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Buddhism in Court is the first English language study of the legal interaction between Buddhism and the state in China. It uncovers a long-overlooked Buddhist campaign for clerical legal privileges that aimed to make ordained Buddhist monks and nuns immune from facing trials and punishment in the state court.
List of contents
- List of Figures
- Abbreviations
- Acknowledgements
- Introduction
- Part I: Indian Origins
- 1. Litigation Ban
- 2. The Adulterous Wife's Sanctuary
- 3. Buddhist Killers at Large
- 4. Withered Orchid and Dead Ox
- Part II: In the Chinese Courtroom
- 5. Hybrid Courts, Hybrid Laws
- 6. A Fallen Abbot
- 7. Dead Monks, Living Heirs
- Epilogue
- Notes
- Bibliography
- Index
About the author
Cuilan Liu is Assistant Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Pittsburgh. Her research focuses on the intersection of Buddhism and the Law in China, Tibet, and India.
Summary
Buddhism in Court is the first English language study of the legal interaction between Buddhism and the state in China. It uncovers a long-overlooked Buddhist campaign for clerical legal privileges that aimed to make ordained Buddhist monks and nuns immune from facing trials and punishment in the state court.
Additional text
What happens when Buddhist clerical law and the secular courtroom collide? Liu's ground-breaking, erudite, and impeccably researched study of church-state relations in India and China provides an answer. Along the way, Liu draws upon a prodigious range of Pali, Sanskrit, Tibetan, and Chinese sources, revealing an under-appreciated but critical side of Buddhist monastic life. The result is a must-read for the fields of Asian religious history and legal studies.
