David McMahan, “The Making of Buddhist Modernism” (Oxford UP, 2008)
Scott Mitchell; David McMahan
Adds the historical depth needed to distinguish inherited Buddhist traditions from the meditation-centered, science-compatible forms many Christian-origin travelers first meet.
This is one exact episode. The review applies to this conversation only.
You have sampled mindfulness or secular Buddhism and now want to understand how modernity reshaped what Western audiences recognize as Buddhism.
Know before you begin…
Scott Mitchell interviews religious-studies scholar David McMahan about a historical argument; this is neither a representative Buddhist practice episode nor a neutral survey of all Buddhist traditions.
