Elisabetta Porcu
Biographic Data
| ID | 1195018 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Elisabetta Porcu |
| GIVEN NAMES | Elisabetta |
| FAMILY NAME | Porcu |
| SIGNATURE | PORCU E |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Cape Town |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-3074-5754 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 10 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 8 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 10 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2008 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2023 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
Kyoto’s Renaissance
The Gion Festival in Kyoto and Glocalization
The Gion Festival is a world-famous festival that takes place in Kyoto in July. It dates back to the Heian period (794-1185) and originated as a goryō-e ritual to placate departed spirits and disease-divinities. It is linked to the Yasaka Shrine, and it represents a great variety of religious and cultural influences. It is a complex and multidimensional event where issues of globalization can be seen at play at the local level. Against this backg…
Gion Matsuri in Kyoto
In this paper, I analyze Gion Matsuri in Kyoto as a multilayered phenomenon, and explore its religious aspects in context, with particular attention to interactions between actors, such as its organizing bodies, residents of the neighborhoods that sponsor the yama and hoko floats, the local government, and Yasaka Shrine (Yasaka Jinja 八坂神社). Based on my extended fieldwork, I focus on the festival’s most recent transformations (esp. the reinstateme…
Demythologizing Pure Land Buddhism
Staging Zen Buddhism
In this paper, I analyse the image creation of Zen Buddhism as emerges from films produced in Europe and North America. In particular, I explore Marc Rosenbush's Zen Noir (2004), Zen & Zero by Michael Ginthör (2006), and Erleuchtung Garantiert (1999) by Doris Dörrie. Comparatively, I examine a recent Japanese production on the life and teachings of the Sōtō Zen master Dōgen titled Zen and directed by Takahashi Banmei (2009). The aim of this analy…
Pop Religion in Japan
The need manifested by Japanese Buddhist organizations to present themselves as “modern” forces that are relevant to present-day society seems to be central in shaping their communication strategies. In this regard, one interesting aspect is represented by religious institutions’ attempts to “brand” themselves to enhance their profiles and visibility, specifically by drawing on popular culture formats. Based on fieldwork in Japan, I examine the u…
Religion and Politics in Contemporary Japan
Observations on the Blurring of the Religious and the Secular in a Japanese Urban Setting
This paper presents some observations on how the borders between the religious and the secular are perceived, blurred and reinterpreted at the community level in Kyoto. These reflections are based mainly on my extended fieldwork in the city, where I participated in and took note of the activities of two chōnaikai (neighborhood associations). I also observed and examined events related to the Gion matsuri , which takes place in July and is one of …
Speaking Through the Media
Pure Land Buddhism in Modern Japanese Culture
Despite being one of the most influential forms of Japanese Buddhism, the Pure Land tradition, and notably its impact on the development of Japanese cultural history, has often been overlooked outside Japan. Taking into account recent scholarship on orientalism and occidentalism, this book, written from the perspective of the Study of Religions, provides an analysis of the impact that the Pure Land tradition, in particular Shin Buddhism, has exer…
Pop Religion in Japan
The need manifested by Japanese Buddhist organizations to present themselves as “modern” forces that are relevant to present-day society seems to be central in shaping their communication strategies. In this regard, one interesting aspect is represented by religious institutions’ attempts to “brand” themselves to enhance their profiles and visibility, specifically by drawing on popular culture formats. Based on fieldwork in Japan, I examine the u…
Pure Land Buddhism in Modern Japanese Culture
Despite being one of the most influential forms of Japanese Buddhism, the Pure Land tradition, and notably its impact on the development of Japanese cultural history, has often been overlooked outside Japan. Taking into account recent scholarship on orientalism and occidentalism, this book, written from the perspective of the Study of Religions, provides an analysis of the impact that the Pure Land tradition, in particular Shin Buddhism, has exer…
Speaking Through the Media
Religion and Politics in Contemporary Japan
Observations on the Blurring of the Religious and the Secular in a Japanese Urban Setting
This paper presents some observations on how the borders between the religious and the secular are perceived, blurred and reinterpreted at the community level in Kyoto. These reflections are based mainly on my extended fieldwork in the city, where I participated in and took note of the activities of two chōnaikai (neighborhood associations). I also observed and examined events related to the Gion matsuri , which takes place in July and is one of …
Staging Zen Buddhism
In this paper, I analyse the image creation of Zen Buddhism as emerges from films produced in Europe and North America. In particular, I explore Marc Rosenbush's Zen Noir (2004), Zen & Zero by Michael Ginthör (2006), and Erleuchtung Garantiert (1999) by Doris Dörrie. Comparatively, I examine a recent Japanese production on the life and teachings of the Sōtō Zen master Dōgen titled Zen and directed by Takahashi Banmei (2009). The aim of this analy…
Pop Religion in Japan
The need manifested by Japanese Buddhist organizations to present themselves as “modern” forces that are relevant to present-day society seems to be central in shaping their communication strategies. In this regard, one interesting aspect is represented by religious institutions’ attempts to “brand” themselves to enhance their profiles and visibility, specifically by drawing on popular culture formats. Based on fieldwork in Japan, I examine the u…
Demythologizing Pure Land Buddhism
Gion Matsuri in Kyoto
In this paper, I analyze Gion Matsuri in Kyoto as a multilayered phenomenon, and explore its religious aspects in context, with particular attention to interactions between actors, such as its organizing bodies, residents of the neighborhoods that sponsor the yama and hoko floats, the local government, and Yasaka Shrine (Yasaka Jinja 八坂神社). Based on my extended fieldwork, I focus on the festival’s most recent transformations (esp. the reinstateme…
The Gion Festival in Kyoto and Glocalization
The Gion Festival is a world-famous festival that takes place in Kyoto in July. It dates back to the Heian period (794-1185) and originated as a goryō-e ritual to placate departed spirits and disease-divinities. It is linked to the Yasaka Shrine, and it represents a great variety of religious and cultural influences. It is a complex and multidimensional event where issues of globalization can be seen at play at the local level. Against this backg…
Kyoto’s Renaissance
Japanese History and Culture (9 works) · Sociology (7 works) · Archaeology (6 works) · Asian Culture and Media Studies (6 works) · History (6 works) · Philosophy (6 works) · Art (5 works) · Buddhism (5 works) · Chinese history and philosophy (4 works) · Geography (4 works)