New Perspectives in Modern Korean Buddhism: Institution, Gender, and Secular Society - Paperback

by Hwansoo Ilmee Kim (Editor), Jin Y. Park (Editor)

Offers alternative approaches to the study of colonial and postcolonial Korean Buddhism, suggesting new directions for scholarship.

New Perspectives in Modern Korean Buddhism moves beyond nationalistic, modernist, and ethnocentric historiographies of modern Korean Buddhism by carefully examining individuals' lived experiences, the institutional dimensions of Korean Buddhism, and its place in transnational conversations. Drawing upon rich archives as well as historical, anthropological, and literary approaches, the book examines four themes that have gained attention in recent years: perennial existential concerns and the persistent relevance of religious practice; the role of female Buddhists; clerical marriage and scandals; and engagement with secular society. The book reveals the limits of metanarratives, such as those of colonialism, nationalism, and modernity, in understanding the complex and contested identities of both monastics and laity, thus demanding that we diversify the methods by which we articulate the history of modern Korean Buddhism.

Author Biography

Hwansoo Ilmee Kim is Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Yale University and the author of The Korean Buddhist Empire: A Transnational History, 1910-1945. Jin Y. Park is Professor of Philosophy and Religion at American University. She is the author of Women and Buddhist Philosophy: Engaging Zen Master Kim Iryŏp and the editor of Makers of Modern Korean Buddhism, also published by SUNY Press.