Central European Journal for Contemporary Religion is a scholarly journal published both by the Hussite Theological Faculty of the Charles University and Karolinum Publishers, which aims to serve as a publication platform for Comparative Religion and related disciplines. It focuses mainly on contemporary religious phenomena with special (but not exclusive) focus on Central and Eastern Europe. It should serve both as a source of information on te religious life in the region and as a supply of scholarly studies focused on contemporary lived religion at large. It is published semi-annually both in print and online (free access). Its goal is to bring thought-provoking contributions related not only to current established religions and religious movements new and old, but also to contemporary spirituality in its wider context, including the New Age milieu, Neopaganism and pop-cultural spirituality. The journal also covers the latest theoretical and methodological trends in Comparative Religion, Ritual Studies and other disciplines. The editorial board consists of scholars from most Czech Comparative Religion departments, as well as experts on the most important religious traditions across the globe.
CENTRAL EUROPEAN JOURNAL FOR CONTEMPORARY RELIGION, Vol 1 No 1 (2017), 43–61
Advertising and Methodology. What advertising has to teach us about (the study of) Thai Buddhism
Miloš Hubina
DOI: https://doi.org/10.14712/25704893.2017.3
zveřejněno: 23. 06. 2017
Abstract
In this paper I make proposals regarding further advances in the studies of Theravada Buddhism along the lines suggested by Justin McDaniel in his The Lovelorn Ghost and the Magical Monk (2011). The benefits of McDaniel’s approach lie in his de-emphasis of doctrinal tradition and his focus on local frames of reference in explaining Thai Buddhism. Its faults lie in a disregard for the developments outside the socio-cultural paradigm. I argue for the integration of socio-cultural and naturalist approaches to the study of religion. Balancing the over-accentuation of the explanatory power of either socio-cultural or cognitive concepts, such integration would also permit a move from the socio-cultural metaphorical models to causal and more controlled explanations of religious phenomena. I illustrate my suggestions through an example of a Thai wat (shrine/monastery). One of these suggestions, implied by the de-emphasis of the doctrinal tradition, is to recognize the predominantly advertising and ritualistic function of wats’ visuals, effigies, and architecture rather than reading them as symbolic expressions of doctrinal tenets.
klíčová slova: Thailand; Buddhism; Theravada; Advertising; Wat; Shrine; Cognitive Science of Religion
Advertising and Methodology. What advertising has to teach us about (the study of) Thai Buddhism is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
157 x 230 mm
vychází: 2 x ročně
cena tištěného čísla: 180 Kč
ISSN: 2533-7955
E-ISSN: 2570-4893
