Contemporary Indonesian Buddhism and monotheism

In: Journal of Southeast Asian studies, Band 18, Heft 1, S. 108-117

Abstract

The philosophical basis of the Indonesian state is the Panca Sila or Five Principles. Since 1985 all political and social organizations including religious ones have had to subscribe to Panca Sila as their sole philosophical principles. The first of the Five Principles is belief in one Supreme God. This formulation, however, would obviously present problems for religions or belief systems which were non-theistic, which did not clearly or openly acknowledge the existence of God. Buddhism in Indonesia was such a religion. The problem which confronted Buddhists in the early years of Indonesian independence was how to accommodate Panca Sila in their religion. The article examines the ways in which Buddhists have tried to resolve this problem, and evaluates how successful they have been. (DÜI-Sen)