Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 2008. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 172-188).

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Kansas, 1997. / Co-Chairs: Chu-tsing Li; Marsha Weidner. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Columbia University, 1984. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 590-616).

Zugl.: Diss. Univ. University of South Africa (UNISA), Pretoria, 2007. / Includes bibliography (S. 179-183) and index.

Zugl.: Diss. Univ. University of South Africa (UNISA), Pretoria, 2007. / Includes bibliography (S. 179-183) and index.

The Triratna/FWBO Buddhist movement has been associated with younger people and a lifestyle in which single sex residential communities and work projects (TBRLs) have been prominent. There is now a trend towards a wider range of lifestyles including fewer people living communally. Demographic changes include 50+ average age for ordained members and some people developing Long-Term Care (LTC) needs, with limited family and financial support. This raises questions as to the extent to which ‘Buddhist identity’ can be supported in LTC situations, with informal care, mainstream LTC services and possible care-based TBRLs all relevant.Data-gathering was initially on the basis of a general investigation of LTC issues in Triratna/FWBO using an eclectic, primarily qualitative design which had features of both a case study and a cross-sectional survey. 17 interviews included participants with current LTC needs, others asked to anticipate future care preferences, and people with relevant expertise. A questionnaire was formulated to explore attitudes to possible care-based TBRLs, with 107 participants and numerous additional comments. There was a strong consensus that Buddhist-based LTC services would, for example, provide better vegetarian diets and have an understanding of Buddhist names taken at ordination. These features were included in a conceptualisation of Buddhist identity which contrasted ‘Buddhist’ and ‘Non-Buddhist’ life, and noted ‘Dreams’ and ‘Nightmares’ as to LTC. Effective basic care was seen as essential to the general level of well-being needed for Buddhist practice, whilst a higher level of support might facilitate access to Buddhist ‘life goods’, and assist people in self-verifying themselves as committed Buddhists through ongoing practice. Informal support from fellow Buddhists was available in many contexts, but not at levels of intensity and duration characteristic of some family-based care, and it was seen as modulated by perceptions of burden, ‘busy-ness’ and other factors. There was a ‘legacy of suspicion’ of mainstream LTC, mainly focussed on residential care, with acknowledgement of some good/respectful carers and care services. TBRLs in LTC were generally welcomed, being seen as suitably altruistic work which might feature an atmosphere of ‘mutuality’ between staff and clients who were Buddhist or of Buddhist sympathy. Comparative material was used here from Methodist, Jewish and Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transgender (LGBT) communities in LTC contexts, with the last of these conceptualised as comparable to the Western Buddhist community as a currently emerging identity in terms of later life services. Practicality and feasibility were discussed with reference to existing TBRLs, and experience of paid-for care input between Buddhists. The latter appeared supportive of Buddhist identity and readily linked to the personalisation agenda in social care. Buddhist-friendly services were seen as a possible context for generativity, and the concept of ‘a natural part of life’ was explored in terms of the emergence of LTC in the Triratna/FWBO movement, and of Buddhism as a gradually more familiar identity which might be encountered in the sphere of LTC.

Thesis (Ph.D.) -- McMaster University, 1997. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 284-294). Also available via World Wide Web.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Baylor University, 2009. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 123-134).

<i>The Unravelers</i> is a Buddhist novel of literary fiction, which to my knowledge is the first in the last one hundred years to synthesize the Buddhist teachings and values found in the suttas of the <i>Pāli</i> Canon, the theory of ancient Indian <i>kāvya</i> literature, and the latest stylistic and structural innovations of contemporary literary fiction. The narrative follows four characters from the moment of their deaths as they manipulate the process of becoming—the mental act of creating and entering into “worlds”. The novel depicts the characters’ development of dispassion for a variety of realms, resulting in their eventual return to the human world with the motivation necessary to practice the Buddhist path. My critical essay opens with an introduction to <i>kāvya </i>and Theravāda Buddhist concepts that are particularly relevant to the process of creating a fictional world— namely, <i>saṅkhāra </i>(fabrication) and <i>bhava </i>(becoming)—and the inherent karma of writing. Section II “Literary Review” explores narrative modes from Theravāda Buddhist literature and develops them through experimental narrative modes of contemporary literary fiction. Section III discusses the depiction of becoming, fabrication, and dispassion through the novel’s characters. Section IV “<i>Rasa</i>,” explains the theory of how a reader experiences the work’s savor, while relating the use of <i>rasa </i>in<i> The Unravelers</i> to the early Buddhist <i>kāvyas </i>(the <i>Pāli </i>Canon’s <i>Udāna </i>and <i>Dhammapada</i>, and two works by Aśvaghoṣa). Section V evaluates the classic use of Buddhist concepts and metaphors in Aśvaghoṣa’s <i>Handsome Nanda</i> as compared to<i> The Unravelers</i>. Section VI examines Jack Kerouac’s <i>The Dharma Bums</i> as a forerunner to the genre of the Buddhist novel and Keith Kachtick’s <i>Hungry Ghost</i> as archetypal. Section VII concludes by detailing<i> The Unravelers</i>’ contribution to the Buddhist novel.

This thesis contends that older persons, whose mental capabilities remain intact, are capable of expanding their conscious awareness; they have not necessarily passed their prime as they begin the process of retiring. They may be showing a worn and weakened package but this does not mean they cannot live a fulfilling life. This is the reason for the development of a new form of therapy, called 'Trans-subjective Therapy', because it combines the objective and the subjective with the trans-personal, or unconscious levels of consciousness. Trans-subjective therapy connects the various systems of objectivity, subjectivity, and the transpersonal, or unconscious, so that the client can be facilitated into clearer, deeper understanding of themselves and others, and expand their conscious awareness in a wholesome, fulfilling manner. This thesis describes development and testing of this new therapeutic approach, which is designed specifically to enable older persons to experience more fulfilling and aware lives. Although building on existing therapeutic modalities, this new formulation is unique in that every feature of its design was selected, developed and tested with the specific needs of older persons in mind. This approach emphasises the personal responsibility of the client to expand his/her conscious awareness in the direction of personal choice. This has particular application to the needs of older persons, most of whom are at a stage in life where meaning and purpose have either become clarified or a sense of meaninglessness and resentment dominates their lives. Quotes from the transcripts of the author's testing of this approach with 12 individuals who undertook training in this methodology have been used throughout the text to illustrate the application of this approach. Its effectiveness is inferred from the manner in which each person in this group has expressed him/herself at a level of consciousness freely chosen and individually experienced in a manner that will be novel or completely new to the person involved. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)