The Tibetans

by Kapstein, Matthew T.

• ISBN13: 9780631225744
• ISBN10: 0631225749
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-10-06
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Summary

This book provides a clear and comprehensive introduction to Tibet, its culture and history. A clear and comprehensive overview of Tibet, its culture and history. Responds to current interest in Tibet due to continuing publicity about Chinese rule and growing interest in Tibetan Buddhism. Explains recent events within the context of Tibetan history. Situates Tibet in relation to other Asian civilizations through the ages. Draws on the most recent scholarly and archaeological research. Introduces Tibetan culture - particularly social institutions, religious and political traditions, the arts and medical lore. An epilogue considers the fragile position of Tibetan civilization in the modern world.

Author Biography

Matthew T. Kapstein is Numata Professor of Buddhist Studies in the Divinity School at the University of Chicago and Director of Tibetan Studies at the École Pratique des Hautes Études in Paris. His recent publications include The Presence of Light (2004), Reason’s Traces (2001), The Tibetan Assimilation of Buddhism (2000) and Buddhism in Contemporary Tibet (1998).

Table of Contents

List of Figures	vii
List of Maps	x
Preface	xi
Acknowledgments	xv
A Note on Transcription and Translation	xvii
Maps	xix
The Vessel and Its Contents	1	(26)
High Peaks, Pure Earth	2	(9)
Peasants, Nomads, and Traders	11	(7)
The Tibetan Language	18	(9)
Prehistory and Early Legends	27	(24)
Sources of Archeological Evidence	27	(6)
Children of the Ape and the Ogress	33	(11)
Tibetan Religion before Buddhism	44	(7)
The Tsenpo's Imperial Dominion	51	(33)
The Rise of the Tibetan Empire	52	(11)
Later Monarchs and the Promotion of Buddhism	63	(14)
The Empire's Implosion	77	(7)
Fragmentation and Hegemonic Power	84	(43)
Dynastic Successors and the Kingdom of Guge	85	(10)
The Buddhist Renaissance	95	(15)
Mongols and Tibetan Buddhists	110	(6)
Successive Hegemonies	116	(7)
Tibetan Buddhism and the Ming Court	123	(4)
The Rule of the Dalai Lamas	127	(48)
Monastics and Monarchs	127	(13)
Between Mongols and Manchus	140	(15)
Regency and Retreat	155	(9)
Cultural Developments in Eastern Tibet	164	(4)
The Life and Times of the Great Thirteenth	168	(7)
Tibetan Society	175	(30)
Property, Economy, and Social Class	175	(13)
Government and Law	188	(6)
Marriage and Kinship	194	(5)
Women in Traditional Tibet	199	(6)
Religious Life and Thought	205	(39)
Propitiation, Therapy, and the Life-cycle	206	(9)
Buddhist Basics	215	(4)
Monastic Institutions and Education	219	(5)
Tantrism and Yoga	224	(7)
Major Orders and Schools	231	(6)
Festivals, Pilgrimages, and Ritual Cycles	237	(7)
The Sites of Knowledge	244	(25)
The Speech-Goddess's Mirror	245	(10)
To Form Body, Speech, and Mind	255	(6)
Medicine, Astronomy, and the Divinatory Sciences	261	(8)
Tibet in the Modern World	269	(32)
The End of Traditional Tibet	270	(12)
Rebellion and Exile	282	(8)
The Promise and Peril of Century's End	290	(11)
Notes	301	(9)
Spellings of Tibetan Names and Terms	310	(15)
Bibliography	325	(16)
Index	341