Accessibility Information: Persons with disabilities who need accommodations or have questions about physical access may call the program sponsoring the event or call Accessibility Resource Center at 530-898-5959.
Find more timely information for our campus community:
Thursday, Mar. 6, 2025 5:30 p.m.
Justin McDaniel, "Affixing Gold to Ghosts: Corpses, Funerary Cultures, and Horror in Buddhist Southeast Asia," Thursday, March 6th, 5:30 PM, Ruth Rowland-Taylor Recital Hall, PAC 134 Westerners often regard Buddhism as a religion of peace, meditation, and compassion. While this is often true, it ignores the horrific and phantasmagoric side of many Buddhist rituals and beliefs. Those include practices such as meditating on corpses, strolling through giant Hell Gardens filled with terrifying images, and telling stories about haunting and highly sexualized ghosts. It's no wonder that Buddhist countries produce some of the most violent horror films in the world. This talk will look at the ways in which Buddhists embrace the macabre and what we can learn from ghost belief in Buddhism more broadly. Justin McDaniel earned his PhD from Harvard University in Sanskrit and Indian Studies. His research foci include Lao, Thai, Pali and Sanskrit literature, art and architecture, and manuscript studies. He has presented public and scholarly talks in over twenty different countries. He welcomes student and research questions on these subjects and sundry. This event is FREE and Open to the Public.
Director: Erin K. Kelly
Accessibility Information: Persons with disabilities who need accommodations or have questions about physical access may call the program sponsoring the event or call Accessibility Resource Center at 530-898-5959.
Find more timely information for our campus community: