[EAsiaUVa] ATTENTION: Karil Kucera talk this Friday!!!

[East Asia Center]

Hi all,

This is to let everyone know that Prof. Karil Kucera of St. Olaf College 
will be coming on Friday to give us a talk.  It will be at 3pm in New 
Cabell Hall 311.  What follows is the title of the talk and a short 
exposition about what she'll be talking about.


*Universal Appeal: Transmitting the Dharma through Text and Image at 
Baodingshan*

Narrative works combining both text and image at Baodingshan [1179-1249] 
near Dazu, Sichuan, provide insight into the transmission of Buddhism to 
a twelfth-century audience of laity and clergy.  Research shows that the 
site could be utilized on three different levels.  First, the narratives 
were designed to educate. Composed of apocryphal texts, they highlight 
the popular nature of Buddhism, and necessitated an intercessor on 
behalf of those who were illiterate. Second, a complimentary interaction 
between the texts and images existed for the literati.  The image does 
not simply illustrate the text nor does the text explain the image, 
making the literate viewer no longer a worshipper, but an actual 
participant in the carved narrative.  A final level of transmission 
takes into consideration Baodingshan's enormous amount of textual 
inscriptions. The placement and repetition of certain texts point to a 
monastic community seeking to preserve and transmit the Buddhist 
teachings across time.

Best,
Graham


-- 
Graham Odell
Graduate Assistant
East Asia Center
New Cabell Hall B031
PO Box 400781
(434) 924-7836
EASTASIACENTER@virginia.edu