Worry for the Dai Nation

Sipsongpannā, Chinese Modernity, and the Problems of Buddhist Modernism

Datos Bibliográficos

ID3637028
AutoresThomas Borchert (University of Vermont, autor de correspondencia)
Año2008
Volumen67
Número1
Páginas107-142
Fecha de publicación2008-02-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaThe Journal of Asian Studies (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0021-9118 • E-ISSN: 1752-0401
EditorialDuke University Press (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1017/s0021911808000041
OpenAlexW2055111732
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas25
Referencias citadas45

Over the last thirty years or so, there has been a broad consensus about what constitutes modern forms of Theravāda Buddhism. "Buddhist modernism," as it has been called, has been marked by an understanding of the Buddha's thought as in accord with scientific rationalism; increased lay participation, particularly in meditation practice and leadership of the Buddhist community; and increased participation by women in the leadership of the Sangha. In this paper, I call into question the universality of these forms by examining a contemporary Theravāda Buddhist community in southwest China, where Buddhism is best understood within the context of the modern governance practices of the Chinese state. Buddhists of the region describe their knowledge and practices not in terms of scientific rationality, for example, but within the ethnic categories of the Chinese state. I suggest that instead of understanding modern forms of Buddhism as a natural response to modernity, scholars should pay attention to how Buddhist institutions shift within the context of modern forms of state power

Aesthetics · Archaeology · Buddhism · China · Context (archaeology) · Epistemology · Gautama Buddha · Meditation · Modernity · Political science · Rationality · Social science · Sociology · State (computer science) · China's Ethnic Minorities and Relations · Chinese history and philosophy · History · Indian and Buddhist Studies · Law · Philosophy · Religious studies