Contribution of Buddhist Mindfulness to the Transformation of Conflicts – Dependent Origination (paticca-samuppāda) and Deconstruction of Identity

The article presents Buddhist mindfulness as a method for conflict transformation. On the basis of the concept of paticca-samuppāda (dependent origination) and anatta (nonself) the article (de)constructs the phases of identity formation. In Buddhist understanding, conflict is the result of defensiveness and misconceptions, and thus it is central to understand the mechanism by which the idea of “I” or “self” is established. The purpose of mindfulness is (among other things) to achieve a radical change in perception, which leads to “de-automatization” of mental mechanisms and suspends the identification with sensory and mental experiences that an individual calls a separate “I”. Since the Buddhist approach to conflict is based on a theory of cognition, this article emphasizes the individual effort needed for conflict transformation. Only later could or should this knowledge be applicable to a wider social environment, taking into account the diversity of socio-cultural conditions

"Dvojno prebujenje?" : čuječno družbeno delovanje v luči dekontekstualizacije družbeno angažiranega budizma

The paper presents the concept of “dual awakening”, which is based on the Buddhist mindfulness appropriated by socially engaged Buddhism as a method to recognize and implement a “wholesome” paradigm on both the social and in-dividual level. In the first half of the paper, I analyze the idea of “dual awakening” in the Southeast Asian context, especially in the case of the Sarvodaya Sramadana movement in Sri Lanka, In the second part of the paper, I review some of the re-search on (mindfulness) meditation in the West to critically evaluate the de-con-textualization of transferring Buddhist ideas and methods (such as cultivating empathy and compassion as a basis for social action) into the Western modernist paradigm.V prispevku je predstavljen koncept »dvojnega prebujenja«, utemeljenega v budistični čuječnosti, ki si jo je družbeno angažirani budizem prisvojil kot metodo za prepoznavanje in uresničevanje »zdrave« paradigme tako na ravni družbe kot posameznika. V prvem delu prispevka avtorica analizira idejo »dvojnega prebujenja« v kontekstu jugovzhodne Azije, predvsem v okviru gibanja Sarvodaya Shramadana na Šrilanki. V drugem delu preuči nekaj raziskav o (čuječnostni) meditaciji na Zahodu, da bi kritično ocenila dekontekstualizacijo prenosa budističnih idej in metod (npr. spodbujanje empatije in sočutja kot osnove za družbeno delovanje) v Zahodno modernistično paradigmo

Evropski "drugi"

Prispevek predstavi zgodovino evropskega dojemanja "drugega", ki odločilno vpliva na oblikovanje evropske identitete. Tako kot je evropska identiteta povezana z obstojem "drugega", ta "drugi" postane sestavni del Evrope, kar je posebej razvidno v evropskem odnosu do "Turka". Kot posledico porazov, ki so jih utrpeli s strani otomanskih zavojevalcev, so zahodni kristjani razvili občutek za enotnost in skupnost. Posebnost te nove situacije je bila projekcija sovražnosti do muslimanov v sedaj simbolični lik "Turka", in prav religija je tista, ki postane glavni dejavnik pri njegovi reprezentaciji kot evropskega "drugega". Prispevek predstavi nekatere primere "pregona Turka iz Evrope" v sodobni evropski zgodovini ter današnje reprezentacije Turčije v evropski zavesti, s posebnim poudarkom na Saidovi kritiki Samuela Huntingtona in njegovega znamenitega "spopada civilizacij", ki kljub vsemu močno zaznamuje evropsko-turški diskurz. Pokaže tudi na specifičnosti turškega islama in sekularnosti v Turčiji ter različne evropske odzive nanju.The article looks at how the comprehension of "Other" in Europe develops through history and analyzes its effects on the formation of the European identity. As European identity is connected to the existence of the "Other", this "Other" becomes a constituent element of Europe, which is especially visible in the European attitude towards the "Turk". After the Ottoman intruders invaded the West and defeated its inhabitants, the Western Christians developed a sentiment for unity and community that soon became the seed from which sprung the tree of hostility toward the Muslims. This hostility towards the Muslims was later projected on now symbolical figure of the "Turk, with religion becoming the main factor of its representation as the European \u27Other\u27". The article presents some of the examples of "persecution of the \u27Turk\u27 from Europe" in the contemporary history and outlines the modern European perception of Turkey with a special emphasis on Said\u27s critique of Samuel Huntington and his famous "clash of civilizations" which nonetheless strongly influences the discourse between Europe and Turkey. The article also draws attention to the specificities of Turkish Islam and the secularities in Turkey to finally present the different responses to both of them

Evropski "drugi": turški islam in njegova evropska perspektiva

Prispevek predstavi zgodovino evropskega dojemanja "drugega", ki odločilno vpliva na oblikovanje evropske identitete. Tako kot je evropska identiteta povezana z obstojem "drugega", ta "drugi" postane sestavni del Evrope, kar je posebej razvidno v evropskem odnosu do "Turka". Kot posledico porazov, ki so jih utrpeli s strani otomanskih zavojevalcev, so zahodni kristjani razvili občutek za enotnost in skupnost. Posebnost te nove situacije je bila projekcija sovražnosti do muslimanov v sedaj simbolični lik "Turka", in prav religija je tista, ki postane glavni dejavnik pri njegovi reprezentaciji kot evropskega "drugega". Prispevek predstavi nekatere primere "pregona Turka iz Evrope" v sodobni evropski zgodovini ter današnje reprezentacije Turčije v evropski zavesti, s posebnim poudarkom na Saidovi kritiki Samuela Huntingtona in njegovega znamenitega "spopada civilizacij", ki kljub vsemu močno zaznamuje evropsko-turški diskurz. Pokaže tudi na specifičnosti turškega islama in sekularnosti v Turčiji ter različne evropske odzive nanju.The article looks at how the comprehension of "Other" in Europe develops through history and analyzes its effects on the formation of the European identity. As European identity is connected to the existence of the "Other", this "Other" becomes a constituent element of Europe, which is especially visible in the European attitude towards the "Turk". After the Ottoman intruders invaded the West and defeated its inhabitants, the Western Christians developed a sentiment for unity and community that soon became the seed from which sprung the tree of hostility toward the Muslims. This hostility towards the Muslims was later projected on now symbolical figure of the "Turk, with religion becoming the main factor of its representation as the European \u27Other\u27". The article presents some of the examples of "persecution of the \u27Turk\u27 from Europe" in the contemporary history and outlines the modern European perception of Turkey with a special emphasis on Said\u27s critique of Samuel Huntington and his famous "clash of civilizations" which nonetheless strongly influences the discourse between Europe and Turkey. The article also draws attention to the specificities of Turkish Islam and the secularities in Turkey to finally present the different responses to both of them

Muslimanska identiteta v času globalizacije

The article deals with Muslim identity in times of globalisation and tries to answer the following questions: in which way does globalisation affect the reshaping of religious identity (Muslim identity, in our case)what is the meaning of identity of resistance (that which religious fundamentalism, cultural nationalism and other defence reactions stem from)what are the consequences of the shift from the traditional to a modern society and in which way do these consequences shape the varied Muslim identities. The ideological consequences of this shift (from the traditional to the modern) and the confrontation with the West can be summarised as: apologetic modernism, which claims that a revival of Islam is only possible through a complete assimilation of modern norms, which in reverse equals westernisation,and Islamic reforms (Salafism), which advocates the return to the \u27original\u27 Islam, i.e. the Islam of the early generations. The article presents in detail the ideological orientations of the Muslims

Primer odnosa med religijo in državo v Turčiji

The author discusses the specific relation between religion and state in Turkey. In the first part of the paper some existing polemics concerning the (in)compatibility of Islam and democracy are emphasiyed. The question, whether Islam is compatible with democratic forms of rule has raised a vigorous debate in the Western academic and political circles. This question is currently gaining relevance as Turkey is approaching full membership in the European Union. The author stresses the fact that democratic institutions have not been forced in Turkey, but rather voluntarily adopted by the Turks themselves. Turkey, of all the Muslim countries, has had the longest history of close relations with the West. Apart from this, Turkey has adopted the "Western model" in its political orientation and the Turkish experiment in parliamentary democracy has lasted for over a century - much longer than in any other country of the Islamic world. The paper proceeds with a presentation of variability and the peculiar character of Turkish Islam and its relation to the state. The Muslims in Turkey confess their faith in various ways, some of which are "orthodox" or standard and do not vary in time or among different countries or cultures. Other ways are characteristic of a certain culture. In the case of Turkey the intertwining of orthodox or standard religious practices with folk tradition has given rise to a peculiar form of Islam with some specific traits - the so called "Anatolian Islam". Regardless of the rich mosaic of various expressions of Islam in Turkey including the Shia Islam, Alevism, Sufism etc., it is the Sunni Islam which has been perceived as the "orthodox" form of Islam ever since the Ottoman times. In the paper, special attention is paid to the analysis of Diyanet (Office for Religious Matters), which represents the highest Islamic authority in the country and is a part of the state mechanism and the bureaucratic system. The largest conflicts between secular and religious standpoints in Turkey are presented and it is demonstrated, that the problem of Islam in Turkey is not as much a problem of religion influencing the state, as it is a problem of the state influencing religion