The New Vision of Religious Education in Buddhism

ABSTRACT

This study aims to investigate the problems about researching on the religious education in Buddhism. It is necessary to discuss the field, methodology and relation with other domains of knowledges in the study of Buddhist education. The disciplinary identity of Buddhist education is concerned with the relations between Buddhism and education, Buddhism and religious education, and Buddhism and science of religion. “Buddhist education” falls into the three categories such as “education of Buddhism”, “education about Buddhism”, and “Buddhistic education.” Education of Buddhism means the education to help one believe and understand the Buddhist teaching for the practice of Buddhism, while education about Buddhism to learn the theories and history about Buddhism as an academic attention. Buddhistic education is not directly concerned to the practice or believing of Buddhism. It is an educational judging, adopting, and practicing a spiritual and practical life based on Buddhist teaching as an educational dimension. The suggestions for the progress in the study of Buddhist education as follows. First, the fundamental concepts of Buddhist education need to clarify the meanings for setting up the disciplinary system such as ‘spirituality”. Second, comparative studies in Buddhist education are to be proceeded more attentively avoiding the mistake of category. Finally, the independence of disciplinary domain in Buddhist education needs to study on identity of Buddhist education with the profound and wide attention.