Transfer Student Courses in Buddhist Studies (Division 332)

Winter Term, 2000 (January 5 - April 26, 2000)

To see what Transfer Student courses have been added or changed in Buddhist Studies this week go to What's New This Week.

Waitlist policy for all courses is 1 - get on the waitlist and go to the first day of class and talk to the instructor.

Students wanting to begin language study in Chinese, Japanese, or Korean, at a level other than first year, must take a placement exam to be held on Tuesday, January 4, 1-3pm. Test locations will be posted outside of the Department office in 3070 FB.

Courses in Tibetan

Section 001 – Meets with Buddhist Studies 502.

Instructor(s): Gareth Sparham

Prerequisites & Distribution: Buddhist Studies 101. (4). (LR).

Credits: (4).

Course Homepage: No Homepage Submitted.

This course is a continuation of Tibetan 101, an introduction to Modern Tibetan. Students continue to learn to speak colloquial Tibetan, as well as to read and write the script. There will be regular speaking and conversation exercises. Students will be expected to attain a beginning proficiency in reading and writing the Tibetan language.

Section 001.

Instructor(s): Luis Gómez (lgomez@umich.edu)

Prerequisites & Distribution: (4). (HU).

Credits: (4).

Course Homepage: https://coursetools.ummu.umich.edu/2000/winter/lsa/buds/230/001.nsf

An introduction to the Buddhist religion, with attention to its moral and philosophical teachings, its modes of practice (e.g., meditation, ritual), and its social and institutional contexts. The course takes a historical approach, concentrating on the traditions that developed in India, and the transformations of those traditions in Tibet and East Asia. Students attend three hours of lecture and a one-hour discussion section each week. No previous knowledge of the subject is required.

Courses in Tibetan

Section 001.

Instructor(s): Gareth Sparham

Prerequisites & Distribution: Buddhist Studies 455. (3). (Excl).

Credits: (3).

Course Homepage: No Homepage Submitted.

This course is a continuation of Buddhist Studies 405. Curriculum continues with instruction in the translation of Tibetan Buddhist Literature.

Section 001 – Buddhist History and Culture in Burma. Meets with Asian Studies 381.002

Instructor(s): Patrick Pranke (ppranke@umich.edu)

Prerequisites & Distribution: Buddhist Studies 230. (3). (Excl).

Credits: (3).

Course Homepage: No Homepage Submitted.

This course will explore the history and culture of Buddhism in Burma from roughly the 11th century C.E. into the modern era. Attention will be given to the rise of Theravada Buddhism as a state cult at the beginning of this period, its impact on Burmese polity, economy and culture from that time onward, and its continuing interactions with Burma's several popular cults and folk traditions. A common point of reference throughout the course will be the institution of Buddhist monasticism and its role in Burmese society from one historical period to the next. The course will conclude with an examination of Buddhist reformation and revival in the 19th and 20th centuries, and the emergence of new forms of religious observance and organization in the modern period. Source material for the course will include Buddhist scriptures, native chronicles and inscriptions, and contemporary ethnographic and historical research.

Section 001.

Instructor(s): Donald Lopez (dlopez@umich.edu)

Prerequisites & Distribution: Buddhist Studies 230. (3). (Excl).

Credits: (3).

Course Homepage: No Homepage Submitted.

Tantra has been described as the most profound of the Buddha’s teachings and as the most degenerate form of Buddhism. Tantric practice combines a wide range of elements, including elaborate visualization and liturgy, magic, and behavior that is intentionally unconventional. This seminar will examine this least understood current of the Buddhist tradition through a close study of several important Indian and Tibetan tantric works. Particular attention will be paid to the ritual elements of tantric practice. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.