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Southern dharma: outlines of Buddhism in Argentina

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Abstract

This article offers an overview of the Buddhist groups created in Argentina in recent decades as a contribution to the study of pluralization within the national religious scene and as a way of comprehending the spread of Buddhism in the West. The first part of the paper examines the early textual appropriation of Buddhism by certain Orientalist literati and intellectuals. The second part describes the history and main features of the Buddhist groups linked to Asian immigration from China, Korea, Japan, and Laos. The third part focuses on exploring the history and main sociocultural features of groups whose membership is mostly composed of Argentine converts who have no Oriental ancestors. The crossing of paths and the encounters between Argentine Buddhist groups are then described along with the appropriation of their ideas and practices by different alternative institutions having no links with official Buddhism, and the broader impact of this religion on national society. Finally, the conclusions reflect on the global decentralization process Buddhism is undergoing and the challenges this religious minority must face locally.

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Notes

  1. A mound-like or hemispherical structure containing Buddhist relics, typically the ashes of Buddhist monks, used by Buddhists as a place of meditation.

  2. On the conflict that gave rise to this separation and its consequences for Buddhism in the West, see Usarski (2006).

  3. On the origin of this organization and the main features of its worldview, see Carini (2017).

  4. The consequences of this conflict were that both sectors were involved in a series of scandalous mutual accusations—settled in judicial proceedings—which were reproduced in all the countries in which both were established and therefore took an international aspect (cf. Usarski 2006).

  5. As an example, within the Zen Buddhist subfield itself, disciples of master Seizan Feijoo frequently travel to a temple in Chile and another in Hawaii related to his line for intensive training periods, although this experience could be carried out in other local Zen groups.

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  1. National Council of Scientific and Technical Research (CONICET), University of Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Catón Eduardo Carini

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  1. Catón Eduardo Carini
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Correspondence to Catón Eduardo Carini.

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Carini, C.E. Southern dharma: outlines of Buddhism in Argentina. Int J Lat Am Relig 2, 3–21 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41603-018-0039-4

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