Wayward Distractions: Ornament, Emotion, Zombies and the Study of Buddhism in Thailand (Kyoto-CSEAS Series on Asian Studies)

A collection of essays engaging with Buddhism in Thailand and the virtues of distraction and variety within the materialist turn in studies of religion. In Thailand, Buddhism is deeply integrated into national institutions and ideologies, making it tempting to think of Buddhism in Thailand as a textual, institutional, cultural, and conceptual whole. At the same time, religious expression in the country reflects anything but a single order. Often gaudy, cacophonous, variegated, and jumbled, diversity and apparent contradiction abound. A more open engagement with Buddhism in Thailand requires a willingness to be distracted, to step away from received hierarchies and follow the intriguing detail in the ornate design, the odd textual reference, and to prefer "thin description" over a search for meaning. Justin McDaniel's well-known book-length writings in Buddhist and Theravada studies cannot be fully understood without taking into account his shorter writings, what he calls his wayward distractions. Collected together for the first time, these essays cover subjects ranging from ornamental art to marriage and emotion, the role of Hinduism, neglected gender and ethnic diversity, Buddhist inflections in contemporary art practice, and the boundaries between the living, dead, and undead. These writings will be of importance to students of Theravada and Thailand, of religion in Southeast Asia and more generally, of the materialist turn in studies of religion. "When more than 93 per cent of the citizens of one country profess a single religion, as Thais do Buddhism, and when that religion is deeply integrated into national institutions and ideologies, it becomes tempting to think of the religion as a textual, institutional, cultural and conceptual whole. But at the same time it is obvious that expressions of Buddhism in Thailand reflect anything but a single order: they are often gaudy, cacophonous, variegated, and jumbled: almost technicolor. Diversity and apparent contradiction are everywhere. A more open engagement with Buddhism in Thailand will require a willingness to be distracted, to step away from received hierarchies and follow the intriguing detail in the ornate design, the odd textual reference, to prefer "thin description" over a search for meaning. Justin McDaniel's book-length writings in Buddhist and Theravada Studies are well known and widely cited, but his approach cannot be understood without taking into account his shorter writings, what he calls his wayward distractions. Collected together for the first time, and set in place by a compelling introduction that argues for a strongly materialist approach, these essays cover subjects ranging from ornamental art to marriage and emotion, the role of Hinduism, neglected gender and ethnic diversity, Buddhist inflections in contemporary art practice, and the boundaries between the living, the dead and the undead. These writings will be of importance to students of Theravada and Thailand, of religion in Southeast Asia and more generally, of the materialist turn in studies of religion"-- Provided by publisher Half Title page This page was intentionally left blank Full Title page Copyright page Contents This page was intentionally left blank List of Images 1. Introduction: Cajoleries, Non-Human Ontology and the Importance of Thin Description in the Study of Thai Buddhist Stuff This page was intentionally left blank 2. Creative Engagement: The Sujavaṇṇa Wua Luang and Its Contribution to Buddhist Literature 3. Ethnicity and the Galactic Polity: Ideas and Actualities in the History of Bangkok This page was intentionally left blank 4. Beautifully Buddhist and Betrothed: Marriage and Buddhism as Described in the Jātakas This page was intentionally left blank 5. The Bird in the Corner of hte Painting: Some Problems with the Use of Buddhist Texts to Study Buddhist Ornamental Art in Thailand This page was intentionally left blank 6. The Material Turn: An Introduction to Thai Sources for the Study of Buddhist Amulets This page was intentionally left blank 7. Strolling Through Temporary Temples: Modern Buddhist Art Installations in Thailand 8. This Hindu Holy Man is a Thai Buddhist This page was intentionally left blank 9. Encountering Corpses: Notes on Zombies and the Living Dead in Buddhist Southeast Asia This page was intentionally left blank 10. Buddhist "Nuns" (mae chi) and the Teaching of Pali in Contemporary Thailand This page was intentionally left blank Bibliography This page was intentionally left blank Index