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Un-glossing East Asian Buddhism: Gender, Sangha and the State in...
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Un-glossing East Asian Buddhism: Gender, Sangha and the State in the Early-Modern Era

A special issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 October 2024) | Viewed by 5125

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Nam Lin Hur

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Asian Studies, The University of British Columbia, Columbia, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada
Interests: imjin war; Japan-Korea relations; death and Buddhism; funerary rituals; East Asian Buddhism

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

We would like to encourage your submissions to a Special Issue of Religions dedicated to the theme of “Un-glossing East Asian Buddhism: Gender, Sangha and the State in the Early-Modern Era”. This Special Issue attempts to reconceptualize Buddhism located within the context of the rapidly changing world of post-sixteenth century East Asia. What role and significance did Buddhist practices and the sangha have, in particular, in relation to women and the state? Buddhism in the East Asian region, in response to the area’s rapidly changing socio-political and historical circumstances, needed to adapt in order to stay relevant and to cater to the new desires and needs of the people.

Ideal notions were essential for maintaining the image of a sangha that was lofty and virtuous, which afforded religious legitimacy, in turn warranting financial and material support from wealthy families, rulers, and the masses. It was, by way of navigating between ideals and practice, a contentious issue that Buddhism had to contend with in order to stay relevant to people’s lives. As evidence suggests, monastics were actively involved in reinterpreting these ideals, and at times bending them, to resolve pragmatic issues and to cater to shifting circumstances in a non-ideal world.

This Special Issue aims to focus on areas beyond the usual scriptural, doctrinal, and thoughts of eminent monks and pay direct attention to the Buddhism that has been practiced by the majority of adherents. Selected papers will address the manifestations of East Asian Buddhism that most of the people of the early modern to modern period (c. 16th cen.–early 20th cen.) will have accessed or practiced and which the monastics will have molded and shaped. We invite papers from multidisciplinary fields that explore primary sources to address the question of how Buddhism has adapted to maintain its socio-religious relevance, and possibly even prospered, during and after the Great East Asian War (1592–1598) and up to the modern era.

Suggested themes and article types

In this Special Issue, original research articles are welcome. Their research areas may include, but are not limited to, the following areas of East Asian Buddhism:

  • The role of Buddhism in East Asian culture and society;
  • Buddhist forms of popular art and literature;
  • Trans-border Buddhism;
  • Buddhist cultural practices;
  • The sangha in relation to the state;
  • Gender and sangha;
  • Ritual Buddhism;
  • War and Buddhism;
  • Funerary Buddhism. 

We request that, prior to submitting a manuscript, interested authors initially submit a proposed title and an abstract of 200–300 words summarizing their intended contribution. Please send these to the Guest Editor or to the Assistant Editor of Religions. Abstracts will be reviewed by the Guest Editors for the purposes of ensuring a proper fit within the scope of this Special Issue. Full manuscripts will undergo double-blind peer review.

I look forward to receiving your contributions.

Prof. Dr. Nam Lin Hur
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • East Asian Buddhism
  • societal relevance
  • early-modern era
  • Buddhist practices and ritualism
  • the Great East Asian War
  • Buddhism for the masses

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 378 KiB  
Article
The Inheritance of the Precept Tradition in 18th- and 19th-Century East Asian Buddhism and the Prelude to Modernity: Comparing the Korean and Japanese Precept Revival Movements
by Jarang Lee
Religions 2025, 16(4), 492; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16040492 - 10 Apr 2025
Viewed by 293
Abstract
This article compares the precept revival movements in Korean and Japanese Buddhism in the early modern period. It examines how monks in both countries, in particular, in the Korean Hyujŏng lineage and the Japanese Shingon sect, restored and utilized the precept tradition to [...] Read more.
This article compares the precept revival movements in Korean and Japanese Buddhism in the early modern period. It examines how monks in both countries, in particular, in the Korean Hyujŏng lineage and the Japanese Shingon sect, restored and utilized the precept tradition to re-establish Buddhist identity in the midst of rapid political and social change. Although in different ways, Buddhism in the early modern period in both countries experienced state control and an anti-Buddhist milieu, making it difficult to maintain its religious identity. Various efforts were made to overcome this hardship, the most prominent of which was the precept revival movement. In the early 19th century, in Chosŏn Korea, Taeŭn and Paekp’a sought to restore the bhikṣu lineage by overhauling the bhikṣu ordination rituals through the “reception of the precepts through an auspicious sign” and “the reception of the ten wholesome precepts”, respectively, while in mid-to-late 18th-century Japan, the Shingon master Jiun advocated a return to the teachings of Śākyamuni through the Shōbō-ritsu movement. While both countries focused on precept revival as a way to solidify Buddhist religious identity, Korea emphasized the restoration of the bhikṣu lineage, while Japan, especially in the Shingon-shū, emphasized a return to the fundamental teachings of the Buddha. These differences stem from the unique historical backgrounds of the two countries and the distinctive developments of their Buddhist traditions. By comparing the precept revival movements in both countries, this study examines how different precept traditions influenced the identity of East Asian Buddhism in the early modern period and how these efforts have been fundamental in maintaining Buddhist orthodoxy into the modern era. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Un-glossing East Asian Buddhism: Gender, Sangha and the State in the Early-Modern Era)
18 pages, 379 KiB  
Article
The Common Ground Between Japanese and Korean Buddhism in the Early Modern Period: Changes in the Perception of the Mechanism of the State–Buddhist Relationship
by Yong Tae Kim
Religions 2025, 16(4), 419; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16040419 - 25 Mar 2025
Viewed by 360
Abstract
The East Asian world has shared both universal characteristics and regional particularities, forming a Buddhist cultural area for more than 1500 years. One of the main features of East Asian Buddhism is a “state–Buddhist link”. This article will focus on the early modern [...] Read more.
The East Asian world has shared both universal characteristics and regional particularities, forming a Buddhist cultural area for more than 1500 years. One of the main features of East Asian Buddhism is a “state–Buddhist link”. This article will focus on the early modern period, and on the periphery, Korea and Japan, rather than the center, China. If we can identify the attributes of the institutional connection between the state and Buddhism in this peripheral area of the East Asian world, and in a period when Buddhism was less prominent than before, we can understand it as a long-term universal characteristic of East Asian Buddhist cultures. In this article, I have tried to locate the common ground between Japanese and Korean Buddhism in the early modern period at two points: the change in the perception of Buddhism in the early modern period and the mechanism of the relationship between the state and Buddhism. The common ground here is that there is a movement in the two countries to break away from the negative perception of Buddhism in the early modern period and approach its historical reality. In terms of the mechanism of the relationship between the state and Buddhism, the Edo period saw the implementation of the temple parish system, which linked temples and people in each region, allowing the shogunate to indirectly control the people, while each sect was able to establish financial stability and thus its sectarian identity. In late Chosŏn, the institutionalization of the monk state service allowed the state to utilize the monk labor force and the surplus goods of the temples, and in return, the Buddhist community was allowed to rather peacefully exist in Confucian society. This shows that there was a close relationship between the two. There are many differences between Japanese and Korean Buddhism in the early modern period, but they share the characteristics of state Buddhism, where the state and Buddhism were institutionally related. The mechanism of the win–win relationship between the state and Buddhism can be understood as a universal characteristic of East Asian Buddhist history beyond Japan and Korea in the early modern period. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Un-glossing East Asian Buddhism: Gender, Sangha and the State in the Early-Modern Era)
16 pages, 385 KiB  
Article
What Was a Monk in Joseon Korea?: Competing Monastic Identities According to the State, a Monastic Biographer, and a Confucian Literatus
by Sung-Eun Thomas Kim
Religions 2025, 16(3), 343; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16030343 - 10 Mar 2025
Viewed by 504
Abstract
The question, what was a monastic? is a complex issue, whether in the context of China, Korea or even in the homeland of Buddhism, India. Nonetheless, this is especially so in the case of Joseon Korea due to the dramatic historical changes that [...] Read more.
The question, what was a monastic? is a complex issue, whether in the context of China, Korea or even in the homeland of Buddhism, India. Nonetheless, this is especially so in the case of Joseon Korea due to the dramatic historical changes that took place with the Imjin War. This obviously brought about shifts not only in the social status but also in the societal role of the monastics. The most substantive factors in the late-Joseon period (1600–1910) was the loss of state patronage and no longer being under the auspices of the state. Simply put, the discussed materials in this paper evince diverse images and roles of monks that range from being state officials, laborers, soldier-monks, and Seon meditators, to thieving bandits. A single descriptor would be unable to capture the diverse identities of the late-Joseon monks. Moreover, the monastics also presented themselves as highly organized with organizational aims, no different from an organization existing inescapably in everyday socio-economic and political conditions. The shared goal of the Buddhist community, by way of presenting certain images, was to regain social recognition and legitimation, to a position of power and privilege perhaps similar to what it once had during the Goryeo period (918–1392). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Un-glossing East Asian Buddhism: Gender, Sangha and the State in the Early-Modern Era)
17 pages, 372 KiB  
Article
Reshaping Gendered Boundaries: Buddhist Women’s Monastic Experience in Korean Buddhism
by Jeongeun Park
Religions 2025, 16(2), 214; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16020214 - 10 Feb 2025
Viewed by 755
Abstract
During the Chosŏn period (1392–1910) and the colonial period (1910–1945), in Korean Buddhism, Buddhist monks’ and nuns’ monastic experiences were influenced not only by the existing social norms but also by the androcentric monastic regulations, such as the eight “heavy rules”. Despite the [...] Read more.
During the Chosŏn period (1392–1910) and the colonial period (1910–1945), in Korean Buddhism, Buddhist monks’ and nuns’ monastic experiences were influenced not only by the existing social norms but also by the androcentric monastic regulations, such as the eight “heavy rules”. Despite the androcentric monastic rules and misogynist aspects of practice, Buddhist nuns invariably strived to increase their visibility in monastic communities and secure their position by adopting the existing social norms or customary law; in this way, they challenged male-centered monasticism. To examine Korean Buddhist nuns in the Chosŏn and the colonial periods, this study used secondary scholarship as well as primary sources, such as the story of Queen Chŏngsun, a colonial government document, and a related civil case, to present the various ways in which Buddhist nuns consolidated their position, including coopting the practice of property succession from a master-nun to a disciple-nun and receiving official recognition of the abbess position from the colonial government. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Un-glossing East Asian Buddhism: Gender, Sangha and the State in the Early-Modern Era)
16 pages, 343 KiB  
Article
War and the Transcendence of Life and Death: The Theoretical Foundations of Buddhist Cooperation in the War Effort During the Colonial Period in Korea
by Youngjin Kim
Religions 2025, 16(2), 143; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16020143 - 26 Jan 2025
Viewed by 804
Abstract
This paper examines how Korea’s Buddhist community accepted the ‘Imperial Way’ (J. kōdōshugi; K. hwangdojuui 皇道主義), the wartime ideology of the Japanese Empire, during the colonial period and how it supported and contributed to the war waged by the Japanese Empire. In [...] Read more.
This paper examines how Korea’s Buddhist community accepted the ‘Imperial Way’ (J. kōdōshugi; K. hwangdojuui 皇道主義), the wartime ideology of the Japanese Empire, during the colonial period and how it supported and contributed to the war waged by the Japanese Empire. In the process, it analyzes the ways in which the Buddhist community transformed Buddhist theory in order to justify its collaboration with the Japanese war effort. In this paper, the Buddhist doctrinal basis of this wartime collaboration is examined regarding three of its core aspects. First, when the colonial Korean Buddhist community accepted the ideology of the ‘Imperial Way’ and advocated secularism, it did so by means of the logic of the ‘non-duality of the real and the conventional’ (K. jinsokbuli 眞俗不二). Second, when colonial era Korean Buddhism encouraged its own participation in the war, it regarded war as a site of practice that ‘transcends life and death’ and thus affirmed it. Third, the colonial Korean Buddhist community proposed the concept of ‘Buddhist totalitarianism’ (K. Bulgyo Jeonchejuui 佛敎全體主義) to inquire into a totality that transcends individuality in Buddhism. Accordingly, this paper’s goal is to examine how the Buddhist community in colonial Korea transformed Buddhist doctrine for non-Buddhist purposes in a particular historical situation where its cooperation in war was demanded. Additionally, as a starting point for discussion, this issue will also be explored in parallel with the logic of Japanese Buddhism’s war contributions at the time. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Un-glossing East Asian Buddhism: Gender, Sangha and the State in the Early-Modern Era)
11 pages, 5285 KiB  
Article
Exploring the Characteristics of Modern Korean Buddhist Education: Focusing on the Religious Studies Lecture Notes from the Buddhist Central Seminary (Pulgyo Chungang Hangnim, 佛敎中央學林)
by Eunyoung Kim
Religions 2025, 16(1), 89; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16010089 - 16 Jan 2025
Viewed by 877
Abstract
This study examines the identity and characteristics of modern Korean Buddhist education through an analysis of the religious studies lecture notes of a student from the Buddhist Central Seminary (Pulgyo Chungang Hangnim, 佛敎中央學林), preserved at Songgwang-sa Temple. Established in 1915 and [...] Read more.
This study examines the identity and characteristics of modern Korean Buddhist education through an analysis of the religious studies lecture notes of a student from the Buddhist Central Seminary (Pulgyo Chungang Hangnim, 佛敎中央學林), preserved at Songgwang-sa Temple. Established in 1915 and operating until 1919, the seminary introduced a significant shift from traditional scripture-centered monastic education to a modern academic system. Western and Japanese academic traditions, religious studies, philosophy, and the general educational system influenced its curriculum. The lecture notes provide insight into the adoption of modern academic disciplines within Korean Buddhist education, revealing the influence of Japanese religious studies and Western comparative religion. They also demonstrate the possibility of early introduction of religious studies as an educational field in Korea. The seminary played a dual role as a hub for national education and reflection of the colonial context, embodying the complexities of nationalism and colonial influence during Japanese occupation. This study underscores the need for further scholarly exploration to understand the multifaceted nature of modern Korean Buddhist education and its unique role within the broader historical context of East Asian Buddhist history. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Un-glossing East Asian Buddhism: Gender, Sangha and the State in the Early-Modern Era)
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17 pages, 408 KiB  
Article
Political Tool of “Immoral Rituals” and Resilience of Buddhism in Chosŏn Korea
by Nam-lin Hur
Religions 2025, 16(1), 13; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16010013 - 27 Dec 2024
Viewed by 743
Abstract
Confucians in Chosŏn Korea (1392–1910) employed the notion of “immoral rituals” as a tool to control Buddhist and shamanic rituals in a selective manner. In Confucian terms, immoral rituals specified those that were dedicated to “ghosts or deities who do not deserve worship”, [...] Read more.
Confucians in Chosŏn Korea (1392–1910) employed the notion of “immoral rituals” as a tool to control Buddhist and shamanic rituals in a selective manner. In Confucian terms, immoral rituals specified those that were dedicated to “ghosts or deities who do not deserve worship”, and, in most cases, they referred to non-Confucian prayer rituals. Buddhist prayer rituals (and shamanic rituals) were largely subject to control by Confucian state officials. Through the Confucian prism of immoral rituals, this article explores the question of which aspects of Buddhist rituals were denounced by the Confucian critics and which goals the Confucians tried to achieve by wielding the tool of immoral rituals against Buddhism. Based on an analysis of four episodes in which Buddhist prayer rituals were denounced as immoral rituals, the article suggests that the Confucians tried to construct a new collective identity of distinction and privilege, to keep in check the royal family and, by extension, the sovereign, to control the female body, and, in collaboration with the king, to suppress people’s discontent with governance. In this process, Buddhism—caught in the politics of immoral rituals, as this article suggests—nevertheless remained vibrant by conducting prayer rituals in the social margins. And for their part, Confucians benefited by continuing to exploit the notion of immoral rituals up to the end of the dynasty. The trajectory of immoral rituals reflected how Buddhism functioned and evolved in Chosŏn Korea. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Un-glossing East Asian Buddhism: Gender, Sangha and the State in the Early-Modern Era)
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