Curators of the Buddha: The Study of Buddhism under Colonialism

Abstract

This is a critical history of the study of Buddhism in the West, bringing the insights of colonial and post-colonial cultural studies to bear on this field. After an overview of the origins of Buddhist studies in the early 19th century, the essays focus on important curators of the Buddha, such as Aurel Stein, D.T. Suzuki and Carl Jung. The essays discuss many of the important social, political and cultural conditions that have shaped the course of Buddhist studies for more than a century. Contributors Charles Hallisey, Gustavo Benavides, Stanley Abe, Luis Gomez, Robert Sharf and Donald Lopez challenge some of the most enduring ideas in Buddhist studies: that Zen Buddhism is, above all, an experience; that Tibetan Buddhism is polluted, or pristine; that the Buddha image is of Greek or Roman origin; and that the classical text supersedes the vernacular, as the manuscript supersedes the informant.

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