Episode 04: Why I’m Not a Buddhist
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Episode 4 of M3CS’s Contemplative Science Podcast saw Evan Thompson come on to the podcast to talk about meditation and Buddhist exceptionalism.
For the full podcast, check out the episode here.
In this episode, we cover...
What he means by Buddhist exceptionalism.
The ways in which Buddhism has been successful in modernising.
Why we need to ask the deeper questions in our meditation practice.
Evan Thompson is a professor of philosophy at the University of British Columbia. His publications include ‘Why I Am Not a Buddhist’ and ‘Waking, Dreaming, Being...’ - tackling topics which join Western and Buddhist philosophies in dialogue.
Here are some of the key insights from the conversation...
Science, Buddhism and the other religions interact with the ethics of knowing.
”Buddhism is not monolithic. Science isn't monolithic. So it's always about the particular participants in any given conversation. I would say that the overarching theme or rationale for the conversation would be something like the ethics of knowledge or the ethics of of knowing.”
We need to ask the deeper questions in our meditative practice.
“If you’re seeing it as a path of wisdom and a path of self-knowledge, then you’re selling yourself short if you don’t plumb the depths. I’m not arguing against the value of locating yourself within a tradition and committing yourself, but I think it is important not to do that in a way that involves a distorted understanding of what these larger questions entail.”
Meditation is a scripted practice.
“I would say that for people who are adept piano players, cello players, chess players... a lot of the same absorption that one might experience in, say, awareness of breath meditation is likely to happen in those practices as well. But the idea that those practices are constructed and meditation isn't constructed, I think is an illusion. I think meditation is a scripted practice.”
The best place to find Evan Thompson is here.
See you next week!
