buddhism

If you've been looking for a history of Christianity written in a way slanted to affirm Buddhism and imply solution for all ilks of the Western World is Biddhism, this book is for you. While smartly written, it seems to think Christianity is stuck in the 1500's and only reviews the written a of white men.