Buddhism and Transgression : The Appropriation of Buddhism in the Contemporary West

Konik, Adrian. Buddhism and Transgression : The Appropriation of Buddhism in the Contemporary West
. Leiden: Brill, 2009. First edition. Octavo. xxi, (5), 191, (1)pp. Pictorial buckram with lilac/gray spine lettered in white. Illustrated with 6 tables and a diagram. A fine but ex-library copy (with minimal markings; i.e. rubber stamps on title page & bottom of text block).

If Buddhism is to remain relevant to the contemporary era, through providing effective solutions to the proliferating and protean discursive problems encountered by its present-day practitioners, it cannot continue to ignore the role of discourse in the formation of subjectivity. In the interest of problematizing such ‘ignorance,’ this book explores the potential interface between Foucaultian discourse analysis and the development of an indigenous rationale for the practice of contemporary Western Buddhism, along with the growing significance of such a rationale for ‘traditional’ Buddhism in an era dominated by disciplinary/bio-power. Through doing so, this book radically re-conceptualizes the role of Buddhism in the world today by linking Buddhist practice with acts of discursive transgression. (Publisher)

Contents: Foreword — Preface — Acknowledgments — List of illustrations — List of abbreviations — Introduction — PART I THE EMERGENCE OF DISCIPLINARY/BIO-POWER AND THE ARISING OF DISCURSIVE TENSION IN WESTERN SOCIETY — Chapter One The problem of effective critique — Chapter Two Disciplinary/bio-power and rational autonomy — Chapter Three Secularized/medicalized confession and the problematization of rational autonomy — PART II A REAPPRAISAL OF WESTERN INTEREST IN TIBET AND VAJRAY256;NA BUDDHISM — Chapter Four The blank canvas of Tibet — Chapter Five Lobsang Rampa’s The Third Eye: The Autobiography of a Tibetan Lama — Chapter Six John Blofeld’s The Wheel of Life: The Autobiography of a Western Buddhist — Chapter Seven Anagarika Govinda’s autobiographical The Way of the White Clouds — PART III ENGAGING WITH THE DISCURSIVE LIMITS OF TRANSGRESSION — Chapter Eight The ‘technological mind, ‘ discourse analysis, and the emergence of a new type of socially engaged contemporary Western Buddhism — Conclusion — Afterword — Bibliography — Index. (OCLC)

Volume 125 in the Brill’s series, “Numen Book Series. Studies in the History of Religions.” near fine. Hardcover. (52988) $95