{"title":"不只是治病:重新审视中世纪中国的药师佛崇拜","authors":"Dixuan Chen","doi":"10.1353/jcr.2024.a928799","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"Abstract: The study questions and challenges the dichotomous approach that associates the worship of Medicine Buddha solely with the worldly benefits of the living, thereby neglecting its relevance to the concerns related to the deceased. The research investigates medieval devotees’ religious activities dedicated to this divinity, focusing on the Sui (581–618) and the Tang (618–907) dynasties when such devotion gained increasing popularity in China. It reveals that medieval veneration dedicated to Medicine Buddha transcended the presumed dichotomy, encompassing the well-being of both the living and the dead. This finding underscores the importance of moving beyond the limited perception. Instead of adopting the simplistic label of a “healing divinity,” contextualizing the worship within its broader religious milieu can better capture its full complexity. By extension, the research paves the way for reconsidering the conventional classification that assigns relatively fixed symbolic values to Buddhist deities, which contributes to a more thorough and nuanced understanding of religious practices and beliefs.","PeriodicalId":53120,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Chinese Religions","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.5000,"publicationDate":"2024-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":"{\"title\":\"More Than Curing the Sick: A Re-Examination of Medicine Buddha Worship in Medieval China\",\"authors\":\"Dixuan Chen\",\"doi\":\"10.1353/jcr.2024.a928799\",\"DOIUrl\":null,\"url\":null,\"abstract\":\"Abstract: The study questions and challenges the dichotomous approach that associates the worship of Medicine Buddha solely with the worldly benefits of the living, thereby neglecting its relevance to the concerns related to the deceased. The research investigates medieval devotees’ religious activities dedicated to this divinity, focusing on the Sui (581–618) and the Tang (618–907) dynasties when such devotion gained increasing popularity in China. It reveals that medieval veneration dedicated to Medicine Buddha transcended the presumed dichotomy, encompassing the well-being of both the living and the dead. This finding underscores the importance of moving beyond the limited perception. Instead of adopting the simplistic label of a “healing divinity,” contextualizing the worship within its broader religious milieu can better capture its full complexity. By extension, the research paves the way for reconsidering the conventional classification that assigns relatively fixed symbolic values to Buddhist deities, which contributes to a more thorough and nuanced understanding of religious practices and beliefs.\",\"PeriodicalId\":53120,\"journal\":{\"name\":\"Journal of Chinese Religions\",\"volume\":null,\"pages\":null},\"PeriodicalIF\":0.5000,\"publicationDate\":\"2024-06-01\",\"publicationTypes\":\"Journal Article\",\"fieldsOfStudy\":null,\"isOpenAccess\":false,\"openAccessPdf\":\"\",\"citationCount\":\"0\",\"resultStr\":null,\"platform\":\"Semanticscholar\",\"paperid\":null,\"PeriodicalName\":\"Journal of Chinese Religions\",\"FirstCategoryId\":\"1085\",\"ListUrlMain\":\"https://doi.org/10.1353/jcr.2024.a928799\",\"RegionNum\":0,\"RegionCategory\":null,\"ArticlePicture\":[],\"TitleCN\":null,\"AbstractTextCN\":null,\"PMCID\":null,\"EPubDate\":\"\",\"PubModel\":\"\",\"JCR\":\"0\",\"JCRName\":\"ASIAN STUDIES\",\"Score\":null,\"Total\":0}","platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Chinese Religions","FirstCategoryId":"1085","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1353/jcr.2024.a928799","RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":null,"ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"0","JCRName":"ASIAN STUDIES","Score":null,"Total":0}
More Than Curing the Sick: A Re-Examination of Medicine Buddha Worship in Medieval China
Abstract: The study questions and challenges the dichotomous approach that associates the worship of Medicine Buddha solely with the worldly benefits of the living, thereby neglecting its relevance to the concerns related to the deceased. The research investigates medieval devotees’ religious activities dedicated to this divinity, focusing on the Sui (581–618) and the Tang (618–907) dynasties when such devotion gained increasing popularity in China. It reveals that medieval veneration dedicated to Medicine Buddha transcended the presumed dichotomy, encompassing the well-being of both the living and the dead. This finding underscores the importance of moving beyond the limited perception. Instead of adopting the simplistic label of a “healing divinity,” contextualizing the worship within its broader religious milieu can better capture its full complexity. By extension, the research paves the way for reconsidering the conventional classification that assigns relatively fixed symbolic values to Buddhist deities, which contributes to a more thorough and nuanced understanding of religious practices and beliefs.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Chinese Religions is an international, peer-reviewed journal, published under the auspices of the Society for the Study of Chinese Religions (SSCR). Since its founding, the Journal has provided a forum for studies in Chinese religions from a great variety of disciplinary perspectives, including religious studies, philology, history, art history, anthropology, sociology, political science, archaeology, and literary studies. The Journal welcomes original research articles, shorter research notes, essays, and field reports on all aspects of Chinese religions in all historical periods. All submissions need to undergo double-blind peer review before they can be accepted for publication.