Buddhism is a small religion in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

but despite lack of official recognition by the Belgian government has grown rapidly in recent years. As of the 1997 estimate, 29,497 Belgian people identified their religion as

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

(about 0.29% of the total population)

Buddhism in Belgium before official recognition

Belgium has been comparatively slow in the absorption of Buddhism compared with other countries in Europe because there were no Buddhist countries amongst the territories colonized by Belgium.

Alexandra David-Néel Alexandra David-Néel (born Louise Eugénie Alexandrine Marie David; 24 October 1868 – 8 September 1969) was a Belgian–French explorer, spiritualist, Buddhist, anarchist, opera singer, and writer. She is most known for her 1924 visit to Lh ...

introduced the

Maha Bodhi Society The Maha Bodhi Society is a South Asian Buddhist society presently based in Kolkata, India. Founded by the Sri Lankan Buddhist leader Anagarika Dharmapala and the British journalist and poet Sir Edwin Arnold, its first office was in Bodh Gaya. The ...

to the Congress of Free Thinkers in

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

as early as 1910. There was reportedly a group of those interested in Buddhism who met in Brussels in the period between the Wars. Buddhism had already come to the attention of Belgians academically through the works and translations of the two famous Indologists

Louis de La Vallée Poussin Louis may refer to: * Louis (coin) * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also Derived or associated terms * Lewis (d ...

at the

Ghent University Ghent University ( nl, Universiteit Gent, abbreviated as UGent) is a public research university located in Ghent, Belgium. Established before the state of Belgium itself, the university was founded by the Dutch King William I in 1817, when the ...

and his disciple

Étienne Lamotte Étienne Paul Marie Lamotte (21 November 1903 – 5 May 1983) was a Belgian priest and Professor of Greek at the Catholic University of Louvain, but was better known as an Indologist and the greatest authority on Buddhism in the West in his time. H ...

at the

Catholic University of Louvain The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, founders of what is internationally known as the Belgian School of

Buddhist studies Buddhist studies, also known as Buddhology, is the academic study of Buddhism. The term ''Buddhology'' was coined in the early 20th century by the Unitarianism, Unitarian minister Joseph Estlin Carpenter to mean the "study of Buddhahood, the natur ...

, still now active in Ghent (with the Ghent Centre for Buddhist Studies of the UGent) and Louvain-la-Neuve (at the Institut orientaliste de l'

Université catholique de Louvain The Université catholique de Louvain (also known as the Catholic University of Louvain, the English translation of its French name, and the University of Louvain, its official English name) is Belgium's largest French-speaking university. It ...

). There was also for a while in Brussels an Institut Belge des Hautes Etudes Bouddhiques where several Belgian scholars (Jean Dantinne, José Van den Broeck, Charles Willemen) published translations of Buddhist texts between 1969 and 1980. Belgium has remained wary of new religions (even though in many cases they are historically much older than Christianity) and the general attitude has been illustrated by the Government publication of a blacklist of 189 organizations (including two Buddhist ones) in its ‘witchhunt’ for sects of 1997 and in the ongoing attitudes especially in the French-speaking community of Belgium. Nonetheless, in 1999 there were about thirty active Buddhist organizations and centres in Belgium, representing all traditions of Buddhism. A

Buddhist Union of Belgium Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

was set up in 1997 bringing together the various centres of Buddhism in Belgium that had been established through charitable and private organizations. The 2001 census estimated that there were 10,000 Buddhists of Belgian nationality - however, the numbers of Buddhists in the immigrant population alone exceeded 20,000.

Hope for Buddhism attaining official recognition in Belgium

The government was first approached on 10 June 2005 to grant official recognition for Buddhism - a process which is expected to be completed in 2008. Independent sources now estimate the numbers of Buddhists in Belgium at 29,467.Religious Intelligence - Country Profile: Belgium

Institutes

* Tibetaans Instituut,

Schoten Schoten () is a municipality located in Antwerp Province, Belgium. The municipality only comprises the town of Schoten proper. As of 1 January 2020 Schoten has a total population of 34,311. The total area is which gives a population density of ...

**Naropa Instituut,

Cadzand Cadzand is a village in the Dutch province of Zeeland. It is located in the municipality of Sluis, about 8 km northwest of Oostburg. The village contains 790 inhabitants (2010). Better known to many visitors is the nearby beach at Cadzand ...

**Nalanda Instituut,

Yeunten Ling Yeunten Ling is a Tibetan Buddhist institute in Huy in the province of Liège (province), Liège in Belgium. It is one of the largest Buddhism, Buddhist Dharma centres in Europe. The centre is part of the Tibetan Institute (Belgium), Tibetan Institu ...

Huy Huy ( or ; nl, Hoei, ; wa, Hu) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium. Huy lies along the river Meuse, at the mouth of the small river Hoyoux. It is in the ''sillon industriel'', the former industrial ...

* Zangdok Palri Institute,

Florennes Florennes (; wa, Florene) is a municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Namur, Belgium. As of 1 January 2006, Florennes has a total population of 10,754. The total area is 133.55 km² which gives a population density of 81 inhabita ...

References

Literature

*
Bouddhismes en Belgique
' by Bernard De Backer. ''Courrier hebdomadaire'', n°1768-1769, CRISP, Bruxelles, 2002, pp. 5–70

External links

Official website of Union Bouddhique Belge / Boeddhistische Unie België

Official website of the Tibetan Institute

Official website of the Zangdok Palri Institute
{{DEFAULTSORT:Buddhism In Belgium

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