【会议召集】中印佛教視野下的止觀源流

Statics and Dynamics

Updated to April 12, 2017

The International Center for Studies ofChinese Civilization (ICSCC) at Fudan University is very pleased to announce athree-day international workshop on "Śamatha-vipaśyanā in theContext of Indo-Sinitic Buddhism: Statics and Dynamics." This workshop is designed to bring together a variety ofdisciplinary scholars working on topics related to the ideas of śamatha-vipaśyanā putforward in Indian and Chinese Buddhist scriptures. We cordially invite you toshare your expertise, your views and your research results in our discussions.

Workshop Focus

The doctrine of śamatha-vipaśyanā is offundamental importance in Buddhist thought and practice. One of the pioneers ofWestern Buddhist studies, Wassili Pawlowitsch Wassiljew described śamatha and vipaśyanā as two main results of the completecontemplative side of Buddhism in terms of both Śrāvakayāna and Mahāyāna. Hendrik Kern hasfurthermore mentioned the two orders of Arhats, the “barely contemplativephilosophers” (Pāli: sukkhavipassaka) and the Arhats who “is devoted toquietude” (Pāli: samathayānika). Asignificant milestone in this field was marked by the article of de La Vallée Poussin: “Musīla et Nārada: Lechemin du Nirvāṇa.” Since then, the study of śamatha-vipaśyanā hasbeen driven forward by numerous scholars. At present, however, only limitedcontributions have been made to the śamatha-vipaśyanā ofnon-Theravāda schools,to which a majority of the existing commentaries are attributed. This workshopwill provide participants with a multi-faceted view of Indo-Sinitic concepts of śamatha-vipaśyanā and focus on philologicalapproaches. We are soliciting papers that utilize philological and hermeneuticmethods. Textual materials for consideration include, but not limited to, the Āgamasūtras, various Abhidharma works, Yogācārabhūmiśāstra, Mahāprajñāpāramitāśāstra and *Satyasiddhiśāstra preserved in Indic (Sanskrit, Pāli, Gāndhārī, etc.) orChinese languages, and the native Chinese work Móhē zhǐguān (摩訶止觀). This workshop, therefore, combines both indological andsinological perspectives.

Interdisciplinarity

As a classical object of Buddhist studies,it is not only a topic that has long aroused a great deal of interest, but alsoa field opening new perspectives. Submissions might be from a range of disciplines.Transdisciplinary and interdisciplinary contributions, such philosophical,historical, linguistic and religious psychological studies, are alsoencouraged.

Suggested Topics

Contributions may focus on, but are notlimited to, the following topics:
● Discussions on the origin and the beginning of the idea of śamatha-vipaśyanā;
● Traces of the pre-Buddhist śamatha-vipaśyanā;
● The interpretation of śamatha-vipaśyanā in individual indictexts, or in historical translations of those texts, such as Chinese andTibetan translations;
● The historical exegetical efforts on śamatha-vipaśyanā;
● The interpretation of śamatha-vipaśyanā in native ChineseBuddhist works, such as Dàchéng zhǐguān fǎmén (大乘止觀法門) and Móhē zhǐguān (摩訶止觀);
● Discussions on the doctrines of contemplative practice embodied inIndo-Sinitic Buddhist literature;
● Theoretical and methodological discussions on the meaning andreferents, the nature, structure and functions of śamatha-vipaśyanā;
● The evolution of śamatha-vipaśyanā in the developmentof Buddhist Soteriology;
● The roles of śamatha-vipaśyanā in the process ofsinization of Indian Buddhism;
● Its transmission, transformation, and the dynamics behind thosetransformations;
● Śamatha-vipaśyanā in the practice of Buddhist meditation;
● Relationship between śamatha-vipaśyanā and other conceptsof the system of Buddhist meditation, and its position in the path ofliberation;
● Linguistic properties of the expressions of śamatha-vipaśyanā;
● Narrative, rhetoric and stylistic elements related to śamatha-vipaśyanā, e.g. the similes;
● Studies of primary sources, e.g. the concerned manuscripts;
● Śamatha-vipaśyanā and abhijñā;
● Studies on the meaning of śamatha-vipaśyanā for contemporary mindfulness practice;
● Religious psychological interpretative models about śamatha-vipaśyanā.

Date and Venue

Date

September 23-25, 2017

Venue

International Center for Studies of ChineseCivilization, Fudan University, Shanghai, China

Keynote Speaker

Michael Zimmermann, Professor and Director,Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, University of Hamburg

Language

Working language of the workshop willbe English.

Submission

Please submit a short paper proposal of nomore than 300 words together with personal information including full name(s),institutional affiliation(s) of presenter by May 31, 2017, and the full paperby October 31, 2017, to BertramDscho.

Presentation

Presentations of papers should be deliveredpreferably within 45 minutes (including questions and debates), while thelecture should not exceed 30 minutes. The participants will be allowedsome latitude and flexibility in designing their presentations.

Publication

Selected papers will be published in aconference volume, an issue of a series of ICSCC.

Organizer

International Center for Studies of ChineseCivilization, Fudan University

Co-organizer

Gandhian and Indian Studies Center, FudanUniversity; Fudan Journal, Fudan University

Zhen Liu,Professor and Director, Gandhian and Indian Studies Center, Fudan University; Yonghao Wang, Professor andEditor-in-Chief, Fudan Journal, Fudan University; Bertram Dscho, Visiting Scholar, InternationalCenter for Studies of Chinese Civilization, Fudan University

Contact Information

For further questions or help, please feelfree to contact BertramDscho.