THE FUNERARY BUDDHA: MATERIAL CULTURE AND RELIGIOUS CHANGE IN “THE INTRODUCTION OF BUDDHISM TO CHINA”

Delgado Creamer, Margarita A. (2016) THE FUNERARY BUDDHA: MATERIAL CULTURE AND RELIGIOUS CHANGE IN “THE INTRODUCTION OF BUDDHISM TO CHINA”. Doctoral Dissertation, University of Pittsburgh. (Unpublished)

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Abstract

This dissertation is an inquiry into the significance of the record of the earliest objects bearing Buddhist motifs for our understanding of what is commonly known as the “introduction of Buddhism in China. It argues that the earliest Chinese material Buddha images were innovations that both resulted from and triggered synergistic cultural interaction. This means, that far from being only a case of cultural misunderstanding or random borrowing, as has generally been stated, they gave expression to a re-envisioning of the relationship between human and supernatural beings, and contributed to transformations in the Chinese religious praxis of the period.
Indeed, it has been noted that the funerary use of Buddha figures in China represented an unorthodox usage in relation to Buddhist traditions. What has not been noted, however, is that they also represented an innovation in the Chinese funerary context, since apotropaic beings were mostly represented in hybrid or animal form, while human form was generally used for mimetic or didactic purposes.
In order to understand the role of the earliest Chinese objects bearing Buddhist motifs in the “Introduction of Buddhism in China,” previous scholarship placed these objects within a historical narrative that saw them as being the outcome of cultural misinterpretation. Consequently, earlier scholarship supported the view that Buddhism was initially understood from a Daoist perspective. This dissertation argues that in order to understand the role of the funerary Buddha figures in the “Introduction of Buddhism in China” we need to, paradoxically, first extricate the analysis from the traditional historical narrative that has shaped our thinking.

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Details

Item Type:	University of Pittsburgh ETD
Status:	Unpublished
Creators/Authors:	Creators Email Pitt Username ORCID Delgado Creamer, Margarita A. mad152@pitt.edu MAD152 0000-0002-3914-8542
ETD Committee:	Title Member Email Address Pitt Username ORCID Committee Chair Penkower, Linda penkower@pitt.edu PENKOWER Committee Member Linduff, Katheryn linduff@pitt.edu LINDUFF Committee Member Chilson, Clark chilson@pitt.edu CHILSON Committee Member Shear, Adam ashear@pitt.edu ASHEAR
Date:	1 June 2016
Date Type:	Publication
Defense Date:	30 March 2016
Approval Date:	1 June 2016
Submission Date:	25 February 2016
Access Restriction:	No restriction; Release the ETD for access worldwide immediately.
Number of Pages:	250
Institution:	University of Pittsburgh
Schools and Programs:	Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences > Religious Studies
Degree:	PhD - Doctor of Philosophy
Thesis Type:	Doctoral Dissertation
Refereed:	Yes
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Early Chinese Buddhism, material culture, Buddhism and Daoism
Date Deposited:	01 Jun 2016 19:55
Last Modified:	15 Nov 2016 14:31
URI:	http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/26830

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