image of New Publication on Buddhism in Medieval Central Asia

New Publication on Buddhism in Medieval Central Asia

Today, the 11th volume of the "Dynamics in the History of Religions" (Brill) was published. Entitled "Buddhism in Central Asia 1 - Patronage, Legitimation, Sacred Space, and Pilgrimage" the volume edited by Carmen Meinert (CERES professor, principal investigator of BuddhistRoad, and member of the Käte Hamburger Kolleg Bochum), and Henrik H. Sørensen (Scientific Co-Ordinator BuddhistRoad) is based on the papers presented at the start-up conference held on May 23rd–25th, 2018 at the Ruhr-Universität, Bochum.

The chapters revolve around the issues of religious legitimation, state and religion, patronage and donors, sacred space variously defined, and how pilgrims influenced the processes of transfer of religious ideas and knowledge. The chapters cover a wide range of Buddhist cultures in medieval Central Asia, including the Chinese, the Khotanese, the Tanguts, the Uyghurs and the Tibetans, and highlight how Buddhism through these various cultural expressions and languages represented defined a shared conceptual vision.

As part of the series "Dynamics in the History of Religions" the volume supports the primary thesis of the series that interconnections of self-perception and perception by the other, of adaptation and demarcation are crucial factors for historical dynamics within the religious field. As part of series future publications on the role of Buddhism in medieval Central Asia are planed.

Bibliographical Information:

Buddhism in Central Asia I—Patronage, Legitimation, Sacred Space, and Pilgrimage, edited by Carmen Meinert and Henrik H. Sørensen. Leiden: Brill, 2020 - ISBN: 978-90-04-41562-1

Please click here to download the entire volume or selected chapters.

Contributors are Max Deeg, Erika Forte, Yukiyo Kasai, Carmen Meinert, Simone-Christiane Raschmann, Kirill Solonin, Henrik H. Sørensen, Sem Vermeersch, Verena Widorn, and Jens Wilkens