Tibetan Buddhism and Popular Psychology: A Case Study on the two Recent Publications by the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, and the 14th Dalai Lama By Danny M C Ching

https://www.academia.edu/11048805/Tibetan_Buddhism_and_Popular_Psychology_A_Case_Study_on_the_two_Recent_Publications_by_the_17th_Karmapa_Ogyen_Trinley_Dorje_and_the_14th_Dalai_Lama?nav_from=b33fa5b5-b1de-41c7-9c01-cbdda1136712 Both the 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, and the 14th Dalai Lama are revered internationally as saints and holy men. The Tibetan Buddhist masters have been preaching around the world for many years, in forms of lectures, retreats, and publications. Among these, their publications are the most far-reaching and often occupy the best-seller section of different bookstores around the world. In these bookstores an interesting phenomenon can be observed: that their books are often categorized and displayed on the shelf labeled “self-improvement” or even “psychology”. This raises some intriguing questions: What are the common grounds between modern Buddhism and popular psychology? Being Buddhist themselves, how do they bridge Buddhist teachings and popular psychology, from an emic point of view? How do they address the mainly Western audience in this secular and scientific world? To answer these questions and analyze their attitude towards popular reception, I will select the interpretation of the distinctive Buddhist concept of compassion from the 2012 publications of the two great Tibetan teachers: The Heart is Noble by the Karmapa and Beyond Religion: Ethics for a Whole World by the Dalai Lama respectively, contextualize it further within the various discourses of Buddhist Modernism, and thus evaluate whether the two most authoritative Buddhist teachers from Tibet are able to blaze their own unique trail. In the last part of the article will attempt to tie all the loose together by situating this trend and presentation as a method to gain and accumulate international and intellectual presence for the Tibetan community in exile. I do not attempt to argue against the spiritual advancement of the Tibetan masters, but to unravel the practical and political reasons that determine this particular approach.