Secular Buddhism

December 19, 2016
What if the aim of Buddhism was not nirvana—release from the cycle of rebirth—but thriving in the day-to-day grind of human life within a broader Buddhist ethical framework? In this collection of Batchelor’s writings on Buddhist practice, readers get an overview of his perspectives on practicing Buddhism without its religious sensibilities. Exploring ancient texts and a cast of characters from Buddhist history, Batchelor tries to recover the historical Buddha and provide a renewed “Buddhist vision for our times,” The goal of this “Buddhism 2.0” is doing something, not believing in something. At times, Batchelor (Confessions of a Buddhist Atheist) comes off as condescending toward popular approaches to Buddhism or religion in general, and he admittedly co-opts Buddhism’s historical sources, plunders its practical ethics, and appropriates its philosophical premises for his own purposes. In the broader context of increasingly numerous secular approaches to religion (or religious approaches to secularism), Batchelor’s work will undoubtedly appeal to many “spiritual, but not religious” readers.

Starred review from April 1, 2017

Batchelor (Buddhism Without Beliefs) has long advocated that Buddhism would flourish best in Western societies as a secular practice without such religious doctrines as karma or the cycle of rebirth. This anthology spans the 1990s to the present, showing the development of the author's ideas and how the principles he proposes are lived. Although none of the articles in this volume go into the critical depth needed to evaluate his overall project of reimagining Buddhism, it's clear from the literary methods he used to approach Buddhist texts (particularly the Pali canon) that the author is not intending to refashion Buddhism simply to meet his secular tastes. Even some of his most controversial contentions, such as a radical reevaluation of the Four Noble Truths, depend on an attempt to recover the texts rather than recasting a religion as a pragmatic philosophy. VERDICT Aimed at a broad audience, this work should appeal to anyone interested in exploring Buddhism within a rigorous framework that is both conversant with and challenging to a Western intellectual heritage.--JW

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