This is a most important and provocative collection of essays from East and West that should interest not only Buddhists but all who are concerned with the moral shortcomings of consumerism, the exploitation of poor countries, and the rape of the environment.
The tension between Buddhist values and those of today's social systems are brought to light in the interplay of ideas expressed by contributors who focus on an alternative social order (such as Robert Aitken Roshi, Helena Norberg-Hodge, and Sulak Sivaraksa) and those who seek to enfold Buddhist values into the mainstream of today's world (including Simon Zadek). All agree on the value of institutionalizing the compassion of Buddhist dhamma as a bulwark against the spreading gap between rich and poor peoples and between the first and the third worlds. Many authors look beyond their particular horizons to the possibility of working with the Catholic base communities in Latin America, the Muslim Pesanteran in Indonesia, and the Basque Mondragon in Spain. How exciting it would be if the International Network of Engaged Buddhists could produce an anthology at that level of convergence!
Inquiring Mind
Spring 1998