Call for Applications: Summer 2019 Training Program on “Buddhism and Ethnicity in the Period of Sixteen Kingdoms and Northern Dynasties”

主办机构 Sponsoring Institutions: 
哈佛燕京学社 Harvard-Yenching Institute
北京大学哲学系（宗教学系）Department of Philosophy & Religious Studies, Peking University

承办机构 Organizer: 
北京大学佛学教育研究中心 Center for Buddhist Education and Research, Peking University

协办机构 Partner Institutions:
中国国家博物馆研究院佛造像研究所 Institute of Buddhist Statues, Academy of National Museum of China
敦煌研究院佛学研究中心Center for Buddhist Studies, Dunhuang Academy China
北京大学人文社会科学研究院Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences, Peking University
北京大学中国古代史研究中心 Center for Research on Ancient Chinese History, Peking University

项目主持 Program Chairs:
罗柏松，哈佛大学东亚系教授 James Robson, Professor, Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations, Harvard University
李四龙，北京大学哲学系教授、北大佛学教育研究中心主任 Li Silong, Professor, Department of Philosophy & Religious Studies, Director of the Center for Buddhist Education and Research, Peking University
李若虹，哈佛燕京学社副社长 Ruohong Li, Associate Director, Harvard-Yenching Institute

主讲专家 Lecturing Faculty: 5-6 Chinese faculty, 3-4 English-speaking faculty and 1-2 Japanese faculty

项目秘书 Program Secretaries:
赵悠Zhao You, Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy & Religious Studies
李薇Li Wei, Post Doctor, Department of Philosophy & Religious Studies
汪康Wang Kang, Master Candidate, Department of Philosophy & Religious Studies
张焱森Zhang Yansen, Doctor Candidate, Department of Philosophy & Religious Studies
张与弛 Zhang Yuchi, Doctoral Student, Department of Philosophy & Religious Studies

报名邮箱 Email Address: sixteen_kingdoms@126.com

The Sixteen Kingdoms and the Northern Dynasties were an important period in Chinese history in which nomadic groups from the northern steppe expanded southwards. During the two-hundred-year-long reign under various ethnic groups from the fourth to the sixth century AD, the northern region saw severe conflicts erupt among different ethnic groups. Even so, these groups proved able to cooperate as a harmonious whole, which enabled the Chinese civilization to flourish. Undoubtedly, Buddhism plays a central role in this course. How may we achieve a comprehensive understanding of the profound interaction between foreign religions, heterogeneous ethnic groups and Chinese traditional culture and social structure at that time? This is a key question that constantly inspires generations of scholars.

Department of Philosophy & Religious Studies of Peking University and The Harvard-Yenching Institute, therefore will continue to co-sponsor the 3rd international summer training workshop “Buddhism and Ethnicity in the period of Sixteen Kingdoms and the Northern Dynasties”.

Thanks to development of archeology and art history since the 20th century, a large amount of materials from this period have been continuously uncovered and reinterpreted. Abundant cave-temples and statues, as well as other relics, including monastery sites, storage-holes and tombs urgently call for interdisciplinary collaboration to yield new insights for Buddhist Studies. It is a challenging as well as exciting task to build upon recent achievement by historian and archeologists to obtain a deeper insight into Buddhism during this period from multiple perspectives including religious studies, philosophy, ethnology, archeology, art history, literature studies and linguistics etc. It would be a good start and foundation to organize a group of young talents who are interested in this task to summarize and interpret existent academic achievements together. The northern ethnic groups had close political and military ties with Central Asian states and nomadic empires. Overtly or covertly, there existed exchange and interaction among Chinese, Silk-road, South Asian, Western Asian and even Roman culture. Therefore, the study of “Buddhism and ethnicity in the period of Sixteen Kingdoms and the Northern Dynasties” must take into account archaeological discoveries and related academic researches outside of China.

Successively and successfully, two training workshops & summer schools in the same series have taken place at the Department of Philosophy & Religious Studies of Peking University, once in June 2017 and the other June 2018, on occasion of which groups of excellent young scholars as well as academia’s attention are drawn to this program from all over the world. Undertaken by the Center for Buddhist Education and Research at Peking University, this program comprehensively coordinates varieties of top academic resources home and overseas.

During the 1st workshop “Buddhism and Ethnicity in the period of Sixteen Kingdoms and Northern Dynasties”, 28 outstanding students from 18 domestic and international universities and research institutes participated actively in the intensive course. 8 professors from Peking University, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing Normal University gave thought-provoking lectures and guided young scholars toward interdisciplinary academic communication in-depth. The last half-day of the program was a trainee forum, where all trainees presented their papers and thereby inspired each other.

The 2nd workshop “Buddhism and Ethnicity in the period of Sixteen Kingdoms and Northern Dynasties” was jointly held by the Harvard-Yenching Institute and the Department of Philosophy & Religious Studies of Peking University. 25 young scholars (including young instructors, postdoctoral fellows, doctor candidates and master candidates) from 18 universities or research institutes over the world were selected as trainees, and 10 professors from 8 universities in America, France, Japan and China were invited to deliver lectures. Apart from regular lectures and trainee forums, the 2nd workshop specially organized a symposium for trainees to present their research proposals and get professional advice from professors and peers. Besides, jointly held with the Institution of Humanities and Social Sciences at PKU, two round-tables open to the public attracted a big audience. The roundtables focused on two topics: (1) Chinese Metaphysics, Confucianism and Buddhism: Practice of Interpreting Classics in the Northern Dynasties; and (2) Belief, Ethnicity and Art: The Evolution of Medieval Buddhist Images.

From June 15 to 23, 2019, the 3nd International Summer Training Workshop & Summer School for Graduate Students and Young Scholars will be held at Peking University. With the help of on-the-spot teaching, this year we will continue to seek for an in-depth study of Buddhism and ethnic relations during this historical period and get better knowledge about the social and ideological changes during the 4th-6th centuries in an interdisciplinary way.

Lecturers in this year’s program will include Chinese scholars from universities such as Peking University, Tsinghua University, Wuhan University and Dunhuang Academy China, as well as overseas scholars from Harvard University in the United States, Europe and Japan. Their topics might include relations between the Han people and “barbarians”, the “Sinification” of foreign ethnic groups, material culture and intellectual history during this period, Buddhism and Daoism, and political-social contexts, etc. There would also be two round-table discussions about (1) Thoughts and Texts: textual structure and the practice of scriptural interpretation in Buddhism and Daoism in the Southern and the Northern Dynasties, (2) Texts and Images: art forms and spiritual life in the period of Sixteen Kingdoms and Northern Dynasties, and (3) Subjects and Styles: Buddhist steles in the late Northern Dynasties. At this program, we expect young scholars to reflect upon the historical process of early localization of Buddhism in China and its outcomes in various ways, along with the “Sinification” of foreign ethnicity and the possible reverse process in Chinese society, and the complex interplay between ethnicity, religion and culture. Students who hope to apply for the program should submit one academic paper (in Chinese or English) and one research proposal (in English) related to the theme of “Buddhism and ethnicity in the period of Sixteen Kingdoms and Northern Dynasties”.

All graduate students (mainly doctoral students) and young scholars (including young instructors, professors and postdoctoral fellows) from universities and academic institutions in China (including Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan) and other countries and regions are eligible to apply. Based on the quality of application materials, no more than 20 participants would be selected. Participants’ research proposals would receive individualized guidance from invited experts along with inter-disciplinary interchange among peer trainees. Participants’ academic papers will be compiled into volumes and presented in the trainee forum.

After the workshop, Harvard-Yenching Institute may offer opportunity for a very small number of outstanding trainees from Asian universities and institutions to visit the Harvard-Yenching Institute for a one-year research stay during the 2020-21 academic year with HYI fellowship.

Time and Venue:
Time: June 15-23, 2019 [Register on June 15, leave on June 23]
Venue: Humanities Building 2, Peking University

Theme: Ethnicity, Religion and Cultural Construction: Buddhism in Northern China during the 4th-6th century

Sub-themes:

1. The Relationship among Ethnic Groups, Politics, Society and Buddhism in the Period of Sixteen Kingdoms and Northern Dynasties
2. Translation and interpretation of Buddhist scriptures, system of practice and regional centers of Buddhism
3. Buddhist arts in Dunhuang, Tianshui, Pingcheng, Luoyang,Yecheng, Chang’an, Qingzhou and other places
4. The interaction of Indian Buddhism, Central Asia Buddhism and Chinese Buddhism in the 4-6th century AD
5. Debate over Hua-xia and “barbarians”, aristocrats, imperial power and conflicts between Buddhism and Daoism

Lecturing Faculty:
5-6 Chinese faculty, 3-4 English-speaking faculty and 1-2 Japanese faculty
Languages: Chinese and English

Round-table Discussion:

1. Thoughts and Texts: textual structure and the practice of scriptural interpretation in Buddhism and Daoism in the Southern and the Northern Dynasties
2. Texts and Images: art forms and spiritual life in the period of Sixteen Kingdoms and Northern Dynasties
3. Subjects and Styles: Buddhist steles in the late Northern Dynasties

Student Forum: Panels depending on the articles of trainees

Admission:
This training program will recruit 20 trainees under 35 years old, mainly young college teachers, postdoctoral fellows, doctoral students and senior master students. The professional background of all trainees shall be in the academic fields related to this seminar, including but not limited to religious studies, ethnology, archeology, art history, Chinese philosophy, Chinese history, Central Asia history, linguistics, etc.

Students and young scholars from China (including Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan) and other countries and regions are eligible to apply, and English proficiency is required for every participant. Applicants overseas should be able to read, understand and communicate in Chinese.

Outstanding trainees may be invited to join the research team of the Center for Buddhist Education and Research, Peking University in follow-up research. They may also be considered for a fellowship to spend an academic year in residence at Harvard-Yenching Institute.

Trainees who successfully complete the training program will be issued an official certificate.

Cost and Subsidy:
All trainees are exempt from tuition fees.

Accommodation fees for trainees outside of Beijing are covered by Peking University.

Accommodations are not provided for Trainees from Beijing.

All trainees should pay for their own meals and transportation.

Master and Ph.D. students from mainland China who complete the training program seminars will receive a subsidy of RMB500-1000.

Application:

1. Application Form
2. One academic paper (5000-15000 characters in Chinese or English)
3. Research Proposal (1000 characters or more in English)
4. Two letters of recommendation are required.
5. Applicants are also welcome to offer other materials, such as certificates of language levels.

Please send the electronic version (WORD or PDF) of application materials by email or WeChat to the following contacts by April 25, 2019

The program public email address: sixteen_kingdoms@126.com

If there are any questions, please contact the following secretaries:

Wang Kang:  soccerr10@sina.com   WeChat: IsciyAna
Zhang Yuchi: shewachelsea@163.com   WeChat: shewachelsea91