Date of Award

2012

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Humanities

First Advisor

Newman, John

Keywords

Buddhism, Taiwan, Modernity

Area of Concentration

Humanities

Abstract

This thesis seeks to understand and analyze the Taiwanese Buddhist organizations Tzu Chi and Fo Guang Shan in the greater attempt to study the modernization of Buddhism in Taiwan. This thesis begins with some thought on religious modernity in general, then proceeds to a brief historical survey of Buddhism in Taiwan. This is followed by two chapters, each devoted to one of the Buddhist organizations in this case study. The organizations' philosophies and concrete actions are measured against values and criteria offered by religious modernist theorists. Subsequently, the analysis shows us that, while both having modernist leanings, Tzu Chi appears to be the most advanced in terms of religious modernism, not only in Taiwan, but in perhaps most of Asia. We conclude by relating the study of this thesis to religious modernist trends within Asia.

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