Who founded Buddhism? Notes on the psychological effectiveness of religious objects
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 9056526 |
|---|---|
| Authors | David M Black (0000-0002-5969-3329, 23 Carson Road, London SE21 8HT, UK, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2017 |
| Volume | 98 |
| Issue | 2 |
| Pages | 435-455 |
| Publication date | 2017-04-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The International Journal of Psychoanalysis (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0020-7578 • E-ISSN: 1745-8315 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1111/1745-8315.12546 |
| PMID | 27469046 |
| OpenAlex | W2513082261 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 3 |
| References cited | 8 |
Starting with an outline of Buddhist history from a psychoanalytic perspective, this paper uses ideas from philosophy and psychoanalysis to consider the nature of the psychological effectiveness of religious objects. It suggests that the development of the devotional cult of Buddhas 'without form' such as Amitābha, at-first-glance surprising when juxtaposed with the founding vision of Gautama Siddhartha, tells us a great deal about the psychological needs that impel the evolution of religious thinking. Distinguishing religious objects from mythological ones, it argues that 'religious objects' are, more specifically, allegorical objects that can be encountered in the second person; that these may not always be well described as 'illusion'; and that they may in some cases be better understood as providing opportunities for experience that, like the transference in psychoanalysis, may have far-reaching psychological impacts
Buddhism · Cognitive psychology · Cult · Epistemology · Id, ego and super-ego · Illusion · Mythology · Perspective (graphical) · Psychoanalysis · Psychoanalytic theory · Religious experience · Sociology · Theology · Artificial Intelligence · Computer Science · Emotions and Moral Behavior · Indian and Buddhist Studies · Paranormal Experiences and Beliefs · Philosophy · Psychology
| Citations per year | 0.33 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2017 - 2020 (4) |
| Highly cited | No |