Uplifting Black Nichiren Buddhist Voices
by Black Buddhist Studies
How Black practitioners in the U.S. are embracing, shaping, and deepening Nichiren Buddhist traditions. Host Rima Vesely-Flad discusses the unique ways Black Buddhists bring African diasporic perspectives, lived experiences, and spiritual creativity into their practice. Including influential voices like Dr. Kamilah Majied, Bishop Myokei Caine-Barrett Shonin, and Dr. Ralph Craig, who discusses Tina Turner’s lifelong practice.Produced by Twice As Good Media, supported by the Crossroads Project via the Henry J. Luce Foundation, as well as the Frederick Lenz Foundation and the Fetzer Institute.
Episodes
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Closing Thoughts
Listening to the transformative experiences of Black Nichiren Buddhists in this podcast series reminds us that Black people have confronted extraordinary levels of oppression over centuries and have survived. These practitioners ask, ‘how do we confront this onslaught beyond expressing fear and...
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Buddhists of African Descent on Creating a Just Society with Michael Belton
This final episode explores the connection between self-improvement and justice. Nichiren Daishonin, the founder of Nichiren Buddhism, believed that Buddhism only has meaning when it effects positive change in society. Rima Vesely-Flad speaks with Michael Belton, a founding co-architect of the...
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Buddhists of African Descent on “Nam Myoho Renge Kyo” with Jacci Thompson-Dodd
“Nam Myoho Renge Kyo,” the title of the Lotus Sutra, is also known as the Daimoku. In this episode, Rima Vesely-Flad speaks with a decades-long practitioner of Nichiren Buddhism, Jacci Thompson-Dodd, about the significance of chanting and other practices of the association, Buddhists of African...
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Buddhists of African Descent on Education in Nichiren Buddhism with Mahazi Roundtree
Study is a core practice for Nichiren Buddhists, who dive deeply into the Lotus Sutra and the writings of Nichiren Daishonin as a way to cultivate their inherent Buddha-nature. Mahazi Roundtree has been a Nichiren practitioner for 38 years. She is a study leader in the Nichiren Buddhist...
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Buddhists of African Descent on Innate Buddhahood with Thembi
This and the next three episodes feature conversations with members of the association, Buddhists of African Descent (aka BAD) which engages in connecting traditional systems of African spirituality with the basic tenets and principles of Nichiren Buddhism. Thembi is one of the founding...
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Compassion in Action with Bishop Myokei Caine-Barrett Shonin
One compelling teaching of Nichiren Daishonin, the founder of the Nichiren Buddhist tradition, is that each person is responsible for contributing to world peace and justice. He believed that the daily practice of chanting was an essential form of committing to compassionate action, and could...
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Faith in Action with Ben Harris
One tenet of Nichiren Buddhism known as “faith in action” is used consistently in the teachings of Nichiren Daishonin, the founder of the tradition. The use of the word “faith,” though seldom associated with Buddhism, has helped a number of practitioners in the West make connections between their...
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Manifesting Buddhahood in This Lifetime with Dr. Kamilah Majied
Buddha-nature refers to the innate potential for every living being to attain enlightenment, and one of the most compelling aspects of Nichiren Buddhism is the teaching that this is already present in every being. The realization of this inherent truth is called “Buddhahood.” In this episode…
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Tina Turner’s Nichiren Buddhist Practice with Dr. Ralph Craig
The distinctive teachings of Nichiren Buddhism are deeply compelling for Black practitioners throughout the United States. To start this exploration of the significance of this practice for Black Americans, Rima Vesely-Flad speaks with Dr. Ralph Craig about the famous Black Buddhist singer Tina...
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Introduction
Buddhist teachings have always been adapted to the environments in which they're transmitted. This is true of Buddhism as it is embraced by Black people in the United States, as Black Buddhists bring distinctive interpretations of the dharma to our communities. One of the Buddhist lineages that…
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About this show
How Black practitioners in the U.S. are embracing, shaping, and deepening Nichiren Buddhist traditions. Host Rima Vesely-Flad discusses the unique ways Black Buddhists bring African diasporic perspectives, lived experiences, and spiritual creativity into their practice. Including influential voices like Dr. Kamilah Majied, Bishop Myokei Caine-Barrett Shonin, and Dr. Ralph Craig, who discusses Tina Turner’s lifelong practice.Produced by Twice As Good Media, supported by the Crossroads Project via the Henry J. Luce Foundation, as well as the Frederick Lenz Foundation and the Fetzer Institute.
Hosted by
Black Buddhist Studies
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