BASC70120 - A Religion of Reason? How Buddhists Think the World Away

Course Description

Buddhism is often presented as an unusually rational or science-friendly religion, or even as “a philosophy, not a religion”. In this course we’ll put that common wisdom to the test. The Ornament of the Middle Way, an Indian masterpiece that has had enormous influence in Tibet, systematically assembles answers to the question “What is real?”—and argues that none of these answers makes coherent, rational sense. Even Buddhist answers come under attack, demonstrating this tradition’s distinctive habit of deliberately undermining its own teachings. This challenging intellectual agenda is arguably religious to the core, an expression of the Buddhist commitment to liberate us from all the concepts and beliefs that tie us down and make us suffer. Together we’ll see how seriously we can take such ideas, learn more about the worlds we can imagine and make sense of, and ask what’s gained and lost by distinguishing “religion” from “philosophy” in the first place.

Notes

Deadline for Online Registration: Thursday, June 17 at 5 pm CT.

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