Luminous Passage: The Practice and Study of Buddhism in America [Hardcover]

Charles S. Prebish (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 7, 1999

In Luminous Passage a well-known Buddhologist and longtime observer of Buddhism in the United States presents the first comprehensive scholarly study of American Buddhism in nearly two decades. Charles S. Prebish revisits the expanding frontier of the fastest growing religion in North America and describes its historical development, its diversity, and the significance of this ancient tradition at century's end.
More than anything else, this is a book about American Buddhist communities (sanghas) and about life within those communities. Prebish considers various Buddhist practices, rituals, and liturgies, as well as the ways these communities have confronted the changing American spiritual landscape. In profiling several different sanghas Prebish reveals the ways that Buddhism is being both reinvented and Westernized. He includes the first exploration of the American Buddhist "cybersangha," a community that has emerged from recent developments in information-exchange technology, and discusses the growing community of "scholar-practitioners." The interactions of Buddhist identities that are related to ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, social engagement, and the healing professions are also examined. This book fully captures the vibrancy and importance of Buddhism in American religious life today.
Finally, Prebish appraises the state of Buddhism at the millennium. Placing the development of American Buddhism squarely in the midst of the religion's general globalization, he argues for an ecumenical movement which will embrace Buddhist communities worldwide.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

"Since the 1960s Buddhism in America has been viewed through the lens of idealism, generally associated with the spiritual quest of baby boomers. This portrayal has been accurate only to a degree. Charles Prebish's Luminous Passage is the first account in a new generation of commentary to demonstrate the complexity and variety of this tradition as it establishes roots in this country. This book will surely stand as one of the most comprehensive assessments of Buddhism in the United States at the turn of the millennium."--Richard Seager, Hamilton College

From the Back Cover

"Since the 1960s Buddhism in America has been viewed through the lens of idealism, generally associated with the spiritual quest of baby boomers. This portrayal has been accurate only to a degree. Charles Prebish's Luminous Passage is the first account in a new generation of commentary to demonstrate the complexity and variety of this tradition as it establishes roots in this country. This book will surely stand as one of the most comprehensive assessments of Buddhism in the United States at the turn of the millennium." (Richard Seager, Hamilton College)

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 345 pages
• Publisher: University of California Press; 1 edition (June 7, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0520216962
• ISBN-13: 978-0520216969
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,960,312 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Charles Prebish came to Utah State University in January 2007 following more than thirty-five years on the faculty of the Pennsylvania State University. During his tenure at Utah State University, he was the first holder of the Charles Redd Endowed Chair in Religious Studies and served as Director of the Religious Studies Program. During his career, Dr. Prebish published more than twenty books and nearly one hundred scholarly articles and chapters. His books Buddhist Monastic Discipline (1975) and Luminous Passage: The Practice and Study of Buddhism in America (1999) are considered classic volumes in Buddhist Studies. Dr. Prebish remains the leading pioneer in the establishment of the study of Western Buddhism as a sub-discipline in Buddhist Studies. In 1993 he held the Visiting Numata Chair in Buddhist Studies at the University of Calgary, and in 1997 was awarded a Rockefeller Foundation National Humanities Fellowship for research at the University of Toronto. Dr. Prebish has been an officer in the International Association of Buddhist Studies, and was co-founder of the Buddhism Section of the American Academy of Religion. In 1994, he co-founded the Journal of Buddhist Ethics, which was the first online peer-reviewed journal in the field of Buddhist Studies; and in 1996, co-founded the Routledge "Critical Studies in Buddhism" series. He has also served as editor of the Journal of Global Buddhism and Critical Review of Books in Religion. In 2005, he was honored with a "festschrift" volume by his colleagues titled Buddhist Studies from India to America: Essays in Honor of Charles S. Prebish. Dr. Prebish retired from Utah State University on December 31, 2010, and was awarded emeritus status. He currently resides in State College, Pennsylvania.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Accurate and Insightful Overview of Buddhism in America, June 3, 2000

By 

Franz Metcalf - See all my reviews

This review is from: Luminous Passage: The Practice and Study of Buddhism in America (Paperback)

In this long-awaited volume, Charles Prebish, the founder of the scholarly study of Buddhism in America, brings us up to date on the rich, diverse, and very American practice of Buddhism in the United States.

This book is not for scholars only, but deserves to be read by Buddhists and by anyone interested in the diversity and the freshness of this ancient religion in these new surroundings. In fact, Buddhism has been in America for over 100 years, but in this last generation it has begun not only to be changed by, but to change American culture. For a look at where Buddhism has been and where it is going, this is an unbeatable source.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A WONDERFUL STUDY OF BUDDHIST COMMUNITIES IN AMERICA, July 22, 2011

By 

Steven H. Propp (Sacramento, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Luminous Passage: The Practice and Study of Buddhism in America (Paperback)

At the time this book was published in 1999, Charles Prebish was Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Pennsylvania State University. He has also written/edited books such as American Buddhism, Westward Dharma: Buddhism beyond Asia, The Faces of Buddhism in America, An American Buddhist Life: Memoirs of a Modern Dharma Pioneer, Introducing Buddhism (World Religions (Routledge)), etc.

He wrote in the Preface, "More than anything else, this is a book about Buddhist communities ... it focuses on life within the communities that these individuals have founded and structured. It considers the various Buddhist practices and rituals and liturgies employed in these communities, as well as the manner in which American Buddhist communities have confronted the changing, shifting framework of American values and lifestyles. The book considers the legacy Buddhism will leave to the children of many American Buddhist pioneers. And it presents a first look at the role of technology in American Buddhism as new technological develoments alter the very nature of the defining characteristics of the Buddhist sangha."

Here are some additional quotations from the book:

"(D.T.) Suzuki's contribution is especially significant in that he was not a Zen priest and never became a Zen master." (Pg. 9)
"Helen Tworkov ... added, 'the spokepeople for Buddhism in America have been, almost exclusively, educated members of the white middle class." (Pg. 57)
"The former technique of aggressive shakubuku (evangelism) seems to have virtually evaporated (from Soko Gakkai) in the 1990s..." (Pg. 121)
"During the weekend I noticed a few black, Hispanic, and Asian American faces in the audience, but for the most part I saw Euro-American Buddhists congregating to share and discuss their views and understanding of Buddhist practice in North America." (Pg. 234)
"When Peter Jennings's researchers contacted me to solicit my estimate of the number of American Buddhists ... They said that Robert Thurman had referred them to me, as a means of verifying HIS estimate of 5 to 6 million. I told them I thought Thurman was wrong, and that I would be very surprised if there were more than 3 or 4 millions Buddhists in America. Needless to say, they asked me how I arrived at that figure. My response" 'I got that figure the same way Thurman got his. I guessed.'" (Pg. 256)
"Surya Das noted that half of the Buddhist teachers in the West are women, and that the American Dharma needed to be an equal-opportunity enterprise." (Pg. 264)