Dead Dharma
Casey Rae
February 5, 2027 DOI: 10.1093/oso/9780197529683.001.0001 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
|---|---|
| Topics | Buddhism |
| Key points | Argues that the Grateful Dead and their cultural sphere functioned as vehicles for individual and collective transformation, with concerts as psychedelic ritual spaces, recordings as sacred relics, and the band as a kind of living mandala, situating them within a tradition of American spiritual seeking shaped by Eastern and Indigenous influences. |
Abstract
Abstract Dead Dharma: The Grateful Dead and the American Quest for Transcendence traces how the Grateful Dead and their extended cultural sphere became vehicles for exploring improvisation and transformation as individual and collective expressions of awakening. Combining spiritual sociology, musicology, and cultural history, the book situates the Dead within a broader tradition of American seekers—from Transcendentalists and Beats to psychedelic pioneers and spiritual-creative radicals shaped by Eastern philosophies and practices. It explores how the band functioned as a kind of living mandala, their concerts as psychedelic ritual spaces, their vast archive of recordings as sacred relics, and their ethos as a fusion of ancient Buddhist and Indigenous wisdom within a uniquely American self-mythos.
In the evidence
This study is part of the evidence base for a synthesis in the library. Here is how each one recorded it.
-
State of the evidence: Buddhism Unclear
Argues that the Grateful Dead and their cultural sphere functioned as vehicles for individual and collective transformation, situating them within a tradition of American spiritual seeking shaped by Eastern and Indigenous influences.
Synthesized
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on buddhism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mental balance and well-being: Building bridges between Buddhism and Western psychology. | 2006 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Buddhist Modernism and the Rhetoric of Meditative Experience | 1995 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Buddhist and Psychological Perspectives on Emotions and Well-Being | 2005 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Too Early to Tell: The Potential Impact and Challenges—Ethical and Otherwise—Inherent in the Mainstreaming of Dharma in an Increasingly Dystopian World | 2017 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| From self to nonself: The Nonself Theory | 2016 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |