CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: 2026 Glorisun International Intensive Summer Program for Buddhist Studies with Peking University

Mount Kuaiji Advanced Institute for Buddhist Studies. https://www.kjsfxy.com/.

 

2026 Glorisun International Intensive Summer Program for Buddhist Studies

2026年度旭日全球佛學研究網絡
國際密集型暑期佛學菁英班

Sponsor:  Glorisun Global Network for Buddhist Studies@ Peking University
Co-sponsors: University of British Columbia; Zhejiang University
Host:  Mount Kuaiji Advanced Institute for Buddhist Studies, Shaoxing
Dates: July 7–13, 2026

 

Schedule Seminar and Lecture Series Lecturers
Conference Student Participants Student Report

 

In a time of ongoing reconfiguration of the global academic landscape and deepening cross-civilizational inquiry, Buddhist Studies—as a vital field connecting Asia and the wider world—is receiving renewed attention for its theoretical and methodological significance. Buddhism has not only served as a foundational intellectual resource within Asian civilizations but has also played a profound role in processes of transregional exchange, institutional formation, and cultural interaction across history. How to respond to contemporary scholarly methods and theoretical concerns while remaining grounded in classical traditions and textual foundations has become a central question for the field today.

To promote multi-level global collaboration and methodological innovation in Buddhist Studies, and to cultivate emerging scholars with rigorous academic training and international perspectives, the Glorisun Global Network for Buddhist Studies announces the 2026 International Intensive Summer Program for Buddhist Studies. Outstanding students and early-career researchers worldwide are warmly invited to apply.

The 2026 program will be hosted by the Center for the Study of Buddhist Texts and Art at Peking University, co-organized by the University of British Columbia and Zhejiang University (Center for Asian Civilizations and Faculty of Arts), and held at the Mount Kuaiji Advanced Institute for Buddhist Studies in Shaoxing.

This program seeks to establish a high-level, international academic platform that fosters sustained dialogue across scholarly traditions, strengthens the integration of classical Buddhist textual studies with interdisciplinary methodologies, and promotes collaboration among philology, intellectual history, art history, archaeology, and regional civilization studies. Its long-term aim is to cultivate a new generation of scholars who will contribute to the sustainable development of Buddhist Studies worldwide.

 

I. Program Structure

The Summer Program will run for one week (July 7–13, 2026). It will include:

  • A series of seven specialized courses or lectures delivered by internationally renowned scholars:
    1. Guodong FENG 馮國棟 (ZhejiangU 浙江大學): TBA 待上傳 (Lecture 講座)
    2. Michael Friedrich 傅敏怡 (UoHamburg 漢堡大學): Buddhism and Daoism in China, 1st through 4th centuries 東漢三國兩晉釋道兩教 (Seminar 專題課程)
    3. Imre Galambos 高奕叡 (Cambridge 劍橋/ZhejiangU 浙江大學): Religious Texts across Languages in Northwest China 中國西北地區跨語言的宗教文獻 (Seminar 專題課程)
    4. HE Rong 何蓉 (CASS 中國社會科學院): 佛教藉中國化邁向世界宗教: 基於韋伯理論的比較分析 Buddhism Advancing toward a World Religion via Sinicization: A Weberian Comparative Analysis (Lecture 講座)
    5. Barend ter Haar 田海 (Oxford 牛津/UoHamburg 漢堡大學): Using Buddhist sutra colophons for studying social and religious history 題跋鏡像歷史：如何利用佛典題跋來研究社會與宗教歷史 (Seminar 專題課程)
    6. Ru Zhan 湛如 (PekingU 北京大學) and Jinhua Chen 陳金華 (UBC 英屬哥倫比亞大學): Linearity and Radiality, Locality and Globality: Reconfiguring Transregional and Transcultural Networks of Buddhist Transmission in Asia 直線性與放射性、地方性與全球性：亞洲佛教跨區域與跨文化傳播網絡之再構 (Seminar 專題課程)
    7. You ZHAO 趙悠 (PekingU 北京大學): TBA 待上傳 (Lecture 講座)
  • An accompanying international academic conference
  • Opportunities for participants to submit research papers and present their work

Courses will be grounded in the instructors’ long-term research expertise, systematically presenting their methodological approaches and theoretical perspectives. Emphasis will be placed on cultivating critical inquiry, deepening textual competence, and broadening comparative horizons, enabling participants to develop a well-grounded and self-aware scholarly orientation across academic traditions.

The concurrent international symposium will bring together distinguished mid-career and emerging scholars from around the world to discuss cutting-edge issues and methodological developments in Buddhist Studies. Participants with relevant research are encouraged to apply to present their work and engage in formal academic discussion.

Tentative Schedule

 

II. Selection Criteria

The program will select 40 participants through a global competitive process. Eligible applicants include:

  • Advanced undergraduate students
  • Master’s students
  • Doctoral candidates
  • A limited number of outstanding postdoctoral researchers

Applicants should demonstrate strong academic preparation, research potential, and solid language proficiency. The ability to participate actively in academic discussions in both Chinese and English is required.

Preference will be given to first-time participants and to those able to attend the full duration of the program and associated symposium.

Outstanding participants may be invited in the future to undertake short-term research visits at partner universities within the Glorisun network, creating valuable opportunities for doctoral study or postdoctoral research.

 

III. Application Procedure

Complete application materials must be submitted by April 15, 2026 to: Frogbear.Project@ubc.ca

Application materials include:

  1. Completed application form
  2. Curriculum vitae
  3. One writing sample (Chinese or English)
  4. One letter of recommendation (to be sent directly by the referee to the email address above)

Late applications will not be considered.

 

IV. Financial Information

There is no program fee. Accommodation and meals during the program will be provided by the organizers. Partial travel subsidies may be available, subject to funding availability.

The program is committed to deepening theoretical reflection and methodological integration in Buddhist Studies within the context of global academic dialogue. It seeks to support emerging scholars in building sustained and meaningful intellectual connections across traditions, regions, and generations.

 

We warmly welcome applications from young scholars dedicated to Buddhist Studies and cross-cultural academic exchange.