On the Verge of Damnation and Buddhahood: Motherhood, Female Corporeality, and Koan Exegesis

IF 0.3 3区 哲学 0 RELIGION JAPANESE JOURNAL OF RELIGIOUS STUDIES Pub Date : 2023-09-19 DOI:10.18874/jjrs.50.1.2023.1-47
Marta Sanvido
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Abstract

Buddhist scriptures depict the female body according to two contrasting models. On the one hand, female flesh is the epitome of defilement that hinders proper salvation. Yet, on the other hand, the gestational body is employed as a metaphor and a model to depict the highest spiritual perfection of the Buddhist clergy. By investigating these two seemingly incompatible approaches, this article shows how these contrasting models coexisted within the same doctrinal framework in early modern Sōtō Zen secret sources. In particular, it explores a Sōtō Zen secret document from the early modern period entitled Ise niji kirigami, which provides the doctrinal foundation for salvific rituals directed to women who died during parturition. The peculiarity of this document is the combination of conceptualizations typically associated with female pollution with a wide range of theorizations mainly derived from esoteric discourse on the kami, the Lotus Sūtra, and Zen koan interpretations. Therefore, through the investigation of the affinities with koan exegesis, Buddhist scriptures, and kami-related theories, this article aims to broaden our understanding of the tools used by early modern Zen monks to theorize the female body and contribute to the ongoing debate on the representation of the female spiritual and corporeal condition in Buddhist sources.
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在诅咒与佛性的边缘:母性、女性肉体与公案解经
佛教经典根据两种截然不同的模式来描绘女性的身体。一方面,女性肉体是阻碍正确救赎的污秽的缩影。然而,另一方面,怀孕的身体被用作隐喻和模型来描绘佛教僧侣的最高精神境界。通过研究这两种看似不相容的方法,本文展示了这些截然不同的模型如何在早期现代Sōtō禅宗秘密来源的同一教义框架内共存。特别地,它探索了一份来自现代早期的Sōtō禅宗秘密文件,题为<em>Ise niji kirigami</em>,它为在分娩期间死亡的妇女提供了救赎仪式的教义基础。这份文件的独特之处在于,它结合了与女性污染相关的典型概念,以及广泛的理论,这些理论主要来自于对神的深奥论述,莲花Sūtra</em>和禅宗公案的解释。因此,通过对公案解经、佛经和神性相关理论的调查,本文旨在拓宽我们对早期现代禅宗僧人将女性身体理论化的工具的理解,并有助于对佛教文献中女性精神和身体状况的表现的持续辩论。
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来源期刊
CiteScore
0.80
自引率
0.00%
发文量
10
审稿时长
8 weeks
期刊介绍: The Japanese Journal of Religious Studies is a peer-reviewed journal registered as an Open Access Journal with all content freely downloadable. The journal began in 1960 as Contemporary Religions in Japan, which was changed to the JJRS in 1974. It has been published by the Nanzan Institute since 1981. The JJRS aims for a multidisciplinary approach to the study of religion in Japan, and submissions are welcomed from scholars in all fields of the humanities and social sciences. To submit a manuscript or inquiry about publishing in our journal, please contact us at the address below.
期刊最新文献
Review of: Timothy O. Benedict, <em>Spiritual Ends: Religion and the Heart of Dying in Japan</em> On the Verge of Damnation and Buddhahood: Motherhood, Female Corporeality, and Koan Exegesis Japanese Buddhist War Support and the <em>Kanchō</em> System Opening the Curtains on Popular Practice: <em>Kaichō</em> in the Meiji and Taisho Periods Review of: Paul Groner, <em>Precepts, Ordinations, and Practice in Medieval Japanese Tendai</em>
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