The Thought of Sangharakshita - A Critical Assessment - Robert M. Ellis

The Thought of Sangharakshita - A Critical Assessment - Robert M. Ellis

Controversies

The Thought of Sangharakshita - A Critical Assessment - Robert M. Ellis

Robert M. Ellis [+-]
Middle Way Society
Robert M. Ellis is author of a range of interdisciplinary books on Middle Way Philosophy, both within and beyond Buddhism. These have included The Buddha’s Middle Way: Experiential Judgement in His Life and Teaching (Equinox Publishing, 2019) and Archetypes in Religion and Beyond: A Practical Theory of Human Integration and Inspiration (Equinox Publishing, 2022). He is also founder of the Middle Way Society and of Tirylan House Retreat Centre in Wales.

Description

The aspects of Sangharakshita’s ideas that have caused most controversy are those that relate to his personal authority in the Order he founded, the use of his image, and his attitudes to feminism, single sex practice, families and sexual activity. In all of these areas this section tries to focus on Sangharakshita’s underlying assumptions, and assess how far they were responsible for unhelpful outcomes. The sexual abuse allegations are put in the context of his thought rather than judged on an individual basis. In many of these areas his odd mixture of traditionalism, Platonism, and bias towards promiscuity seem to have created serious conflict, although there are also a few genuine practical achievements.

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Citation

Ellis, Robert. Controversies. The Thought of Sangharakshita - A Critical Assessment. Equinox eBooks Publishing, United Kingdom. p. 167-221 Jul 2020. ISBN 9781781799291. https://www.equinoxpub.com/home/view-chapter/?id=38962. Date accessed: 10 Dec 2024 doi: 10.1558/equinox.38962. Jul 2020

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