Buddhism in Morocco is a smallreligious minority in the kingdom ofMorocco. Estimates for the number ofBuddhists in Morocco range from a few dozen,[1] to under 0.01% of the population[2](or about 3000 people). ThePew Forum estimates that about 0.1% of Morocco's population is Buddhist.[3]
The vast majority of the Buddhists in Morocco are foreigners, especially fromVietnam,Indonesia andCambodia.[4] There are Buddhist holy shrines inRabat andCasablanca.[5]
In 1977, the Zen Association of Morocco was founded by the doctor and writerClaude Durix [fr][6] and his disciple Driss Badidi.[7] In 1981,Taisen Deshimaru initiated six Moroccans into the Zen tradition, during a retreat that brought together 200 people nearMarrakech.[6] TheZen dojo ofCasablanca was created in 1983 by Claude Durix, himself a disciple of Deshimaru.[6]
This dojo, as well as the association, are now led by Driss Badidi.[8][9]
Badidi broke with theAssociation zen internationale [fr], and distanced himself from the Buddhist tradition in favor of a convergence between Zen and the mystical traditions of Islam.[6] This syncretism is made possible through a correspondence of concepts. The sirr (the spiritual “secret”) is interpreted in terms of “energy” or “spiritual flows”. Allah becomes “the Being”. Religiosity is reconfigured as “a path toward self-knowledge”.[6] This system of syncretic correspondences then allows Driss Badidi to see in Zen a means of deepening his Arab-Muslim identity.[6][7]
According to him, around 50 Moroccans initially benefited from his spiritual guidance.[6] During the1990s, his spiritual techniques gradually took on a more local character.[6] These techniques took root not only within expatriate circles but also among the Moroccan bourgeoisie, which was undergoing significant political and religious transformations.[6] However, the number of disciples at the dojo never exceeded about a dozen at a time.[10] Driss Badidi adapts Zen by removing its Buddhist and Japanese elements,[10] favoring a minimalist approach focused on posture, breathing, frugality, and the universality of the practice.[6][11] For example, he refuses to place Buddha statues in his dojo and rejects all iconography with Japanese references.[6] Badidi practicesZazen, a form of seated meditation derived from Japanese Zen Buddhism, adapted to the Moroccan context, following theSoto Zen school, which, according to Badidi, is in harmony with Arab-Muslim culture.[11]
Similarly, Rachid Ben Rochd, a former entrepreneur who became a writer after his business failed, practices Zen andyoga, which he combines with the teachings of thetariqa of Sidi Hamza.[9]
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