This blog entry will be an extension of my last blog post. Since the assigned readings for this week are about the "Caves of the Thousand Buddhas," I will continue the topic of the diversity of the Buddhist practices and rituals by exploring the artifacts found at this site. I am also fascinated by the changes that occur in Buddhism as it moves along the Silk Road.
The diversity and range of Buddhist practices and rituals that exist among the members of different Buddhist communities are quite remarkable. The question then becomes what links all these communities together. Is it their scripture? Or perhaps what links them together is their shared goal of achieving enlightenment. It appears that we cannot assume a single, unchanging core for Buddhism. Buddhism, like many other traditions, has unfolded in the context over time. It spread from India to many different countries. In the process of spreading along the trade routes of the Silk Road, Buddhism influences various cultures and religions and it also is influenced by the religions and customs of its host countries. Even though all Budhhists seek enlightenment, each community has developed new practices and rituals for achieving this end. Thus, since Buddhism is not a simple abstraction or a series of rigid prescribed practices, it seems more appropriate to talk about Buddhism as a tradition rather than a religion.
The Caves of the Thousand Buddhas near Dunhuang (in China) are home to precious and ancient Buddhist art. Historically, Dunhuang was a large oasis settlement that was located near the junction of the Northern and Southern Silk Roads. Animals, plants, valuable stones, art works, clothing and fashion, along with customs and religions travelled in both directions between Western countries and China. Buddhism was introduced to China in the first half of the first century BC through the Silk Road. Buddhist texts (a confusing mix of Mahayana and Hinayana sutras), monastic rules, Buddhist paintings, spells, and talismans were brought to China by foreigners. These texts needed to be translated into Chinese. Later on, Chinese Buddhist monks also travelled along the Silk Road to Central Asia and India to collect Buddhist scripture for translation into Chinese. Since the Buddha's teachings were written down years after he passed away, and because of the existence of many Chinese translations of these texts, doubts have arisen as to whether these texts have remained faithful to the initial teachings of the Buddha.
The Buddhist art in the caves of the Thousand Buddhas includes statues and painted walls. Buddhist texts and paintings were also discovered in cave 16 at Dunhuang. Most of the material discovered in this cave were Buddhist in content and were mostly in Chinese. However, texts belonging to religions other than Buddhism as well as secular texts were found in this cave. Dunhuang, in the first millennium, was a very important military town. It was initially part of the Chinese empire. However, this town fell under control of different empires of the regions among them were Tibetans and Mongols. Each rulling power contributed to this Buddhist cave art by painting the walls of the caves according to their own belief and artistic style. In addition, Dunhuang, because of its important location, was primarily occupied at this time by Tibetan and Chinese soldiers, along with merchants, monks, and others passing along the Silk Road. This diversity of languages and cultures is reflected in the languages and styles of paintings of the manuscripts and inscriptions found in the Caves of the Thousand Buddhas.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
What accounts for the remarkable range of practices described as "Buddhist"?
The diversity and range of Buddhist practices and rituals that exists among the members of different Buddhist communities are quite remarkable. This diversity can have two main reasons. One is the flexibility of the Buddha's teachings. The Buddha had the ability to adapt his message to the situation in order to teach what was appropriate for a particular disciple. He also left his teachings (dharma) as his successor. One cannot help but wonder how his flexible style of teaching could be transmitted from one generation to the other. If adopted by the Buddha's followers, could this flexible style of teaching gradually change the true content of the Buddha's teachings? The Lotus Sutra was the first original Buddhist text that I read. I have studied Buddhism in my other courses but I just scratched my head after each story without knowing what exactly its point was. These short stories are related by the Buddha's disciples and can have many different meanings. TheBuddha's teachings were written down by his disciples centuries after he passed away. These texts, however, were accepted by the devoted Buddhists as sutras (as teachings attributed to the Buddha). But, how much of these sutras are actual teachings of the Buddha? And do we have a way of verifying this?
The other thing that can account for the remarkable range of practices described as "Buddhist" is the fact that Buddhism spread beyond the boundaries of its native culture (India). Buddhism was introduced to China via the Silk Road. It also spread to Japan, Korea, Tibet, Mongolia and many other countries. Each of these countries then adapted Buddhism to their own culture and made it distinctively their own. During this period of adaptation, not only local deities were incorporated into the Buddhist pantheon but also they were influenced by the Buddhist pantheon. As a result of this interchange of cultures, new Buddhist schools, practices, and rituals developed that differed from the Indian Buddhism. Despite all this, however, there is evidence of often surprising similarities between practices of these Buddhist cultures widely separated by topography and history. How can this be? How can the Buddha's teachings not be affected first by the oral transmission and then by the customs of the new communities that adopted Buddhism. One cannot help but wonder is it possible that the Buddha did not aim to teach a fixed set of ideas but a way of life (an aspiration to seek and discover liberation) that could survive the influence of time and other cultures. One thing is clear and that is Buddhism has changed and evolved according to the needs and demands of the communities that adopted it but its essence seems to be unaffected.
The other thing that can account for the remarkable range of practices described as "Buddhist" is the fact that Buddhism spread beyond the boundaries of its native culture (India). Buddhism was introduced to China via the Silk Road. It also spread to Japan, Korea, Tibet, Mongolia and many other countries. Each of these countries then adapted Buddhism to their own culture and made it distinctively their own. During this period of adaptation, not only local deities were incorporated into the Buddhist pantheon but also they were influenced by the Buddhist pantheon. As a result of this interchange of cultures, new Buddhist schools, practices, and rituals developed that differed from the Indian Buddhism. Despite all this, however, there is evidence of often surprising similarities between practices of these Buddhist cultures widely separated by topography and history. How can this be? How can the Buddha's teachings not be affected first by the oral transmission and then by the customs of the new communities that adopted Buddhism. One cannot help but wonder is it possible that the Buddha did not aim to teach a fixed set of ideas but a way of life (an aspiration to seek and discover liberation) that could survive the influence of time and other cultures. One thing is clear and that is Buddhism has changed and evolved according to the needs and demands of the communities that adopted it but its essence seems to be unaffected.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
The importance of studying religious texts
I am very interested that I finally got an opportunity to study the ancient religion of my beautiful country, Iran. After reading the section on the Avesta and Achamenid inscriptions, I developed an appreciation for a role that a textual scholar plays in increasing our understanding of the ancient religions. Before these readings our professor's scholarly work seemed very foreign to me. Whether we consider religious documents as revealed texts or simply as historical documents, one thing is clear and that is texts play a very important role in most world religions. Studying them can tell us a lot not only about the doctrine, practices, and rituals of a particular religion but also they can answer many questions such as why a person at a particular time in history have made such claims. In addition, they can give us great deal of information on how religions change and evolve in response to social and/or political demands. Religions developed within a particular culture and their texts are also reflections of that culture. Thus, the objective study of religious texts can reveal great deal of information about the pattern of living and framework of values within which people lived their lives in the particular time in history.
As mentioned in class, the aim of scholars in studying religious texts is not to determine the accuracy or the truth of a particular religion. The goal is to find answers to the aforementioned questions. I also developed an appreciation for the comparative model. The comparative model can be a very useful paradigm in studying religious texts. It was also very interesting how even some Zoroastrian priests today do not fully understand the meaning of their own texts. This makes us appreciate the efforts of textual scholars in putting together the pieces of the puzzle trying to construct ancient texts and translate and interpret them in an objective way. It is interesting how in order to understand the meaning of religious texts, scholars have to first understand and be familiar with the culture , myths, and practices of that specific culture. For instance, in reading "the two spirits," the scholar goes back to the mythology of the Twins which was apparently a well-known myth among Zarathustra's audience. Assuming that his audience knew what he was talking about, Zarathustra did not take the time to explain the myth. He simply reinterprets this well-known myth. This example tells us how difficult it is to decipher the meaning of some obscure lines in ancient texts considering the fact that scholars today do not have enough evidence and knowledge of the culture within which these texts were originated.
Scholars studying the ancient Gathas face all the above-mentioned challenges. As mentioned in the article, the difficulty of understanding the Gatha lies in the complexity of its dialogues. Sometimes it is really difficult to decide who the speaker is and who is being addressed. Another problem lies in the subtleties of the language of these texts. In English we only have three tenses (past, present, and future). However, the audience of the Zarathustra was aware of an atemporal dimension that would cut across temporality. In other words, whatever occured or was true in the past occurs and is true even today. How should scholars put this understanding into English words?
The other important thing is how teachings of the Zarathustra have been discovered through studying the Gathas: teachings such as the superiority of the Truth and the mission against the Lie and the forces of the evil.
As mentioned in class, the aim of scholars in studying religious texts is not to determine the accuracy or the truth of a particular religion. The goal is to find answers to the aforementioned questions. I also developed an appreciation for the comparative model. The comparative model can be a very useful paradigm in studying religious texts. It was also very interesting how even some Zoroastrian priests today do not fully understand the meaning of their own texts. This makes us appreciate the efforts of textual scholars in putting together the pieces of the puzzle trying to construct ancient texts and translate and interpret them in an objective way. It is interesting how in order to understand the meaning of religious texts, scholars have to first understand and be familiar with the culture , myths, and practices of that specific culture. For instance, in reading "the two spirits," the scholar goes back to the mythology of the Twins which was apparently a well-known myth among Zarathustra's audience. Assuming that his audience knew what he was talking about, Zarathustra did not take the time to explain the myth. He simply reinterprets this well-known myth. This example tells us how difficult it is to decipher the meaning of some obscure lines in ancient texts considering the fact that scholars today do not have enough evidence and knowledge of the culture within which these texts were originated.
Scholars studying the ancient Gathas face all the above-mentioned challenges. As mentioned in the article, the difficulty of understanding the Gatha lies in the complexity of its dialogues. Sometimes it is really difficult to decide who the speaker is and who is being addressed. Another problem lies in the subtleties of the language of these texts. In English we only have three tenses (past, present, and future). However, the audience of the Zarathustra was aware of an atemporal dimension that would cut across temporality. In other words, whatever occured or was true in the past occurs and is true even today. How should scholars put this understanding into English words?
The other important thing is how teachings of the Zarathustra have been discovered through studying the Gathas: teachings such as the superiority of the Truth and the mission against the Lie and the forces of the evil.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Beliefs are a problematic category in the study of anthropology of religion.
In our reading for last week what grabbed my attention was the problem of studying faith or belief. Dimension of belief is indeed very problematic in the anthropology of religion. There are questions that need to be addressed. For instance, are our beliefs signs of converting? Does believing the same as belief? Is belief an internal property of a person? How can anthropologists access people’s beliefs? Can we be religious without having a defined set of beliefs? Does faith and belief have the same meaning?
The value of “belief” as a concept for the anthropology of religion has been questioned by Malcolm Ruel and Talal Asad. In “Christians as Believers,”[1] Ruel questions the value of belief by tracing the genealogy of the term “believing” in Christian history and demonstrating that it has held very different meanings during different historical periods. He draws attention to the fact that “belief” is defined at different times by the context of its use. The problem with using the concept of belief in anthropology is that this word and its meaning is deeply rooted in the Christian tradition and therefore might carry its Christian connotations when used in different contexts or when applied to other traditions. Ruel describe four fallacies of using the term “belief” in contexts other than Christian. First, he believes that it is misleading to think that belief is a central concept in all religions just as it is to Christianity. We need to realize that people can be religious without necessarily having a defined set of beliefs. Second, he suggests that it is erroneous to think that people’s beliefs shape their behaviour and thus are enough explanation for them. Third, he claims that it is misleading to think of belief as an interior state or a psychological condition. Forth, Ruel also claims that it is a fallacy to consider determination of belief as being more important than determination of the content of the belief.
In answering the question of whether the faith is the same as belief, we first need to describe what faith means? Faith can refer to a belief in a body of doctrines. In mystic traditions it can also refer to the deliberate engagement with the unknown. Used in the latter sense, faith is not the same as belief and doesn’t require a belief in a body of doctrines. Thus, we, as anthropologists, might be cautious in using the term “belief” to religions other than Christianity.
The other problem is how anthropologists can access people’s beliefs. Isn’t what we know about people’s beliefs what they tell us and how objective this approach to studying individual’s beliefs can be. How do we know someone is converted? Should anthropologists convert to a particular religion in order to understand what the adherents of that religion believe? In her article “Convicted by the Holy Spirit: The Rhetoric of Fundamental Baptist Convention,” Susan Harding[2] focuses on the role of language and verbal communication in religion and particularly in the process of conversion. She suggests that conversion entails learning to listen and ultimately speak in a new fashion. I don’t want to get into her argument here but what I want to get at is the subjectivity of her ethnographic work. At the end of her fieldwork she seems to be a believer herself. This can be another problem with using the category belief in anthropology. Can we ultimately be objective in studying other people’s beliefs or should we necessarily turn into “natives” in the process of our fieldwork. Sorry guys I really like this topic and can go on and on forever. Please give me some feedback about this topic.
[1] Malcolm Ruel, “Christians as believers,” in John Davis, ed., Religious Organization and Religious Experience (London: Academic Press, 1982), pp.9-31.
[2] Susan F. Harding, “Convicted by the Holy Spirit: The Rhetoric of Fundamental Baptist Conversion,” American Ethnologist 14:167-81 (1987).
The value of “belief” as a concept for the anthropology of religion has been questioned by Malcolm Ruel and Talal Asad. In “Christians as Believers,”[1] Ruel questions the value of belief by tracing the genealogy of the term “believing” in Christian history and demonstrating that it has held very different meanings during different historical periods. He draws attention to the fact that “belief” is defined at different times by the context of its use. The problem with using the concept of belief in anthropology is that this word and its meaning is deeply rooted in the Christian tradition and therefore might carry its Christian connotations when used in different contexts or when applied to other traditions. Ruel describe four fallacies of using the term “belief” in contexts other than Christian. First, he believes that it is misleading to think that belief is a central concept in all religions just as it is to Christianity. We need to realize that people can be religious without necessarily having a defined set of beliefs. Second, he suggests that it is erroneous to think that people’s beliefs shape their behaviour and thus are enough explanation for them. Third, he claims that it is misleading to think of belief as an interior state or a psychological condition. Forth, Ruel also claims that it is a fallacy to consider determination of belief as being more important than determination of the content of the belief.
In answering the question of whether the faith is the same as belief, we first need to describe what faith means? Faith can refer to a belief in a body of doctrines. In mystic traditions it can also refer to the deliberate engagement with the unknown. Used in the latter sense, faith is not the same as belief and doesn’t require a belief in a body of doctrines. Thus, we, as anthropologists, might be cautious in using the term “belief” to religions other than Christianity.
The other problem is how anthropologists can access people’s beliefs. Isn’t what we know about people’s beliefs what they tell us and how objective this approach to studying individual’s beliefs can be. How do we know someone is converted? Should anthropologists convert to a particular religion in order to understand what the adherents of that religion believe? In her article “Convicted by the Holy Spirit: The Rhetoric of Fundamental Baptist Convention,” Susan Harding[2] focuses on the role of language and verbal communication in religion and particularly in the process of conversion. She suggests that conversion entails learning to listen and ultimately speak in a new fashion. I don’t want to get into her argument here but what I want to get at is the subjectivity of her ethnographic work. At the end of her fieldwork she seems to be a believer herself. This can be another problem with using the category belief in anthropology. Can we ultimately be objective in studying other people’s beliefs or should we necessarily turn into “natives” in the process of our fieldwork. Sorry guys I really like this topic and can go on and on forever. Please give me some feedback about this topic.
[1] Malcolm Ruel, “Christians as believers,” in John Davis, ed., Religious Organization and Religious Experience (London: Academic Press, 1982), pp.9-31.
[2] Susan F. Harding, “Convicted by the Holy Spirit: The Rhetoric of Fundamental Baptist Conversion,” American Ethnologist 14:167-81 (1987).
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Interchange of cultures along the Silk Road
Trade routes of the Silk Road brought different people with different languages, costumes, and religions together. We can find the evidence for this mixing of cultures in the works of art that have been discovered in the major sites along the Silk Road. Since our readings for this week were about Sogdians, I will focus on the works of art that were found in Sogdian towns. Of special interest to me are the mural paintings that decorated the inner walls of private houses in these sites.
Sugdians played an important role as intermediaries in trades between the Eastern and Western ends of the Silk Road. Sogdian’s familiarity with the arts and crafts of different cultures had manifested itself in their artwork. As mentioned by Marshak and Negmatov, Sogdian art reflects “motifs of foreign origin” (250). In other words, Sogdian art reflects the influence of Chinese and Iranian cultures among many others. The mural paintings that decorated the Sogdian private houses are very similar to those found in the middle parts of modern Iran. Some of these houses has been well preserved and are open to tourists. I am posting a link to one of these residences. It is called Tabatabaei House. This private house is decorated with wall paintings very similar to those found in Sogdian houses.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabatabaei_House
I will focus on the influence of Iranian culture on Sughds and vice versa. It appears that there was a cultural and artistic interchange between these two cultures. In the hills around the city of Samarkand there is a site called Afrasiab site. According to Shahnameh (“Book of Kings”), which is a great epic story written by great Iranian poet Ferdowsi, Afrasiab was one of the mythical kings of Turan. He is the son of one of the mythical kings of Iran, Fereydun. According to Shahnameh, he is considered an agent of Ahriman (“Evil”) which is the opposite of Ahura Mazda (The God of Zoroastrians). There are also paintings of “the feast of Mani” Mani, the founder of Maneicheism, is thought to be of Persian descent. Just to clarify, when I am using the term “Persian”, I am referring to the Persian Empire which also included modern Iran. Also, it was mentioned that some evidence of the “Epic of Rustam” was found in Sogdian sites. Rustam is a mythological Iranian hero. I am now posting a link for those of you interested in learning more about Afrasiab.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afrasiab
Following last week’s discussion, I also want to add few sentences in order to answer what history means to me. I think history is a construction of “real” events in a narrative form. I think production or revision of historical accounts has a purpose. According to psychological principles our goals, emotions, and motivations affect not only how we encode information in the fist place, but also how we remember these material in the future. Since history is produced in a narrative form, there is no doubt in my mind that it should also be affected by these biases. Modern anthropologists who study historical artifacts and historical accounts of early historian strive to attend to goals and purposes that motivated the production, revision, or interpretation of these texts. All I am trying to say is that there is no doubt that these texts, artifacts, and so on are a great source of information but scholars need to also take them with the grain of salt. I think similarities and associations that exist between many texts can help scholars in their objective endeavor.
Sugdians played an important role as intermediaries in trades between the Eastern and Western ends of the Silk Road. Sogdian’s familiarity with the arts and crafts of different cultures had manifested itself in their artwork. As mentioned by Marshak and Negmatov, Sogdian art reflects “motifs of foreign origin” (250). In other words, Sogdian art reflects the influence of Chinese and Iranian cultures among many others. The mural paintings that decorated the Sogdian private houses are very similar to those found in the middle parts of modern Iran. Some of these houses has been well preserved and are open to tourists. I am posting a link to one of these residences. It is called Tabatabaei House. This private house is decorated with wall paintings very similar to those found in Sogdian houses.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tabatabaei_House
I will focus on the influence of Iranian culture on Sughds and vice versa. It appears that there was a cultural and artistic interchange between these two cultures. In the hills around the city of Samarkand there is a site called Afrasiab site. According to Shahnameh (“Book of Kings”), which is a great epic story written by great Iranian poet Ferdowsi, Afrasiab was one of the mythical kings of Turan. He is the son of one of the mythical kings of Iran, Fereydun. According to Shahnameh, he is considered an agent of Ahriman (“Evil”) which is the opposite of Ahura Mazda (The God of Zoroastrians). There are also paintings of “the feast of Mani” Mani, the founder of Maneicheism, is thought to be of Persian descent. Just to clarify, when I am using the term “Persian”, I am referring to the Persian Empire which also included modern Iran. Also, it was mentioned that some evidence of the “Epic of Rustam” was found in Sogdian sites. Rustam is a mythological Iranian hero. I am now posting a link for those of you interested in learning more about Afrasiab.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Afrasiab
Following last week’s discussion, I also want to add few sentences in order to answer what history means to me. I think history is a construction of “real” events in a narrative form. I think production or revision of historical accounts has a purpose. According to psychological principles our goals, emotions, and motivations affect not only how we encode information in the fist place, but also how we remember these material in the future. Since history is produced in a narrative form, there is no doubt in my mind that it should also be affected by these biases. Modern anthropologists who study historical artifacts and historical accounts of early historian strive to attend to goals and purposes that motivated the production, revision, or interpretation of these texts. All I am trying to say is that there is no doubt that these texts, artifacts, and so on are a great source of information but scholars need to also take them with the grain of salt. I think similarities and associations that exist between many texts can help scholars in their objective endeavor.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Heavenly horse!
Hello everyone and happy thanksgiving.
After doing my readings for this week I got curious to know how the heavenly horses that caused wars between the Chinese and their neighbors looked like. I found some artworks of Ferghana horse that I would like to share with you:
http://www.persiancarpetguide.com/sw-asia/Rugs/Horse_Covers.htm
http://www.superstock.co.uk/stock-photography/Fereghan
I also found a short article about the introduction of heavenly horse to China that I think is interesting. Here is the link:
http://www.akhalteke.org/web/KaraKum.nsf/PermaLinks/TNKH-7E9K24
I found it interesting how passion for new and exotic things led the Chinese to establish relationships with their non-Chinese neighbors. Marriage alliances and tributary relationships were developed to facilitate these foreign affairs. These policies made it possible for trading to occur along the Silk Road. The other thing about our reading that cut my attention was how the Chinese emperor justified his cruelty and greed for heavenly horses by attaching spiritual significance to them. It reminded me of some of today’s world leaders who justify their brutality in the name of religion.
After doing my readings for this week I got curious to know how the heavenly horses that caused wars between the Chinese and their neighbors looked like. I found some artworks of Ferghana horse that I would like to share with you:
http://www.persiancarpetguide.com/sw-asia/Rugs/Horse_Covers.htm
http://www.superstock.co.uk/stock-photography/Fereghan
I also found a short article about the introduction of heavenly horse to China that I think is interesting. Here is the link:
http://www.akhalteke.org/web/KaraKum.nsf/PermaLinks/TNKH-7E9K24
I found it interesting how passion for new and exotic things led the Chinese to establish relationships with their non-Chinese neighbors. Marriage alliances and tributary relationships were developed to facilitate these foreign affairs. These policies made it possible for trading to occur along the Silk Road. The other thing about our reading that cut my attention was how the Chinese emperor justified his cruelty and greed for heavenly horses by attaching spiritual significance to them. It reminded me of some of today’s world leaders who justify their brutality in the name of religion.
Monday, September 21, 2009
After reading the first three chapters of Frances Wood’s The Silk Road: Two Thousand Years in the Heart of Asia, I realized how important it is for us to familiarize ourselves with the map of the Silk Road. Even though we have heard about Marco Polo and his epic journey to Central Asia and perhaps know the name of few cities along the Silk Road, most of us are not familiar with the name of most cities, deserts, mountains, and sees in this region. Studying the map before reading the chapters helped me to better follow the story that the author was relating. I could actually follow the journey across the Silk Road form China to Rome.
I really liked the way that Wood incorporated the early explorers’ accounts into her writing. The early explorers’ accounts not only tell the story of the development of commerce between Europe and Asia, but also is a story about interaction of different civilizations and the consequent cultural borrowings that happen as a result of it. Most of these stories are fascinating. They contain detailed accounts of people’s clothes, languages, religions, and so forth. However, judging some of these accounts with today’s standards we realize that most of them are not factual information collected by unbiased fieldworkers. They are rife with stereotypical views and a sense of European superiority. Such a biased description can be found on page 25. Overall, I enjoyed the book’s beautiful illustrations.
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