Swearer, Donald K.

English

Works

 Swarthmore College
Works 
 
 
Religion Faculty Works 
 
 
Fall 1980 
 
Review Of "An Introduction To Buddhist 
Psychology" By P. DeSilva 
 
Donald K. Swearer 
Swarthmore College, dsweare1@swarthmore.edu  
 
Let us know how access to this work benefits you. 
 
Follow this and additional works at: http://works.swarthmore.edu/fac-religion  
 Part of the Religion Commons 
 
 
Recommended Citation 
Donald K. Swearer. (1980). "Review Of "An Introduction To Buddhist Psychology" By P. DeSilva". Journal 
Of Ecumenical Studies. Volume 17, Issue 4. 702-703. 
http://works.swarthmore.edu/fac-religion/141 
 
This work is brought to you for free and open access by the Swarthmore College Libraries. It has 
been accepted for inclusion in Religion Faculty Works by an authorized administrator of Works. For 
more information, please contact myworks@swarthmore.edu. 
702 Journal of Ecumenical Studies 
Padmasiri de Silva, An Introduction to Buddhist Psychology. New York: Barnes & 
Noble, 1979. Pp. 134. $22.50. 
Padmasiri de Silva, Head of the Department of Philosophy and Psychology at the 
University of Sri Lanka, Peradeniya, was trained in Buddhist philsophy under the late Κ. N. 
Jayatilleke in Sri Lanka, and in western philosophy and psychology at the University of 
Hawaii. Because his earlier books, e.g. Buddhist and Freudian Psychology (1973), appeared 
 
 
ic" 
in Sri Lanka, his work has been relatively unknown among western students of religion. 
With the publication of An Introduction to Buddhist Psychology and his recent Fulbright 
professorship at the University of Pittsburgh, his contributions to the interstices of western 
psychology and Buddhist thought will become deservedly more widely known in the United 
States. 
Earlier studies in the field of Theravada Buddhist psychology have been essentially 
descriptive, e.g., C.A.F. Rhys Davids, Buddhist Psychology (1914), and primarily exposi­
tions of the more scholastic categories in the Abhidhamma or "advanced philosophy," e.g., 
W. F. Jayasuriya, The Psychology and Philosophy of Buddhism (1963), and Herbert 
Guenther, The Philosophy and Psychology in the Abhidhamma (1957). An Introduction to
Buddhist Psychology represents-to my knowledge-the first attempt on the part of an 
Asian Theravada Buddhist to interpret Buddhist psychology not only on its own terms but 
in the light of western theories of personality, motivation, emotion, and cognition. This 
statement does not mean that de Suva's primary referents are these categories, even though 
he organizes the core of his exposition around them (Chapters 2-4). Rather, what distin­
guishes his analysis and makes it so appropriate for the western audience is its consistent 
reference to the Pâli texts, especially the discourses or Suttas. He takes the reader into the 
world of the text, not merely particular Pali terms, e.g., fear (bhaya), discursive reasoning 
(vitakka), but also the framework of the Suttas. Within this context his analysis then 
incorporates the more traditional Theravada exposition of Pâli terms and western psycholog-
ical categories. While neither Buddhologists nor technically trained western psychologists 
may be particularly pleased with this approach, in this reviewer's opinion, de Suva's 
methodology allows him to interpret the Theravada context (i.e., the Suttas) in terms 
intelligible to an informed but non-specialized audience. 
As well as an introduction to Buddhist psychology, therefore, the book represents one 
of the better recent attempts at cross-cultural communication between Theravada Buddhism 
and western thought. The two greatest pitfalls in this enterprise are mere translation, on the 
one hand, and interpretative distortion on the other. De Silva's effort should be applauded 
for walking a "middle way" with a fair degree of success. 
De Silva also manages reasonably well in handling another scholarly problem when 
writing for a more general audience, namely, the balance between the specific and the 
general, the technical and the commonplace-in short, how to be significant without being 
pedantic and comprehensive without being banaL The author's balance may, indeed, reflect 
his Theravada commitment to the interdependent nature of things (paticca samuppäda), but
in the context of his study it takes this interpretation: "The psychology of Buddhism is 
related to other parts of the doctrine. The basic aspects of the philosophy of early 
Buddhism . . . fall into . . . theory of knowledge, ethics, theory of society and theory of 
reality. While the material relating to the psychology of consciousness and behavior may be 
isolated for purposes of study its distinctive quality has to be grasped in relation to other 
facets of the doctrine" (p. 2). Hurrah! Certainly, highly specialized research projects make 
their own kind of contribution to religious and cross-cultural studies, but even they do well 
to heed de Silva's claim. 
Specifically, An Introduction to Buddhist Psychology is a systematization and interpre-
tation of the psychological enquiries in early Buddhism. It takes as its base the key terms of 
Theravada reality theory, i.e., impermanence (anicca), egolessness (anattä), and interdepen-
dence (paticca samupäda); the four aspects of mind-feeling (vedanä), disposition and voli-
tion (sankhara), perception (sahiUT), and consciousness (viññana); and the "therapeut
nature of the Buddha's message. With these perspectives clearly laid out, de Silva then 
discusses Buddhist psychology in terms of the familiar categories of motivation, emotion, 
personality, and cognition. His exposition of these topics is clear and logical, informed by 
his studies of western psychology, especially Freud and humanistic psychology, but 
Book Reviews 703 
uncluttered by a particular interpretative bias. De Silva's own perspective, implicit through-
out and spelled out in the concluding chapter comparing western and Buddhist psychology 
as therapeutic systems, argues for the unique contribution of Buddhist psychology to a 
western understanding of personality and the nature of therapy. De Silva makes no startling 
claims-e.g., the ego is a root of anxiety; therapy should aim at more than mere adjustment 
to social realities-but his discussion will be appreciated by students of Theravada thought 
for its clarity of exposition, its intelligibility of interpretation, and the scope of its inten-
tion. One hopes the publisher will publish a more reasonably priced edition than the $22.50 
hardcover! 
Donald K. Swearer, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, PA 
Carlo Caldarola, Christianity: The Japanese Way. Monographs and Theoretical Studies 
in Sociology and Anthropology in Honour of Neis Anderson 15. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1979. 
Pp. 234. 
This is an informative study of two small but highly significant groups of contempo-
rary Japanese Christians: the Mukyokai, non-church Christians, and the Makuya, tabernacle 
Christians. Carlo Caldarola, a sociologist of religion, focuses on these groups because they 
are especially instructive to anyone interested in the "acculturation process"-the process by 
which cultures in continuous, direct contact modify each other. The Mukyokai and the 
Makuya have arisen "totally independent of western influence." From the beginning, they 
kept themselves resolutely apart from institutional, missionary-sponsored Christianity and 
stayed close to the indigenous spirituality of the Japanese people-a union of aboriginal 
Japanese, Buddhist, and Confucian elements which Caldarola calls the "Shinto way." To 
this Shinto spirituality, the Mukyokai added the "puritan" elements of Christianity: loyal-
ty, honesty, and personal austerity, which they discerned in Jesus, Paul, Augustine, Luther, 
and Kierkegaard, and in their own leader and founder, Uchimura Kanzo. They synthesized 
the Shinto and Christian elements and created a "spontaneous form of Christianity." 
Caldarola labels this synthesizing process "Integration." It differs greatly from the 
other, more common modes of acculturation. In "Alienation," the indigenous people move 
away from their own culture without accepting the new culture. They become rootless. In 
"Reorientation," the indigenous people partly abandon their own culture and partly accept 
the new. They are suspended between cultures. In "Reaffirmation," the indigenous people 
borrow certain parts of the alien culture to revive and perpetuate their own. They do not 
really accept the new culture. Caldarola considers Integration important not only because it 
is one of the basic forms of acculturation but because it is creative. In Integration, essential 
elements of both cultures are selected and synthesized to produce something which "did not 
exist in either culture prior to" the cultural interaction. 
Although the author, qua sociologist, is properly concerned with the dynamics of 
acculturation and is careful and clear in setting forth the categorical scheme by which the 
dynamics are to be studied, he puts most of his energy into describing the Mukyokai move-
ment itself. In this book, the author seems more interested in the Mukyokai than in Integra-
tion, more concerned to advocate (indirectly, of course) than to analyze-his protestations 
to the contrary notwithstanding. I, for one, am glad that Caldarola has neglected Integration 
itself and gone to such lengths to show us its value. Scholarship probably has not suffered, 
since Integration and the other modes have no doubt been analyzed extensively elsewhere. 
I am glad that he has written this detailed and sensitive study of the Mukyokai and for his 
forbearing to tell us more than we want to know about the less interesting and less impor-
tant Makuya. 
Occasionally, alas, the writing slips into the hazy verbosity of sociological jargon. What, 
really, does it mean to say that "Japanese churchless Christianity, when considered as a 
feedback effect within the general context of the dynamics of the acculturative process, 
adds an oriental flavor to the existential branch of Christianity"? Altogether, though, I 
think that Caldarola has written a splendid study, and I intend to use my copy often. 
Howard Burkle, Grinnell College, Grinnell, IA 


Review Of  An Introduction To Buddhist Psychology  By P. DeSilva

 Swarthmore CollegeWorks   Religion Faculty Works   Fall 1980  Review Of "An Introduction To Buddhist Psychology" By P. DeSilva  Donald K. Swearer Swarthmore College, dsweare1@swarthmore.edu   Let us know how access to this work benefits you.  Follow this and additional works at: http://works.swarthmore.edu/fac-religion   Part of the Religion Commons   Recommended Citation Donald K. Swearer. (1980). "Review Of "An Introduction To Buddhist Psychology" By P. DeSilva". Journal Of Ecumenical Studies. Volume 17, Issue 4. 702-703. http://works.swarthmore.edu/fac-religion/141  This work is brought to you for free and open access by the Swarthmore College Libraries. It has been accepted for inclusion in Religion Faculty Works by an authorized administrator of Works. For more information, please contact myworks@swarthmore.edu. 702 Journal of Ecumenical Studies Padmasiri de Silva, An Introduction to Buddhist Psychology. New York: Barnes & Noble, 1979. Pp. 134. $22.50. Padmasiri de Silva, Head of the Department of Philosophy and Psychology at the University of Sri Lanka, Peradeniya, was trained in Buddhist philsophy under the late Κ. N. Jayatilleke in Sri Lanka, and in western philosophy and psychology at the University of Hawaii. Because his earlier books, e.g. Buddhist and Freudian Psychology (1973), appeared   ic" in Sri Lanka, his work has been relatively unknown among western students of religion. With the publication of An Introduction to Buddhist Psychology and his recent Fulbright professorship at the University of Pittsburgh, his contributions to the interstices of western psychology and Buddhist thought will become deservedly more widely known in the United States. Earlier studies in the field of Theravada Buddhist psychology have been essentially descriptive, e.g., C.A.F. Rhys Davids, Buddhist Psychology (1914), and primarily exposi­tions of the more scholastic categories in the Abhidhamma or "advanced philosophy," e.g., W. F. Jayasuriya, The Psychology and Philosophy of Buddhism (1963), and Herbert Guenther, The Philosophy and Psychology in the Abhidhamma (1957). An Introduction toBuddhist Psychology represents-to my knowledge-the first attempt on the part of an Asian Theravada Buddhist to interpret Buddhist psychology not only on its own terms but in the light of western theories of personality, motivation, emotion, and cognition. This statement does not mean that de Suva's primary referents are these categories, even though he organizes the core of his exposition around them (Chapters 2-4). Rather, what distin­guishes his analysis and makes it so appropriate for the western audience is its consistent reference to the Pâli texts, especially the discourses or Suttas. He takes the reader into the world of the text, not merely particular Pali terms, e.g., fear (bhaya), discursive reasoning (vitakka), but also the framework of the Suttas. Within this context his analysis then incorporates the more traditional Theravada exposition of Pâli terms and western psycholog-ical categories. While neither Buddhologists nor technically trained western psychologists may be particularly pleased with this approach, in this reviewer's opinion, de Suva's methodology allows him to interpret the Theravada context (i.e., the Suttas) in terms intelligible to an informed but non-specialized audience. As well as an introduction to Buddhist psychology, therefore, the book represents one of the better recent attempts at cross-cultural communication between Theravada Buddhism and western thought. The two greatest pitfalls in this enterprise are mere translation, on the one hand, and interpretative distortion on the other. De Silva's effort should be applauded for walking a "middle way" with a fair degree of success. De Silva also manages reasonably well in handling another scholarly problem when writing for a more general audience, namely, the balance between the specific and the general, the technical and the commonplace-in short, how to be significant without being pedantic and comprehensive without being banaL The author's balance may, indeed, reflect his Theravada commitment to the interdependent nature of things (paticca samuppäda), butin the context of his study it takes this interpretation: "The psychology of Buddhism is related to other parts of the doctrine. The basic aspects of the philosophy of early Buddhism . . . fall into . . . theory of knowledge, ethics, theory of society and theory of reality. While the material relating to the psychology of consciousness and behavior may be isolated for purposes of study its distinctive quality has to be grasped in relation to other facets of the doctrine" (p. 2). Hurrah! Certainly, highly specialized research projects make their own kind of contribution to religious and cross-cultural studies, but even they do well to heed de Silva's claim. Specifically, An Introduction to Buddhist Psychology is a systematization and interpre-tation of the psychological enquiries in early Buddhism. It takes as its base the key terms of Theravada reality theory, i.e., impermanence (anicca), egolessness (anattä), and interdepen-dence (paticca samupäda); the four aspects of mind-feeling (vedanä), disposition and voli-tion (sankhara), perception (sahiUT), and consciousness (viññana); and the "therapeutnature of the Buddha's message. With these perspectives clearly laid out, de Silva then discusses Buddhist psychology in terms of the familiar categories of motivation, emotion, personality, and cognition. His exposition of these topics is clear and logical, informed by his studies of western psychology, especially Freud and humanistic psychology, but Book Reviews 703 uncluttered by a particular interpretative bias. De Silva's own perspective, implicit through-out and spelled out in the concluding chapter comparing western and Buddhist psychology as therapeutic systems, argues for the unique contribution of Buddhist psychology to a western understanding of personality and the nature of therapy. De Silva makes no startling claims-e.g., the ego is a root of anxiety; therapy should aim at more than mere adjustment to social realities-but his discussion will be appreciated by students of Theravada thought for its clarity of exposition, its intelligibility of interpretation, and the scope of its inten-tion. One hopes the publisher will publish a more reasonably priced edition than the $22.50 hardcover! Donald K. Swearer, Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, PA Carlo Caldarola, Christianity: The Japanese Way. Monographs and Theoretical Studies in Sociology and Anthropology in Honour of Neis Anderson 15. Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1979. Pp. 234. This is an informative study of two small but highly significant groups of contempo-rary Japanese Christians: the Mukyokai, non-church Christians, and the Makuya, tabernacle Christians. Carlo Caldarola, a sociologist of religion, focuses on these groups because they are especially instructive to anyone interested in the "acculturation process"-the process by which cultures in continuous, direct contact modify each other. The Mukyokai and the Makuya have arisen "totally independent of western influence." From the beginning, they kept themselves resolutely apart from institutional, missionary-sponsored Christianity and stayed close to the indigenous spirituality of the Japanese people-a union of aboriginal Japanese, Buddhist, and Confucian elements which Caldarola calls the "Shinto way." To this Shinto spirituality, the Mukyokai added the "puritan" elements of Christianity: loyal-ty, honesty, and personal austerity, which they discerned in Jesus, Paul, Augustine, Luther, and Kierkegaard, and in their own leader and founder, Uchimura Kanzo. They synthesized the Shinto and Christian elements and created a "spontaneous form of Christianity." Caldarola labels this synthesizing process "Integration." It differs greatly from the other, more common modes of acculturation. In "Alienation," the indigenous people move away from their own culture without accepting the new culture. They become rootless. In "Reorientation," the indigenous people partly abandon their own culture and partly accept the new. They are suspended between cultures. In "Reaffirmation," the indigenous people borrow certain parts of the alien culture to revive and perpetuate their own. They do not really accept the new culture. Caldarola considers Integration important not only because it is one of the basic forms of acculturation but because it is creative. In Integration, essential elements of both cultures are selected and synthesized to produce something which "did not exist in either culture prior to" the cultural interaction. Although the author, qua sociologist, is properly concerned with the dynamics of acculturation and is careful and clear in setting forth the categorical scheme by which the dynamics are to be studied, he puts most of his energy into describing the Mukyokai move-ment itself. In this book, the author seems more interested in the Mukyokai than in Integra-tion, more concerned to advocate (indirectly, of course) than to analyze-his protestations to the contrary notwithstanding. I, for one, am glad that Caldarola has neglected Integration itself and gone to such lengths to show us its value. Scholarship probably has not suffered, since Integration and the other modes have no doubt been analyzed extensively elsewhere. I am glad that he has written this detailed and sensitive study of the Mukyokai and for his forbearing to tell us more than we want to know about the less interesting and less impor-tant Makuya. Occasionally, alas, the writing slips into the hazy verbosity of sociological jargon. What, really, does it mean to say that "Japanese churchless Christianity, when considered as a feedback effect within the general context of the dynamics of the acculturative process, adds an oriental flavor to the existential branch of Christianity"? Altogether, though, I think that Caldarola has written a splendid study, and I intend to use my copy often. Howard Burkle, Grinnell College, Grinnell, IA 

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