Buddhist modernism

Buddhist modernism (also referred to as Protestant Buddhism, Modern Buddhism and modernist Buddhism) consists of the "forms of Buddhism that have emerged out of an engagement with the dominant cultural and intellectual forces of modernity." While there can be no complete, essential definition of what constitutes a Buddhist Modernist tradition, most scholars agree that the influence of Protestant and Enlightenment values has largely defined some of its more conspicuous attributes. David McMahan cites "western monotheism; rationalism and scientific naturalism; and Romantic expressivism" as influences.

Examples of such movements and traditions of thought may include Humanistic Buddhism, Secular Buddhism, and Engaged Buddhism, linkages between Buddhism and Gnosticism, the Japanese-initiated Nichiren Buddhism and Soka Gakkai, the New Kadampa Tradition and the missionary activity of Tibetan Buddhist masters in the West (leading the quickly growing Buddhist movement in France), the Vipassana Movement, the Triratna Buddhist Community, Dharma Drum Mountain, Fo Guang Shan, Buddha's Light International Association, Tzu Chi, and Juniper Foundation.

Buddhist modernist traditions often consist of a deliberate de-emphasis of the ritual and metaphysical elements of the religion, as these elements are seen as incommensurate with the discourses of modernity. Renunciation of worldly matters, devotional practices, ceremonies and the invocation of bodhisattvas among other traditionally widespread practices are often perceived as culturally contingent, therefore relatively dispensable, sometimes inconvenient or impracticable. A number of Buddhist Modernist traditions, especially during the colonial period in Buddhist countries, have also been characterized as a defensive reaction against the threat of Western hegemony, whereby Buddhist Modernists attempted to protect their native Buddhist traditions from modernist attacks by presenting their traditions as being more commensurate with, and often transcending, modernity. Buddhist Modernist traditions have also been characterized as being "detraditionalized", in that they are often presented in such a way that occludes their historical construction. Instead, Buddhist Modernists often employ an essentialized description of their tradition, where key tenets are described as universal and sui generis.

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