Right thinking leads to right action, Buddhism teaches. And while Buddhism is best known in the West as a path to inner change, and it has no social justice teachings per se, a number of books show how Buddhist principles can prompt activism on issues such as racism, poverty, and xenophobia.
The spike in titles related to social issues arrives amid a steady demand for books on Buddhism, but the audience may be shifting, according to Monkfish publisher Paul Cohen. “We believe Buddhism has an even greater appeal to millennials than previous generations due to its simpatico nature with science—something many other religions are still struggling with,” he said.
Daniel Aitken, publisher of Buddhist-specialty press Wisdom Publications, also sees a solid audience for Buddhist ideas, especially in today’s political and cultural climate. “Any type of major change brings with it a sense of uncertainty and readers will naturally look to the wisdom found in these kinds of books,” he says. “Buddhist ideas of interdependence and impermanence, in particular, can offer not only comfort during these times, but also methods for skillfully approaching difficult situations.”
Rather than offering specific steps or programs, five books—three new and two in new editions—focus on how transforming hearts and minds can lead to social change. That begins with seeing others not as “the other,” but as our collective selves, authors argue.
Interconnected: Embracing Life in Our Global Society
Tibetan Buddhist monk Dorje builds a case that all humans, in spite of differences, are related and reliant on each other. He writes, “Along with the Internet, we should develop an Innernet... by cultivating a universal sense of connectedness.” He adds, “Minority communities in every society are subjected to prejudice and abuse at the hands of other communities. By actively cultivating positive feelings toward all others universally, we can find the resolve to seek out ways to end such suffering.”
Friendship as Freedom: Mindful Practices for Resisting Oppression and Building Community
Johnson, who teaches yoga and meditation in NYC public schools, draws on Buddhist teachings and on her experience as a biracial child growing up in Chicago to encourage readers to form relationships that bridge differences in faith, race, gender, sexual orientation, and physical ability. “Friendships might contribute to political shifts that lean towards justice,” she writes. “If we are to build stronger social justice movements… we are going to have to learn to trust each other. This will only happen one relationship at a time.”
Grassroots Zen: Community and Practice in the Twenty-First Century
Although Zen Buddhism has an esoteric image, cofounders of the Princeton Area Zen Group Besserman and Steger show how the meditation cushion can be a launching pad for activism. They write, "Grassroots Zen is not an isolated metaphysical practice cut off from the world; it integrates meditation and daily life in the busy marketplace beyond the monastery. The unity of being experienced in Zen meditation must be expressed in the world as openness, nonviolence, compassion, friendship, and democracy." Monkfish publisher Cohen says Grassroots Zen—a substantially revised, expanded, and updated edition of the 2001 edition from Tuttle—emphasizes gender equality and “envisions a socially engaged Buddhism where zazen [meditation practice] is integrated each day with work, family, and social obligations.” Cohen decided to publish a new edition because “we're seeing a whole new generation of spiritual seekers who are more worldly and sophisticated than the seekers of the ‘60s and ‘70s, and they are looking for more integrated spiritual approaches.”
Why the Dalai Lama is a Socialist: Buddhism, Socialism and the Compassionate Society
Canadian social scientist Gibbs connects Buddhism to social justice by comparing it to socialist traditions. Gibbs writes that both Buddhism and socialism help human beings become aware of our delusions, including the belief we are separate from each other. “Our interdependence, or interbeing, means that our wealth creation and our consumption habits have global dimensions for human beings, other animals and nature,” Gibbs writes. “Both Buddhism and socialism recognize this interdependence and…suggest that rather than living on auto pilot, we could more intentionally work to create the future we want. In this, it becomes clear that what we do in the realm of our day-to-day lives as parents, teachers, plumbers or musicians is incredibly important.”
A Plea for the Animals: The Moral, Philosophical, and Evolutionary Imperative to Treat All Beings with Compassion
People also are interconnected with other beings, writes French Buddhist monk Ricard, who lives in Nepal. The book was first translated from its original French and published in 2016, and the paperback edition will feature a new foreword by the translator, Sherab Chödzin Kohn. The book indicts humans’ treatment of animals: “‘Buddha nature’ is present in every being, latent even in beings who do not have the mental faculties necessary to manifest it, such as animals,” Ricard writes. “This realization encourages Buddhists to feel greater compassion… and it incites them to do everything in their power to alleviate the suffering of these beings.”
