An interesting story out of California which will be fun to follow. I read the article "Top insurer forces employees to study Buddhist teachings" (WorldNetDaily) with a bit of skepticism after I came to this sentence:
NLP a basic part of New Age religion? Ackerman has some interesting notions.
What is being alleged according to the article?
A former Prudential Insurance manager is preparing legal action against the company, claiming she was fired after blowing the whistle on mandatory Eastern religious exercises that included chanting the Hindu mantra "om" in darkened rooms.
Prudential Insurance Co.'s southern California real estate division also required managers to read a Buddhist book, charges the Christian ex-employee, whose name has been withheld pending formal action.
The former manager's lawyer, Richard Ackerman of Ackerman Cowles & Associates, has written a letter to Prudential demanding the company stop requiring participation in the religous practices and warning he has been retained to pursue claims of religious discrimination, "hostile environment" and harassment against his client that led to her termination.
...
Ackerman told WND his client was instructed to go to a managers' seminar and was given a book, "Buddha: 9 to 5," to study beforehand.
The book, boasting it was "based on the Buddhist practice of the Eightfold Path," provides "a hands-on set of tools to reawaken yourself, your employees, and your organization."
"Using the Buddhist concepts of Intention, Mindfulness, and Right Action, you'll be able to reap prosperity not just in profits but in stronger connections with your employees and your customers," the book instructs.
More here. The book mentioned Buddha: 9 to 5 sounds like one I want to read. I will let you know what I think after I do the reading. I know that Buddhism is based on sound psychological principles and always appreciate good presentations about practices such as intention and mindfulness. You can read excerpts from the book at the Web site of the author Nancy Spears. It appears from this article by Spears that her concept of Buddhism is secular. What do you think?
Other links:
- Entrepreneur.com includes Buddha: 9 to 5 in "10 Biz Books to Read This Summer"
- Blogger at Say Anything comments on this controversy
Have any of you read the book?
Note (added October 11, 2008, 1:30 PM Mountain): From "Prudential: Buddha book not about religion": (WorldNetDaily):
A major real estate subsidiary of the giant Prudential Insurance Co. says the book "Buddha: 9 to 5" is a "business" book, and that's why it was used at a managers' training seminar.
"'Buddha: 9 to 5' is a successful book on how to grow a successful business. It was used in the context of business," Sam Kraemer, the general counsel for Prudential California Realty, told WND today.
If any other articles on this topic are written, I will post them here.
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