Periodic Reporting for period 1 - TibSchol (The Dawn of Tibetan Buddhist Scholasticism (11th-13th c.))
Berichtszeitraum: 2021-07-01 bis 2022-12-31
The project TibSchol - The Dawn of Tibetan Buddhist Scholasticism (11th–13th c.) - is the first wide-ranging exploration of the formative phase of the Tibetan Buddhist scholastic tradition. From the 10th c. onward, Tibet witnessed a revival of Buddhist culture and a new flowering of religious and intellectual traditions. A massive number of Indian Buddhist teachings were introduced to Tibet, sparking a huge amount of literary activity. This configuration spurred the development of formal tools of reasoned analysis and hermeneutical devices that were applied to the investigation of the Buddhist scriptures imported from India and used in the context of religio-philosophical discussions.
The project TibSchol takes advantage of the recent surfacing of a large body of early scholastic writings in manuscript form, which is enabling the exploration of the early developments of Tibetan scholasticism to a depth that has never before been possible.
The 11th to 13th centuries represent a turning point in Tibetan intellectual history, a period marked by the appearance of an autochthonous tradition of learning. This dawn of Tibetan scholasticism was a phenomenon of prodigious cultural, religious and historical importance. As a topic of research, it embraces questions shared by the fields of religious studies and philosophy. The methods and tools of Tibetan scholasticism developed at this time went on to shape a scholarly tradition that, in human history, represents a particularly long-lasting method of methodical and systematic learning. Indeed, forms of scholasticism continue to survive in Tibetan monastic contexts to the present day. Understanding this phenomenon is essential not only for a more complete appreciation of Tibet’s intellectual history, but also for a better-grounded and more credible global history of philosophy and its methods.
The aim of the project is to provide an integrative picture of the formative period of Tibetan scholasticism by exploring both the early Tibetan scholastic landscape and the Tibetan scholastic method. Mapping personal and intellectual networks of Tibetan scholastics in the 11th to 13th century and charting the early scholastic corpus will pave the way for research on how texts were circulated at that time, as well as how knowledge was propagated. Within the framework of the project, among other things, a survey is being undertaken of the most significant conceptual tools developed in early Tibetan scholasticism. By examining theoretical excursus on these technical tools and their application in exegeses of Indian Buddhist soteriological and philosophical literature, the project is clarifying the basic vocabulary of scholastic discussions. This will make these texts more accessible, also to researchers in other fields, and promote comparative studies with other scholastic cultures worldwide.
The project TibSchol takes advantage of the recent surfacing of a large body of early scholastic writings in manuscript form, which is enabling the exploration of the early developments of Tibetan scholasticism to a depth that has never before been possible.
The 11th to 13th centuries represent a turning point in Tibetan intellectual history, a period marked by the appearance of an autochthonous tradition of learning. This dawn of Tibetan scholasticism was a phenomenon of prodigious cultural, religious and historical importance. As a topic of research, it embraces questions shared by the fields of religious studies and philosophy. The methods and tools of Tibetan scholasticism developed at this time went on to shape a scholarly tradition that, in human history, represents a particularly long-lasting method of methodical and systematic learning. Indeed, forms of scholasticism continue to survive in Tibetan monastic contexts to the present day. Understanding this phenomenon is essential not only for a more complete appreciation of Tibet’s intellectual history, but also for a better-grounded and more credible global history of philosophy and its methods.
The aim of the project is to provide an integrative picture of the formative period of Tibetan scholasticism by exploring both the early Tibetan scholastic landscape and the Tibetan scholastic method. Mapping personal and intellectual networks of Tibetan scholastics in the 11th to 13th century and charting the early scholastic corpus will pave the way for research on how texts were circulated at that time, as well as how knowledge was propagated. Within the framework of the project, among other things, a survey is being undertaken of the most significant conceptual tools developed in early Tibetan scholasticism. By examining theoretical excursus on these technical tools and their application in exegeses of Indian Buddhist soteriological and philosophical literature, the project is clarifying the basic vocabulary of scholastic discussions. This will make these texts more accessible, also to researchers in other fields, and promote comparative studies with other scholastic cultures worldwide.
The project TibSchol was launched on 1 July 2021. The project’s research activities are divided into five subprojects:
P1: Persons, schools, and networks in early Tibetan scholasticism
P2: Early Tibetan scholastic literature: the corpus, its constitution and diffusion
P3: Conceptual tools of early Tibetan scholasticism
P4: Hermeneutics in early Tibetan scholasticism
P5: Argumentation in early Tibetan scholasticism: theory and practice
In the first 18 months of the project, the team of 6 postdocs has progressed in its survey of the textual corpus – a collection of more than 500 works in handwritten manuscript form, accessible as facsimile. The team has selected works to be prioritized for further exploration of their contents and/or for data mining. Research on the scholastic landscape (P1) addressed the authors of the prioritized works and their connections to other persons (teachers, sponsors, etc.), carrying out in particular an exploration of the colophons of these works. Some of these colophons (albeit very few) provide valuable information about where the work was composed or copied. Subproject P2 (started Oct. 2022) has been contributing to the global picture of scholarly compositions by seeking references to other texts written by the prioritized authors. Within the thematic inquiries into scholastic tools (P3) have been analyses of the mental category of “factive assessment” (cognitions that are correct, but not considered “valid” on account of not being properly supported by evidence) in discussions on scriptural authority, and the theory of definition, a pillar of Tibetan scholasticism. Subproject P4 has examined the question of scholarly authority and the issue of “forgeries” (Tibetan compositions claimed to be works of Indian origin) in commentarial literature. Also investigated in joint reading sessions and at an international reading workshop was the model of analysis in Tibetan commentaries of initial statements in Indian base texts. Linking subproject P5 and an inquiry into the background issue of defining the phenomenon of “scholasticism” more precisely, works were examined that provide evidence of a growing gulf in Tibet between scholastics and scholars who rejected this approach.
Several digital humanities and technical tools are being set up to help in the collecting and organizing of data in the project. These include a bibliographical library on Zotero, an HTR model for the automated recognition of Tibetan cursive script using the platform Transkribus, a library of textual fragments in TEI format, and a prosopographical database. Public access to these tools and associated datasets will be provided as soon as their development has reached a satisfactory stage.
So far, the TibSchol team has organized two workshops as well as a panel at the 16th Seminar of the International Association of Tibetan Studies (Prague, 3–9 July 2022), the main international event on Tibetology that took place in the reporting period. Research results were presented in eleven lectures, and two articles were published.
P1: Persons, schools, and networks in early Tibetan scholasticism
P2: Early Tibetan scholastic literature: the corpus, its constitution and diffusion
P3: Conceptual tools of early Tibetan scholasticism
P4: Hermeneutics in early Tibetan scholasticism
P5: Argumentation in early Tibetan scholasticism: theory and practice
In the first 18 months of the project, the team of 6 postdocs has progressed in its survey of the textual corpus – a collection of more than 500 works in handwritten manuscript form, accessible as facsimile. The team has selected works to be prioritized for further exploration of their contents and/or for data mining. Research on the scholastic landscape (P1) addressed the authors of the prioritized works and their connections to other persons (teachers, sponsors, etc.), carrying out in particular an exploration of the colophons of these works. Some of these colophons (albeit very few) provide valuable information about where the work was composed or copied. Subproject P2 (started Oct. 2022) has been contributing to the global picture of scholarly compositions by seeking references to other texts written by the prioritized authors. Within the thematic inquiries into scholastic tools (P3) have been analyses of the mental category of “factive assessment” (cognitions that are correct, but not considered “valid” on account of not being properly supported by evidence) in discussions on scriptural authority, and the theory of definition, a pillar of Tibetan scholasticism. Subproject P4 has examined the question of scholarly authority and the issue of “forgeries” (Tibetan compositions claimed to be works of Indian origin) in commentarial literature. Also investigated in joint reading sessions and at an international reading workshop was the model of analysis in Tibetan commentaries of initial statements in Indian base texts. Linking subproject P5 and an inquiry into the background issue of defining the phenomenon of “scholasticism” more precisely, works were examined that provide evidence of a growing gulf in Tibet between scholastics and scholars who rejected this approach.
Several digital humanities and technical tools are being set up to help in the collecting and organizing of data in the project. These include a bibliographical library on Zotero, an HTR model for the automated recognition of Tibetan cursive script using the platform Transkribus, a library of textual fragments in TEI format, and a prosopographical database. Public access to these tools and associated datasets will be provided as soon as their development has reached a satisfactory stage.
So far, the TibSchol team has organized two workshops as well as a panel at the 16th Seminar of the International Association of Tibetan Studies (Prague, 3–9 July 2022), the main international event on Tibetology that took place in the reporting period. Research results were presented in eleven lectures, and two articles were published.
By the end of the project, we expect to have completed our exploration of the newly discovered textual corpus and to be able to answer the following questions:
- Who were the individuals involved in scholastic activities in the 11th to 13th c. Tibet, how were they connected, and which enclaves of learning were they affiliated with?
- Which textual traditions and topics did Tibetan scholastics in the 11th to 13th c. favor, and which Indian and Tibetan treatises did they teach, study, and refer to in their own works?
- What is the contextual and theoretical background of discussions on tools and methods, and what degree of abstraction do they display?
- What were the dominant problems and debates in Tibetan Buddhist scholarship of the 11th to 13th c. and how were scholastic tools used to frame and solve philosophical and exegetical problems?
Answering these questions will be a giant step forward in Tibetan studies and bring research on early Tibetan scholasticism to an entirely new level. Additionally, it will contribute to our aim of understanding these phenomena as significant parts of world intellectual history and philosophy. The results of TibSchol’s research will allow for better informed comparisons with other forms of scholasticism worldwide, and contribute, in methodological terms, to a more nuanced conceptualization of scholasticism as a cross-cultural comparative category. The technical tools being developed and the data being collected will also remain available as a long-term output of the project.
- Who were the individuals involved in scholastic activities in the 11th to 13th c. Tibet, how were they connected, and which enclaves of learning were they affiliated with?
- Which textual traditions and topics did Tibetan scholastics in the 11th to 13th c. favor, and which Indian and Tibetan treatises did they teach, study, and refer to in their own works?
- What is the contextual and theoretical background of discussions on tools and methods, and what degree of abstraction do they display?
- What were the dominant problems and debates in Tibetan Buddhist scholarship of the 11th to 13th c. and how were scholastic tools used to frame and solve philosophical and exegetical problems?
Answering these questions will be a giant step forward in Tibetan studies and bring research on early Tibetan scholasticism to an entirely new level. Additionally, it will contribute to our aim of understanding these phenomena as significant parts of world intellectual history and philosophy. The results of TibSchol’s research will allow for better informed comparisons with other forms of scholasticism worldwide, and contribute, in methodological terms, to a more nuanced conceptualization of scholasticism as a cross-cultural comparative category. The technical tools being developed and the data being collected will also remain available as a long-term output of the project.