Playing the Patriarch: Representation and Transformation in the Zen Sermon

In this paper I discuss the characteristics and meaning of the abbot’s sermon in the Japanese Rinzai Zen tradition. Using ethnographic data, viewed in light of performance theory, I contend that it is possible to go beyond the boundaries that have characterized previous scholarly understandings of Z...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Joskovich, Erez (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Oxford University Press [2017]
In: Journal of the American Academy of Religion
Year: 2017, Volume: 85, Issue: 2, Pages: 470-493
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Rinzai / Abbot / Sermon / Ritual
IxTheo Classification:BL Buddhism
KBM Asia
Online Access: Volltext (Verlag)
Volltext (doi)
Description
Summary:In this paper I discuss the characteristics and meaning of the abbot’s sermon in the Japanese Rinzai Zen tradition. Using ethnographic data, viewed in light of performance theory, I contend that it is possible to go beyond the boundaries that have characterized previous scholarly understandings of Zen ritual (action/insight, social/mental, and formalism/authenticity). Accordingly, I demonstrate that the sermon serves as an arena for social interaction, and enforces institutional order, but at the same time, it also serves as a transformative medium that changes the participant's state of being. Finally, I contend that performance theory articulates an inherent connection between realization and enactment, as well as awakening and its manifestation; thus, it has the potential to shed new light on our current understanding of Zen practice.
ISSN:1477-4585
Contains:Enthalten in: American Academy of Religion, Journal of the American Academy of Religion
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1093/jaarel/lfw065