Buddhism and Cultural Studies

Edwin Ng is a cultural theorist who explores the translation of Buddhism in popular culture, the ethics and politics of contemporary mindfulness, and contemplative approaches to learning, inquiry, and activism. He has taught media and communication studies at Deakin University, Australia.

1.Introduction.- 2.Towards a Spiritually-Engaged Cultural Studies.- 3.Methods, Traditions, Liminal Identities.- 4.Of Intellectual Hospitality, Buddhism and Deconstruction.- 5.The ‘Religious Question in Foucault’s Genealogies of Experience.- 6.The Care of Self and Spiritually-Engaged Cultural Studies.- 7.A Foucauldian analysis of Vipassana and a Buddhist art of living.- 8.Buddhist Critical Thought and an Affective Micropolitics of (Un)Becoming.- 9.A Profession of Faith.- 10.Conclusion: Yours faithfully 

“With erudition and humility, Ng has produced a pathbreaking text that forms a much-needed platform for future work in Buddhism, postcolonialism, and poststructuralism. It is recommended for religious studies, Buddhist studies, and cultural studies classes that seek cross-disciplinary and autoethnographic approaches to religious hybridity. It is also an essential resource for research on Buddhist critical theory and the role of religion and ethics in cultural studies.” (Zack Walsh, Religious Studies Review, Vol. 43 (2), June, 2017)