Ritualized Writing

Buddhist Practice and Scriptural Cultures in Ancient Japan

Bibliographic Data

ID19971642
AuthorsBryan D Lowe (corresponding author)
Year2017
Pages296
Publication date2017-03-31
Open AccessNo
TypeBOOK
VenueRitualized Writing (SOURCE_BOOK)
PublisherUniversity of Hawaii Press (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.21313/hawaii/9780824859404.001.0001
OpenAlexW4253780753
Open LibraryOL27398418M
ISBN9780824859404
LanguageEN
Citations received10

Transcribing scripture (sutras) represents one of the most central devotional practices in the Buddhist world. Sutra copying functioned as a form of ritualized writing, a practice strategically set apart from more mundane forms through a set of practices and beliefs. This book highlights sutra transcription throughout Asia, but focuses primarily on seventh- through ninth-century Japan, where the practice is particularly well-documented. It shows how scribes engaged in ritual practices related to purification and how patrons held elaborate dedication ceremonies upon the completion of a project. It traces the social organizations and institutional structures through which sutra copying took place. It highlights the function of the practice in the lives of diverse individuals from scribes to rulers. As a whole, the book offers a radical reassessment of Buddhism in ancient Japan that moves beyond scholarly tendencies to focus on state control and exploitation, and proposes a new way to treat scriptures as ritualized texts that interact dynamically with the individuals and communities who produce them

Art · Art history · Buddhism · Copying · Ninth · Performance art · Political science · Social function · Social practice · Social science · Sociology · Visual arts · Asian Studies and History · Chinese history and philosophy · History · Japanese History and Culture · Law · Calligraphy, japanese · Japan · Japanese Calligraphy · Transmission of texts · Tripiṭaka

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