British Library Or. 8210/S. 5637. Pages from a liturgical manuscript in booklet format, dating from the ninth-tenth centuries, discovered in Dunhuang (Gansu).
Speaker: Stephen F. Teiser (Princeton University)
Date and time: Thursday 19 March 2026, 14:00-15:30
Venue: Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, Room 8 & 9
Abstract: What can we learn about the performance of Buddhist rituals by examining the physical form of liturgical texts? This talk examines formatting, mise-en-page, punctuation, decoration, rubrication, performance notes, and other features of medieval Chinese Buddhist liturgies. It considers what can be learned about performers and audiences, monks and commissioners, plans and accidents in Buddhist ritual by paying close attention to the material aspects of textual production.
Speaker: Stephen F. Teiser is D.T. Suzuki Professor in Buddhist Studies at Princeton University. He examines textual, artistic, and manuscript evidence to understand social history and religious practice in medieval Chinese Buddhism.
“Book Culture in Buddhism and Beyond” Lecture Series:
This new lecture series, launching in Michaelmas Term 2023, features talks on writing and publishing in the Buddhist tradition and in related religious and cultural spheres. Lectures in this series offer insights into the various ways in which writing and printing has been shaping Buddhism, as well as the multifaceted impact of Buddhism on book culture in East Asia, past, present, and future.
This lecture series is organised by Dr Noga Ganany (ng462@cam.ac.uk) in the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at Cambridge with the generous support of the Glorisun Global Network.
