Zen Buddhism and Environmental Ethics

by James,Simon P.

• ISBN13: 9780754613688
• ISBN10: 0754613682
• Format: Nonspecific Binding
• Copyright: 2004-05-28
• Publisher: Routledge

Summary

Zen Buddhism and Environmental Ethics explores the implications of Zen Buddhist teachings and practices for our moral relations with the natural world. At once an accessible introduction to Zen and an important contribution to the debate concerning the environmental implications of the tradition, this book will appeal both to readers unfamiliar with East Asian thought and to those well versed in the field. In elucidating the philosophical implications of Zen, the author draws upon both Eastern and Western philosophy, situating the Zen understanding of nature within the Buddhist tradition, as well as relating it to the ideas of key Western philosophers such as Aristotle, Kant and Heidegger. These philosophical reflections on Zen are used to shed light on some prominent debates in contemporary environmental ethics concerning such issues as the intrinsic value of nature.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements	vii
Linguistic Conventions	viii
Introduction	1	(2)
1 A Short History of Zen	3	(28)
The Buddha	3	(4)
The Mahayana	7	(4)
China	11	(4)
Ch' an	15	(6)
Japan	21	(5)
The West	26	(1)
Zen and environmental concerns	27	(4)
2 Zen Ethics?	31	(27)
The charge of amorality	31	(2)
The possibility of a Buddhist virtue ethic	33	(3)
Insight	36	(3)
Compassion	39	(5)
Practice and virtue	44	(9)
The charge of amorality appraised	53	(5)
3 Environmental Ethics	58	(25)
Environmental virtue ethics and the charge of anthropocentrism	58	(3)
Sentient life	61	(3)
The Buddha-nature of mountains, trees and rivers	64	(5)
Non-violence	69	(3)
Ethical holism	72	(4)
Deep ecology	76	(7)
4 The Intrinsic Value of Nature	83	(23)
The problem of the intrinsic value of nature	83	(3)
Non-relational value and non-instrumental value	86	(2)
The charge of nihilism	88	(6)
Condensation	94	(5)
Identification	99	(3)
Intrinsic value	102	(4)
5 The Charge of Quietism	106	(21)
The general charge	106	(2)
The charge of vacuousness	108	(3)
The Tao, determinism and freedom	111	(4)
Responsibility, the body and the virtue of mindfulness	115	(5)
Practice and politics	120	(7)
Conclusion	127	(3)
Bibliography	130	(8)
Index	138