Anarchy Bang: Introducing Episode 33 – Buddhist Anarchism

From Anarchy Bang

Buddhist anarchism is something that has existed since the golden age of classical anarchism but has never solidified into anything resembling a movement, organization, or even a unified philosophy. Given the countless different definitions of, and sects within, both "anarchism" and "buddhism", to use a label like "buddhist anarchism" can mean anything and everything. And for a few random weirdos out there throughout time and around the world, buddhist anarchism has meant a great deal.So this week we will discuss buddhist anarchism, some ways to look at freedom and liberation as both an inner thing as well as a worldly thing, in both our personal lives as well as for all living beings (and maybe for our past and future lives as well).

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There are 25 Comments

i have to say that it isn't any less inspirational for me than anarchism. I think part of the reason why it appears so shitty to people is that authoritarianism is in buddhism sometimes (as is for anarchism...). Buddhism also tried to escape the lame ass binary thinking, their whole version of "I REJECT YOUR BINARIES!" is phrased as "abandon dualistic thinking" or "stop seeing the world through the dualism in words".

I've found that meditation/mindfulness helps to gain a little distance from your emotions so you can see things more as they actually are, but it's not easy stuff to grapple with. It helps to go to temples if the people there aren't self-important dicks.

terrible model making/handcrafting/wood working skills displayed on that balsa wood box

which is i think why i've enjoyed going to those temples the most. In Zen there aren't any theological conceptions, it's mostly just a conditioning of your mind to be able to meditate and stay in the present moment. I've thought about getting more seriously involved in it but i don't feel much of a need to do so, i just prefer to meditate alone but group meditations can be very helpful.

And of course taoism has some seemingly very anti-authoritarian ideas, which alan watts argues is where zen buddhism came from in part

toaism, especially in the Chuang Tzu, is the closest to anarchism in the ancient asian paths. sadly for most non-asian anarchists, it's also heavily tilted toward anarchist primitivism

I'm agreeable to most of your ideas concerning zen, though, as a zen purist (note the uncapitalized "z"), I winced a little at the mention of zen temples, *chuckles to himself*. A burnt out Chevy on the side of Highway 1 is as much a " temple" for contemplation as any other construction. Or lets be a tad more green and worship the temple of " big freakin tree growing out the side of a rocky mountain".
Be not too harsh in replying to this, once one is caught within the pure zen moment, everything becomes permissable.

with other people in some circumstances, i don't know why i capitalized zen, could be some freudian religious thing or not, or my computer did it cuz having "freudian" without caps gives me a spelling error which are kinda annoying to look at. Visiting temples will sometimes give me a particular peace of mind that i generally don't get when i meditate alone.

The point is, you are also free to try anything, without limiting it to some idea like "zen anarchism" or "individualism".

I just used the capitalized term Zen Anarchism as a reference in context to opposing the term Buddhist Anarchism. In fact, my zen experience I personally refer to as "€%#¿", it actually has no sound, its a facial expression, raised ironic eyebrows, piercing thousand yard stare, as I silently exhale.

"In fact, my zen experience I personally refer to as "€%#¿", it actually has no sound, its a facial expression, raised ironic eyebrows, piercing thousand yard stare, as I silently exhale."

I forgot the smug supercilious smile as I silently exhale, cos you know, I am :)

and i responded as if it was either a joke or serious lol

Nobody hits the fartbong harder than Le Way. Fart hotbox.

You haven't an ounce of poetic grace in any words you utter, if you had, you would have composed an haiku , thus ----

No one hits fartbong,
Harder than Le Way can do,
Go fart hotbox go.

Just to add to the list, Kerry Thornley, one of the founders of Discordianism (and almost certainly not JFK's assassin), wrote a book called Zenarchy. It's an uneven mess of ancom and ancap influences, clearly coming from the "no bad ideas" anti-ideological soup of 60s counterculture, and I loved it despite (because?) of its shortcomings.

This episode demonstrated to me that Aragorn! can be a capable warm host. I enjoyed the chat with all contributors which was held together with excellent hosting. Aragorn! sounded chilled (for a change).

Someone on the show mentioned Alan Watts and his essay Beat Zen, Square Zen, and Zen. And then I heard this essay referenced elsewhere too, and I had to revisit it. Now after rereading some AW I must say he is a bigger influence on me than I remembered. (I read his essays 30 + years ago!)
He touches on anti-civ in a way, and puts non-duality into words in a coherent manner, if that can be a thing, and he has a great sense of humor.
Alan Watts seems like an anarchist in the way a zen practitioner must be, to my understanding of zen anyway.

"the way of zen" cover to cover, it's kinda a more complex intellectual explanation of zen like in "opening the hand of thought" by uchimaya (apparently involved in an assassination attempt according to your show?!).

Alan Watts really is one of the best writers in my opinion, a very unique "western" explanation of the religious core of the human heart.

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