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1. Bodhidharma - Back to the Future
- Write a paper from the first-person perspective of Bodhidharma
evaluating three of the Zen Buddhist figures we have studied in
this course, ranking them from the least profound to the most
profound as having attained the "flesh, bones, and marrow" of
Bodhidharma's Zen understanding. Discuss the strengths and
weaknesses of each figure's understanding. Also briefly address
the question: If all things are equal in emptiness, in the oneness
of reality, then what basis does Bodhidharma have for ranking
these Zen figures?
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2. Zen Self-Deconstruction
- Within the discourse of Zen Buddhism, we
have seen that there is a strong critical and self-critical
strain. Among others we have seen Bodhidharma who criticized the
Buddhist Emperor Wu; the illiterate woodcutter Hui-neng who
outstripped the learned but staid approach taken by Shen-hsiu; the
wild man Ikkyu who broke all of the rules yet became the abbot of
Daitokuji, one of the most prominent Zen temple complexes of
Japan; and Natalie Goldberg who sought the Zen life beyond words
even as she chose the path of words as a writer. Select any two of
the figures that we have studied this quarter and discuss this
iconoclasm within Zen Buddhism, an iconoclasm which is directed
both outwardly at past tradition and inwardly to the practitioner
him or herself. Does this critical strain reveal a fundamental
flaw within the tradition? Or, perhaps, is it a sign of the
vitality and ability of the tradition to continually renew itself?
(Suggestion: Find one representative passage from the readings
that seems to speak to this issue as a launchpad around which you
can construct a clear and effective narrative.)
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3. Zen Buddhism and
Gender
- Several works we have read throughout
the course deal with the issue of gender and Buddhism. In class
and in your papers, one of the themes that has emerged concerns
the relation between the Zen Buddhist emphasis on emptiness and
enlightenment on the one hand and social equality and rights
influenced by Western thinking on the other. Based on the Zen
Buddhist readings we have read so far, what kind, if any, social
vision should emerge out of the Zen Buddhist understanding of
emptiness and awakening, and how should Western notions of social
equality and individual rights criticize and help to reshape Zen
Buddhist views of the individual self or selfhood?
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4. Natalie Goldberg - Zen and Writing
- Natalie Goldberg sets out on a spiritual
journey in which she struggles to resolve the tensions between her
desire to write and her will to carry out Zen practice. In the
end, she tells us that she would give up writing to have a cup of
tea with her teacher Katagiri Roshi one more time. Why is writing
so important to her in terms of establishing a social, cultural,
and spiritual identity? Would she really have given up writing? If
not, does this diminish the fact that she says she
would?
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5. Maura Soshin O'Halloran - Life Beyond
Death
- Maura Soshin O'Halloran in a sense chose
to be multi-cultural: to enter the world of Japanese Buddhist
monks in training while retaining her identity as a Irish woman;
to enter the realm of intense religious practice while affirming
her identity as a woman, a sexual being, and a human being with
diverse intellectual interests. Her early death leaves us with a
mystery as to the ultimate destiny of her life. Choose one of the
following topics in relation to these circumstances:
- a) Discuss the ways in which she did
or did not resolve the possible tension between these diverse
elements while she was alive. Was there a tension at all? If
so, how did her religious practice influence this.
- Or:
- b) Provide additional narrative or
journal entries that might reflect her further journeys had she
lived. (Be sure to footnote your paper carefully if you choose
this approach.)
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6. Maura Soshin O'Halloran - Spiritual
Practice and Culture
- Throughout her journal entries, Maura
Soshin O'Halloran records her reflections on Zen practice in the
context of her religious or spiritual journey as well as in the
context of Zen as a Japanese cultural phenomenon. On the one hand,
she attempts to make sense of and integrate Buddhist philosophical
notions into her understanding of practice. On the other, she has
serious questions about the behavior of her fellow monks and their
attitudes towards women, society, and one another. How does she
relate these concerns, and how do they hinder her or provide fuel
for her own development?
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7. D. T. Suzuki and Zen
Orientalism
- D. T. Suzuki was one of the first
figures to introduce Zen Buddhism to the West. In recent years
scholars have debated the significance of his contribution.
Bernard Faure, one of the most prominent scholars of Zen Buddhism,
criticizes Suzuki of perpetrating a kind of "Zen Orientalism," the
creation of a false image of Zen that ignores historical tradition
and caters to romanticized Western images of Zen. Erich Fromm, a
prominent psychologist and left-leaning Western intellectual,
praises Suzuki as a model of unbiased humanity. (Articles by all
three authors are included at the end of the course
packet.)
- A) Write a paper examining the
strengths and weaknesses of Faure and Fromm's views. What do
you think? Why? (I can recommend additional sources for those
who are interested.)
- Or:
- B) Construct a dialogue between Fromm
and Faure in which they debate the issue of Suzuki's possible
biases and contributions.
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8. Through Prison Bars
- You have lived a colorful life so far,
experiencing periods of wild abandon as well as close discipline.
Now, at the age of thirty, you find yourself in prison convicted
for harboring criminals (It is up to you to decide what kind of
criminals; perhaps they are radical activists, thieves, or even
murderers.) After having been in prison for a few years, you begin
to read books on Zen Buddhism and turn inwards instead of simply
directing your anger outwardly. You undergo some kind of spiritual
transformation. Write a letter(s) to your lover conveying what has
happened to you and its significance. You may combine insights
from more than one text if you like, but it is recommended that
you restrict your sources to two or three sources and not try to
do too much. Begin the letter by writing either a preface or part
of the letter that lets the reader know what kind of criminals you
harbored, whether you were justly convicted, and what punishment
you face.
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9. Near Death
- You have a terminal case of liver
cancer. Several months have passed since the diagnosis and now the
end is near. Your lover/partner is far away and is unable to share
this time with you, caught in a foreign land with an invalid
passport. You are writing a letter to your lover/partner
expressing what the past has meant to you, what you have learned
as you struggled with the illness and impending death, and how you
now see life and death. Write this letter drawing on the works we
have read. You may combine insights from more than one text if you
like, but it is recommended that you restrict your sources to two
or three sources and not try to do too much.