RLB229 Tibetan Buddhism in Western Interpretations

Faculty of Arts
Spring 2016
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 5 credit(s). Type of Completion: k (colloquium).
Teacher(s)
Mgr. Jana Valtrová, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
doc. PhDr. David Zbíral, 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 9:10–10:45 K12 nerezervovat
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of Buddhist teaching and especially the specifics of Tibetan Buddhism.
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 30 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/30, only registered: 0/30
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The course is focosed on seelcted issues of western intepretations of Tibetan Buddhism. MEthodologically it is based on works of D. Lopez, P. Bishop, M. Brauen. At the end of the course the student will be able: - to undestand the history of western exploration of Tibet - to explain particular representations of Tibetan Buddhismu in their historical and cultural context - to understad and apply the theory of representations (S. Hall)
Syllabus
  • 1) Introductory lesson
  • 2) “Myth of Tibet” examined – a survey of the development in the studies about Western images of Tibetan Buddhism (A. Bharati, T. Shakya, D. Lopez, P. Bishop, M. Brauen etc.)
  • 3)Tibetan Buddhism in the Reports of Christian Missionaries
  • 4)Lamaism – the Wrathfull Form of Buddhism? Discussion about the usage of the term “Lamaism” in academic writing, the “occult” image of Tibetan Buddhism.
  • 5) The image of Tibetan Buddhism in Czechoslowakia before 1989
  • 6) Lost Horizon and flying monks – creating the “Myth of Tibet”.
  • 7) Buddhism in the West or “Western/European/American...etc.” Buddhism?
  • 8)Tibetan Buddhism in a visual culture
Literature
    required literature
  • ROZEHNALOVÁ, Jana. Zrcadlo orientalismu - obrazy Tibtu v českém prostředí (The Mirror of Orientalism: Images of Tibet in Czech context). Mezinárodní vztahy. Praha: Ústav mezinárodních vztahů, 2005, vol. 40, No 3, p. 44-62, 18 pp. ISSN 0323-1844. info
  • ROZEHNALOVÁ, Jana. Obzor znovu nalezený - bádání o vysněném Tibetu (Horizon rediscovered: Studies on Tibet Imagined). Sacra aneb Rukověť religionisty. Brno: Občanské sdružení Sacra, 2003, vol. 3, No 1, p. 18-27. ISSN 1214-5351. info
  • LOPEZ, Donald S. Prisoners of Shangri-La : Tibetan Buddhism and the West. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1998, x, 283. ISBN 0226493105. info
    recommended literature
  • ROZEHNALOVÁ, Jana. Czech Perspectives on Buddhism, 1860-1989. Journal of Religion in Europe. Brill, 2008, vol. 1, No 2, p. 156-181. ISSN 1874-8910. info
  • ROZEHNALOVÁ, Jana. Tibetský buddhismus očima křesťanských misionářů (17. - 19. století) (Tibetan Buddhism as described by Christian missionaries (17th - 19th c.)). Nový Orient. Praha: Orientální ústav AV ČR, 2005, vol. 60, No 1, p. 15-19. ISSN 0029-5302. info
  • BRAUEN, Martin and Markus VOCK. Dreamworld Tibet : western illusions. Edited by Renate Koller, Translated by Martin Willson. 1st English ed. Trumbull, CT: Weatherhill, 2004, xii, 284. ISBN 0834805464. info
  • Imagining Tibet : perceptions, projections, & fantasies. Edited by Thierry Dodin - Heinz Räther. Boston: Wisdom Publications, 2001, xiii, 465. ISBN 0861711912. info
  • ZOTZ, Volker. Auf den glückseligen Inseln : Buddhismus in der deutschen Kultur. Berlin: Theseus, 2000, 399 s. ISBN 3896201514. info
  • BRAUEN, Martin, Renate KOLLER and Markus VOCK. Traumwelt Tibet - westliche Trugbilder. Bern: Paul Haupt, 2000, 296 s. ISBN 3258056390. info
  • BISHOP, Peter. Dreams of power : Tibetan Buddhism and the western imagination. 1st publ. London: Athlone Press, 1993, 162 s. ISBN 0838635105. info
Teaching methods
Přednášky, diskuse, četba.
Assessment methods
a) two written commentaries to given texts b) an essay (6-7 pages) on selected topic
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 vyučující.
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2007, Autumn 2018, Spring 2021.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2016, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/phil/spring2016/RLB229