Tall Tree, Nest of the Wind: The Javanese Shadow-play Dewa Ruci Performed by Ki Anom Soeroto: A Study in Performance Philology

Javanese shadow puppetry is a sophisticated dramatic form, often felt to be at the heart of Javanese culture, drawing on classic texts but with important contemporary resonance in fields like religion and politics. How to make sense of the shadow-play as a form of world-making? In Tall Tree, Nest of the Wind, Bernard Arps explores …

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WPS 251 Coping with Illness and its Uncertainties in Rakhine (Myanmar): An Anthropological Study of a Pluralistic Therapeutic Field

Based on fieldwork conducted among the Buddhist population living in Rakhine State (western Myanmar) since 2005, this paper elucidates how people understand health and ill-health and how they deal with them as well as with the uncertainty related to them by relying on conceptions and practices originated from Buddhism, astrology, spirit cult, indigenous medicine and …

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Faith and the State: A History of Islamic Philanthropy in Indonesia (in Indonesian translation)

Filantropi Islam, Sejarah dan Kontestasi Masyarakat Sipil dan Negara di Indonesia Gading, Yogyakarta Indonesian translation of the Faith and the State: A History of Islamic Philanthropy in Indonesia Faith and the State offers a comprehensive historical development of Islamic philanthropy–zakat (almsgiving), sedekah (donation) and waqf (religious endowment)– from the time of the Islamic monarchs, through the period of Dutch colonialism and up …

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WPS 250 The Anthropological Study of Religion in China: Contexts, Collaborations, Debates, and Trends

In a country where “religion” is narrowly defined and strongly regulated, de facto religious activities vibrantly revived in the last three decades along with the steady growth of state-legible religions. The paper reviews the anthropological study of religion in the last three decades against the social, political, and academic contexts. I argue that this field …

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Rebuilding Asia Following Natural Disasters Approaches to Reconstruction in the Asia-Pacific Region

Providing a detailed and comparative assessment of the humanitarian responses to a series of major disasters in Asia over the past two decades, including massive earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis, this book explores complex and changing understandings and practices of relief, recovery, and reconstruction. These critical investigations raise questions about the position and responsibilities of …

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