Buddhists make up a small fraction of the population in the world's largest Muslim-majority nation, but a look back at the faith's origins and evolution in Indonesia reveal a rich and intricate history intertwined with colonialism and nationalism.
In early February 2019, somewhere in the corridors of the central Jakarta headquarters of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Civil Registry and Population Office issued a seemingly minor notice, watched closely by Indonesia’s Buddhists.
Indonesian Buddhism – The one and the many
Buddhism’s evolution in Indonesia is closely bound to the colonial history of the archipelago.
The large number of Dutch officials residing in the archipelago and their inclusion of European-educated Javanese and Chinese elites in the colonial administration facilitated the spread of intellectual ideas that fused «Eastern religions», Buddhism above all, and political philosophy.
Anti-Chinese sentiments and the making of an «Indonesian» Buddhism
One link is still missing though between the multiple meanings of Budha and the implications of its double-D form.
How Indonesian Buddhism got his second «D»
But the continued development of this Indonesian Buddhist bureaucracy would create the framework for the eventual rise of the transnational schools.
Instituted in 1976, Sangha Theravada Indonesia proved in a relatively short time the most effective institution in standardising Buddhism in Indonesia, from the urban temple in Java to the hamlet on the Rinjani slopes of Lombok.
The importance of Buddhism in the Indonesian chronicles post-independence can hardly be overstated
This article was written by ROBERTO RIZZO
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