(Sorry folks, this video is giving me grief so I am unable to embed it or link it.)
The buddhism stereotype is complete 1 minute and 22 seconds in to the clip.
This clip is from The Daily Show with Jon Stewart on April 6th, 2006 in a segment called 'This Week in God.' The host of this segment begins by calling Buddhists the "quietest faith on earth," being quiet has a handful of stigmas that are attached to it including being passive. While one of the Buddhists precepts is that of non-violence, or ahimsa, being soft spoken and passive is not encompassed in this definition, nor is it an appropriate stereotype to give Buddhists. I feel that in reading Zen Wrapped in Karma Dipped in Chocolate that the author, Brad Warner, takes on the complete opposite stereotype of ‘punk rocker’. This stereotype includes being loud and speaking your mind, though the stereotypes of ‘Buddhist’ and ‘punk rocker’ seem to be contradictory to one another, it seems that they complement each other instead. Numerous times in Zen, the author voices his concern with his job, at first he seems to just take it as it is and do other things, but eventually he gets a meeting with the bosses of the company to get an answer about what he is supposed to be doing. Being assertive in this incident doesn’t produce the results he wants but at least he knew where is stood in the company (well, sort of) the complement of Buddhist stereotype comes into play when he acknowledges that he should be open-minded with the outcome. Another example of Warner being assertive is when he demands to be present while his mother is cremated. Luckily for him this assertion was fulfilled.
As an added bonus in the clip also makes fun of the fat Buddha stereotype by referring to the 15-year-old boy whom people think is a reincarnation of Buddha. I have yet to run across an example of this in Zen but when I personally think of Buddha I feel like I should rub his fat belly. Although, the fat stereotype is quickly shot down if you just go visit the VMFA and go to the South Asian Gallery.
I like that you found that Jon Stewart segment. The idea that Buddhism is a quiet, or passive faith is completely misunderstood. Though it seeks inner peace, the whole faith is an thought out action. It is a choice that is made and followed, and there is nothing passive about that. The westren stereotype of true buddhism seems to envelope some idea of meditation around the clock, and some somber mood/demeanor at all times. Buddhists are people too, but I feel like western culture neglects this.
ReplyDeleteI love how Warner completely shows his personality through his writing. I remember when i read the first chapter I just couldn't believe that a guy like this could be a buddhist, let alone a zen master. But it just goes to show how stereotypes can creep up on you.
ReplyDeleteI wish that the video should have work, but anyway I agree with you. NOt all Buddist are passive,some are lound, play in punk bands and much more like Brad Warner. At times Americans can get so caught up in what's in the movies or on television and make stereotypes based off of that, and that isn't fair.
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