Buddhism in Europe

In Europe , since the Second World War , Buddhism has found more and more followers, also because of its spiritual practice in the form of meditation . At the same time there is increasing interest in the scientific examination of Buddhism, the study of Buddhism .

Historical development

In the 17th century, the Torguten and Kalmyks who immigrated from Asia led to the settlement of Buddhists in Eastern Europe on the lower Volga.

In the rest of Europe - in contrast to America, where the first larger Buddhist communities were founded by immigrants from East Asia - Buddhist communities were initially founded by Europeans.

In the German-speaking world, an initial interest in Buddhism began during the Romantic period. Arthur Schopenhauer is considered to be the pioneer of a serious examination of the teachings of the Buddha .

Great Britain , France , Portugal , the Netherlands and Russia had penetrated the Buddhist cultural area through their imperial aspirations. Therefore, numerous pioneers of European Buddhism worked in these countries. The first Buddhist books for a wider audience, beyond academic, Indological circles, appeared towards the end of the 19th century. From the 1880s, individual Europeans converted to Buddhism.

At the beginning of the 20th century, the first Buddhist organizations and associations were formed in these countries and in Germany. Individual European men and later women entered Buddhist orders to become monks or nuns . Others dedicated themselves to the translation of Buddhist scriptures into the national language, so that these larger circles of Buddhism interested were accessible.

Buddhist scholars from Asia, monks and teachers occasionally came to Europe to give their lectures in front of small groups of interested people. Apart from the Kalmyks (also emigrating in parts of Russia and in the Belgrade area), until the middle of the 20th century, most Buddhist activities in Europe were in Germany, followed by Great Britain.

After the Second World War, these trends, which had already become apparent at the beginning of the century, intensified. In addition to the search for alternative sources of meaning triggered by the events of the World War, the expansion of international contacts, in particular through communication, trade and tourism, and the influx of refugees triggered by warlike events in Asia - especially to France - must be promotional factors for the spread of Buddhism in Europe to be seen. While meditation and Zen Buddhism became popular in the 1960s, Lamaism also found followers in Europe in the 1970s.

At the beginning of the 21st century, Buddhist organizations enjoy the same or almost the same recognition as traditional Christianity in some European countries ; in other countries the demand for legal recognition and social equality is being raised with increasing emphasis.

Buddhism today

Kalmykia is the only predominantly Buddhist region in Europe. Otherwise, Buddhism is now particularly represented in the larger cities of Central and Western Europe, and to a lesser extent in Southern Europe. Buddhism is significantly weaker in the areas of the Christian Orthodox cultures of Eastern and Southeastern Europe. In the German-speaking area, Buddhist groups and centers are not only found in the larger cities of Germany, Austria and Switzerland .

The European Buddhist Union , founded in 1975, aims to network Buddhist organizations in Europe and to initiate a discourse on the sustainable inculturation of Buddhism in Europe.