The human condition affects us all. As we journey through life, we face birth, aging, sickness, and death, each bringing significant challenges. How can we better understand our human condition? What can we learn from it?
In Buddhist Encounters: Finding a Home in the Human Condition, Dr. Lewis R. Lancaster explores the essence of our existence, addressing the internal conflicts and external pressures exacerbated by the post-pandemic and AI era. Through the lens of Buddhist teachings, he seeks answers to these timeless issues, reflecting on the very dilemma that concerned the Buddha himself.
美國柏克萊加州大學東亞語言文化系終身榮譽教授。佛教經典電子化與數位化開創者、電子文化地圖（ECAI）主席、佛教學術研究的重要國際學者。2007和2014年各別榮獲由韓國佛教基金會頒發的萬海獎及大韓佛教曹溪宗授予的貢獻獎。曾於2004至2006年擔任美國西來大學校長，協助學校獲得美國西部大學聯盟（WASC）認證。目前為「佛光大辭典英譯計畫」的最高指導顧問；也是2021年5月於佛陀紀念館開展「佛教海線絲綢之路—新媒體藝術特展」的學術策展人；常受邀擔任各大學術會議的主題演講人。
蘭卡斯特教授曾出版及編輯多本佛教書籍，如：Prajnaparamita and Related Systems、The Korean Buddhist Canon、Buddhist Scriptures、Early Ch’an in China and Tibet和Assimilation of Buddhism in Korea。
Contents
Acknowledgments
Foreword
Preface
Introduction
Part 1 Understanding the Human Condition
1. Human Condition: Earthly and Cosmic
2. Human Condition
Part 2 Learning from the Four Great Messengers
3. The Persistent Message of Illness
4. The Future of Old Age
5. Death: The Last Moment of a Human
6. Learning to Respond to the Human Condition
Part 3 Living with Reality
7. Cause
8. Emptiness: Not Nothing
9. Behavior: Acts of Consequence
10. Personal Self
Part 4 Confronting Challenges
11. Desire
12. Racism
13. Buddhism in the Time of COVID
Part 5 Journeying Toward Enlightenment
14. Enlightenment: A Distant Beacon
15. Reincarnation
16. Detachment
17. Compassion
Conclusion
Appendices
- How a Buddhism Teacher Deals With His Own Pain
- Surprising Ways of Dealing with Adversity and Hopelessness
- On Personal Life, Academic Journey, and Research
