RLB53 Tibetan Buddhism

Faculty of Arts
Spring 2018
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 4 credit(s). Type of Completion: k (colloquium).
Teacher(s)
doc. PhDr. Luboš Bělka, CSc. (lecturer)
Mgr. Jana Valtrová, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Martin Špirk, Ph.D. (assistant)
Guaranteed by
Mgr. Jana Valtrová, Ph.D.
Department for the Study of Religions – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Mgr. Šárka Londa Vondráčková
Supplier department: Department for the Study of Religions – Faculty of Arts
Timetable
each odd Monday 15:50–17:25 G31
Prerequisites (in Czech)
( RLA10 Buddhism I && RLA11 Buddhism II ) || ( RLKA10 Buddhism I && RLKA11 Buddhism II ) || ( RLA21 Buddhism || RLKA21 Buddhism ) || JAP149 Buddhism: Teaching&Practice
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The course offers an outline, history and presence of Northern (Tibetan, Vajrayana) Buddhism which is sometimes called by an outdated term Lamaism. The first lectures inform about the history and presence of academic Buddhology, Tibetanistic literature in Czech and other languages, including information on the internet. Follows information about periods in the historical, cultural and religious development of respective Tibetan traditions (or orders, sometimes called schools or sects) from their establishment up to the present time. In the main part of the course students gain the historical and factual outline of the political and religious history of Tibet. Some space is devoted to the aspects of life and culture in Tibet. Attention is paid mainly to individual Buddhist orders and pre-Buddhist traditions: Bön, Nyingmapa, Kagyupa, Sakyapa and Gelugpa. The course brings also basic information on the spread of traditional Tibetan Buddhism outside the Tibetan territory (Sikkim, Nepal, Bhutan, Ladakh, Mongolia, Buryatia, Kalmykia, Tuva). The conclusion of the course is the modern history of Tibet (19th and 20th centuries) as well as the phenomenon of Tibetan Buddhism in the West.
Learning outcomes
At the end of the course students should be able to:
  • define basic forms of religious life in Tibet and understand its basic concepts
  • know the history of Tibetan Buddhism and its Buddhist schools
  • describe basic works about Tibetan Buddhism (both Buddhist and Buddhologist).
    • Syllabus
    • Introduction. Literary sources, Western and Czech and Slovak Buddhology and Tibetan studies, Internet sources.
    • Tibet - the people and the land. Basic geography and ethnography. Ethnic and political Tibet.
    • Tibet - religious and political history I (Warlords: years 634-849).
    • Tibet - religious and political history II (Buddhist revolution: years 850-1641).
    • Tibet - religious and political history III (Rule of the Dalai Lamas: years 1642-1950).
    • Bön. Life and work of the tradition founder Shenrab Mibo, origin of the teachings, first followers.
    • Nyingmapa. Origin of the first (non-reformist) Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Life and work of the tradition founder Padmasambhava.
    • Kagyupa. Life and work of the tradition founder Tilopa; continuation of the tradition.
    • Sakyapa. Origin of the tradition, first monasteries, Sakyapa literature (tantras), basic teachings.
    • Gelugpa. Origin of the tradition, first monasteries - Kadampa; Life and work of the tradition founder Congkhapa.
    • Traditional Tibetan Buddhism outside Tibet: Sikkim, Nepal, Bhutan, Ladakh, Mongolia, Buryatia, Kalmykia, Tuva).
    • Tibet in the modern history and Tibetan Buddhism in the West: 20th – 21st centuries.
    Literature
      required literature
    • BEROUNSKÝ, Daniel. Tibetské představy o zásvětí. 1. vyd. Brno: Masarykova univerzita, 2014, 118 pp. ISBN 978-80-210-7069-1. Digitální knihovna FF MU info
    • KAPSTEIN, Matthew. Dějiny Tibetu. Translated by Ladislav Stančo. 1. vyd. Praha: Grada, 2011, 328 s. ISBN 9788024732688. info
    • POWERS, John. Úvod do tibetského buddhismu. Translated by Dušan Zbavitel. Revidované vydání. Praha: Beta, 2009, 470 stran. ISBN 9788073063887. info
      recommended literature
    • BEROUNSKÝ, Daniel. Archaická tibetská literatura : (7.-10. století). 1. vyd. Brno: Masarykova univerzita, 2013, 166 s. ISBN 9788021063587. URL info
    • ŽAGABPA, Cipön Wangčhug Dedän. Dějiny Tibetu. Translated by Josef Kolmaš. Praha: Lidové noviny, 2000, 428 s. ISBN 80-7106-410-6. info
    • Pravda o Tibetu :fakta a svědectví. Edited by Ľubomír Sklenka, Translated by Lucie Ryntová. 1. české vyd. Praha: Lungta, 1999, 107 s. ISBN 80-902650-0-6. info
    • GJALCCHÄN, Sönam. Zrcadlo králů : tibetská kronika 14. století. Translated by Josef Kolmaš. Vyd. 1. Praha: Vyšehrad, 1998, 337 s., 8. ISBN 80-7021-273-X. info
    • KOLMAŠ, Josef, BSTAN-'DZIN-RGYA-MTSHO, Dušan ZBAVITEL and Ivana GROLLOVÁ. Svět tibetského buddhismu. Photo by Pavol Breier - Zdeněk Thoma - Josef Ptáček. 1. vyd. Praha: Brabapress 93, 1996, 141 s., [4. ISBN 80-85871-88-2. info
    • KOLMAŠ, Josef. Buddhistická svatá písma :šestnáct arhatů. 1. vyd. V Praze: Práh, 1995. ISBN 80-85809-23-0. info
    Teaching methods
    lectures, class discussions, reading of texts
    Assessment methods
    Colloquium
    Written test based on the required reading, lectures, and presentations (100 points, the minimum of 60 points is required to pass the test). Test represents 100% of overal evaluation in the course.
    Language of instruction
    Czech
    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 vyučujícího.
    The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2003, Autumn 2006, Spring 2007, Spring 2009, Spring 2011, Spring 2013, Autumn 2014, Spring 2016, Spring 2017, Spring 2019, Spring 2021.
    • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2018, recent)
    • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/phil/spring2018/RLB53