Global Buddhism

About

Zen, mindfulness, enlightened lamas and militant monks. Migrants and diaspora communities, queer Buddhists, spiritual and secular Buddhists, colonial Protestant Buddhism and decolonial post-global Buddhists.

Globalization encompasses transnational processes of interchanging values, services, and products, typically related to the modern, capitalist world. Global Buddhism is one kind of globalized religion characterized by transnational and -cultural networks of circulating Buddhists and dynamic flows of Buddhist ideas and practices.

This course investigates aspects of a concrete religion in its modern and contemporary configurations represented by different topics (spirituality, diversity, (de)colonization, (identity) politics, ‘Easternization’, materiality) and with empirical cases from East, West (including new research on Buddhism in Europe) and across the globe. A main theoretical framework will be the intersections of globalization, migration, and transnational networks. Apart from textual material, students will be able to encounter ‘lived Buddhism’ through visits at local Buddhist temples and centres.

Course leader

Jørn Borup

Target group

To apply for the course you must either be enrolled in a bachelor's degree, have a bachelor's degree or have passed a qualifying entry examination.

Fee info