issues.
Despite the scarcity of available statistical information, it is possible to identify
some key characteristics of Buddhism in Australia. Table 1 graphically demonstrates
one characteristic that has already been noted by various scholars:
diversity of traditions and lineages.5
Ethnic Identity and the Migrant Experience
Given the large numbers of immigrant Buddhists, many studies on Buddhism in
Australia focus on the effects of religion on ethnic identity and the migrant
Table 3. Geographical Distribution of Australian Buddhist Groups in 1996 and 1998,
and of the Buddhist Population in 1996
Buddhist Groups Buddhists
State/Territory Adam & Hughes, 1996 Spuler, 1998 1996 Census
Australian Capital Territory Ð 5% 2%
New South Wales 41% 40% 41%
Northern Territory 2% 1% 1%
Queensland 17% 13% 9%
South Australia 5% 5% 6%
Tasmania 4% 4% 1%
Victoria 20% 23% 31%
Western Australia 11% 9% 9%
Buddhism in Australia 33
experience. Like many of their international counterparts, studies on Buddhism
in Australia commonly distinguish two main types: convert (also called `nonethnic’
, `white’, `non-Asian’ or `Anglo-Saxon’ ) Buddhism and ethnic (or `Asian’
or `immigrant’) Buddhism. For example, Prebish discusses the use of this
terminology in American Buddhism (Prebish, 1996). Examples of its application
to European Buddhism can be seen in Baumann’s differentiation between Asian
and European Buddhists (Baumann, 1995a: 64). Bucknell discusses ethnic
Buddhists and Australian Buddhists of non-Asian origin (Bucknell, 1992: 213);
and Adam and Hughes’s discussion on Australian Buddhism distinguishes two
categories: Western Buddhist and ethnic Buddhist Groups (Adam & Hughes,
1996: 7± 11). Convert Buddhists are usually mainly interested in meditation
practice or the study of Buddhist philosophy and often do not classify themselves
as Buddhists. In contrast, ethnic Buddhists are usually born Buddhists
and practise Buddhism within a speci® c cultural context. Ethnic Buddhist
groups often combine Buddhist practice with a wide variety of social and
cultural activities that assist in the maintenance of their cultural identity.
The majority of Australian Buddhists comprises ethnic Buddhists; the 1996
census showed that the largest percentages of Australian Buddhists by birthplace
were: Vietnam 31%, Australia 19.7%, Malaysia 7.5%, Cambodia 6.8%,
Thailand 6.2%, Sri Lanka 5.2%, China 4.6%, Laos 3.4%, Taiwan 2.5%, and
Indonesia 2.2% (Hughes, 1997: 17). In 1991, only 14% of Australian Buddhists
had been born in Australia (Adam & Hughes, 1996: 43), the increase to 19.7% by
1996 is probably more due to the birth of second-generation ethnic Buddhists
than to an increase in converts.
Although Malaysian-born Buddhists are the second largest ethnic group by
birth, there are no Malaysian groups listed in Table 1. Malaysians seem to be
attending other groups instead of forming their own; for example, the Buddhist
Society of Western Australia is multi-cultural in composition, with members
from Thailand, Burma, Sri Lanka, India, Malaysia, China, Laos, Cambodia, and
Indonesia (Adam, 1995: 29). Similarly, the Australian Mahayana Buddhist Society
has members from Indonesia, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Vietnam (Adam,
1995: 48).
This identi® cation of two main strands is relevant to the identi® cation of
characteristics of Australian Buddhism, because the literature reveals that ethnic
Buddhists face prejudices that convert Buddhists do not. Existing analysis is
again limited; however, various studies document dif® culties encountered by
ethnic Buddhists, particularly at local government level (Croucher, 1989: 104±
105; Lyall, 1989: 12± 16; Lyall, 1994: 30± 35; Adam & Hughes, 1996: 55). A number
of studies have examined ethnic Buddhists in Australia in the context of the
relationship between religion and ethnic identity or the migrant experience,
examining in particular the effects of ethnic religious activity on cultural
adjustment. Cox (1982) examines the role of religion in migrant welfare, comparing
Buddhist and Muslim families from eight different ethnic backgrounds;
Adam (1995) investigates whether religion provides a source of alienation or a
means to integration for Vietnamese Buddhist and Catholic migrants in Western
Australia; and Bouma’s (1996) work on religious settlement, identity, and
cultural diversity in Australia includes case studies of Vietnamese Buddhist
migrants. These studies could be analysed to identify further characteristics of
ethnic Buddhism in Australia.
34 M. Spuler
The recognition of the existence of two strands of Buddhism in Australia is not
generally viewed as problematic by scholars, the vast majority of studies on
Buddhism in Australia have given the different strands of Australian Buddhism
equal attention, avoiding the preferential treatment sometimes given to convert
Buddhism in America. Numrich notes that most surveys of Buddhism in