Tibet and Tibetan Studies

Collectively, the papers of this volume reveal the cultural dynamism of Tibet in the period between 900 and 1400CE, when the fundamental contours of Tibetan Buddhism were still fluid and highly contested. The papers address a spectrum of issues in Tibetan religion and literature, ranging in time and space from the far eastern oasis of Dunhuang in the tenth century through high classical developments in Central Tibet in the early fifteenth century. It is divided into four parts, addressing respectively…

In this volume, for the first time Tibetan Medicine is approached from a combination of anthropology and history. These two disciplines appear to be vital to come to understand Tibetan medical knowledge and practice as being complex, diverse and dynamic phenomena which reflect changing social and historical conditions at the same time while also appealing to or preserving an older canon of traditions. Part One examines the impacts of various modernities in Tibet, the Himalayan borderlands and the Tibetan exile,…

The study of the rise and institutions of the Tibetan empire of the seventh to ninth centuries, and of the continuing development of Tibetan civilization during the obscure period that followed, have aroused growing interest among scholars of Inner Asia in recent decades. The six contributions presented here represent refinements in substance and method characterizing current work in this area. A chapter by Brandon Dotson provides a new perspective on law and divination under the empire, while the post-imperial international…

when a Woman becomes a Religious Dynasty Author: Hildegard diemberger

The Tibetans Author: Matthew Kapstein

Why The Dalai Lama Matters His Act Of Truth As The Solution For China, Tibet, And The World Author: Robert Thurman

Account of a Pilgrimage to Central Tibet investigates a rare text, the dbus gtsang gi gnas bskor and its author Jam-dbyangs-bstan-pa-rgya-mtsho, about whom very little was formely known. The Brag-dgon-pa lama made his pilgrimage in 1916, while visiting Tibet and meeting the 13th Dalai Lama.

Despite the popular image of Tibet as a remote and inaccessible land to which few Europeans ventured, more than one hundred British-Indian officials lived and worked there during the years 1904-1947.

A Hundred Customs and Traditions of Tibetan People puts together everyday beliefs, practices, observances, and mannerisms of living life enriched by thousands of years of spiritual consciousness. Though it is hard to condense the rich customs and traditions of Tibet into it. From ceremonial rites, auspicious days and symbols to everyday beliefs, Tibetan opera and various kinds of dance forms to the five schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The tradition of naming a newborn to marriage customs and finally to the…

Tibet is now open to anyone wishing to explore itsancient culture. This book, based on a nineteenth-century guide for Tibetan pilgrims by the renownedLama Jamyang Kyentse Wangpo, describes thelocation, site, relics and background to places ofmajor religious and historic significance. To compilethe guide, the author followed in Jamyang Kyentse’sfootsteps, visiting 150 temples, monasteries, sacredcaves, lakes and mountains. Some of these areeasily accessible to tourist groups; others have to bereached on foot – certain valleys written about herehad never previously been…

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The Proceedings of the Seminars of the International Association for Tibetan Studies (IATS) have developed into the most representative world-wide cross-section of Tibetan Studies. They are an indispensable reference-work for anyone interested in Tibet and capture the cutting edge of Tibet related research. This volume is the last of three volumes general proceedings of the Ninth Seminar of the IATS. It is a richly illustrated book, containing a careful selection of scholarly and academic articles that open sur-prising perspectives on…

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Drokpa is a stunning portrait of the nomads of the Tibetan Plateau and Himalayas. Once widespread throughout the world, nomadic cultures are vanishing. High and remote, the grazing lands of Tibets and adjoining areas of Bhutan, India and Nepal still supports nomads and their livestock. With evocativoe photographs and insightful text, the American rangeland ecologist Daniel Miller presents a visiul records of these remarkable people who make a living moving with their animals in one of the harshest environments on…

This groundbreaking study focuses on a village called Te in a "Tibetanized" region of northern Nepal. While Te's people are nominally Buddhist, and engage the services of resident Tibetan Tantric priests for a range of rituals, they are also exponents of a local religion that involves blood sacrifices to wild, unconverted territorial gods and goddesses. The village is unusual in the extent to which it has maintained its local autonomy and also in the degree to which both Buddhism and…

The paradigmatic Buddhist is the monk. It is well known that ideally Buddhist monks are expected to meditate and study -- to engage in religious practice. The institutional structure which makes this concentration on spiritual cultivation possible is the monastery. But as a bureaucratic institution, the monastery requires administrators to organize and manage its functions, to prepare quiet spots for meditation, to arrange audiences for sermons, or simply to make sure food, rooms, and bedding are provided. The valuations placed…

In Travels in the Netherworld , Bryan J. Cuevas examines a fascinating but little-known genre of Tibetan narrative literature about the delok , ordinary men and women who claim to have died, traveled through hell, and then returned from the afterlife. These narratives enjoy audiences ranging from the most sophisticated monastic scholars to pious townsfolk, villagers, and nomads. Their accounts emphasize the universal Buddhist principles of impermanence and worldly suffering, the fluctuations of karma, and the feasibility of obtaining a…

Buddhist stûpas, found throughout the Indian subcontinent, are significant attractions in the pilgrimage, tourist, and cultural landscape of South Asia. Once symbols of the religious and cultural prominence of Buddhism, stûpas subsequently also became part of local or Hindu worship patterns. Thematically organized, this volume presents an engaging yet detailed account of stûpas. It examines their ‘discovery’ in colonial India by travellers, archaeologists, Indologists, and ethnographers. Specific case studies on Sanchi, Bharhut, and Amaravati are supplemented by wider discussions on…

This is a work that will repay repeated readings....Hubers [book] is a groundbreaking work of great significance to both Tibetan and Asian Studies that will also be of interest to scholars and students of Religious Studies and anthropology in general. It is a well-written, balanced, and insightful account of a complex subject, one that we may hope will be the model for future case studies of Tibets other neri mountains.Journal of Buddhist Ethics Product Description The Tibetan district of Tsari…

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Throughout the past millennium, certain Tibetan Buddhist yogins have taken on profoundly norm-overturning modes of dress and behavior, including draping themselves in human remains, consuming filth, provoking others to violence, and even performing sacrilege. They became known far and wide as "madmen" (smyon pa, pronounced nyönpa), achieving a degree of saintliness in the process. This book offers the first comprehensive study of Tibet's "holy madmen" drawing on their biographies and writings, as well as tantric commentaries, later histories, oral traditions,…

Buddhism in Mongolian History, Culture, and Society explores the unique elements of Mongolian Buddhism while challenging its stereotyped image as a mere replica of Tibetan Buddhism. Vesna A. Wallace brings together an interdisciplinary group of leading scholars to explore the interaction between the Mongolian indigenous culture and Buddhism, the features that Buddhism acquired through its adaptation to the Mongolian cultural sphere, and the ways Mongols have constructed their Buddhist identity. The contributors explore the ways that Buddhism retained unique Mongolian…

Prisoners of Shangri-La is a provocative analysis of the romance of Tibet, a romance that, even as it is invoked by Tibetan lamas living in exile, ultimately imprisons those who seek the goal of Tibetan independence from Chinese occupation.