The UA’s Center for Buddhist Studies announces four lectures in the spring 2018 Pu Yin Buddhist Studies Lecture Series.

Professor Albert Welter, head of the East Asian Studies Department, will give the inaugural lecture on Hangzhou Buddhism, and the remaining three lectures will focus on Chinese Buddhism, American Buddhism, and the concept of Regional Religious System (RRS) in Buddhist studies.

All lectures are presented in English and open to the public. The series is sponsored by the Pu Yin Educational Center. 

Jan. 30, 4 p.m.
A New Look at Old Tradition: Reimagining East Asian Buddhism through Hangzhou
Presented by Albert Welter, Head of the UA Department of East Asian Studies
Location: The Little Chapel of All Nations, 1401 E. First. St.

The Hangzhou region, centered in the city of Hangzhou, has long been one of the most important cultural hubs in China, and has had a wide-ranging impact on Chinese culture and Buddhism. The study of Buddhism, however, has been conducted from Indo-centric agendas that have long served to marginalize East Asian Buddhism, including the Hangzhou regions contributions. Seen from the vantage point of Hangzhou, East Asian Buddhism assumes a central role in the interregional spread of religion and culture. The advent and dissemination of indigenous forms of Buddhism conceived in the Hangzhou region precipitated cultural advances that have resonated down to the present.

Feb. 8, 4 p.m.
The Idea, History, and Influence of Master Jinghui’s Living Chan in Contemporary Chinese Buddhism
Presented by Yaling Chu, Associate Professor at Shijiazhuang College, Visiting Scholar at the Center for Buddhist Studies
Location: The Little Chapel of All Nations

This talk focuses on the famous founder of Living Chan 生活禪, Master Jinghui 淨慧法師 (1933-2013), and his Buddhist thought and practice. First, the talk introduces the biography of the late Master Jinghui, who was abbot of Bailin Chan Monastery 柏林禪寺, Vice President of the Buddhist Association of China, Ninth and tenth Members of the CPPCC (Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference) National Committee, President of The Buddhist Association of Hebei Province. Master Jinghui established a systematic theory of Living Chan, and founded Living Chan magazine. During his life time, he revived about twenty temples in north China, including the famous Bailin Chan Monastery in Hebei Province. In addition, Master Jinghui initiated the Summer Camp of Living Chan 生活禪夏令營 at Bailin Chan Monastery in 1993, which has become an annual event ever since and has great influence in China and aboard. As the Buddhist scholar Wei Dedong comments, the Summer Camp not only opens the door to the Buddhist Youth and social elite, but also promotes Buddhism as an essential spiritual resource for China’s modernization.

Feb. 16, 3:30 p.m.
COLLOQUIUM: San Francisco Zen Center and American Buddhism 
Presented by Zoketsu Norman Fischer, former Co-abbot of the San Francisco Zen Center 
Location: Copper Room, UA Student Union Memorial Center

March 15, 4 p.m.
Buddhism as a Regional Religious System
Presented by Karl Ryavec, Professor of World Heritage at the University of California, Merced
Location: The Little Chapel of All Nations

This talk will present historical mappings of Buddhism on an integration of World Systems and Regional Systems Theories to study the growth and spread of Buddhism from its origins in South Asia to East Asia as a Regional Religious System.