[silence] Does Humor Belong in Buddhism?

[Ralph Lichtensteiger]

dear all,

"The Buddha Shakyamuni is said to have asked, 'How can anyone laugh  
who knows of old age, disease, and death?' Despite the severity of  
this rhetorical question, Buddhists through the centuries and across  
cultures have incorporated humor into their religious lives. The  
literary, ritual, and artistic traditions of the Buddhist world  
contain a variety of humorous and comedic elements that challenge the  
representation of Buddhism as a humorless doctrine of detached  
austerity. As a result of this image of Buddhism, scholars have  
tended to view humorous elements of Buddhist texts and practices as  
anomalous or marginal rather than as vibrant and vital aspects of  
Buddhist traditions. This workshop will explore the role of humor in  
Buddhism from early canonical theories of humor and the unexpectedly  
robust comedy of the rules for monks and nuns to the outrageous  
behavior of tantric gurus and Zen Masters."

UC Berkeley Webcasts | Video and Podcasts: Does Humor Belong in  
Buddhism?

http://webcast.berkeley.edu/event_details.php? 
webcastid=19160&p=1&ipp=1000&category=Arts

allthebest,
Ralph Lichtensteiger
http://www.lichtensteiger.de/
http://time4time.blogspot.com/
http://del.icio.us/lichtconlon

espace sonorité
http://www.lichtensteiger.de/music_room.html
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