Buddhist Traditions of Mind and Meditation
RELI 314
Fall 2020 not offered
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This seminar surveys a range of Buddhist meditation practices in the context of traditional theories of mind, perception, and cognition, with an emphasis on the traditions of South Asia, East Asia, and the Himalaya. Beginning with canonical descriptions of the mind and its variety of mental states, the course will then examine early scriptural expositions on the two principal types of meditation techniques: tranquility or concentration meditation (samatha) and insight meditation (vipasyana). Next will be an examination of techniques for cultivating compassion and the view of emptiness that were central to the later Indian traditions of the Mahayana or Great Vehicle. The course will finally turn to the elaborate systems of Tantra that developed in India and spread through Tibet, which incorporate the visualization of deities and recitation of mantras. Readings will include both primary Buddhist canonical works and commentaries by contemporary Buddhist teachers in English translation as well as secondary scholarship on the historical context of Buddhist meditation systems, cognitive theory, and ritual practice. |
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| Credit: 1 |
Gen Ed Area Dept:
SBS RELI |
| Course Format: Seminar | Grading Mode: Graded |
| Level: UGRD |
Prerequisites: None |
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Fulfills a Requirement for: (GSAS-MN)(GSAS)(RELI-MN)(RELI)(STS) |
Major Readings:
Geshe Tashi Tsering, BUDDHIST PSYCHOLOGY (Wisdom, 2001) ISBN 9780861712724
Shantideva, THE WAY OF THE BODHISATTVA (Shambhala, 2006) ISBN 9781590303887
Gunananda, Mindfulness in Plain English (Wisdom, 2011) ISBN 9780861719068
Various selected readings
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Examinations and Assignments:
1 short paper (5 pages)
1 final paper (12-15 pages)
Weekly blog posts
Oral presentation
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Additional Requirements and/or Comments:
This course fulfills the Historical Traditions requirement for the Religion Major |
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