The Body Incantatory - Paul Copp

The Body Incantatory

Spells and the Ritual Imagination in Medieval Chinese Buddhism

(Autor)

Buch | Hardcover
400 Seiten
2014
Columbia University Press (Verlag)
978-0-231-16270-8 (ISBN)
77,30 inkl. MwSt
The Body Incantatory reveals the histories and logics of practice of deeply embodied forms of Buddhist ritual. Paul Copp vividly captures the diversity of Buddhist practice among medieval monks, ritual healers, and other individuals lost to history, offering a corrective to accounts that have overemphasized elite, canonical materials.
Whether chanted as devotional prayers, intoned against the dangers of the wilds, or invoked to heal the sick and bring ease to the dead, incantations were pervasive features of Buddhist practice in late medieval China (600-1000 C.E.). Material incantations, in forms such as spell-inscribed amulets and stone pillars, were also central to the spiritual lives of both monks and laypeople. In centering its analysis on the Chinese material culture of these deeply embodied forms of Buddhist ritual, The Body Incantatory reveals histories of practice-and logics of practice-that have until now remained hidden. Paul Copp examines inscribed stones, urns, and other objects unearthed from anonymous tombs; spells carved into pillars near mountain temples; and manuscripts and prints from both tombs and the Dunhuang cache. Focusing on two major Buddhist spells, or dharani, and their embodiment of the incantatory logics of adornment and unction, he makes breakthrough claims about the significance of Buddhist incantation practice not only in medieval China but also in Central Asia and India.
Copp's work vividly captures the diversity of Buddhist practice among medieval monks, ritual healers, and other individuals lost to history, offering a corrective to accounts that have overemphasized elite, canonical materials.

Paul Copp is associate professor in Chinese religion and thought at the University of Chicago.

List of Illustrations Preface: The Body Incantatory Thanks Abbreviations Introduction: Dharanis and the Study of Buddhist Spells 1. Scripture, Relic, Talisman, Spell 2. Amulets of the Incantation of Wish Fulfillment 3. Dust, Shadow, and the Incantation of Glory 4. Mystic Store and Wizard's Basket Coda: Material Incantations and the Study of Medieval Chinese Buddhism Appendix 1. Suiqiu Amulets Discovered in China Appendix 2. Stein no. 4690: Four Spells Notes Glossary Sources Index

Reihe/Serie The Sheng Yen Series in Chinese Buddhist Studies
Zusatzinfo 32 b&w illustrations
Verlagsort New York
Sprache englisch
Maße 152 x 229 mm
Themenwelt Kunst / Musik / Theater Kunstgeschichte / Kunststile
Geisteswissenschaften Religion / Theologie Buddhismus
ISBN-10 0-231-16270-7 / 0231162707
ISBN-13 978-0-231-16270-8 / 9780231162708
Zustand Neuware
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