Charles S. Prebish
\nPennsylvania State University & Utah State University (Emeritus)<\/p>\n
\u201cMah\u0101y\u0101na Ethics and American Buddhism: Subtle Solutions or Creative Perversions?\u201d initially explores the notion of two distinctly different forms of up\u0101ya<\/em>, first presented by Damien Keown in his 1992 volume The Nature of Buddhist Ethics<\/em>, in which one form of skill-in-means is available only to bodhisattvas prior to stage seven of the bodhisattva\u2019s path and requires adherence to all proper ethical guidelines, while the second form of up\u0101ya<\/em> is applicable to bodhisattvas at stage seven and beyond, and allows them to ignore any and all ethical guidelines in their attempts to alleviate suffering. This distinctly Mah\u0101y\u0101na interpretation of up\u0101ya<\/em> is used to examine the presumably scandalous behavior of Chogyam Trungpa, Rinpoche and Richard Baker, R\u014dshi, two of the most popular and controversial figures in American Buddhism. The article concludes that we can at least infer that applied in the proper fashion, by accomplished teachers, the activities allowed by up\u0101ya<\/em> do present possibly subtle explanations of seemingly inappropriate behaviors. On the other hand, if abused by less realized beings, we must recognize these acts as merely creative perversions of a noble ethical heritage. <\/p>\n Read article<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" ISSN 1076-9005 Volume 20, 2013 Mah\u0101y\u0101na Ethics and American Buddhism: Subtle Solutions or Creative Perversions? Charles S. Prebish Pennsylvania State University & Utah State University (Emeritus) \u201cMah\u0101y\u0101na Ethics and American Buddhism: Subtle Solutions or Creative Perversions?\u201d initially explores the notion of two distinctly different forms of up\u0101ya, first presented by Damien Keown in his 1992 … Continue reading Mah\u0101y\u0101na Ethics and American Buddhism<\/span>