Prajna Vihara: Vol. 22, No. 2 (July - December 2021)

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    The connection between happiness and practice in Buddhism and Aristotelian Philosophy
    (Bangkok : Assumption University Press, 2021) Nyartika
    This explores what happiness means according to the Buddhist and Aristotelian perspectives. Both view happiness as kind of practice which can be cultivated, not a gift that good fortune bestows upon humans. People often neglect this insight of the importance of creating their happiness by their own actions. Practicing morality, knowledge, and wisdom are important for cultivating a happy and well-lived life. This research investigates how the Buddha and Aristotle developed special practices which develop the virtues essential for obtaining happiness.
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    The emancipation from suffering in Mahayana Buddhism and its implications for contemporary mental health
    (Bangkok : Assumption University Press, 2021) Lim, Beng Keong
    Human beings constantly seek meaning and temporary happiness for themselves. Nevertheless, they live in a perpetual cycle of universal and subjective suffering, affecting their general and mental wellness. Scholars in the humanities continue to pursue questions of meaning and interpretation of suffering, and in science there is still no solution for the emancipation of human suffering. This study will try to show that the concept of Bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism can address the issue of emancipation of suffering in a meaningful way. Mahayana Buddhism suggests that suffering comes from the objectification of the mind, the notion of self, and the discriminatory mind that arises from dualistic views. Overcoming suffering is possible by using the type of discipline usually reserved for the Bodhisattva. This disciple provides a way even in secular society to emancipate individuals from suffering, and improve their quality of life and mental well-being. In conclusion, the study suggests that Bodhisattva practice can be used in public education as a psychological tool for self-help and the emancipation of sufferings.
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    Defending mental causation by appealing to grounding
    (Bangkok : Assumption University Press, 2021) Pornthep Chawla
    Recently, Clark and Wildman have argued against a thesis about mental causation, due to Kroedel and Schulz, called the causal grounding thesis. A programmatic idea driving the causal grounding thesis is that instances of mental causation are always grounded by corresponding instances of purely physical causation. The causal grounding thesis goes beyond this programmatic idea by providing a substantial specification of how this occurs. The causal grounding thesis is of considerable philosophical interest because it is instrumental in Kroedel and Schulz’s attempt to develop non-reductive physicalism about the mind in such a way that the infamous exclusion problem is avoided. This paper extends Kroedel and Schulz’s defense of the causal grounding thesis and replies to Clark and Wildman’s concerns.
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    Sufi Islam and syncretism in Java: and its implications for local secularism
    (Bangkok : Assumption University Press, 2021) Lana Indralak
    This paper examines the influence of animism and Sufi Islam in Java. It will show that the accomodating approach of Sufism and its tolerance of syncretism was a factor in the spread of Islam in Java. It will be argued that this syncretism also opens a place for certain local forms of interreligious tolerance and prepares for what is known in Indonesia as pancasila. Many modern versions of secularism while porporting to be accomodating to religion have become hostile to religious belief. But Indonesian forms of secularism and pancasila emerge from these deeper religious roots, which are often overlooked. Nowadays, with greater global influence, this syncretism and religious tolerance is under threat. This paper will suggest that an appreciation of the Sufi and syncretic origins of Indonesian thought can serve to strengthen modern understandings of pancasila and secularism. This can work to mitigate hostility and sectarianism. By maintaining itself as an approach which harmonizes with Western concepts of secularism, yet with a deeper religious framework, Indonesia can maintain a tradition of toleration, which respects multiculturalism and religious pluralism in resistance to more intolerant relgious movements