Dunhuang

From the extensive readings on Dunhuang in the Course Reader and the textbook, we have been asked to determine:

what is the socio-political situation at the site, and how does Buddhism figure in? What do we know, and what do we not know, that might help us reconstruct the actual practice of Buddhism in the Dunhuang region?

So firstly, what is the socio-political situation at Dunhuang?

Dunhuang was a large oasis settlement supporting a considerable population and many temples to various faiths. Cotton fields flourished and sheep and goats grazed on the extensive pastures (chapter 7, pg 88). This goes to show, that Dunhuang was a prominent oases town that had much to offer in terms of economic capabilities. In geo-political terms, the fact that Dunhuang was at the eastern most point of the Silk Road, made it a key place travellers and explorers aimed to reach. If it were not for the Silk Road path, Buddhism may not have taken hold in China to the extent that it did.

How does Buddhism figure in?

As we know from reading about Abott Wang, Dunhuang was home to the Caves of the Thousand Buddhas, making it the most important desert oases. This cave site came to be because there were large monk population in Dunhuang, and beginning in the fourth century AD, the caves were hollwed out in cliffs and eventually filled with clay sculptures of Buddhist deities, and with wall-paintings influenced by earlier Buddhist sites such as Bamiyan and Gandhara. Buddhism was brought to China along the Silk road, and was enthusiatically adopted and flourished for many centuries.

What might help us reconstruct the actual practices of Buddhism in the Dunhuang region?

The documents that were found in the caves point to those who would have been in Dunhuang and the religions and beliefs that they each held. Not only were there documents on religious texts, there were also such things as lease agreements. The manuscripts and governing documents clearly reconstruct not only the religious practices of the region, but the every day activities as well.

Indian Buddhism - Gandharan Art

Hey Everyone,

I was really curious to see how the Greco-Buddhist art that we are now reading about from India was influenced by and reflected such prominent Greek features. Here are a few pictures I found that I think demonstrate Western influence on this Buddhist artwork:

Buddhism

I remember hearing the story of the Life of Buddha when I was in first year. It seemed so imaginative and far away from anything I understood. The term Buddha means 'enlightened one' and when I first heard this story, I was astonished at the connection between me in my first year seat in the Mining Building, and the students of Gautama (the Buddha). His teachings were of course all done orally, and because the original teachings of the historical Buddha are near impossible to recover or reconstruct, as far as anyone could know, I was hearing my professor attempt to teach me, what Buddha taught to his students.

Even when the Buddha died, the community of his followers set up councils to deliberate over his teachings, and it was within this first set of early monks that the memorization and retention project evolved into a variety of oral canons. What is most amazing about this, is that even today, there is much deliberation over the specific language the Buddha spoke and taught in.

Briefly speaking, King Asoka, emperor in the Mauryan dynasty, allowed for the flourishment of the Buddhist community in India. He was responsible for the propagation of Buddhism across Asia, and even commissioned monuments along significant sites to the life of the Buddha.

Aside from this historical context, like Zoroastrianism, I am deeply fascinated with the principles that guide the religion to morality. The eightfold path of virtues is amazing for me to read, and even follow, as I strongly believe that these subsections of wisdom, moral code, and mental development are necessary for any human begin, even (and especially today) to become a good and honourable person.

This website explains the path more coherently than I ever could:

http://www.thebigview.com/buddhism/eightfoldpath.html

Zoroastrianism

Before I say anything else, I absolutely love studying Zoroastrianism. I took RLG100Y in first year and I found this religion in particular to be so enlightened and just simply fascinating. The doctrines and the seven stages of evolution as a concept is captivating because it is so different than what I commonly conceive of as religion (clearly I've been far too influenced by Western religions).

The underlying customs of the religion examine similar areas of the Western religions that I have come to know. The belief is that light is good, and darkness if evil. This is clearly comparable to Genesis in the bible, as ‘...in the beginning there was light.’ I think the concepts of God, judgment, heaven and hell (darkness and light) all found within Zoroastrianism were very likely to have influenced the Western religions thereafter.

One of the most intriguing parts of this religion to me, is the idea of monotheism entrenched within dualism. Though there is one universal God, the spirits of Truth and the antithesis of this, Lies or chaos, conflict with each other, and in play out within humanity.

While the Mary Boyce article is serving mostly as a refresher, the next article on Zarathustra was almost delightful to read. The Yasnas of the Cow's Lament, the duality between the spirits represeting on one side by the 'smasher of resistance', etc. were all fascinating. I especially enjoyed examining the relationship between Zarathustra and Ahura Mazda as reflected through their dialogue. Zarathustra speaks with such high respect for Ahura Mazda and he genuinely seems to appreciate and adhere to the teachings Ahura Mazda provides. This should be so, as Ahura Mazda is this highest possible object for worship.

Zoroastrian followers are often described as fire worshippers, this is even evident on inside and out of their Avestas as there is a pit of fire on the cover.

Cultural Anthropology of Religion

So far, I have found all the readings from the Encyclopedia of Cultural Anthropology to be very informative as well as thought provoking. This week’s reading, on Religion, raises many different questions and opinions of how religion should be studied, with the ultimate aim of determining what exactly defines religion.

It begins with listing the universal certainties that surround the study of religions that anyone would find difficult to argue with. This is a very concrete list that includes the fact religion is an extremely powerful motivator of behaviour, and that religion provides numerous functions for its adherents such as comfort and reason. I agree with these notions, as they provide a fundamental agreement for us as scholars to branch out from.

There were a few areas in particular that peaked my interest. In the development of the study of religion throughout the chapter, it is astounding to see such ethnocentrism and racism in the early studies. Anthropology’s early focus was based on the polarity between primitive and civilized. This offensively seems to fit perfectly with the ‘orientalist’ view that Said and many others brought to a forefront. Later in the chapter, a perusal of current anthropological sources reveals inconsistencies in this type of polarized structure. For example, how can one consider the notion of religious ‘ghosts’ primitive, when Western cultures believe so prominently in ancestors and angels? This is something that I personally found very interesting because it seems almost impossible now for anyone to not raise these type of questions. How can one criticize something so similar to their own beliefs – or if not their own, the ‘western civilized’ belief they are comparing these primitive cultures to? This was however, the dominant thought of the time and it is only now that it these such structures are found insulting.

The quest for origins continues and there is a move from two vastly separated schisms to Tylor’s evolutionary progression of religion moving from animism to polytheism to monotheism. Frazer moves from this in the late 19th C to talk about his own evolutionary scheme of magic to religion to science. This seems to represent a general 'moral' step in the development of religious study.

By far, the part of this chapter I found the most interesting was the Biology of Religion subsection. What I was immediately drawn to was the thought in my head that science and religion don't usually fit together too well, and here they are, working together. They both usually compete in trying to explain the world around us, but this time they are working hand in hand. It's humbling almost. Anyway, back to the point - this idea of biology is supposed to emphasize the ways in which religious strictures enhance human survival, adaptation and reproduction. The discovery of endorphins largely helped this study because this development allowed for anthropologists to realize that external stimulates influence brain activity. This amazing discovery has the ability to unify anthropological theory because anthropologists can study the biology of behaviour and shift the focus from differences to similarities in religious conceptions across cultures.

The major question that seems to be lingering throughout the chapter is the idea that the phenomenon of the religious experience cannot be unbiasedly documented. Those outside of the religious experience looking in as a way to study and compare, miss out on the essential feeling of the religious experience. In contrast to this, those wishing to document their personal religious experience as a means for others to learn from, have the problem of being to engulfed in the situation to have a anthropological stance, rather than a religious one. This is a dilemma that will probably always exist because when it comes to religion it is difficult, if not impossible, to find someone who can truly understand all points of view of the religious experience, and still remain impartial in order to analyze, compare and document for anthropological study.