Introduction to
Buddhism [Honors] (REL
2341, section 4049) Fall 2006
Tuesday period
4 (10:40-11:30) in Little 201
Thursday
periods 4-5 (10:40-12:35) in Fine Arts C 120
Course website:
http://www.clas.ufl.edu/users/jneelis/classes/rel_2341_fall2006.htm
Instructor: Dr. Jason Neelis, Assistant Professor,
Department of Religion
Office hours
(130
E-mail: jneelis@religion.ufl.edu Phone:
(352) 392-1625, ext. 240
Teaching Assistant: Hye-Sook Kim
Office hours
(130
E-mail: hskim@religion.ufl.edu Phone: 392-1625, ext. 223
Course goals:
This general
introduction to Buddhist religious traditions surveys the transformation of Buddhism
from an ancient South Asian heterodox movement into a vital aspect of
contemporary Southeast Asian, Chinese, Korean, Japanese, and Tibetan cultures. Students will be exposed to basic Buddhist
beliefs and practices through the study of literature, inscriptions, archeology,
and art. Topics include the fundamental ideas of various teachings, the formation
and institutionalization of the Buddhist community, the origins and development
of Mainstream, Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna, and processes of
transmission and modern manifestations of Buddhism throughout and beyond
Course format:
Class meetings
are structured around topics and reading assignments outlined below. Assigned
readings are to be completed before topics are covered in order to contribute
to discussions. Questions and comments are welcomed both inside and outside of
class, and students should take advantage of extra help available from the
instructor and the teaching assistant during office hours. There are no
prerequisites for the course, other than a sincere interest in intellectual engagement
with very interesting systems of religious actions and ideas.
Required books
(available at Goerings Book Store at
Rupert Gethin, The
Foundations of Buddhism.
Once
the Buddha Was a Monkey: Ārya Śūra’s Jātakamālā
(translated by Peter Khoroche).
John
P. Keenan, How Master Mou Removes Our Doubts: A Reader-Response Study and
Translation of the Mou-tzu Li-huo lun.
Kurtis
Schaeffer, Himalayan Hermitess: The Life of a Tibetan Buddhist Nun.
Recommended
John
Strong, The Experience of Buddhism:
Sources and Interpretations, 2nd edition.
Kevin
Trainor, et al. Buddhism: The illustrated guide.
Requirements:
Short answer responses and participation:
25 %
Mid-term exam (Thursday, Oct. 5): 25 %
Book Review (Due Thursday, Nov. 16): 25
%
Final Exam (December 11, 7:30-9:30 a.m.):
25 %
Evaluation:
Grades will be computed based on the
percentages given above according to this scale -
A: 100 - 92, B+: 91-87, B: 86-81, C+:
80-76, C: 75-71, D+: 70-66, D: 65-61,
E: 60 or below
Short
Answer responses
A series of 5 question sheets distributed a week in advance of each due
date will help to guide reading assignments and serve as a basis of discussion.
Answers should be written in paragraph format and demonstrate intellectual
engagement with the questions based on reading materials and class discussions.
Book
Review
One of three required
books (with the exception of Gethin’s Foundation of Buddhism) is to be
reviewed in a 5 page double-spaced typed document due Thursday, Nov. 16. The
review should address issues of authorship, literary style and historical
context and explain how the text relates to particular Buddhist ideas and
practices by citing examples and identifying major themes.
Attendance policy:
After three absences, 2 points will be deducted for each additional unexcused absence (1 point will be deducted for each episode of tardiness). Leaving class early without the instructor's permission and disrespectful behavior (personal conversations, sleeping, reading the paper, and rudeness to the instructor, assistant or fellow students) will result in further deductions. Absences can be excused if written requests are submitted in advance or if written explanations are submitted with valid documentation.
Academic Honesty
guidelines at the
http://www.dso.ufl.edu/judicial/honestybrochure.htm
Special note: Offenses of plagiarism will not be tolerated.
Students will not receive credit for plagiarized assignments.
Students with Disabilities should register with the office of the Dean of Students:
http://www.dso.ufl.edu/drp/
Schedule of topics and reading assignments (subject to modifications)
Week 1 (August
24) Course introduction: Myths and Misconceptions about Buddhism
Week 2 (August
29-31): Hagiography of the Buddha
Tuesday 8/29:
Indian religious and social background
Thursday 8/31:
Renunciation, Awakening, and Nirvāṇa
[Strong 9-18,
34-38 recommended]
Week 3 (Sept.
5-7): Buddha's teachings (Dharma)
Tues. 9/5: Four
truths and eightfold path
[Strong 32-34
and Trainor 64-79 recommended]
Thurs. 9/7: Dependent
arising and no self
Week 4 (Sept.
12-14): Early Buddhist Community (Samgha)
Tues. 9/12:
Buddhist monasticism
[Strong 51-55; Trainor
98-105 recommended]
Thurs. 9/14:
Interactions with lay patrons (Video: Making of a Monk)
[Trainor 50-53
recommended]
1st
set of short answers due
Week 5 (Sept.
19-21): Buddhist languages, literature, and schools
Tues. 9/19: Buddhist
languages and literature
[Trainor
176-195 recommended]
Thurs. 9/21:
Schisms and Schools
[Strong 128-133
recommended]
Sectarian
debates (Encyclopedia
of Buddhism, vol. 2 “Mainstream Buddhist Schools” pp. 501-507)
Week 6 (Sept.
26-28): Paths of Buddhist Practice
Tues. 9/26: Buddhist
rituals, art, and archaeology
Thurs. 9/28: Buddhist
meditation traditions
[Trainor 80-89
recommended]
2nd
set of short answers due
Week 7 (Oct.
3-5)
Tues. 10/3:
Review for mid-term exam
Thurs. 10/5: Mid-term exam
Week 8 (Oct.
10-12): Early Mahāyāna
Tues. 10/10:
Origins of Mahāyāna
Thurs. 10/12:
Bodhisattva ideals
[Strong 169-175;
Trainor 132-139 recommended]
Week 9 (Oct.
17-19): Mahāyāna philosophies and practices
Tues. 10/17: Buddhas
and Buddhahood
[Trainor 90-93
recommended]
Thurs. 10/19:
Mahāyāna doctrines
[Trainor
196-207 recommended]
3rd
set of short answers due
Week 10 (Oct.
24-26): Chinese Buddhism
Tues. 10/24: Early transmission of Buddhism to Central
Asia and
Thurs. 10/26: East
Asian Buddhist schools/lineages
[Trainor
150-161 recommended]
Week 11 (Oct. 31- Nov. 2): Korean and Japanese Buddhism
Tues. 10/31: Establishment of Buddhism in
[Strong 317-319
(
Thurs. 11/2: DVD/Video: Land of the Disappearing Buddha
4th
set of short answers due
Week 12 (Nov. 7-9): Esoteric
Buddhism (Vajrayāna)
Tues. 11/7: Indian Tantric Buddhism
Thurs. 11/9: Tibetan
Buddhism
[Strong 251-261; Trainor
162-173 recommended]
Week 13 (Nov. 14-16): Modern Buddhism
Tues. 11/14: Contemporary Theravāda in
[Strong 231-239; Trainor 120-131 recommended]
Thurs. 11/16: Modern transformations of Buddhism in
[Trainor 214-229 recommended]
Book Reviews due
No class Thanksgiving week (Nov. 21-23)
Week 14 (Nov. 28-20): Buddhism beyond
Tues. 11/28: Buddhism
in the West
[Strong 342-349;
Trainor 230-237 recommended]
Thurs. 11/30:
Buddhism in
Reading: Strong
349-351 (Rituals and Festivals: The Buddha’s Birthday in
[Strong 351-363
recommended]
5th
set of short answers due
Week 15 (Tues.,
Dec. 5): Course evaluation and review for final
exam
Final Exam: Monday, Dec. 11, 7:30-9:30 a.m.
Partial list
of additional
resources (available at UF Library and/or online)
Encyclopedia of Buddhism, ed. Robert Buswell (e-book and Library West Reference (3rd Floor) -- BQ128 .E62 2003
Textbooks and anthologies:
World of Buddhism: Buddhist Monks and Nuns in Society and Culture, eds. Heinz Bechert and Richard Gombrich (Course Reserves: BQ4012 .W67 1984 )
Buddhist Thought: A Complete Introduction to the Indian Tradition, Paul Williams with Anthony Tribe (e-book and Course Reserves: BQ4012 .W55 2000)
The Buddhist Religion: A Historical Introduction, Richard Robinson (Course Reserves: 294.3 R663b)
What the Buddha Taught, Walpola Rahula (Course Reserves: BQ4132 .R3313 1974 )
Bones, Stones, and Buddhist Monks: Collected Papers on the archaeology, epigraphy and texts of monastic Buddhism in India, Gregory Schopen (e-book)
Journals:
Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies (3rd Floor Periodicals: BQ2 .I55a)
Eastern Buddhist (3rd Floor Periodicals: BL1400 .E3; Storage: 294.39205 E13)
Journal of Buddhist Ethics (available online at: http://jbe.gold.ac.uk/current.html)
Recommended Buddhist Studies websites:
WWW Virtual Library: http://www.ciolek.com/WWWVL-Buddhism.html
Gene Thursby’s annotated links: http://www.religiousworlds.com/buddhist.html
Ron Epstein’s Resources: http://online.sfsu.edu/~rone/Buddhism/Buddhism.htm
BBC Buddhism: http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/buddhism/index.shtml
Early Buddhist Manuscripts Project: http://depts.washington.edu/ebmp/index.php
Buddhism in the
Pluralism Project links to U.S. Buddhist temples: http://www.pluralism.org/weblinks/weblink_direct.php?tradition=Buddhist
Pluralism Project Bibliography: http://www.pluralism.org/resources/biblio/buddhism.php
Buddhist Art websites:
http://www.seattleartmuseum.org/exhibit/interactives/buddhism/enter.asp#
International Dunhuang Project: http://idp.bl.uk/
Monks and Merchants: Silk Road Treasures (Asia Society exhibit):
http://www.asiasociety.org/arts/monksandmerchants/index.html
Silk Road
http://depts.washington.edu/uwch/silkroad/exhibit/index2.html
Chinese Buddhist Art (Patricia Ebrey,
http://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/bud/5budhism.htm
Himalayan Art Resources:http://www.tibetart.com/