printer friendly pageRELIGST 217: The Lotus Sutra in Japanese Buddhism (RELIGST 317)
This seminar explores the influence of the Lotus Sutra, one of the most important Mahayana scriptures, in Japan. We will study how different Japanese Buddhist schools have interpreted this sutra and analyze a wide range of religious practices, art works, and literature associated with this text. All readings will be in English. Prerequisites: Solid foundation in either Buddhist studies or East Asian Studies. You must have taken at least one other course in Buddhist Studies. NOTE: Undergraduates must enroll for 5 units; graduate students can enroll for 3-5 units.
Last offered: Autumn 2019
| UG Reqs: WAY-A-II
RELIGST 218X: The Holy Dead: Saints and Spiritual Power in Medieval Europe (HISTORY 218, HISTORY 318, RELIGST 318X)
Examines the cult of saints in medieval religious thought and life. Topics include martyrs, shrines, pilgrimage, healing, relics, and saints' legends.
Last offered: Autumn 2017
| UG Reqs: WAY-A-II, WAY-SI
RELIGST 221: The Talmud: Research Methods and Tools (RELIGST 321)
This seminar introduces students to the academic study of the Talmud and related classical rabbinic texts from late antiquity. Students will engage the major philological and historical questions concerning the making of the Talmud, along with textual tools to help them decode the texts. Prerequisite: Hebrew.
Last offered: Autumn 2019
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum, WAY-A-II
| Repeatable
for credit
RELIGST 230X: Religion, Radicalization and Media in Africa since 1945 (AFRICAST 248, AFRICAST 348, HISTORY 248, HISTORY 348, RELIGST 330X)
What are the paths to religious radicalization, and what role have media- new and old- played in these conversion journeys? We examine how Pentecostal Christians and Reformist Muslims in countries such as South Africa, Nigeria, Sudan, and Ethiopia have used multiple media forms- newspapers, cell phones, TV, radio, and the internet- to gain new converts, contest the authority of colonial and post-colonial states, construct transnational communities, and position themselves as key political players.
Terms: Spr
| Units: 4-5
| UG Reqs: WAY-A-II, WAY-EDP
Instructors:
Cabrita, J. (PI)
RELIGST 231: European Reformations (HISTORY 231G, HISTORY 331G, RELIGST 331)
Readings in and discussion of theological and social aspects of sixteenth century reformations: Luther, Radical Reform, Calvin, and Council of Trent, missionary expansion, religious conflict, creative and artistic expressions. Texts include primary sources and secondary scholarly essays and monographs.
Last offered: Autumn 2019
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum, WAY-A-II, WAY-SI
RELIGST 232: Buddhist Meditation: Ancient and Modern (RELIGST 332)
An exploration of the theory and practice of Buddhist meditation from the time of the Buddha to the modern mindfulness boom, with attention to the wide range of techniques developed and their diverse interpretation. Undergraduates register for 200-level for 5 units. Graduate students register for 300-level for 3-5 units.
Terms: Win
| Units: 5
| UG Reqs: WAY-A-II
Instructors:
Harrison, P. (PI)
RELIGST 253: Recent Research on Japanese Buddhism (RELIGST 353)
Readings in recent English-language scholarship on Japanese Buddhism. nUndergraduates must enroll for 5 units; graduate students can enroll for 3-5 units. Prerequisite: Solid foundation in either Buddhist studies or East Asian Studies (5 units for 253, 3-5 units for 353) May be repeat for credit.
Last offered: Spring 2019
| UG Reqs: WAY-A-II
| Repeatable
4 times
(up to 15 units total)
RELIGST 258: Readings in Japanese Buddhist Texts (RELIGST 358)
In this course, we will read premodern Japanese Buddhist texts. Prerequisite: Chinese and/or Japanese.
Last offered: Winter 2020
| UG Reqs: GER:DB-Hum, WAY-A-II
| Repeatable
for credit
RELIGST 262: Sex and the Early Church (CLASSICS 262, FEMGEN 262, RELIGST 362)
Sex and the Early Church examines the ways first- through sixth-century Christians addressed questions regarding human sexuality. We will pay particular attention to the relationship between sexuality and issues of gender, culture, power, and resistance. We will read a Roman gynecological manual, an ancient dating guide, the world's first harlequin romance novels, ancient pornography, early Christian martyrdom accounts, stories of female and male saints, instructions for how to best battle demons, visionary accounts, and monastic rules. These will be supplemented by modern scholarship in classics, early Christian studies, gender studies, queer studies, and the history of sexuality. The purpose of our exploration is not simply to better understand ancient views of gender and sexuality. Rather, this investigation of a society whose sexual system often seems so surprising aims to denaturalize many of our own assumptions concerning gender and sexuality. In the process, we will also examine the ways these first centuries of what eventually became the world's largest religious tradition has profoundly affected the sexual norms of our own time. The seminar assumes no prior knowledge of Judaism, Christianity, the bible, or ancient history.
Last offered: Autumn 2018
| UG Reqs: WAY-A-II, WAY-EDP
RELIGST 264: Hindu Tantra (RELIGST 364)
What is Tantra? Tantric forms of ritual and philosophy have been integral to the practice of Hinduism for most of its history. Tantra has provided initiates with a spiritual technology for embodying the divine and transcending the cycle of rebirth; on a social and political level, Tantra has mediated the institutions of Hindu kingship and appealed to a diverse population of initiates. This course covers a number of influential and well-documented Hindu tantric traditions, exploring several prominent features of Tantric religion as they develop historically, including: tantric ritual practice (core technologies of the subtle body, mantras, ma, alas, etc., along with the more notorious elements of sex and transgression), theology and philosophical speculation, as well as Tantra's relationship to the outside world and state power.
Last offered: Autumn 2018
| UG Reqs: WAY-A-II, WAY-EDP
Filter Results: