The Culture of the Book in Tibet

Nonfiction, History, Asian, Asia, Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism, Books & Reading, Religion & Spirituality
Cover of the book The Culture of the Book in Tibet by Kurtis Schaeffer, Columbia University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Kurtis Schaeffer ISBN: 9780231519182
Publisher: Columbia University Press Publication: July 6, 2009
Imprint: Columbia University Press Language: English
Author: Kurtis Schaeffer
ISBN: 9780231519182
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Publication: July 6, 2009
Imprint: Columbia University Press
Language: English

The history of the book in Tibet involves more than literary trends and trade routes. Functioning as material, intellectual, and symbolic object, the book has been an instrumental tool in the construction of Tibetan power and authority, and its history opens a crucial window onto the cultural, intellectual, and economic life of an immensely influential Buddhist society.

Spanning the fourteenth to the eighteenth centuries, Kurtis R. Schaeffer envisions the scholars and hermits, madmen and ministers, kings and queens who produced Tibet's massive canons. He describes how Tibetan scholars edited and printed works of religion, literature, art, and science and what this indicates about the interrelation of material and cultural practices. The Tibetan book is at once the embodiment of the Buddha's voice, a principal means of education, a source of tradition and authority, an economic product, a finely crafted aesthetic object, a medium of Buddhist written culture, and a symbol of the religion itself. Books stood at the center of debates on the role of libraries in religious institutions, the relative merits of oral and written teachings, and the economy of religion in Tibet.

A meticulous study that draws on more than 150 understudied Tibetan sources, The Culture of the Book in Tibet is the first volume to trace this singular history. Through a single object, Schaeffer accesses a greater understanding of the Tibetan plateau.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

The history of the book in Tibet involves more than literary trends and trade routes. Functioning as material, intellectual, and symbolic object, the book has been an instrumental tool in the construction of Tibetan power and authority, and its history opens a crucial window onto the cultural, intellectual, and economic life of an immensely influential Buddhist society.

Spanning the fourteenth to the eighteenth centuries, Kurtis R. Schaeffer envisions the scholars and hermits, madmen and ministers, kings and queens who produced Tibet's massive canons. He describes how Tibetan scholars edited and printed works of religion, literature, art, and science and what this indicates about the interrelation of material and cultural practices. The Tibetan book is at once the embodiment of the Buddha's voice, a principal means of education, a source of tradition and authority, an economic product, a finely crafted aesthetic object, a medium of Buddhist written culture, and a symbol of the religion itself. Books stood at the center of debates on the role of libraries in religious institutions, the relative merits of oral and written teachings, and the economy of religion in Tibet.

A meticulous study that draws on more than 150 understudied Tibetan sources, The Culture of the Book in Tibet is the first volume to trace this singular history. Through a single object, Schaeffer accesses a greater understanding of the Tibetan plateau.

More books from Columbia University Press

Cover of the book Hard-Boiled Sentimentality by Kurtis Schaeffer
Cover of the book Shivers Down Your Spine by Kurtis Schaeffer
Cover of the book Investing: The Last Liberal Art by Kurtis Schaeffer
Cover of the book Biological Weapons by Kurtis Schaeffer
Cover of the book The Portable Kristeva by Kurtis Schaeffer
Cover of the book Modern Korean Drama by Kurtis Schaeffer
Cover of the book Song and Silence by Kurtis Schaeffer
Cover of the book The Fall of the House of Roosevelt by Kurtis Schaeffer
Cover of the book From Resilience to Revolution by Kurtis Schaeffer
Cover of the book Consumed Nostalgia by Kurtis Schaeffer
Cover of the book Flight Ways by Kurtis Schaeffer
Cover of the book The Scandal of Susan Sontag by Kurtis Schaeffer
Cover of the book Security and Profit in China’s Energy Policy by Kurtis Schaeffer
Cover of the book Sprezzatura by Kurtis Schaeffer
Cover of the book Autobiography of an Archive by Kurtis Schaeffer
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy