Find a living or recent figure of Buddhist authority. You can use the different databases on contemporary
Buddhism provided below or decide to explore the example behind one of our weekly meditation challenges—
however, not the life histories we already explored in our lecture modules and/or tutorials. You may especially
choose to explore the many cases of female masters active around the world today. Your task is to critically
assess the religious background and activity of the teacher, and how his/her activity are related to the different
discourses on global Buddhism (“activity” = the religious tasks the master is engaged in: rituals and ceremonies, giving talks on Buddhist topics, founding and guiding Buddhist centers or networks of centers, guiding disciples, interacting with the public on religious topics, etc.).
In other words, the key question for this assignment is:
What kind of Buddhism is this teacher teaching and endorsing?
Explain how the teacher’s background relates to traditional Buddhism. Do they have the credentials to be seen as an authority within their Buddhist school or lineage? What kind of religious training did they receive to?
Sample Solution