Article devoted to the phenomenon of Buddhist culture in the West. Traces the history of the spread of Buddhism in Europe and the USA. The author notes that as a result of the spread of the West directions and various Buddhist schools there gradually formed the so-called " globalized " or transnational Buddhism, which, unlike traditional forms is largely free from the context of specific cultural traditions. Pragmatism , tolerance , democracy and doctrinal "flexibility" of Buddhism enabled him to get the current global distribution . Buddhism has become one of the most influential parts of the sociocultural landscape in the process of globalization.