Sensing Sacred Texts - James W Watts
Seeing, Touching, Holding and Swallowing Tibetan Buddhist Texts
Sensing Sacred Texts - James W Watts
Cathy Cantwell [+]
University of Oxford and University of Kent
Cathy Cantwell is an Associate Faculty Member at the Oriental Institute, University of Oxford, and an Honorary Research Fellow at the School of Anthropology and Conservation, University of Kent. She has specialized in Tibetan and Himalayan tantric rituals of all periods from the tenth century CE, including text critical and historical analysis, as well as ethnographic study of contemporary rituals. She was President of the UK Association for Buddhist Studies, 2015–2021.
Description
Cathy Cantwell surveys Tibetan ritual practices with books to show that ritualized interactions with sacred books express and reinforce Tibetan Buddhist identity and veneration of the Dharma. They also serve pragmatic medical ends. Her detailed discussion concludes by drawing comparisons and contrasts with the use of iconic books in other cultures, including the observation that Tibetan texts become more sacred through their ritual use.