Buddhism in the Western World
The Scholarly Beginnings of Western Buddhism
HOW BUDDHISM CAME TO THE WEST
It is said that at present Buddhism is firmly established in England, Germany, France, and the United States. The religion of the Buddha has taken firm roots in Western soil, and only time is needed for the roots to go deep. And it was through the efforts of Western scholars, not Buddhist missionaries, that the seeds were sown for the growth of Buddhism in the West.
The earliest knowledge of Buddhism came to the West in the early part of the 19th century, when European scholars, mostly for academic reasons, began an earnest study of Buddhism which attracted their attention as a branch of oriental studies or as a part of Indian thought and culture. Pali, Sanskrit, Chinese and Tibetan then became subjects of their study. A number of Buddhist texts were published and then translated. Some scholars wrote learned books on the history and doctrine of Buddhism. Through works of these scholars interest was roused both in Buddhism and in Buddhist studies. Some of these scholars, while taking up a scholarly study of Buddhism, accepted the message of the Buddha and became themselves professed Buddhists. Then there were to be distinguished two kinds of scholars, those who studied and wrote on Buddhism with a Buddhist inspiration, and those who did the same for purely academic purposes. Moreover, reading the writings of these scholars, many Western people became converted to Buddhism. This state of affairs went on in the period when Asian Buddhism was stagnating in the form of habits, or was suffering from persecution or suppression under or in the face of colonialism. With the lack of missionary activity on the part of the Buddhist communities, Buddhist books filled the role of Buddhist missions.
THE WORKS OF ENGLISH SCHOLARS
The West's greatest contribution to the spread of Buddhism and Buddhist studies has been made by England. In 2380/1837, the Pali text of the Mahavamsa (the Great Chronicle of Ceylon) together with a translation was published by George Turner, a civil servant in Ceylon. Meanwhile (2364-2384/1821-1841), B.H. Hodgson collected Buddhist Sanskrit manuscripts from Nepal and distributed them to various libraries in India and Europe. Two other civil servants of the British government came to Ceylon in 2407/1864 and became prominent Pali and Buddhist scholars. One was Robert C. Childers who published in 2415-2418/1872-1875 his Dictionary of the Pali Language, a great contribution to the study of Pali. The other, probably the most eminent contributor to Pali and Buddhist studies, was Professor T.W. Rhys Davids who founded the Pali Text Society in 2424/1881, and set to work in 2459/1916 on his most-consulted Pali-English Dictionary which was to be completed by his assistant, Dr. W. Stede in 2468/1925. Professor Rhys Davids also wrote, translated and edited voluminous works in the field of Buddhist studies. After the death of its founder, the affairs and activities of the Pali Text Society were conducted by his wife and co-worker, Mrs. C.A.F. Rhys Davids, whose large contributions to Pali studies crowned her husband's work. The work of the Pali Text Society was continued by its devoted and energetic third president, Miss I.B. Horner, until her death in 2524/1981. With the assistance of eminent Pali and Buddhist scholars of various nationalities, the Society has published the Pali texts, in Roman characters, of all the works in the Tripitaka, most of the Commentaries, and many post-canonical works. A large number of the English translations of these texts have also been published. In the field of lexicography, the Pali-English Dictionary, English-Pali Dictionary, Dictionary of Pali Proper Names and the Pali Tipitฺakam Concordance are publications of the Society. It can be said that the Pali Text Society has done.the most for the spread of Theravada Buddhism in the Western world and is surpassed by none in aiding the progress of international Buddhist studies.
Max Muller (2366-2443/1823-1900), the famous English philologist who was born in Germany, is regarded as the father of Indian studies in the West. Through his voluminous translations and editions, he made a substantial contribution to the progress of Pali and Buddhist studies. His edition of the 50-volume series of the Sacred Books of the East encouraged professor Rhys Davids to begin the Sacred Books of the Buddhists, a series which still continues.
It was also an Englishman, Sir Edwin Arnold, that produced the most widely known and most successful work on the popularization of Buddhism. His epic poem, The Light of Asia, published in 2422/1879, caused a sudden and dramatic increase of interest in Buddhism among Western people, made many converts and further stimulated scholarly study of Buddhism. Among these converts was Charlse Henry Allen Bennet, a young man of 18 years of age. Bennet went to study Buddhism in Burma, received his ordination there and devoted his life to the cause of Buddhism. As a Buddhist monk, he was known as Bhikkhu Ananda Metteyya. And it was Ananda Metteyya that led the first Buddhist mission to England in April 2451/1908. Among those who were then inspired to adopt Buddhism as their way of life, the first to be admitted were Francis Payne and his family. The beginning of the 20th century in England saw also the founding of the Buddhist Society of Great Britain and Ireland on November 26, 2450/1907. The Society was set up to assist the Buddhist Mission and functioned until 2466/1923. In 2467/1924 it was replaced by the present Buddhist Society of which Mr. Christmas Humphreys was the founding President. Besides the Buddhist Society in London, there are now two Buddhist viharas to help further the cause of Buddhism.
