Abstract
This essay considers the importance of the transspecies imagination for moral cultivation in contemporary Chinese Buddhism. Drawing on scriptural, theoretical, and fieldwork-based ethnographic data, it argues that olfaction—often considered the most “animalistic” of the human senses—is uniquely efficacious for inspiring imaginative processes whereby Buddhists train themselves to inhabit the perspectives of non-human beings. In light of Buddhist theories of rebirth, this means extending human-like status to animals and recognizing the “animal” within the human as well. Responding to recent trends in the Humanities calling for an expanded notion of ontological continuity between the human and non-human—notably inspired by critical animal studies, post-humanism, the new materialism, and the “ontological turn”—this essay contends that Buddhist cosmological ideas, like those that demand the cultivation of the transspecies imagination, present resources for moral reflection that can challenge and enrich current mainstream thinking about humanity’s relation to the nonhuman world.
Highlights
In lieu of a traditional introduction, I should like to begin with an anecdote drawn from my ethnographic fieldwork in Taiwan, where I was researching the transnational Buddhist monastic organization, Fajie Fojiao Zonghui (法界佛教總會, Fajie), founded in 1959 by the Chinese Chan monk, Hsuan Hua (宣化上人, 1918–1995)
While the issue of what or who an animal is remains an open question, Fajie members consistently draw upon the transspecies imagination in an effort to discern clues that might lead toward an answer
Worth noting for our purposes is that this Buddhist taxonomy of sense places smell at the boundary of distance and contact: it belongs to the category of contact senses like taste and touch, and has a decidedly material basis, olfaction can operate at a distance, like vision and hearing
Summary
In lieu of a traditional introduction, I should like to begin with an anecdote drawn from my ethnographic fieldwork in Taiwan, where I was researching the transnational Buddhist monastic organization, Fajie Fojiao Zonghui (法界佛教總會, Fajie), founded in 1959 by the Chinese Chan monk, Hsuan Hua (宣化上人, 1918–1995). As various movements in the Humanities—notably in critical animal studies, post-humanism, the new materialism, and the “ontological turn”—propose models of greater ontological continuity between different forms of life , conservative Buddhist cosmological ideas may present resources for moral reflection that challenge and enrich current thinking about humanity’s relation to the nonhuman world. While the issue of what or who an animal is remains an open question, Fajie members consistently draw upon the transspecies imagination in an effort to discern clues that might lead toward an answer This imaginative work, I suggest, is moral work insofar as it trains one to imaginatively take up the perspective of another. This requires extending human-like status to animals but sometimes imagining the “animal” within the human as well
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
