Cyborg Buddha BlogWhat will happen when we can transcend erotic desire, romantic love and the human body?
Jan 1, 2001
Brain Fingerprinting: Databodies to Databrains
by Wrye SententiaWhile in some respects, the sheer proliferation of information and data means no one particular entity can control it, current applications of technological monitoring are allowing governments to compile extensive “databodies” of individuals. Whether criminal or not, anything from a fingerprint to an intercepted e-mail can be tracked, and more and more of what we say and do is recorded. The global trend, in terms of personal data, is toward total monitoring.
May 7, 1998
Buddhism and Abortion: A Western Approach
by J. HughesIntroduction
I once believed it important to determine the “Buddhist view” on many social and political questions. Today I’m much more circumspect. Buddhist texts offer few coherent views outside of the core doctrinal elements. Consequently, Buddhists, to an even greater degree than most religionists, are required to address contemporary problems in the spirit of their teachings, rather than according to the letter of their law.
In the case of abortion, classical Buddhist texts, from the Pali canon through the Mahayana sutras, offer no specific guidance. Even if there was a specific, classical Buddhist text addressing the moral status of the fetus and the act of abortion, it would not be consistent with “Buddhism” to accept this teaching uncritically. Buddhism encodes with its teachings a reflexive, dynamic, self-critical element, beginning with the Kalama Sutra, which encourages Buddhists not to simply follow scriptures, but to continually adapt the Dharma to new audiences.
Consequently, a Buddhist approach to abortion has more to do with approaching the issue with a characteristic set of concerns, and in dialogue with a vast body of texts and teachers. It therefore comes as little surprise that most Western and Japanese Buddhists come away believing in the permissibility of abortion, while many other Buddhists believe abortion to be murder. In this essay I would like to sketch some of the reasons why most Western Buddhists accept abortion as an unfortunate but necessary part of women’s reproductive health care.
Oct 7, 1987
World Buddhism and the Peace Movement
by J. Hughes
Mar 7, 1986
Buddhist Feminism
by J. HughesDrawing upon both the insights of Buddhism and the Western liberal tradition, this essay criticizes established Buddhism’s restrictions on the involvement of women and develops a Buddhist feminist agenda appropriate to our own age and culture.
May 1, 1983
Altered States of Consciousness and Social Structure: Glossolalia in the Pentecostal Church
by J. HughesHonor’s Bachelors Thesis
Table of Contents
Introduction
Chapter One: Subject and Research Methodology
Chapter Two: ASCs and Personality
Chapter Three: Self in Community
Chapter Four: Liminal, Thinkable and Legitimate
Chapter Five: Power in Community
Chapter Six: Social Structure and Change
Conclusions
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