Religions of the Silk Road

Blog Post #10 - Jews on the Silk Road

2010-03-23T06:28:00.000-07:00

Jewish participation in trade on the Silk Road seems to be all but guaranteed Lena Cansdale's article, "Jews on the Silk Road." I found particularly interesting the mention of their status as "dhimmis" in Persia, as it would have very easily have facilitated their ability to trade with wide-ranging groups of people. Not only would they have friendly relations with the Christians in the West, but they could also travel unharmed (ignoring the harsh weather conditions) through Islam-dominated regions, often establishing communities along the way.

http://www.iajgs.org/cemetery/afghanistan/ghur.html

The discovery of a Jewish cemetery in Afghanistan reminded me a lot of the presence of Nestorian Christianity in China. The presence of Christian symbols alongside Chinese script seems just as mismatched as the "Judeo-Persian" inscriptions on tombstones found in Afghanistan. The Christians' and the Jews' statuses as second-class (but also protected) citizens likely allowed for their mostly unobstructed journeys to the Far East, which left behind these religious and cultural oddities.

Blog Post #9 - The Great Game

2010-02-23T01:49:00.000-08:00

In this week's readings (Ch. 10-14 from the Frances Wood book), one of my favourite aspects was the intense curiosity which the Silk Road inspired in its explorers. Mostly described as "anti-social," people like Stein, Przhevalsky, and Elias became famous by traveling as far away from Western society as was possible. Elias was said to have wanted to avoided a business career in favour of less social endeavours, thereby leading him to cross Mongolia and explore Karakorum. That this was a logical alternative is fascinating to me, as some of the tasks required of them were quite unusual and grotesque. Sven Hedin's account of climbing into the Tower of Silence in order to obtain three human skulls (whose rotting flesh was still somewhat intact) is only one of many assignments given to these explorers, who likely would have preferred instead to avoid contact with such rotting corpses. The pull of the Silk Road seems to have been so powerful as to have made any required actions tolerable -- especially considering that Hedin returned to Kashgar in June 1895 yet left in order to embark on another exploration in December! The dedication to the exploration and collection of "Buddha images" and "Christian relics" in Khotan and Yarkand is just one of many which illustrate the intense attraction these men had to their expeditions.

Blog Post #8 - Views of Islam for the last 40 years

2010-02-09T02:43:00.000-08:00

This week's readings provided excellent background information regarding popular opinions about "fundamentalist" Muslims, as well as whether or not historical factors were taken into account during their formation. As such a hot button issue, arguments about women's rights in Muslim regions of the world are never going to be settled nor fully understood simply by examining the history of such "fundamentalist" groups.

What this exploration does do, though, is shed some light on just how multi-faceted their history is, allowing for a deeper and less partial understanding of who supports these practices and how how they became so widespread.

Hirschkind and Mahmood ("Feminism, the Taliban, and Politics of Counter-Insurgency") use Salman Rushdie's beliefs as a perfect example of such a partial, one-sided view of Islam from the West's persepective: Islam itself is wholly incompatible with Western ideals of modernization and freedom. This, in addition to his other controversial remarks, only heightened the tension between the West and the Muslim world. As Said insists ("The Clash of Ignorance"), pitting the West against Islam is a "gimmick" which serves more as a tool to bolster the idea of our "superiority," rather than creating a working model of how the world works, paying great attention to the effects of each civilization or culture upon the other.

Blog Post #7 - Islam in China

2010-02-02T02:02:00.000-08:00

This week's readings were particularly interesting to me, as I have taken a few courses on Islam at UofT. The readings somewhat address the role of trade in facilitating the spread of Islam into China, as well as the modern status of Muslims in China. I look forward to the class discussion about this phenomenon, as other religious such as Buddhism seem to have integrated so seamlessly into Chinese culture. Despite Islam's intention to be universally accepted, it has never fully merged with the more "Chinese" or "East Asian" traditions, such as Confucianism and Daoism. Whether it's the monotheistic aspect, or the extremely strong linguistic attachment to Arabic, Islam's acceptance in China doesn't seem to go past individual Muslims' immersion in Chinese culture. Again, the class discussion about Islam's arrival and battle to stay in China is something which I will find extremely intriguing!

Group Topic #3 - Manichaeism as a Syncretic Tradition

2010-01-11T23:54:00.000-08:00

This week's readings on Manichaeism raise some interesting questions about the idea of syncretism and whether or not what Mani started could be considered a syncretic tradition or not.

On one hand, the term "syncretic" makes me think of an organic process in which two traditions merge out of either mutual (or similar) beliefs... or when two distinct cultures live harmoniously for a long period of time and eventually use some of the same terminology, whether or not they hold the same meaning for both groups.

Manichaeism, for me, doesn't completely fit into either of those categories, as Mani seems to have hand-crafted his religion in order to seem cohesive with the major religious traditions in his part of the world. By redefining terms such as "Buddha" and "Bodhisattva," as well as using his own concepts of Light and Dark to explain the origins of mankind ["Eve, whose body contained less Light than his, allowed herself to be seduced by a demon, whereupon she gave birth to Cain and Abel." (Klimkeit article)], he in a sense was able to provide a tradition which all people could instantly relate to, whether or not he was using their religious terminology "correctly." I have difficulty calling Manichaeism a "syncretic" tradition with the knowledge of its goal-oriented formulation; it seems to have been too calculated, focusing solely on targeting specific religious traditions and leadings their followers toward his religion instead.

But maybe I'm being naive in my idea of what a truly "syncretic" tradition should be!

Blog Post #6 - Nestorian Christianity in Tang China

2010-01-08T22:20:00.000-08:00

[Bundy, David D., "Missiological Reflections on Nestorian Christianity in China during the Tang Dyanasty."]

Before doing the readings this week, I began to wonder why the Nestorian church ultimately faced a decline in Tang China. Its ability to adapt to the Chinese culture and the Chinese people's willingness to accept it as a foreign tradition seemed to create quite a bit of stability. In the Bundy reading, though, I was reminded of something we talked about in class this past Tuesday: the selling of ordinances. With the need for governmental income becoming desperate, the Chinese government's policy of eliminating all ordinances seems to have applied to all religious institutions at the time, especially monasteries:

"A decree dated September 12, 845 C.E. recounts the ordered dissolution of monasteries throughout the empire (not just the Christian ones) and the repatriation of foreign monks... The monks were required to return to lay life, resume their original occupations and pay taxes" (19).

This setback, along with "the competition of a vigorous Buddhism and its distance from the ecclesiastical centers in Mesopotamia" all seem to have played large roles in the disruption of the growth of the Nestorian church in Tang China (24).

I found especially interesting the openness of the Chinese people during the Tang dynasty (at least in the two capital cities) to foreign cultures. Capital cities tend to be the epicenters of multiculturalism, and Ch'ang-an and Lo-yang seem to have been no different. With the acceptance of Western music, food, clothes, and makeup, it's no surprise that the Nestorian Christians were relatively welcomed there, as opposed to more rural parts of China and the rest of Asia. These cities were likely the only places Nestorian Christian could have possibly taken hold so far east!

http://factsanddetails.com/media/2/20080220-Early%20Christians%20Socdigest,%20cross%20and%20Chinese%20charactr.%208th%20.jpg

No wonder people's minds were blown when they saw the Chinese writing inscribed next to a cross -- it was so localized, it was virtually nonexistent in rural China.

Group Topic #2 - Daily Life at Dunhuang

2009-11-23T23:48:00.000-08:00

This relatively detailed account of life at Dunhuang toward the end of the first millenium was really eye-opening, as it touched on several typically overlooked topics such as women and poorer families. With the political climate being extremely tumultuous, the constant fear of invasion from foreign, non-Buddhist groups explains why the manuscripts at the cave sites in Dunhuang were hidden so carefully. These cave sites seem to have been both religious sites for monks to meditate as well as for public worship rituals, but it also served as a storage area for more secular documents such as wills, almanacs, and censuses.

While the practice if Buddhism in the region clearly holds great importance (i.e., the preservation of texts with scraps of other, less important documents), its secondary role as a storage area shows how secular life was intertwined with such a religious site.

The Silk Road, bringing foreign groups through China on a regular basis, also facilitated the fusion of Buddhism with these other foreign traditions as well as their animals. While elephants' prevalence in India makes their presence in Dunhuang's Buddhist art understandable, representations of other animals such as monkeys and rabbits are not as easy to explain.

The various anecdotes about Yang Guifei, "the emperor's favourite concubine" (in both the CR article and in Chapter 6 of the Frances Wood book), are both entertaining and insightful. They somewhat exemplify the role of women at the time (she apparently should not have taken lessons in the "Sogdian whirlwind or twirling dance") and the presence of "Western" dogs in Imperial families (both for hunting and as personal pets).

the

Similarly, the letters written apologizing for excessive drunkenness shed some light on the non-religious aspects of daily life in Dunhuang. On the other hand, the religious significance placed on wine adds another dimension to the act of drinking alcohol:

"Give men wine with their meat, And never shall they have an evil thought. Where Wine is, there will also be Benevolence and Righteousness, Propriety and Wisdom. Clearly it deserves the highest honour, For what other beverage can compare with it?"

While information regarding women, etc. is limited to the Sogdian letters and artifacts such as hair pins and make up boxes, what we do have allows us to fill in some of the gaps of the social and religious life at Dunhuang.

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The depiction of Yang Guifei as somewhat overweight (at least compared to the old standards of women's appearances) intrigued me, so I did a quick search of images of her:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/Yang_Gui-fei_by_Takaku_Aigai.jpg

http://www.ichina.org.uk/admin/eWebEditor/UploadFile/200898224255770.jpg

Blog Post #5 - Buddhism

2009-11-10T09:41:00.000-08:00

This weeks reading by Donald S. Lopez was especially useful as a relatively comprehensive introduction to Buddhism. Rather than simply laying out the Four Noble Truths, the Three Jewels, etc., it chronicles the beginnings of the tradition (or "traditions") and its metamorphosis over the centuries regarding both "beliefs" and scriptures.

The translated Chinese sources were also very intriguing, showing how the Chinese "traditions" took the Buddha's message and transformed it to fit in with their way of thinking -- using parables to explain complicated, metaphorical situations regarding the value of life and the importance of worldly goods and pleasures. The mixture of the seemingly Confucian method of story-telling and the Buddhist concepts of suffering and enlightenment are explained very well and provide a good basis for understanding the third reading by Sally Hovey Wriggens, which chronicles a young Chinese monk's journey traveling to India. The first two readings give context to what the monk was experiencing as he visited various sites in the "holy land of Buddhism," and how even though the message had been "distorted" on its journey to China, the Chinese monk still impressed the Indian monks with his deep understanding and his "new depth of feeling."

When learning about Buddhism, introductory religion courses usually restrict themselves to India alone, so it was very useful to get a solid introductory reading explaining the subtle differences between the traditions in each region.

Blog Post #4 - Zoroastrianism

2009-11-03T05:08:00.000-08:00

I was really looking forward to reading about an actual religious tradition this week, as up until now we've focused on the history of the Silk Road and other ways of studying religion and language.

Zoroaster, the prophet of Zoroastrianism:

http://www.westminster.edu/staff/brennie/images/zoroaster.jpg

While reading the chapter by Mary Boyce, I was reminded (again) of our conversations about religious studies in general, and how objectivity is difficult, if at all possible. It really stuck with me how religious scholars distorted the study of Zoroastrianism, going so far as to incorrectly translate ancient texts or at least refuse to consider a translation with a different implication regarding their beliefs.

Not only did Thomas Hyde approach Zoroastrianism with the intent on "proving" its monotheism, but even today many religious scholars describe it as a "fire-worshipping" religion, rather than acknowledging that fire is only one part of the religious rituals, performed mainly as a means of purification. Those big distortions AND the small ones (respectively) are clear evidence for why the analysis of "religious studies" is so important: we must first acknowledge what it is we aim to learn about a group of people before we claim to understand them.

Again, overall I really enjoyed this chapter, as it was the first real taste of an ancient religious tradition in this course!

Group Topic #1 - Study of Religion

2009-10-29T13:02:00.000-07:00

I was pleasantly surprised to see that this week's readings were from the University of Alabama, as I actually grew up in Georgia (grades 2-12)!

http://www.free2pray.info/10commandments.jpg

When I read the example about the 10 commandments being put up in the courtroom, it took me right back to the week that it happened. I remember hearing everybody in school talk about it, how it wasn't worth all of the fuss, and how they didn't see anything wrong with it at all. Granted, that's more of a political debate regarding church vs. state, but it definitely points out the blurred (or non-existant) line drawn between religion and everyday life in the southeastern US.

Whether is was the "moment of silence" clearly intended for silent prayer; the pledge of allegiance stating, "One nation, under God;" or the heartfelt prayers read over the loudspeakers at every single football game; as an "outsider" (a non-religious Canadian), it was blatantly obvious to me what was classified as religion and what wasn't. On the other hand, I noticed that my friends had a harder time making that distinction, as it was all they had ever known.

In writing this, it has become clear that my idea of "religion" is biased in the sense that my family lacks a religious (or doctrinal) background. Anything different from what I knew in Canda was ultimately classified as "religion" in my mind. In this same way, anthropologists and other scholars have, over the years, classified other cultures' practices and beliefs as "religions" or "magic" mainly due to the foreign nature of their actions.

But back to my experience in Georgia, the discussion about "essentialism" and the "family resemblance" approach really jumped out at me, as there are religious people everywhere, it's just that I was now being exposed to a different "type" of Christianity. Also, growing up in the Unitarian Universalist church, many many different traditions were combined to varying degrees, making it impossible to classify someone as "purely" Christian, Buddhist, Muslim, etc.

It is impossible to study religions as distinct, separate entities, especially when studying East Asian traditions, which makes the "dimension theory of religion" so crucial. It is difficult to tease out the distinct qualities of religious traditions into "essentialist" concept, so instead we have to study them in connection to one another, and how they interact.

Blog Post #3 - The Sogdians

2009-10-20T01:27:00.000-07:00

I found this week's readings really interesting, as this is the first time we've really mentioned the Silk Road religions in this course. Previous weeks served as good background material, but now we're starting to see just how these traditions made their way across Asia into China.

In particular, I was intrigued by the Manichaean religion, which I hadn't heard of before. The focus on the struggle between good and evil, light and dark, must have rung particularly true during these times when the Silk Road was full of dangerous groups trying to take control of unguarded areas.

When looking for more information on Mani and his ideas, I stumbled upon this website about the New Manichaean Church:

http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Rhodes/3991/NeoManichaean.html

This group concludes that the origin of evil is not what's taught in today's religious traditions. Instead, "the creator-God is ultimately responsible for the evil and suffering in the world, because that God is itself evil."

"If you use power over another person to convert them, you have not followed the Neo-Manichaean path. 'Power' does not just mean physical force but any unfair influence, such as superior wealth, social pressure, or even taking advantge of a person's loneliness by taking them into the family of the Church."

It's interesting to see a new-age revival of such an ancient tradition (carried by the Sogdians), especially one which traveled thousands of miles, endured relentless persecution, and survived innumerable translations of its texts.

Blog Post #2 - The Hao Hanshu, etc.

2009-10-12T23:13:00.000-07:00

First of all, I apologize for posting this entry so late. I spent the long weekend away from solid internet access, so this was my first chance to post.

As for the Hou Hanshu, I have difficulty deciding whether or not to classify it as "historical." Granted, the (mostly) accurate numbers and great detail included are persuasive, but then again we have to admit that it was compiled from one particular perspective. It is impossible to get an "outsider's" view, hence any lack of objectivity (which came up over and over with our discussion of cultural relativism). Wars and battles will no doubt be glorified for this reason, and the outcomes may very well have been skewed in their favour.

On the other hand, the whole idea of cultural relativism is to study a group from the inside, using their perspective, rather than viewing it through another's eyes. In this sense, the Hou Hanshu can easily be considered historical. In the end, it is the only real record we have of that time period, making it the closest thing to a historical document as we are going to get.

Concerning the cultural references, it was interesting to read about the different regions' practices regarding marrying off princesses and the treatment of widows. The huge disparity between "virtuous widowhood" and the practice of marrying widows off to relatives of their late husbands was just one of many examples of the causes for tension between the various regions. Everything from land disputes to women to horses was cause for violence, resulting in a very, very bloody account of the Han dynasty.

The following link gave me a better understanding of the use of women to strengthen ties between neighbouring regions:

http://china.org.cn/english/culture/63515.htm

The section called "Figures Remembered" tells the story of Xijun (the daughter of the king of Jiangdu) and her time in Wusun, as told in chapter 4 of the Wood book. It also continues by discussing the subsequent marriages (and children) and how they influenced other "ethnic states" to marry into the Han dyansty.

Blog Post #1 - "The Silk Road" Ch. 1-3

2009-09-22T06:42:00.000-07:00

This reading was a really good introduction to the Silk Road, especially for those whose only knowledge of it came from random paintings and images that they had encountered in the past.

I learned a lot, but one of the most surprising facts for me was that it did not consist of one continuous route. By avoiding the centre of the desert by taking various routes to the north and south, they were able to branch off and travel to the north and west, as well as going south into India.

The chapter describing how silk is made was equally as fascinating, learning just how tedious it was to take care of the silkworms and handle their cocoons. Silk was clearly the most famous export from China, but also the intense process involved in shaping Jade caught my eye. First spending the time and energy creating these products, and then sending merchants halfway across Asia in order to sell them, was an extraordinary feat... especially when you put it into perspective by comparing it to our modern-day system with Ebay and Amazon.

Studying for the map quiz will definitely come in handy when reading these texts, as right now the names of the cities mean next to nothing. The paintings are incredibly interesting as well, such as the women diving for Jade.

Overall, a very intriguing reading which lays down a good foundational knowledge of the Silk Road.