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Chargement... Letters of the Nun Eshinni: Images of Pure Land Buddhism in Medieval Japan (2004)par James C. Dobbins
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Inscrivez-vous à LibraryThing pour découvrir si vous aimerez ce livre Actuellement, il n'y a pas de discussions au sujet de ce livre. This book has 3 sections: 1.) Author's notes on the letters' history and background that is useful for understanding the context and content of the letters 2.) The letters themselves and 3.) scholarly writings on Pure Land Buddhism interpretations arising from the letters. The first section was pretty interesting-- the fact that these letters were written in that time and place and that I am able to read them today is fascinating in its own right. The letters themselves were a bit of a letdown. They had been built up to be much more, to reveal so much more, than they actually did (for me anyway). I had high hopes for letters 8-10 to provide much more details of daily life in Medieval Japan. They were very short, repetitive, and just not that interesting. I am not a scholar of Buddhism so I did not read Section 3. This book may have much more significance to a scholar of Shinsu Buddhism. For the lay person interested in both Japan and Medieval history-- it didn't have much to offer. From the Introduction: Nun Eshinni (1182-1268?), wife of Shinran, (1173-1262) a renowned figure in the history of Japanese Buddhism, wrote these letters, which were found in the 20th century. The letters are written in an unpretentious, graphic account of the everyday life of a Shin Buddhist woman in 13th century Japan. aucune critique | ajouter une critique
Eshinni (1182-1268?), a Buddhist nun and the wife of Shinran (1173-1262), the celebrated founder of the True Pure Land, or Shin, school of Buddhism, was largely unknown until the discovery of a collection of her letters in 1921. In this study, James C. Dobbins, a leading scholar of Pure Land Buddhism, has made creative use of these letters to shed new light on life and religion in medieval Japan. He provides a complete translation of the letters and an explication of them that reveals the character and flavor of early Shin Buddhism. Readers will come away with a new perspective on Pure Land scholarship and a vivid image of Eshinni and the world in which she lived. After situating the ideas and practices of Pure Land Buddhism in the context of the actual living conditions of thirteenth-century Japan, Dobbins examines the portrayal of women in Pure Land Buddhism, the great range of lifestyles found among medieval women and nuns, and how they constructed a meaningful religious life amid negative stereotypes. He goes on to analyze aspects of medieval religion that have been omitted in our modern-day account of Pure Land and tries to reconstruct the religious assumptions of Eshinni and Shinran in their own day. A prevailing theme that runs throughout the book is the need to look beyond idealized images of Buddhism found in doctrine to discover the religion as it was lived and practiced. Scholars and students of Buddhism, Japanese history, women's studies, and religious studies will find much in this engaging work that is thought-provoking and insightful. Aucune description trouvée dans une bibliothèque |
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Google Books — Chargement... GenresClassification décimale de Melvil (CDD)294.3Religions Other Religions Religions of Indic origin BuddhismClassification de la Bibliothèque du CongrèsÉvaluationMoyenne:
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Eshinni (1182-1268) was a nun and the wife of Shinran, a leader of Shin Buddhism, a type of Pure Land Buddhism. In this book, Dobbins translates her letters and places them in the context other historical sources to present a revised understanding of the history of Japanese Buddhism. He argues that the way Eshinni and others practiced their religion differed from the abstractions and pronouncements of leaders. It differed even more from the assumptions that historians have made about Shin Buddhism in medieval Japan. Life was hard during this period, contributing to the appeal of the promise of a good life after death. Superstition remained rife, although recent religious scholars have underplayed its importance.
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