Abstract

This study of the ethics of Bhikkhu Buddhadāsa, Thailand's foremost interpreter of Theravāda Buddhism, exemplifies the position that (1) religious ethics is to be studied as an aspect of an organically integrated religious system or tradition, and that (2) the field of religious ethics should be conceived primarily as a subset of the field of religious studies or the history of religions, broadly conceived, rather than a subset of such disciplines as philosophy and/or sociology. Descriptively, the article first sets out the broad parameters of Buddhadāsa's worldview; second, analyses three ethical dimensions of this worldview; third, correlates the particular ethical system of Buddhadāsa with a more generalized schematization of Theravāda ethics; and, in conclusion, briefly contrasts this (holistic) approach with those of Max Weber, Winston King, David Little and SumnerTwiss.