Thailand – Secular Buddhist Association

Roots of Secular Buddhism: Thailand

By Doug Smith | July 30, 2018

Some of the roots of secular Buddhism go back to Thailand. We’ll look at two of the fascinating characters that were instrumental in modernizing elements of Thai belief and practice, even as some of that modernization remains controversial to this day. Some source material: Peter Jackson 1986 PhD diss: “Buddhadasa and Doctrinal Modernisation in Contemporary…

Insight Buddhism is Secular Buddhism: Reviewing Heartwood

By Doug Smith | December 5, 2016

Wendy Cadge’s 2005 book Heartwood: The First Generation of Theravada Buddhism in America is a fascinating look at the way this form of Buddhism is adapting to contemporary American life. Although the book stems from her PhD dissertation it is readable, filled with descriptions of practitioners and their approaches. Cadge spent several years doing…

A Forgotten Key to Mindfulness

By Doug Smith | August 31, 2016

Days grow shorter. The small ruby-throated hummingbird that visited our feeder for sugar-water several times a day through August has decamped, beginning the first leg of his journey down to Mexico. Overhead the Canada geese flock in great ‘V’s, calling out to each other as they wing south. The sugar maple at the bottom of…