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| 1 |
Piotr Adamek, Fu Jen Catholic University Telling Stories about Goodness. Creating Identity of a Dutch Goddess in a Taiwanese Village |
Stories are told about a young Dutch woman who apparently came to the Taiwanese village of Neihaili as a missionary almost 200 years ago. Full of goodness as she reportedly was, she especially helped people in need: children, women, strangers, and marginalized people. Stories are told about the Mother of Goodness in the present temple of Neihaili, claiming she continues to support the local community, acting as a goddess.
The paper will record stories related to the Mother of Goodness told by local community of Neihaili, examine historicity of the alleged Dutch missionary, and explore the process of creating identity of a goddess in the modern Taiwanese Village. |
| 2 |
Eli Alberts, Colorado State University Lives of Documents and the Fabrication of the Imperial Script |
This article examines the dissemination of imperial ideology across China from the 16th to the 20th centuries. While originating in the imperial court centuries earlier, by the 16th century, a diverse array of actors—emperors, literati, local officials, commercial publishers, booksellers, rebellious groups, native chieftains, and borderland ritualists—engaged with and adapted this ideology, forming what I term the “imperial script.” These adaptations did not always align with the court’s intentions. Focusing on the “Proclamation for Crossing the Mountains” or the “Charter of Emperor Ping,” a document circulated among the Yao peoples of South China, this study diverges from previous scholarship by contextualizing this text within late Imperial China’s publishing trends and technologies. It also compares the Proclamation with elite and popular textual sources, including imperial edicts, genealogies, and Ming-era literary works. Although often classified as an ethnic minority distinct from Han Chinese cultural norms, the Yao had access to Chinese literacy, imperial models, and publishing technologies, such as woodblock printing, as did other entities within the Chinese empire, Han and non-Han alike. |
| 3 |
Chen Meiwen, Fu Jen Catholic University Facilitator of Insights: Professor Barend ter Haar and the Growth of Yao Studies |
Although Professor Barend ter Haar’s name may not frequently appear in Yao studies publications, his contributions to the field have been transformative. This article, based on personal conversations and a December 2024 interview, explores his lasting impact as a mentor, facilitator, and critical thinker. It traces the evolution of Yao studies over the past fifty years—from early ethnographic surveys and international expansion to recent digital collaborations—while highlighting ter Haar’s role in supervising key doctoral work, building research collections in Leiden and Heidelberg, and curating an influential online bibliography on Yao religion.
Positioning his Yao interests within a broader scholarly trajectory, the article emphasizes his commitment to understanding how non-Han communities engage Chinese religious and literary traditions. At a time of generational transition in the field, Professor ter Haar’s intellectual generosity and vision continue to guide and inspire new approaches to Yao religious and manuscript studies. |
| 4 |
Avi Darshani, Tel Aviv University A Buddhist-Oriented Funerary Manuscript |
The Buddhist Protocol for the Death-Watch Ritual of Invoking the Sages (佛門伴夜請聖科) is a liturgical manuscript designed to facilitate the deceased’s safe passage through the courts of the netherworld. Copied in 1990 by a ritual master (法師) in rural Guizhou Province, the manuscript invokes a rich pantheon of Buddhist, Daoist and local deities to safeguard the soul’s journey to salvation. This paper analyzes the manuscript’s narrative structure, recurring motifs, and thematic patterns, paying particular attention to its varied Buddhist and non-Buddhist origins. Among other sources, the manuscript draws upon the liturgies of the semi-Buddhist semi-Daoist Pu’an Sect (普庵教). Finally, the study considers the unique characteristics of this ritual and the broader socio-cultural context that might have driven its creation and use. |
| 5 |
Guan Fanyi, University of Tokyo 六朝禁碑令視野下的佛教碑文製作 |
在長期施行的禁止私家立碑的禁碑令之影響下，六朝時期的石刻遺存相較於同時代的北朝及前後的東漢､隋唐顯現出明顯的低潮。然而在這一低潮中難以忽視的是，以僧人墓碑及佛事紀念碑為代表的佛教石刻佔據了其中較大的比重。對於個別南朝佛教碑文，學界已經有了較為詳細的考察，但對於東晉南朝不同時代的佛教政策對於佛教石碑造立趨勢的影響，以及作為最初儒教傳統出現的立碑行為如何與佛教的碑文傳統相互融合等問題還有待深入討論。本文將結合石刻史料與文獻史料，以禁碑令下佛教石刻的建造為線索探討進一步思考六朝政治社會與佛教之間的關係。 |
| 6 |
Tjalling H.F Halbertsma, University of Groningen In praise of Arash: a portrait of a Buddhist local knowledge-holder gained through Western documentation of the material culture of the Church of the East in Inner Mongolia |
This contribution stems from a short exploration undertaken in 2006 by the current author, then an external PhD researcher at the Sinological Institute of Leiden University, and his doctoral advisor, professor Barend ter Haar, the beneficiary of this festschrift. The exploration concerned an attempt to include local guides and local interpreters in an overview of Chinese and international scholars and explorers who contributed to the discovery, documentation and publication of the material culture of the (“nestorian”) Church of the East in Inner Mongolia before 1949. As these local guides and interpreters -or “local knowledge holders” as they may be referred to today – did not publish themselves about their participations, the attempt to recognize their contributions in the mentioned overview was pragmatically yet regrettably abandoned. Indeed, these guides, interpreters and local knowledge holders were crucial to the success of the western fieldwork and publications on the heritage of the Church of the East in Inner Mongolia but they remain largely unrecognized and, in the worst case, even ignored. This article mainly focuses on one such individual, a Jakhchin Mongol simply known by the single name “Arash”, and his significant contributions to the fieldwork and publications of Western scholars and writers including Sven Hedin, Owen Lattimore, John De Francis and Bettina Lum. The article further includes a number of unpublished photographs of Arash, as well as the first known photography of the Christian remains of Olon Sume In-tor in Inner Mongolia. A postscript to the article acknowledges the contributions of local knowledge holders towards the documentation of oral history on sites associated with the Church of the East in Inner Mongolia as related to the current author for his PhD research. |
| 7 |
Audrey Heijns, Chinese University of Hong Kong Ethnographic Approach to Stories from the Liaozhai Zhiyi: Translations by J. J. M. de Groot included in The Religious System of China (1892–1910) |
In his Religious System of China (1892–1910), J. J. M. de Groot (1854–1921) includes translations of selected stories from the Liaozhai zhiyi, or Strange Stories of a Chinese by Pu Songling. Unlike other translators who introduce these stories as Chinese literature, De Groot presents them as evidence of aspects of China’s religious culture, such as the practice of female mediums, resurrection of the dead, and magical arts. In this paper, I analyse De Groot’s translation strategy and style, the historical context, and how these stories can help us better understand Chinese religion. Despite Barend ter Haar (2006) noting that few people in the field of traditional China studies will be unaware of De Groot’s work, and John Minford (2006) referring to De Groot as “the indefatigable Dutch scholar”, his work as a scholar/translator has been under-researched, and this study aims to promote appreciation and understanding of De Groot’s scholarship and his place in the wider history of Dutch sinologists and translation.
高延(1854–1921)在其著作《中國的宗教系統》(1892–1910)中對蒲松齡所撰的《聊齋志異》中的故事進行了收錄與翻譯。不同與其他將這些故事介紹爲文學作品的譯者，高延將其呈現爲研究中國宗教文化某些方面的證據，比如女巫、死後複活以及法術等等。本研究通過分析高延的翻譯策略與風格、曆史背景，揭示這些故事如何幫助我們更好地理解中國宗教。盡管如田海 (2006) 所指出的，在傳統中國研究領域幾乎沒有人不知道高延的工作，又如閔福德 (2006) 稱贊高延爲“不知疲倦的荷蘭學者”，但他作爲學者或翻譯家的貢獻仍然有很大的研究空間，因此本研究旨在促進人們對高延學術成就以及他在荷蘭漢學家和翻譯史地位的理解與欣賞。 |
| 8 |
Enbo Hu, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München From India to Xixia: A Tangut Liturgical Book in the Context of Indo-Tibetan and Sino-Tibetan Buddhism |
Xixia 西夏, better known as the Tangut Empire (1038‒1227), was situated at the eastern segment of the Silk Road. This project examines a specific booklet of Tangut manuscripts from Khara-Khoto (in present-day Inner Mongolian), identifying it as a liturgical book written in cursive script. Contrary to earlier views that its focus was solely on Mañjuśrī, the texts in the booklet include not only hymns to Mañjuśrī—such as the Mañjuśrīnāmasaṃṃgīti (Litany of the Names of Mañjuśrī)—but also hymns dedicated to Avalokiteśvara, as well as texts related to Samantabhadra and other Buddhist deities. Following the identification of the main content of the Tangut manuscripts and their corresponding parallel texts in Sanskrit, Tibetan and Chinese, this project will address the following research questions: a) From which languages were the Tangut texts translated? What translation techniques were employed in the process? Is there a possibility of oral transmission? b) What function did this Tangut booklet serve? For what purposes and occasions were these texts translated and practiced? To what extent did this booklet function as a liturgical book? c) Finally, what insights does this collection provide into the distinctive nature of Tangut Buddhism, particularly when analyzed in the broader context of Indo-Tibetan and Sino-Tibetan Buddhism? |
| 9 |
Fei Huang, University of Tübingen Knowledge and Local Religious Practice of Healing Hot Springs in Early Modern China |
Belief in the power of the thermal healing springs is ubiquitous, and China in this respect is no exception. Historically, thermal springs in China have fulfilled dual roles, serving as sites for both leisure and therapeutic purposes. Traditional Chinese medicine has predominantly emphasized herbal remedies, whereas water therapies—particularly the use of thermal springs—have occupied a relatively marginal position. Yet, their widespread availability made them integral to daily health routines for both elites and commoners, offering accessible sites for self-treatment without direct supervision from medical professionals. In the late imperial period, local communities’ medical pilgrimages to hot springs were often overseen by regional Buddhist and religious organizations, and the actual healing practices were deeply influenced by local religious beliefs. This article focuses on a detailed case study of Tangyu Hot Springs, a renowned healing spring on the northern slopes of the Qinling Mountains. Analyzing a previously unexamined local stone inscription, this study reveals how local elites sought to regulate and standardize thermal spring use, balancing local customs with elite ideals under the influence of local popular beliefs. It thus provides a nuanced understanding of the interaction between universalized scholarly principles of medical knowledge and localized religious practices in the use of thermal therapeutic springs in early modern China. |
| 10 |
Laura-Maxine Kalbow, University of Hamburg Nelson Elliott Landry, University of Hamburg Mango Trees and Lotus Flowers: From Wagner’s “Buddhism” to Buddhism in Wagnerism |
The composer Richard Wagner (1813-1883) had in the last decade of his life a genuine interest in the “orient”. Wagner was exposed to the thought and literature of the East through his brother-in-law, the orientalist Hermann Brockhaus, as well as through translations by the French Indologist Eugène Burnouf and, perhaps most interestingly, through the philosophical writings of Arthur Schopenhauer. Of all the “oriental” elements received and translated in nineteenth-century Europe, it was the figure and the teachings of the Buddha that resonated most with Wagner near the end of his life. Indeed, many scholars in the fields of musicology and Buddhist studies have written about the influence of “Buddhism” on Wagner’s oeuvre: the Buddhist influence of certain leitmotifs in Tristan und Isolde and his final opera Parsifal as informed by quasi-Buddhist Schopenhauerian ideas of suffering and “will” as well as the incomplete composition of the opera Die Sieger (“The Victor”) based on the trials and tribulations of the Buddha’s disciple Ānanda. Surveying the literature on the subject, reading Wagner’s correspondences as well as his wife Cosima Wagner’s diary, it is indeed difficult to deny that Richard Wagner had an active interest in what he believed to be “Buddhist” thought and doctrine. But how much did Wagner really know about this Buddha figure, this doctrine, and this “oriental” culture that so beguiled him?
The issue here is not only in Wagner’s own interpretation of “Buddhism”, but also in much of the analysis that was done afterwards in light of the reception of Wagner’s oeuvre and the study of the influences on this monumental figure in music history. Cosima writes in her diaries that Wagner noted how he would not finish his final opera, Die Sieger, “if he had to deal with mango trees, lotus flowers”. Wagner was conscious of his own European worldview and felt that “an Indian image world would have created a dramatic musical exoticism that was foreign to him” (Borchmeyer 2007, 25). Simultaneously, much of the literature on Wagner and “Buddhism” looks back to his pieces with an eye for Buddhist, or Schopenhauerian quasi-Buddhist, elements as if “Buddhism” was some kind of monolithic tradition that could be represented by its received and translated doctrines and narratives. After the death of Richard Wagner, many artists reacted to the artistic void left in his wake by adopting Wagnerian ideas and principles in their compositions and in their artistic direction. There is much research on Wagnerism, yet there is a dearth of research on the Buddhist elements in Wagnerism. This paper will therefore look at topics related to the reception of Wagner’s final opera Parsifal as well as the incomplete Die Sieger. Before Wagner passed away, he hoped that his son Siegfried would be the one to put music to Die Sieger. Siegfried did not continue the project, though over one hundred years later it was Jonathan Harvey and the libretto Jean-Claude Carrière who composed a modern opera tying together the story of Wagner’s death in Venice and his final Buddhist opera. The Wagner Dream (2007) presents the composer’s final moments followed by the enactment of scenes out of Die Sieger taking place in the liminal space between life and death, the Bardo in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. The final segment of this paper will investigate Harvey’s Wagnerism in this contemporary opera as yet another Buddhistic interpretation of Wagner’s oeuvre. Interestingly, Harvey carried Wagnerian ideals into his operatic piece by dwelling on the Buddhist elements in Wagner’s latter year operas. Moreover, Wagner’s latent “orientalism” was directed at a Buddhist tradition rooted in South Asia, while the Tibetan Buddhist themes of Harvey’s opera reveals yet another degree of exoticization vis a vis Buddhism founded in the popular reception in Western culture of Tibetan religion since the 1960s. This paper will take the Wagner Dream as an example of contemporary Wagnerism that can also cast a light on the reception of Wagner’s oeuvre as well as the composer’s relation to “Buddhism”. |
| 11 |
Ernest Kozin, Tel Aviv University The Buddhist Ritual of Dispatching Armies and Appointing Generals |
The recently discovered manuscript The Buddhist Ritual Manual for Deploying [Spiritual] Soldiers and Appointing [Celestial] Generals (佛門差兵撥將科) details a military ritual (junli 軍禮) involving the establishment of the Five Camps (wuying 五營) of spirit soldiers (yinbing 陰兵), who are summoned to protect the altar from malevolent entities. Preliminary analysis suggests that this manuscript was used in rituals associated with the Pu’an tradition (Pu’an Jiao, 普唵教). According to both canonical and non-canonical Buddhist scriptures, the Patriarch Pu’an (普唵, 1115–1169) was renowned not only for his philanthropic activities and preaching of sutras but also for his expertise in exorcistic techniques and magical practices, often associated with Daoism. His name is frequently mentioned in the manuscript, where he is invoked as one of the principal celestial deities. The manuscript includes a template requesting divine assistance in “concealing” (cang 藏) the ritual master. During the ritual, the master must obscure his presence to avoid detection by both malevolent entities and the potentially dangerous spirit soldiers, whose primary function is to execute his commands and defend the ritual space. In addition, the manuscript provides detailed instructions for the “water-renewal” ceremony, which involves the visualization (cun 存) of the ritual master’s interactions with the supplicated deities. These visualizations are accompanied by mudras, talismans, sanctified water, and the chanting of mantras. The manuscript offers a unique primary source for examining the interplay of Buddhism and Daoism, which significantly contributed to the formation of the complex religious amalgam characteristic of late-imperial local traditions in rural South China. |
| 12 |
Rens Krijgsman, Tsinghua University The (grand)fathers of history tell a good story – comparing the rationalization of irregular succession events in the Zuozhuan’s “Preface” and Herodotus’ tale of Gyges |
When Herodotus tells of Gyges ogling Candaulus’ wife before she asks Gyges to take her husband’s place, the reader knows they’ve walked into a good story. Likewise, when the Zuozhuan opens with the mother of the future lord having “Lady of Lu” patterned on the palm of her hand, the reader smells a creative cover story for a much more down to earth reality. The drive to explain away the problem of an irregular succession with fantastical tales can be observed across ancient histories. And while the individual tales have been debated for millennia, the commonalities in historiography they reveal have not yet been explored. This paper compares these narratives and their reception to ask broader questions about ancient historiography and the reason we as audiences demand a good story. |
| 13 |
Pyi Phyo Kyaw, University of Oxford Community Relations of the Oxford Buddha Vihāra, England |
This paper explores the community relations of Oxford Buddha Vihara (OBV) – a Theravada Buddhist temple established in 2003 in Oxford, England. OBV was founded by Venerable Dr. Khammai Dhammasāmi, a Shan monk from the Shan State, Myanmar. Although OBV was founded by a Shan monk, its outreach is wide, drawing support from the immigrant communities of different ethnic groups in the United Kingdom such as Shan, Burmese, Thai, and Sri Lankan and that of Western Buddhist converts. In the past decade or so, OBV has also expanded its outreach beyond the UK and opened its branches in Hungary, Serbia, Myanmar, Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, and Japan.
This paper is divided into three sections. First, I provide a brief survey of the Burmese diaspora in the UK since the 1970s, looking at migration patterns of the Burmese. Second, I trace the development of OBV from its founding to its expansion in Europe and in Asia. Third, I examine how Venerable Dhammasāmi and the OBV monks use an expansive approach to cater for the growing needs and expectations of the diverse communities it serves. In conclusion, I reflect on the importance of the educational background of the founder of a Buddhist temple. I also highlight how Venerable Dhammasāmi’s capacity to expand interpersonal relationships with many people has contributed to OBV’s transnational outreach. |
| 14 |
Li Jiangnan, University of California, Berkeley Religious Technocracy and Buddhist Textual Production in Song Dynasty China (960-1279) |
This paper explores the political dynamics underlying the production of Buddhist texts during the Song Dynasty and examines how these dynamics can reshape the way we interpret these texts. My research draws on recent scholarship about the structures of Song governance and on prefaces to the Buddhist works completed during this period. It highlights the need to study the production of Buddhist texts in conjunction with the technocratic sectors of the Song state, particularly given that the majority of Song Buddhist texts were produced and circulated through collaboration with the technocratic state. The paper categorizes Song Buddhist texts into three tiers based on the degree of political influence on their composition and proposes the extent to which political perspectives can be discerned in different types of texts. Finally, I argue that scholars should analyze texts produced through similar technocratic channels collectively, such as Buddhist and Daoist works composed to legitimize the imperial state. These works often shared a common context and were created to serve comparable purposes. 本文探討了宋代佛教文獻編纂背後的政治動態，並審視這些動態如何重塑我們對這些文本的解讀方式。我的研究借鑒了關於宋代政治結構的最新研究成果，並且以宋代佛教著作的序言作為分析重心。我認為學者有必要將佛教文獻編纂與宋代國家技術官僚部門結合起來研究。這是因為宋代大多數佛教文本的生產和流通都是通過與技術官僚國家的合作實現的。本文根據政治對文獻編纂的影響程度，將宋代佛教文本劃分為三個類別，並探討了政治視角在不同類型文本中體現的深淺程度。最後，我主張學者應將通過類似技術官僚渠道生產的文本放在一起進行分析，比如說那些旨在為帝國國家提供合法性支持的佛教與道教文獻。這些作品通常具有共同的創作背景，並服務於相似的目的。 |
| 15 |
Li Jianxin, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences 明末清初曹洞宗覺浪道盛禪師《尊正規》在日本的發現及其意義 |
該文以新近在日本發現的覺浪道盛禪師的《尊正規》爲研究對象，首先介紹《尊正規》在日本被發現的過程；其次，介紹了《尊正規》的主要內容；再次，強調指出，《尊正規》並不是一部孤立的作品，它與《尊正鑑》、《會祖規》、《會祖鑑》、《會祖圖》、《五燈熱》這五部創作於相近時期的著作構成覺浪道盛佛教著作的重要部分。最後認爲應該對覺浪道盛在明清禪宗史、明清佛教史的地位予以重新評價。 |
| 16 |
Jiawen Lin, Tsinghua University 初期大乘佛教的自利利他思想 |
本文以初期大乘佛教的經典文獻爲基礎，探討菩薩道中的“自利利他”思想，釐清其動機結構、修行次第與倫理根據。首先，文章指出“自利利他”作爲菩薩的本質規定，體現在六度與四攝等修行法門中。其次，本文分析了“先自利後利他”與“利他即自利”兩種看似矛盾的內在邏輯，其實分別對應了修道次第與境界圓融的雙重立場。本文進一步以《大智度論》《十住毗婆沙論》等爲依據，指出自利功德的具足是利他事業得以順利展開的前提，而利他動機的純粹則是成就究竟菩提的關鍵。最後，本文從佛教倫理學的角度出發，論證善惡判斷應以清淨心與般若智慧爲根據。佛教倫理的最終指向並非“善”，而是“聖”——即以聖智導引善行的解脫理想。 |
| 17 |
Jinyu Lu, Peking University 金代晉南刻藏史事考 |
《最初敕賜弘教大師雕藏經板院記》是記載金藏雕造的重要文獻，但此碑所謂《析津志》佚文，實為四庫館臣誤輯，原出《永樂大典》所引《元一統志》。金藏板入燕京後，先置於大昊天寺，後約於明昌四年（1193）移入弘法寺奉敕新建的藏經板院，允許四方印造。金藏的大藏經板會設於絳州天寧寺，即今新絳白台寺，而與解州天寧寺無關。重建於大定十年（1170）的絳縣太陰寺亦非雕造金藏的樞紐，當寺僧人慈雲、法澍曾於金末著手重雕一藏，但未及畢功即毀於貞祐二年（1214）蒙古兵火，以致世所罕聞。 Records of the Courtyard Housing the Tripitaka Tablets Carved by the Master Hongjiao 最初敕賜弘教大師雕藏經板院記 is an important document recording the woodblock printing process of the Jin Canon 金藏. However, the so-called Xijin Zhi 析津志 version of this text actually comes from the Yuan Yitongzhi 元一統志 cited in the Yongle Dadian 永樂大典. After the Jin Canon woodblocks were transferred to Yanjing 燕京 in 1181, they were first placed in the Dahaotian Temple大昊天寺, and later moved to the newly built courtyard in Hongfa Temple 弘法寺 in about 1193, allowing people to print. The organization of the Jin Canon was set up in Tianning Temple 天寧寺 in Jiangzhou 絳州, which is now Baitai Temple 白臺寺, and has no relationship with Tianning Temple in Haizhou 解州. The Taiyin Temple 太陰寺 in Jiangxian絳縣, which was rebuilt in 1170, was not the hub for carving the Jin Canon. The monk Ciyun 慈雲 and Fashu 法澍 in the Taiyin temple began to re-carve a Tripitaka in the late Jin Dynasty, but it was burned down during the Mongolian invasion in 1214 before it could be completed, so it is little known in the world. |
| 18 |
Olga Mazo, Tel Aviv University Ritual Manuscript for Healing by Means of a Grass Effigy |
The practice of healing by means of an effigy that stands for the patient (and suffers in his/her stead) is known in diverse cultures. In South China, the disease or bad luck are commonly transferred to a cogon-grass effigy (mao-ren 茅人, sometimes written by the homophones 毛人 or 芼人). The practice is related to the nuo 儺 exorcistic tradition and it figures, in the Southwestern provinces of Guizhou, Sichuan and Yun’nan, among Han and non-Han peoples such as the Tu, the Nuosu, and the Jiang. Although the ritual is rooted in local practice, the manuscript “Buddhist Ritual Manual for Transferring Disease onto a Grass Effigy” (佛門關毛科) demonstrates its incorporation into what might be termed “folk Buddhism.” Transmitted by lay Buddhist ritual masters (fashi 法師), the manuscript details the diverse stages of the ritual: The invocation of the deities; the construction of a bridge for their arrival; the weaving of the grass-effigy; and the performance of the “eye-opening” ceremony that animates it. The ritual concludes by sending off the mao-ren effigy, along with the disease that was transferred to it. A legend that ties the origins of the mao-ren to the semi-divine figure of the Song-period Judge Bao is also included. Interestingly, this same legend is celebrated in diverse forms of Southwestern drama. “The Buddhist Ritual Manual for Transferring Disease onto a Grass Effigy” reveals the merging of Buddhism and native exorcistic traditions. It offers insights into regional religious practices and their integration into the broader framework of the Buddhist ritual system. |
| 19 |
Mark Meulenbeld, University of Hong Kong Confucians “Dotting the Spirit Tablet”: Ontology Shared with Daoists and Buddhists |
Research on Confucianism has recently begun to add significant new perspectives to the conventional focus on philosophy and state ritual, finally paying attention to the everyday ritual services provided by literati and bureaucrats. One extremely widespread yet hitherto largely ignored ritual carried out by Confucian men of letters, often local officials, was the “dotting of the spirit tablet” (dianzhu 點主 or tizhu 題主) during funerary ceremonies. A consecration of the wooden tablet that would serve as prime object of ancestral worship and sacrificial offerings, this ritual redefines the role of Confucian literati within the liturgical field otherwise thought to be occupied by Buddhists and Daoists. This paper offers a preliminary analysis of the ritual as it appears in sources from the Ming (1368 – 1644) and Qing (1644 – 1911) dynasties, ranging from theatre scripts to local gazetteers and missionary observations. |
| 20 |
Annika Pissin, Lund University The practical girl from Eastern Jin |
A girl kills a snake that terrorised an area in Southern China. She does it in such a cool and matter-of-factly way that it still astonishes the random researcher who happens to stumble upon the story. This paper follows the story from the Eastern Jin to contemporary encyclopaedias and embeds it in feminist fairy tale research. |
| 21 |
Meir Shahar, Tel Aviv University The Lay Buddhist Priests of Rural South China |
Buddhist manuscripts have been transmitted in rural South China for centuries. In tiny villages across Sichuan, Guizhou, and Yun’nan, generations of lay Buddhist priests have been copying texts bequeathed to them by their ancestors. In this panel we will present the preliminary results of our investigation into this rich and hitherto unexplored religious textual tradition. Over the past several years, we interviewed village priests in Guizhou Province, and we scanned many hundreds of their treasured manuscripts. The texts we obtained attest to the integration of Buddhism into rural Chinese lives. Most are related to canonical Buddhist scriptures, sharing parallels with the liturgical scriptures of the monastic community. However, many others betray the impact of Daoism or local exorcistic traditions.
Our panel will highlight the rich diversity of the rural Buddhist textual tradition. We will present examples of Buddhist-oriented scriptures side by side with texts that are the product of local lore and exorcistic traditions. |
| 22 |
Barend ter Haar, University of Hamburg Buddhist’ Missionizing from the 12th to 17th Century inside China |
TBA |
| 23 |
Konstantin Tertitski, Tel Aviv University The Buddhist Eulogy to the Netherworld Porters (佛門祭腳夫白文) |
The ritual of sending monetary offerings to the netherworld by means of spirit-porters (known as jiaofu 脚夫 or shenfu lishi 神伕力士) has rarely been studied. The recently discovered “Buddhist Eulogy to the Netherworld Porters” (佛門祭脚夫白文) sheds new light on this ritual that is meant to settle the virtual debts of the deceased. Drawing upon Buddhist writings as well as ethnographic field-reports, my analysis of this text attests to the interaction of several cultural layers. The “Buddhist Eulogy to the Netherworld Porters” is at once a Buddhist scripture and a product of Southern-Chinese cultural practice. Furthermore, the manuscript might teach us about the transportation patterns of late-imperial and Republican-period China. The offerings to the spirit-porters of the netherworld, no less than the exhortations given them, were fashioned after the historical experiences of their human counterparts. |
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Lik Hang Tsui, City University of Hong Kong Balancing Use and Abuse: Personal Letters and Official Postal Delivery in Middle Period China |
During the transformative eleventh to twelfth centuries in Song China, government officials regularly corresponded with each other and their families. This paper examines the postal system’s regulations and the challenge of enforcing them in this historical context, characterized by the consolidation of literati culture, the advent of print technology, and significant political turmoil. Officials of Song China depended on the state courier system for transmitting “personal letters” (sishu), which were distinct from bureaucratic documents, despite serving no administrative purpose. They relied on the government’s courier transport system to transmit written messages to their colleagues and family from afar, especially since they had to rotate between posts in local offices. This research delves into the tension between official and personal use of the postal network, revealing how early Song concessions created irreducible conflicts in communication privacy and security. The study analyzes the state’s rationale behind permitting private correspondence within an official framework (sishu fu di), the reactions to the misuse of resources, and the broader implications for the Song government’s regulatory strategies. Utilizing Song-era regulations and literary sources, this study not only revisits scholarship by historians Peter J. Golas and Cao Jiaqi, but also seeks to bridge research on government postal policy and letter-writing customs. |
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Xing Wang, Fudan University Late Imperial Chinese “Literati” Body Divination: The Physiognomy Manual of Ice Mirror and Its Authorship |
The physiognomy manual Ice Mirror (Bingjian 冰鑑), widely attributed to the late Qing official Zeng Guofan (1811–1872), is a prominent example of traditional Chinese literati-oriented body divination. This article challenges the popular belief in Zeng’s authorship, arguing that the text predates his era and emerged during the late-Qing period. The manual’s focus on literati physiognomy, which prioritizes political and social success over moral cultivation, further contradicts Zeng’s well-documented emphasis on Confucian ethics. The Ice Mirror distinguishes itself by targeting literati (wenren), linking bodily features—such as spirit, bone structure, and facial traits—to career prospects and wealth, while dismissing moral considerations. The modern association of Ice Mirror with Zeng stems from Republican-era publications. Post-1990s, Zeng’s popularity as a model of success fueled this misattribution, with commentators retrofitting his life story onto the text. Ultimately, the Ice Mirror reflects late Qing literati’s preoccupation with fortune-telling for career advancement, not Zeng’s moral philosophy, and its authorship narrative is a modern construct. |
| 26 |
Junqing Wu, Liverpool University The Image of Holy Transgressor-Monks in Late Imperial Literature |
This essay investigates the depiction of holy transgressor-monks in late imperial literature, focussing on three forms of transgression: violence, sexuality, and meat-eating and wine-drinking. I aim to demonstrate that the acceptance of holy transgression was shaped by various factors, including the monk’s clerical status, adherence to monastic precepts, and societal moral standards.
Transgression involving violence is often exemplified by the knight-errant monk, who endeavours to restore justice through force. This image was new to the late imperial period. It was partly influenced by popular literary genres centred on outlaws and martial arts. A more significant factor was the decline in authorized Buddhist militancy during this period, which allowed the figure of the knight-errant monk to be placed at a safe distance from reality. Sexual transgression in narratives involving holy monks is consistently depicted as feigned or illusory. The holy transgressor never actually engages in sexual activity. This is a reflection of social moral standards, echoing the late imperial emphasis on female chastity. Meat-eating and wine-drinking was the most readily accepted form of transgression, being the least offensive to lay morality. It was ascribed to all holy transgressor monks. |
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Kong Xing, Chinese Academy of Buddhism 周叔迦先生的佛法因緣 |
在近代居士佛教的興起背景下，居士佛教成為推動佛教現代化的一股重要力量。這一趨勢與傳統的由出家人主導的佛教有著顯著不同。傳統佛教的核心人物通常是出家僧人，他們不僅是佛教經典的主要傳承者，也是佛教實踐的主要推動者。而居士佛教的興起，標誌著佛教信仰的重心從寺院擴展到了更廣泛的社會階層，尤其是那些在社會、政治、文化等領域有影響力的知識分子和社會名流。周叔迦不僅僅是佛教信仰的實踐者，更是直接參與了近代佛教的轉型運動，其成為一位居士，也是上述潮流的一部分。他通過自己的學術研究和實際行動，體現了居士佛教對社會與文化的積極作用。周叔迦身處這一時期，不僅繼承了傳統佛教學術的經典詮釋，還積極引入現代學術方法，將文獻整理、版本校勘、歷史考證等學術研究方式引入佛學領域。與他同時代的不少人一樣，周叔迦開始從歷史和哲學層面深度研究佛教教義，同時使佛教研究更加系統化、學術化。 With the rise of lay Buddhism in modern times, lay Buddhism has become an important force in promoting the modernization of Buddhism. This trend differs significantly from traditional Buddhism, which was dominated by ordained monks. In traditional Buddhism, the central figures are usually monastic monks, who are not only the primary transmitters of Buddhist scriptures but also the main promoters of Buddhist practice. However, the rise of lay Buddhism signifies that the focus of Buddhist faith has extended from monasteries to broader sectors of society, especially intellectuals and social elites influential in social, political, and cultural fields. Zhou Shujia was not only a practitioner of the Buddhist faith but also directly involved in the transformative movement of modern Buddhism. His becoming a lay practitioner was part of this broader trend. Through his academic research and concrete practices, he exemplified the positive role of lay Buddhism in society and culture. Living during this period, Zhou Shujia not only inherited the classical exegesis of traditional Buddhist scholarship but also actively introduced modern academic methods—such as the collation of texts, various editions collation, and historical verification—into the field of Buddhist studies. Like many of his contemporaries, he began conducting in-depth research into Buddhist doctrines from historical and philosophical perspectives, thus making Buddhist studies more systematic and academic. |
| 28 |
Ziqi Xuan, EPHE-PSL/University of Hong Kong Negotiating Incense: Pilgrimage Practices and Social Operations of Mount Tai Incense Associations in the Ming-Qing Period |
This study examines Mount Tai pilgrimage and incense association (Xiang she 香社) during the Ming-Qing period through vernacular literature, steles inscriptions, precious scrolls (Baojuan 寶卷) and local gazetteers. During this era, Mount Tai attracted widespread devotion, with imperial patrons, literati, and popular incense associations from across North China undertaking sacrifices and pilgrimages. The pilgrimage, as a sacred activity, constantly negotiates with state and society. This study argues that Mount Tai’s pilgrimage and incense associations engaged in a multi-layered negotiation of authority and practice: Firstly, temporal negotiations, such as the “robe-changing day (Huanpao ri 換袍日),” reconciled popular devotional needs for access to Bixia Yuanjun with the mountain closure during imperical sacrifices, ensuring continued worship. Secondly, the Bixia Yuanjun 碧霞元君 cult strategically aligned its “protecting the nation and blessing the people (Huguo youmin 護國佑民)” discourse with imperial interests, thereby garnering state sanction while sustaining popular devotion. Thirdly, a negotiation between sacred authority and social management saw incense associations translate divine principles from Baojuan into practical governance, maintaining order and enforcing norms during pilgrimages. This study further argues that such ongoing negotiations, far from diminishing sacrality or representing a relinquishment of sacred power, instead illuminate the agency of diverse actors, such as the gods, devotees, organizers, elites, and officials, pursuing their respective objectives. Consequently, this interactive process is identified as the crucial mechanism enabling sacredness to achieve social embeddedness and operationalize its inherent power effectively. |
| 29 |
Ru Zhan, Peking University 從僧家 書儀到禪⾨書狀——《禪苑清規》書狀條與中古佛教書儀的變遷 |
本文旨在探討唐宋之際佛教書儀與山門儀禮的重大變化，及其在中國中古社會中對禮儀觀念與實踐所產生的深遠影響。傳統儒家社會強調「禮不下庶人」，將正式禮制視為士大夫階層的專屬權力。然而，隨著佛教中國化進程的深入，特別是在僧團制度與寺院禮儀的發展中，一種嶄新的「僧家禮制」逐漸成形，進而打破了世家門第對禮制的壟斷。 佛教書儀，尤其是尺牘、書狀與諸如《禪苑清規》所載之書儀條文，不僅是寺院日常書信往來的工具，更是一場禮儀上的思想革命。這些書儀的產生與普及，標誌著佛教不僅在教義上進行本土化，更在社會實踐中提出了一套相對獨立、自主的禮儀體系。此種禮儀革命首先在佛教寺院中展現，進一步影響了社會對「禮」的定義與施行範圍。 進入兩宋，禪宗的興盛推動了禪門儀禮的系統化與書面化。《禪苑清規》中的「書狀條」體現出禪宗雖標榜「不立文字」，卻逐步走向「依於文字」的實踐轉變。這些書儀條文不僅是行禮的具體指引，更是維繫禪宗社群秩序與傳承系統的工具。書儀所載的文字與格式，體現了禪宗以禮儀為手段重構內部規範、弘法方式與身份關係的努力。 總之，唐宋佛教書儀與山門禮制的變遷，既是佛教中國化與人間化的歷史進程，也是對傳統世族壟斷禮制體系的一種挑戰與重構，揭示了中古佛教在社會文化層面所扮演的創新與中介角色。 This paper aims to explore the significant changes in Buddhist epistolary etiquette and monastic ritual practices during the transition from the Tang to the Song dynasties, as well as their profound impact on the conception and practice of ritual in medieval Chinese society. Traditional Confucian society emphasized the notion that “rites do not extend to commoners,” regarding formal ritual systems as a privilege exclusive to the elite literati class. However, as the Sinicization of Buddhism deepened—particularly through the institutionalization of the monastic order and the development of temple rituals—a new “monastic ritual system” gradually emerged, challenging the hereditary elite’s monopoly over ritual authority. Buddhist writing rites, especially documents such as letters, formal petitions, and the entries found in the Chanyuan qinggui [Pure Rules of the Chan Garden], were not merely tools for daily temple correspondence, but also part of an ideological revolution in ritual practice. The creation and dissemination of these documents signaled that Buddhism was not only undergoing doctrinal localization but was also proposing an independent and self-regulating ritual system in the realm of social practice. This ritual revolution first manifested within Buddhist temples and gradually influenced broader societal understandings of the definition and scope of “ritual.” During the Northern and Southern Song periods, the rise of the Chan school accelerated the systematization and textualization of monastic ritual. The “Letters and Documents” section of the Chanyuan Qinggui illustrates how, despite Chan Buddhism’s professed ideal of “not relying on written words,” it progressively adopted written forms in practice. These texts were not only concrete guidelines for ritual conduct but also essential tools for maintaining social order and transmission within the Chan community. The specific language and formats prescribed in these writing rites reflect the Chan school’s efforts to reconstruct internal norms, modes of Dharma propagation, and relational identities through the medium of ritual. In sum, the transformations in Buddhist epistolary etiquette and monastic rituals during the Tang and Song dynasties were not only part of the broader historical process of Buddhism’s Sinicization and humanization, but also constituted a challenge to and restructuring of the traditional aristocratic monopoly on ritual systems. This evolution highlights medieval Buddhism’s innovative and mediating role in the socio-cultural landscape of China. |
| 30 |
Wanyu Zhang (Xian’gui Shi), University of Oxford From Tīrthika to Tīrthikā: Gender, Canonical Variants, and Editorial Intervention in the Chinese Mahāsāṃghika Vinaya |
This paper explores the transmission history and textual stratification of the Chinese Buddhist canon through a detailed case study of the Mohe Sengqi Lü (Ch. 摩訶僧祇律), the Mahāsāṃghika Bhikṣuṇī Vinaya translated by Buddhabhadra and Faxian in early fifth-century. Focusing on a single variant in the fourth saṃghāvaśeṣa rule for nuns, the study investigates how the phrase “外道” (non-Buddhist) evolves in different textual layers across printed editions and manuscript traditions, with particular attention to the addition of the gendered suffix “尼.” By comparing Chinese canonical witnesses—including editions from Jin, Koryŏ, and the Southern Canons—as well as manuscript materials from Japan and the Sanskrit Bhikṣuṇī Vinaya of the Mahāsāṃghika-Lokottaravāda, this paper reconstructs the stemmatic relationships among these sources and analyzes the editorial logic behind variant readings. The study argues that certain insertions reflect not only later efforts at canon homogenization, but also broader processes of cultural adaptation and institutional formation, especially in relation to the emergence of the Chinese Bhikṣuṇī saṃgha. Through this micro-level analysis, the paper contributes to a more nuanced understanding of how historical, social, and religious forces have shaped the formation of the Chinese Buddhist canon. 本文通過《摩訶僧祇律》（Mohe Sengqi Lü）的個案研究，探討中國佛教藏經的流傳歷史與文本分層問題。《摩訶僧祇律》由佛陀跋陀羅與法顯於五世紀初在中國譯出，是摩訶僧祇部律的漢譯本。本文聚焦於其中第四條比丘尼僧伽婆尸沙戒中的一處異文，考察“外道”一詞在不同版本中如何演變，尤其是其在部分版本中增添“尼”字以標示性別的現象。通過對中國歷代藏經版本——包括金藏、高麗藏與南方系刻本——以及日本古寫經與大眾-世說部（Lokottaravāda）所傳梵文比丘尼律進行比對，本文重建了相關文本的譜係關係，並分析了這些異文背後的編輯邏輯。研究指出，某些“尼”字的插入不僅體現出後期對經藏統一化的編輯傾向，也反映出文本在傳播過程中所經歷的文化調適與制度建構，特別是在中國比丘尼僧團逐步建立的背景下。本文從微觀層面入手，嘗試揭示歷史、社會與宗教力量如何共同塑造了漢傳佛教律藏的生成與演變。 |
| 31 |
Jiejie Zhao, Capital Normal University Eternally etched through ceaseless recitation: From E mi tuo fo (阿彌陀佛) to Oṃ maṇi padme hūṃ |
In the Chinese-speaking world, whether one believes in Buddhism or not, the phrase “E mi tuo fo” (Amitābha Buddha) has been widely used in daily life as a common expression to convey admiration, gratitude, supplication, or reproach. The integration of “E mi tuo fo” into the Chinese lexicon is closely tied to the historical spread of the Pure Land school’s practice among the masses. This observation reveals that, compared to abstruse Buddhist doctrines, simple and accessible practices resonate more deeply with the general populace, allowing them to take root in the linguistic soil and endure across generations. Previous studies have often focused on Chinese texts, tracing the evolution of Amitābha devotion along a chronological axis. In contrast, this paper examines multilingual unearthed documents to demonstrate that the Pure Land faith and the practice of “oral recitation of the Buddha’s name” also spread among ordinary people of diverse ethnic groups, such as the Old Uighurs and the Tanguts. Similarly, the dissemination of the Six-Syllable Mantra “Oṃ maṇi padme hūṃ” (唵嘛呢叭咪吽) followed this pattern. It must be said that their vitality far exceeds modern imagination. People modern and ancient, people here and there, share the same cultural codes across the vast temporal and spatial dimensions. 在漢語世界里，不論是否信奉佛教，人們日常生活中都曾廣泛使用“阿彌陀佛”這樣的口頭禪，用於表示讚歎、感謝、祈請乃至責備等義。“阿彌陀佛”之所以進入漢語詞彙系統，和歷史上淨土宗修持念佛法在民衆間的大力傳播有關，乃至出現“家家阿彌陀佛，戶戶觀世音”的盛況。由此我們觀察到，相比艱深的佛學義理，簡易可操作的修行法門更能俘獲普通民衆的芳心，更能深植於語言土壤而經久不息。前述研究往往聚焦漢文文獻，以時間爲軸梳理彌陀信仰的發展脈絡，本文則通過多文種的出土文獻考證，彌陀淨土信仰和“稱名念佛”的修行法門也曾在回鶻、西夏等不同族群的普通民衆間流傳。六字真言“唵嘛呢叭咪吽”的傳播亦復如是。應該説，它們的生命力遠超今人想象，我們與古人、這裡的人與那裡的人在廣闊遼遠的時空維度共享同樣的文化密碼。 |
