Lecture Prof. John Kieschnick (Stanford University) : "The Monk, the Poet, the Bureaucrat, and the Anarchist: Vegetarian Discourse in Republican-era China"
2026-04-02 16:00 - 18:00 (Europe/Helsinki) | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.606, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073
Ort: KWZ. 0.606
Vortrag (Hybrid): Prof. John Kieschnick (Stanford University)
Wer online teilnehmen möchte, kann sich gerne unter qinqin.peng@uni-goettingen.de melden.
Abstract:
In the first half of the twentieth century, leading monks were eager to harness new developments to further the longstanding Chinese Buddhist cause of vegetarianism. The prominent monk Yinguang 印光 (1862–1940) wrote essays promoting vegan soap and, somewhat surprisingly, MSG. Others championed the new urban vegetarian restaurants. In addition to drawing on traditional doctrines in established ways, Buddhists also adapted teachings of karma for the modern era of nationalism. However, Buddhists were not the only proponents of vegetarianism in Republican-era China. In this talk, I place Buddhist vegetarian activism in the context of the vibrant discourse on politics, culture, and health in the early twentieth century through four figures: Yinguang, Lü Bicheng 呂碧城 (1883–1943), Huang Yanpei 黃炎培 (1878–1965), and Li Shizeng 李石曾 (1881–1973), each with different motivations for promoting vegetarianism and different relationships to Buddhism.
Short Bio:
John Kieschnick is The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Professor of Buddhist Studies and co-director of the Ho Center for Buddhist Studies at Stanford. He specializes in Chinese Buddhism, with particular emphasis on its cultural history. He is the author of The Eminent Monk: Buddhist Ideals in Medieval China, The Impact of Buddhism on Chinese Material Culture, and Buddhist Historiography in China. In connection with a regular graduate seminar, he has compiled a primer for reading Buddhist texts in Chinese. He is currently completing a translation of the Biographies of Eminent Monks Compiled during the Song Dynasty and is writing a general history of Chinese vegetarianism.
Ph.D., Stanford University (1996); B.A., University of California at Berkeley (1986).

Lecture (Hybrid): Dr. Stefania Travagnin (SOAS, University of London): "Repositioning Women in the History of Chinese Buddhism: Case studies from the Late Qing and Republican Sichuan"
2026-04-09 16:00 - 18:00 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.609, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073
Datum & Uhrzeit: 9. April, 16:00–18:00 CET
Ort: KWZ. 0.609
Wer online teilnehmen möchte, kann sich gerne unter qinqin.peng@uni-goettingen.de melden.
Abstract:
The history of Chinese Buddhism has too often been told as a story of male monks, with particular emphasis on a select group of “eminent” figures. I propose a different approach by centering female communities—especially small nunneries—and attending to the so-far unheard voices of Buddhist women. As my findings show, Buddhist women have not simply witnessed the unfolding of history; they have been active agents in making it.
My research is based on archival research and multi-year fieldwork conducted in both urban and rural areas of Sichuan, encompassing one hundred temples and their resident nuns, as well as several institutes of Buddhist studies that had been established for lay Buddhist women and nuns’ education. In this talk, I will highlight the leadership roles nuns played in the religious sphere and in local communities from the late Qing and Republican periods to the present day. Based on recurring patterns and areas of excellence in my data, I have so far identified seven main themes that best illustrate Buddhist women in late Qing and Republican Sichuan: (1) entrepreneurship in education and culture; (2) inner-Sangha relations and networks; (3) involvement in wars; (4) the building or revival of Buddhist sites; (5) historiography and memorialization strategies; (6) life on sacred mountains; and (7) spiritual and societal authority. I will also offer methodological and theoretical reflections that formed the foundations of my work and that may serve as models for similar future studies.
This study aims to advance an alternative history in which nuns are protagonists, the marginal becomes exemplary, and the very notion of “eminence” is redefined; it unfolds a page of history that both complements and challenges the official (male) narrative of modern Chinese Buddhism, while illuminating the distinctive local features of Sichuan Buddhism.
Short Bio
Stefania Travagnin is a Reader in Chinese Buddhism at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), where she also chairs the Centre of Buddhist Studies. Her interdisciplinary work focuses on Buddhism and Buddhist communities in modern China and Taiwan, from the late nineteenth century to the present. As co-director of the project “Mapping Religious Diversity in Modern Sichuan,” initially supported by a Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation for International Scholarly Exchange Research Grant (2017–2023), she has examined Buddhist communities in Sichuan, with particular attention to nuns and nunneries in the late Qing and Republican eras. She has recently completed a British Academy–funded project (2024–2025) on Tzu Chi humanitarianism beyond Asia. Travagnin has edited and co-edited several volumes, including Religion and Media in China: Insights and Case Studies from the Mainland, Taiwan, and Hong Kong (Routledge 2016), the three-volume publication Concepts and Methods for the Study of Chinese Religions (De Gruyter 2019–2020), and Buddhism and International Humanitarian Law (Routledge 2023); she is editor-in-chief of Review of Religion and Chinese Society.

Lecture Prof. Kan Cheng-Tsung (Fo Guang University): "The Monastic Rescue Crew in Chongqing during the Sino-Japanese War (1940–1945)/ 抗戰下的重慶僧侶救護隊（1940-1945)"
2026-04-23 16:00 - 18:00 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.602, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073
Datum & Uhrzeit: 23. April, 16:00–18:00 Uhr CET
Ort: KWZ. 0.602
Vortrag (Hybrid): Prof. Kan Cheng-Tsung (Fo Guang University)
Sprache: Chinesisch
Title: The Monastic Rescue Crew in Chongqing during the Sino-Japanese War (1940–1945)/ 抗戰下的重慶僧侶救護隊（1940-1945）
Der Vortrag findet im Hybrid-Format statt. Hier ist die Link: https://uni-goettingen.zoom-x.de/j/62703037730.
Abstract:
During the War of Resistance against Japan, Chinese Buddhist monks actively participated in national salvation efforts, thereby transforming the negative image of corruption and passivity that had been associated with Buddhism since the late Qing period. After the August 13 Battle of Shanghai in 1937, the Shanghai Monastic Rescue Team was established under the leadership of Master Hongming. Comprising 120 members, the team carried out rescue operations amid intense gunfire and bombardment and suffered heavy casualties. Owing to a lack of funding and the unjust imprisonment of Master Hongming, the team was dissolved in 1938. In March 1940, Master Leguan, who had previously participated in the Shanghai rescue team, initiated the establishment of the Monastic Rescue Crew of Ciyun Monastery in the wartime capital Chongqing, which was later reorganized as the Chongqing Municipal Monastic Rescue Crew. The team consisted mainly of young monks who, after receiving medical and basic military training, undertook air-raid rescue operations in the Nan’an district of Chongqing. Carrying banners bearing the character “Buddha,” they rushed to rescue sites without waiting for the all-clear signal. Between 1940 and 1941 alone, they were mobilized more than 2,000 times and rescued over 3,000 wounded civilians. Their funding relied primarily on ritual services conducted by monasteries, and their living conditions were austere. The team continued its work for more than five years, until the victory of the War, becoming the longest-lasting and most effective monastic rescue organization of the period. Their efforts constitute a remarkable chapter in the history of Buddhist patriotism and humanitarian courage.
抗戰時期，中國佛教僧侶積極投身救國，扭轉了清末以來佛教腐敗無為的負面形象。1937年「八一三淞滬會戰」後，上海率先成立「上海僧侶救護隊」，由宏明法師領導，共120人，在槍林彈雨中搶救傷患，犧牲慘重。後因經費斷絕及宏明法師蒙冤入獄，該隊於1938年解散。1940年3月，曾參與上海救護隊的樂觀法師在重慶慈雲寺發起成立「陪都慈雲寺僧侶救護隊」，後改組為「重慶市僧侶救護隊」。全隊以青年僧侶為主，經醫護與軍事訓練後，承擔重慶南岸地區的空襲救護任務。他們手持「佛」字旗幟，不待警報解除即奔赴現場，僅1940至1941年間出勤兩千餘人次，搶救傷患逾三千人。經費主要靠寺院經懺維持，生活清苦。該隊持續運作五年餘，直至抗戰勝利，成為歷時最長、成績最顯著的僧侶救護組織，書寫了佛教界愛國護教、英勇救難的珍貴篇章。
Short Bio:
Kan Cheng-Tsung (b. 1961, Chiayi, Taiwan) is Professor and Chair of the Department at Fo Guang University. He received his PhD in History from National Cheng Kung University and previously served as Executive Director of the Archives of the Buddhist Association of China (Taiwan), as well as Adjunct Assistant Professor at Dharma Drum Institute of Liberal Arts and Hsuan Chuang University. His research focuses on the history of Taiwanese Buddhism, modern East Asian Buddhist interactions, and the relationship between Buddhism and popular religion. He is the author of numerous books, including One Hundred Years of Taiwanese Buddhism (1999), The Buddhist Association of China in Taiwan (2009), Buddhism under Japanese Rule in Taiwan (1895–1945) (2011), Guanyin Belief: Local and Transregional Dimensions (2018), and East Asian Buddhism in the Late Qing and Republican Period (2025).

Student Short Film Screening & Discussion 学⽣短⽚展映及交流：影像中的⽂化相遇
2026-04-29 12:15 - 15:00 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.607, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073
For more information please click here.

Lecture Zhang Longxi (Hunan Normal University): "The Promise and the Challenge of World Literature"
2026-04-30 16:00 - 18:00 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.602, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073
Abstract:
In this lecture, Prof. Zhang Longxi will address the current situation of “World Literature.” Although the notion of “World Literature” aims at global cosmopolitanism, the field remains heavily Eurocentric. While Goethe’s original vision was inspired by Chinese texts, modern circulation still prioritizes Western languages like English and French. Thus, academic frameworks, exemplified by Casanova’s Paris-centric model, continue to marginalize rich non-Western traditions, including Chinese classics. To achieve a truly global perspective, scholars must actively integrate diverse literary histories and expand the literary canon to reflect a genuine, rather than Western-dominated, global reality.
Short Bio:
Prof. Zhang Longxi (Ph. D. from Harvard) has taught at Peking, Harvard, the University of California, Riverside, and City University of Hong Kong, and is currently Xiaoxiang Chair Professor 潇湘特聘教授 at Hunan Normal University and Li De Chair Professor 砺德讲席教授 at the Yenching Academy of Peking University. He is an elected foreign member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, History, and the Antiquities and also of Academia Europaea. He has published more than 30 books and numerous articles in Chinese and English, including, most recently, A History of Chinese Literature (London: Routledge, 2023), and World Literature as Discovery: Expanding the World Literary Canon (London: Routledge, 2024).

Lecture: Prof. Jisi Wang (Peking University): "Continuities and Changes in China’s Foreign Policy Since the 2010s"
2026-05-06 16:15 - 17:45 | Verfügungsgebäude (VG) 4.102
6. May (Wednesday), 16:15-17:45pm
Room: VG 4.102

Abstract:
Since the 2010s, China’s reading of its strategic environment has shifted, even as the core aims of its foreign policy have remained constant. This lecture examines these continuities and changes through the deterioration of China–US relations. It argues that the central challenge for Chinese foreign policy today is how to protect national interests in an era of long-term strategic competition without allowing competition to become self-reinforcing confrontation. The question is therefore how China and the United States might still preserve room for coexistence, crisis management, and limited cooperation before the relationship hardens past recovery.
Speaker:
Professor Wang Jisi is Founding President of the Institute of International and Strategic Studies at Peking University. He also holds the Boya Chair Professorship (Emeritus) at the School of International Studies. His research interests include U.S. foreign policy, China’s foreign relations, and Asian security, and he is the author of widely cited works in these fields, including the influential essay “Marching Westwards: The Rebalancing of China’s Geopolitical Strategy.” Wang Jisi served as Director of the Institute of American Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences from 1991 to 2005, and as Dean of the School of International Studies at Peking University until 2013.

Prof. Rana Mitter (Harvard University): China and the US in a Changing Global Order: How Can History Help Us Read the Future?
2026-06-19 12:15 - 13:45 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.603, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073
Room: KWZ 0.603
Time: 19. June (Friday), 12:15-13:45
Abstract:
The world of the past 80 years is rapidly coming to a close, and a new order is emerging. On every major issue, we need new thinking. What does the new tension between the US and China mean for Asian regional security, and how will it affect Europe? What will AI and technological change affect global politics? What will be the role of the Middle Powers navigating between the US, China and Russia? And can history teach us how to understand the present and future?
Speaker:
Rana Mitter is ST Lee Chair in US-Asia Relations at the Harvard Kennedy School. He is the author of several books, including Forgotten Ally: China’s World War II (2013) which won the 2014 RUSI/Duke of Westminster’s Medal for Military Literature, and was named a Book of the Year in the Financial Times and Economist. His latest book is China’s Good War: How World War II is Shaping a New Nationalism (Harvard, 2020).

Workshop „Sprachen lernen mit Apps“
2026-06-19 14:00 - 18:00 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.607, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073, Deutschland
Workshop „Sprachen lernen mit Apps“ mit Arvid Storch, M.A.
Freitag, 19.06.2026, 14:00–18:00 Uhr s.t.
KWZ 0.607, Universität Göttingen
Hier gelangen Sie zum Poster und hier zum Programm.
Der Workshop findet im Rahmen des BMFTR-geförderten Projekts AI-MS statt und beschäftigt sich mit Sprachlern-Apps, KI-gestützten Anwendungen sowie Blended-Learning-Konzepten.

Gastbeiträge: Neue Themen der Didaktik chinesischsprachiger Literatur und Kultur
2026-06-25 10:00 - 12:00 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.701, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073
Gastbeiträge
華語文學文化教學新議題
Neue Themen der Didaktik chinesischsprachiger Literatur und Kultur
Referent*innen:
Prof. Dr. Shuling Horng 洪淑苓 (National Taiwan University)
Assistant Prof. Dr. Chien-Chih Liu 劉建志 (National Pingtung University)
Assistant Prof. Dr. Shu-Wei Tu 涂書瑋 (National Sun Yat-sen University)
Zeit: Donnerstag, 25. Juni 2026, 10:00 – 12:00
Raum: KWZ 0.701, Universität Göttingen
Sprache: Chinesisch
Anmeldung per E-Mail: goechaf@uni-goettingen.de
Organisiert von der Professur Fachdidaktik Chinesisch als Fremdsprache

Workshop: An Interactive Chinese Workshop through Music & Drama
2026-06-25 17:00 - 19:00 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.606, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073
Speaker: Kexi Peng 彭可希
Time: Thursday, 25th June 2026, 17:00 – 19:00
Room: KWZ 0.606, Universität Göttingen
Language: English

Lecture: Visual Representation and Creative Approaches to Classical Literature in Chinese Language Instruction
2026-06-26 12:00 - 14:00 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.603, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073
Speaker: Kexi Peng 彭可希
Time: Friday, 26th June 2026, 12:00 – 14:00
Room: KWZ 0.603, Universität Göttingen
Language: Chinese

Workshop: Literaturbetrachtung und kreatives Schreiben in der chinesischsprachigen Literatur – Poesie und chinesischer Sprachunterricht
2026-06-26 14:30 - 18:00 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.608
Workshop
華語文學賞析與創意寫作——詩與華語教學
Literaturbetrachtung und kreatives Schreiben in der chinesischsprachigen
Literatur – Poesie und chinesischer Sprachunterricht
Zeit: Freitag, 26. Juni 2026, 14:30 – 18:00
Raum: KWZ 0.608, Universität Göttingen
Sprache: Chinesisch
Anmeldung per E-Mail: goechaf@uni-goettingen.de

Symposium: The Politics of Civilizationalisms
2026-06-29 10:00 - 16:45 | Historische Sternwarte, Geismar Landstrasse 11, 37083 Göttingen
Abstract:
Over the past two decades, there has been a worldwide resurgence of discourses that define peoples in terms of their unique civilizational identity and call for states to refurbish their
timeless civilizational glory. Despite these clear patterns, we lack a systematic, empirically grounded interdisciplinary understanding of new civilizationisms. What are the historical genealogies, intellectual trajectories and academic matrices underlying the forms of new civilizational thought across these regions and the globe at large? How do recent forms of civilizationism (both globally and in single societies) resemble earlier articulations of civilizational identities, and in what regard do they differ from such antecedents? To what extent, and how, do they travel across languages, political systems, religious traditions and other contexts? What explains their rise and influence in the contemporary historical conjuncture and as globally simultaneous phenomena that animate political landscapes in China and the United States, Russia, India and many other places?
Roundtable:
Monday June 29
10:00 – 12:00 Introductory Remarks: Srirupa Roy & Dominic Sachsenmaier
Roundtable 1: Russia, China, Japan
Sören Urbansky (Bochum), Immo Rebitschek (Göttingen), Rebecca Karl (NYU), Rolf Elberfeld (Hildesheim)
Chair: Eva Orthmann (Göttingen)
12:00 – 13:00 Lunch
13:00 – 15:00 Roundtable 2: MENA, Africa
Mohammad Alsudairi (Canberra), Ulrike Freitag (ZMO Berlin), Anke Graness (Hildesheim), Kai Kresse (ZMO Berlin)
Chair: Dominic Sachsenmaier (Göttingen)
15:00-15:15 Break
15:15- 16:45 Roundtable 3: Europe, India
Hans Kundnani (London), Julian Strube (Göttingen), Thomas Hansen (Stanford)
Chair: Srirupa Roy (Göttingen)

Lecture: Prof. Dr. Chen Jidong: "The Formation of Chinese Buddhist Sectarianism: Centering on the Concepts of Zong and Jiao 中國佛教宗派認識的形成史——以「宗」與「教」概念為中心"
2026-07-01 16:00 - 18:00 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 1.601, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073
Abstract:
Today, Chinese Buddhism is often described through sectarian categories such as Tiantai, Huayan, Faxiang, and Pure Land. However, this “school-based” (zong 宗) framework was not always dominant. It developed gradually over time.
Drawing on texts such as the Shimen Zhengtong, Fozu Tongji, Shijiao Sanzijing, Bazong Erxing, and Shizong Lüeshuo, this lecture traces how the concepts of zong (school/lineage) and jiao (teaching) evolved in Chinese Buddhist history. It shows that from the Song and Yuan periods onward, jiao was more commonly used to classify Buddhist teachings, while zong only became the primary category from the late Ming and early Qing periods. The lecture highlights the modernization of Buddhist sectarian thinking in the late Qing and early Republican eras, when scholars and reformers such as Hesheli Rushan, Yang Wenhui, Liang Qichao, and Taixu proposed influential models of “Eight,” “Ten,” “Thirteen,” and “Eight Mahāyāna” schools. It further considers the role of Japanese Buddhist scholarship in shaping these modern classifications.
This lecture argues that the familiar system of “schools” in Chinese Buddhism is not an ancient, continuous tradition, but a modern construct formed through intellectual exchange and historical reorganization.
今日人們談論中國佛教時，往往習慣使用天台宗、華嚴宗、法相宗、淨土宗等「宗派」概念。然而，這種以「宗」為核心的理解方式並非自古如此，而是在漫長的歷史發展中逐步形成的。
本講座以《釋門正統》《佛祖統紀》《釋教三字經》《八宗二行》《十宗略說》等重要文獻為線索，考察「宗」與「教」兩個概念在中國佛教史上的演變過程。研究發現，宋元以來中國佛教多以「教」來描述不同法門；直到明末清初，「宗」才逐漸成為統攝各佛教流派的核心概念。尤其在清末近代化進程中，赫舍里如山提出「八宗說」，楊文會建立「十宗說」，梁啟超提出「十三宗說」，太虛大師高倡「大乘八宗」，共同塑造了近代中國佛教的宗派認識。
講座進一步探討日本佛教知識傳入中國後所產生的影響，指出近代中國佛教宗派體系並非傳統的自然延續，而是在中日佛教知識交流與中國佛教自我重構的歷史過程中逐漸形成的知識體系。我們今天所熟悉的『中國佛教十宗』，究竟是古已有之的傳統，還是近代重新建構的歷史產物？本講座將從『宗』與『教』兩個概念的演變出發，重新審視中國佛教宗派觀形成的歷史。
Short Bio
Chen Jidong holds a B.A. and M.A. in Philosophy from Peking University and a Ph.D. in Buddhist Studies (Literature) from the University of Tokyo. He has previously served as a lecturer in the Department of Philosophy at Peking University and as a specially appointed associate professor at Musashino University in Japan. He is currently a professor at Aoyama Gakuin University.
His research focuses on the history of Chinese Buddhism, modern Sino-Japanese Buddhist exchanges, and modern Chinese intellectual history. His major monographs include Buddhist Studies in the Late Qing Dynasty: Centered on Yang Wenhui and Ogurisu Kōchō’s Experience in Late Qing China: The Beginning of Modern Sino-Japanese Buddhist Exchange. His articles include “Is the Philosophy of Foreign Concepts Inherently Chinese? The Dilemma of Modern Chinese Intellectuals”, “The Intellectual Transformation of Lin Zhao”, and so on.

Vortrag Prof. Dr. JIe LI(李洁) (School of Foreign Studies, Nankai University in Tianjin, China): Paradigmenwechsel für Medientexte im Zeitalter der KI: Kopplungsanalyse von Nutzern, Themen und Affekten AI时代下媒体⽂本的范式转变——从多模态转型到“轻社区”的形成
2026-07-02 12:15 - 13:45 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.606, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073
Time: 02. July 2026 12:15-13:45
Venue: KWZ, Room 0.606, Universität Göttingen
Language: German
Guest lecture within the course “Einführung in die chinesische Sprachwissenschaft,” Department of East Asian Studies
The lecture series is supported by Eurasia Foundation in Japan (ユーラシア財団).
Lecture series: The International Economic and Political Relationship between Europe and Asia

Lecture: Prof. Chen Jidong: "Self-Affirmation and Self-Discovery: Mutual Understandings between Chinese and Japanese Buddhism and the Construction of East Asian Buddhist Identities in Modern Era 自我肯定與自我發現：近代中日佛教的相互認識與東亞佛教認同的建構"
2026-07-02 16:00 - 18:00 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.607, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073, Deutschland
Abstract
In the modern period, unprecedented contact and exchange unfolded between Chinese and Japanese Buddhism. From the mid-nineteenth century to the end of the Second World War, monks, scholars, and diplomats from both countries continuously observed, commented on, and studied each other’s Buddhist traditions, leaving behind a rich corpus of valuable records. From the Japanese monk Ogurisu Kōchō’s investigative journey to China, to Huang Zunxian’s Record of Japan (Riben Guozhi); from the intellectual exchanges between Yang Wenhui and Nanjō Bun’yū, to the mutual visits of Taixu, Daxing, and D. T. Suzuki, a history of Buddhist dialogue spanning nearly a century gradually took shape.
This lecture examines these figures and events in order to explore how modern Chinese and Japanese Buddhism redefined themselves through the process of “knowing the Other.” Japanese Buddhism, by reinterpreting the Chinese Buddhist tradition, gradually constructed its self-identity as the representative of East Asian Mahāyāna Buddhism. Chinese Buddhism, in turn, by observing the modernization of Japanese Buddhism, rediscovered its own historical traditions and cultural value, while also reflecting on paths of Buddhist reform and revival.
This history is not only one of Sino-Japanese Buddhist exchange, but also an intellectual history in which the self is discovered through the Other. The processes of “self-affirmation” and “self-discovery” thus constitute one of the most important historical questions in the formation of modern East Asian Buddhist identities.
近代以來，中日佛教之間展開了前所未有的接觸與交流。從十九世紀中葉到第二次世界大戰結束，兩國僧侶、學者與外交人士不斷觀察、評論和研究對方的佛教，留下了大量珍貴記錄。從日本僧人小栗栖香頂來華考察，到黃遵憲撰寫《日本國志》；從楊文會與南條文雄的思想交流，到太虛、大醒、鈴木大拙等人的相互訪問，形成了一段跨越近百年的佛教對話史。
本講座將透過這些人物與事件，探討近代中日佛教如何在「認識他者」的過程中重新理解自我。日本佛教藉由重新詮釋中國佛教傳統，逐漸建立其作為東亞大乘佛教代表的自我認同；中國佛教則透過觀察日本佛教的近代化發展，重新發現自身的歷史傳統與文化價值，並思考佛教改革與復興的道路。
這段歷史不僅是一部中日佛教交流史，更是一部透過他者發現自我的思想史。所謂「自我肯定」與「自我發現」，正是近代東亞佛教認同建構過程中最值得關注的歷史課題。
Short Bio
Chen Jidong holds a B.A. and M.A. in Philosophy from Peking University and a Ph.D. in Buddhist Studies (Literature) from the University of Tokyo. He has previously served as a lecturer in the Department of Philosophy at Peking University and as a specially appointed associate professor at Musashino University in Japan. He is currently a professor at Aoyama Gakuin University.
His research focuses on the history of Chinese Buddhism, modern Sino-Japanese Buddhist exchanges, and modern Chinese intellectual history. His major monographs include Buddhist Studies in the Late Qing Dynasty: Centered on Yang Wenhui and Ogurisu Kōchō’s Experience in Late Qing China: The Beginning of Modern Sino-Japanese Buddhist Exchange. His articles include “Is the Philosophy of Foreign Concepts Inherently Chinese? The Dilemma of Modern Chinese Intellectuals”, “The Intellectual Transformation of Lin Zhao”, and so on.
陳繼東，北京大學哲學系學士和碩士，東京大學佛教學博士（文學）。曾任北京大學哲學系講師、日本武藏野大學特任副教授，現為青山學院大學教授。專攻中國佛教史、近代中日佛教交流史、近現代中國思想史。著作有《清末佛教研究：以楊文會為中心》、《小栗栖香頂清末中國體驗：近代中日佛教交流的開端》，論文有《外來概念的哲學是否中國固有：近代中國知識人的困惑》、《林昭的思想變遷》等。

Workshop: Trickfilm & Animation im Unterricht: Digitale Kreativität für Schule und Museum
2026-07-03 10:00 - 17:00 | Forum Wissen, Berliner Straße 28, Göttingen, 37073
Workshop & Fortbildung
Trickfilm & Animation im Unterricht: Digitale Kreativität für Schule und Museum
Zeit: Freitag, 3. Juli 2026 10:00 – 17:00
Ort: Forum Wissen, Berliner Straße 28, 37073 Göttingen
Zielgruppe: (angehende) Lehrkräfte und interessierte Studierende
Referent: Florian Winkler (Forum Wissen)
Arbeitssprache: Deutsch
Der Workshop ist kostenlos.
Anmeldung bis zum 12. Juni 2026 unter:
https://s.gwdg.de/NZegFz
Die Teilnehmerzahl ist begrenzt.
Kontakt: goechaf@uni-goettingen.de

Lecture Li Xuetao: "Kumārajīva und die Entstehung eines mehrsprachigen buddhistischen Wissensnetzwerks (《鸠摩罗什与多语佛教知识网络的生成》)
2026-07-14 16:00 - 18:00 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.607, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073
Vortrag am 14.07.2026 (auf Chinesisch)
Titel (Deutsch): Kumārajīva und die Entstehung eines mehrsprachigen buddhistischen Wissensnetzwerks
Titel (Chinesisch):《鸠摩罗什与多语佛教知识网络的生成》
Abstract (Deutsch):
Kumārajīva (344–413) wird gewöhnlich als einer der bedeutendsten Übersetzer buddhistischer Texte ins Chinesische betrachtet. Der Vortrag geht jedoch über die Übersetzungsgeschichte hinaus und untersucht die mehrsprachige Wissenswelt entlang der Seidenstraße, in der kucheanische, indische und chinesische Traditionen miteinander in Austausch traten. Im Mittelpunkt steht die Frage, wie buddhisches Wissen durch Übersetzung, Mobilität und kulturelle Interaktion neu organisiert wurde. Kumārajīva erscheint dabei nicht nur als Übersetzer, sondern als zentraler Akteur eines transregionalen Wissensnetzwerks.
Abstract (中文)：
鸠摩罗什（344–413）通常被视为中国佛经翻译史上最重要的译经僧之一。本讲座将超越传统的翻译史视角，从龟兹语、梵语与汉语交汇的多语环境出发，考察丝绸之路上佛教知识的形成与传播过程。重点讨论翻译如何不仅是语言转换，更是一种知识生产机制，以及鸠摩罗什如何在跨区域、跨文化的知识网络中发挥关键作用。

Lecture: Li Xuetao: "Xuanzang und der Transfer buddhistischen Wissens zwischen Indien und China"
2026-07-17 16:00 - 18:00 | Kulturwissenschaftliches Zentrum, KWZ 0.607, Heinrich-Düker-Weg 14, Göttingen, 37073
Abstract:
Xuanzang (ca. 602–664) gehört zu den bekanntesten buddhistischen Gelehrten der chinesischen Geschichte. Ausgehend von seiner Reise nach Indien, seinen Übersetzungsprojekten und dem „Da Tang Xiyu Ji“ (Bericht über die Westlichen Regionen der Großen Tang-Dynastie) untersucht der Vortrag die Wege, auf denen buddhisches Wissen zwischen Indien und China transferiert, transformiert und neu kontextualisiert wurde. Dabei wird Xuanzang nicht nur als Pilger und Übersetzer, sondern als Vermittler zwischen unterschiedlichen Wissenssystemen vorgestellt. Im Zentrum stehen Fragen des Wissenstransfers, der kulturellen Übersetzung und der Transkulturalität im vormodernen Eurasien.
