Journeys of Transformation: Searching for No-Self in Western Buddhist Travel Narratives

Description

Western Buddhist travel narratives are autobiographical accounts of a journey to a Buddhist culture. Dozens of such narratives have since the 1970s describe treks in Tibet, periods of residence in a Zen monastery, pilgrimages to Buddhist sites and teachers, and other Asian odysseys. The best known of these works is Peter Matthiessen's The Snow Leopard; further reflections emerge from thirty writers including John Blofeld, Jan Van de Wetering, Thomas Merton, Oliver Statler, Robert Thurman, Gretel Ehrlich, and Bill Porter. The Buddhist concept of 'no-self' helps these authors interpret certain pivotal experiences of 'unselfing' and is also a catalyst that provokes and enables such events. The writers' spiritual memoirs describe how their journeys brought about a new understanding of Buddhist enlightenment and so transformed their lives. Showing how travel can elicit self-transformation, this book is a compelling exploration of the journeys and religious changes of both individuals and Buddhism itself. 04.0_pp_iv_iv_Copyright_page 05.0_pp_v_vi_Dedication 06.0_pp_vii_vii_Contents 07.0_pp_viii_viii_Acknowledgments_and_Authors_Note 08.0_pp_1_23_A_Literary_Genre_and_Some_Questions_about_Self-Transformation 09.0_pp_24_42_The_Origins_of_the_Genre 10.0_pp_43_62_Peter_Matthiessens_The_Snow_Leopard_and_Nine-Headed_Dragon_River 11.0_pp_63_98_In_a_Zen_Monastery 12.0_pp_99_122_Thomas_Merton_and_Christian_and_Jewish_Pilgrims_in_Buddhist_Asia 13.0_pp_123_149_Walking_the_Dharma_on_Shikoku_and_in_India 14.0_pp_150_178_Trekking_and_Tracking_the_Self_in_Tibet 15.0_pp_179_206_Life-Changing_Travels_in_the_Tibetan_Diaspora 16.0_pp_207_242_Encounters_with_Theravada_Buddhism 17.0_pp_243_269_Searching_for_Chan_Buddhism_after_Mao 18.0_pp_270_313_Theories_of_No-Self_Stories_of_Unselfing_and_Transformation 19.0_pp_314_323_Bibliography 20.0_pp_324_333_Index