RLB228 Japan Buddhism

Faculty of Arts
Autumn 2010
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: k (colloquium).
Teacher(s)
Mgr. Zuzana Kubovčáková, M.A., Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
doc. PhDr. David Václavík, Ph.D.
Department for the Study of Religions – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Lucie Čelková
Timetable
Fri 1. 10. 11:40–13:15 C11, Fri 29. 10. 11:40–13:15 C11, Fri 26. 11. 11:40–13:15 C11
Prerequisites (in Czech)
RLKA10 Buddhism I && RLKA11 Buddhism II
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

The capacity limit for the course is 50 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/50, only registered: 0/50
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The course is aimed at a thorough overview of introduction and development of the teaching of Buddhism in Japan, starting with the period of its arrival onto the Japanese archipelago until the modern period. At the end of the course students should be able to understand the background of the various schools of Japanese Buddhism and their influence in social and political fields. He should be able to work with information on the most prominent figures and founders of the various schools of Japanese Buddhism. Based on the acquired knowledge he should be able to interpret various Buddhist writings.
Syllabus
  • Early Japanese religiosity- kami belief
  • Arrival of Buddhism and its interaction with early Shinto
  • Nara Buddhism- State Buddhism
  • Heian Buddhism- Esoterization of Japanese Buddhism
  • Pure Land School and the Lotus Sutra
  • Popular Buddhism of Kamakura Period
  • Elite Buddhism in the capitals
  • Soto and Rinzai Zen in Kyoto and Kamakura
  • Soto and Obaku Zen in the provinces
  • Folk belief and Shungendo ascetic practices
  • Buddhist art and architecture
Literature
  • BOWRING, Richard John. The religious traditions of Japan, 500-1600. 1st pub. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005, xvi, 485. ISBN 052185119X. info
  • Sources of Japanese tradition. Edited by Wm. Theodore De Bary - William M. Bodiford - Jurgis Elisonas - Philip. 2nd ed. New York: Columbia University Press, 2001, xxvi, 524. ISBN 9780231121385. info
  • Shinto in history : ways of the Kami. Edited by John Breen - M. J. Teeuwen. 1st pub. Surrey: Curzon, 2000, xii, 368. ISBN 0700711724. info
  • ABE, Ryūichi. The weaving of mantra : Kūkai and the construction of esoteric Buddhist discourse. New York: Columbia University Press, 1999, xviii, 593. ISBN 0231112874. info
  • Chan insights and oversights : an epistemological critique of the Chan tradition. Edited by Bernard Faure. 1st pbk. print. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1996, viii, 322. ISBN 0691029024. info
  • Visions of power : imagining medieval Japanese Buddhism. Edited by Bernard Faure, Translated by Phyllis Brooks. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1996, xvi, 329. ISBN 0691037582. info
Teaching methods
Lectures combined with class discussions.
Assessment methods
The course will be assessed upon a critical essay of 3000 words. An essay submitted in English will not need to exceed 2000 words.
Language of instruction
Slovak
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
The course is taught once in two years.
Information on course enrolment limitations: Zápis mimo religionistiku je podmíněn souhlasem vyučující.
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2007, Spring 2010.
  • Enrolment Statistics (recent)
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