This talk is organised by the Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore; with funding support from the Foo Hai Ch’an Monastery Fellowship in Buddhist Studies.
CHAIRPERSON
Assoc Prof Jack Meng-Tat Chia, Department of History, National University of Singapore
ABSTRACT
Ongoing debates on the modernization of Buddhism often emphasize secularization, individualization, and laicization, framing these processes as intrinsic to the modernization of religion. However, despite more nuanced and widespread understandings of modernity across many academic disciplines, Chinese Buddhist studies often continues to adhere to this Eurocentric narrative.
This presentation proposes a spatial approach to modernity, focusing on the Buddhist lay organization Buddha’s Light International Association (BLIA) or Guoji Foguang Hui (國際佛光會), which is associated with the Taiwanese monastic order Fo Guang Shan (佛光山) [Buddha’s Light Mountain]. It examines a booklet titled Foguang Xue (佛光學) [Buddha’s Light Studies], which outlines the philosophy, history, rules, and regulations of the BLIA, juxtaposing its content with fieldwork findings.
By analyzing member guidelines, attire, cultivation formats, and the ways in which equality and diversity are addressed within the BLIA, this presentation argues that secularization, individualization, gender equality, and laicization are not merely intrinsic features of the modernization of Buddhism. Instead, they are elements negotiated in diverse ways by modern Buddhist actors, shaped by specific historical and contextual factors.
The case of the Taiwanese Buddhist organization Buddha’s Light International offers an alternative understanding of modernity—one characterized by a lay Buddhist religiosity that is outspokenly modernist yet not entirely secularized, fully laicized, or individualized.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Jens Reinke is Assistant Professor of Buddhist Studies at the Buddhist Studies Seminary of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam in the Netherlands. His research primarily focuses on the development of contemporary Chinese Mahayana Buddhism within the framework of multiple global modernities.
Focusing on Taiwan, Jens Reinke examines modern and contemporary Buddhist translocative entanglements shaped by Western colonialism, the processes of Asian nation-state building, increasing global integration, and ethnic Chinese migration. His work highlights the trajectories of non-Western modern Buddhist religiosities.
His recent book, Mapping Modern Mahayana: Chinese Buddhism and Migration in the Age of Global Modernity, offers a multi-sited ethnographic study centered on the Taiwanese Buddhist organization Fo Guang Shan. The book has been recognized as a “Groundbreaking Work in the Study of Chinese Religions” by the Society for the Study of Chinese Religions and is published by De Gruyter.
In his current research, Jens Reinke continues to explore Buddhist social. He is investigating Buddhist spiritual care in Taiwan within the broader context of global interconnections.
