East Asian religions and spiritual beliefs Books

Book SynopsisIn this global introduction to philosophy of religion you begin not with a single tradition, but with religious philosophies from East Asia, South Asia, West Africa, and Native North America, alongside the classical Abrahamic and modern European traditions. Matching this diversity of traditions, chapters are organized around questions that acknowledge there is no single understanding of any god or ultimate reality. Instead you approach six different traditions of philosophizing about religion by asking questions about the journeys of both the self and the cosmos such as What is my path? and Where did the cosmos come from? Accompanied by introductory materials and an extensive glossary, each chapter includes learning objectives, questions for discussion, and suggested primary and secondary sources. The categories of religion and philosophy are interrogated throughout. Equipped with study tools and universal questions about the self and the cosmos, Philosophies of Religion: A GlobalTrade ReviewPhilosophies of Religion is a stunning intellectual achievement, from one of the world’s pioneers in forging a properly global and critical path within philosophy of religion. This is the undergraduate textbook for which we’ve been desperately waiting. In a field plagued by parochialism and cultural innocence, Knepper is lighting the way forward, dragging all of us into a new era of enlightened research and teaching. Masterpiece! * Wesley J. Wildman, Professor of Philosophy, Theology, and Ethics, Boston University, USA *Timothy Knepper offers a comprehensive and critical introduction to perennial philosophical questions addressed from diverse religious and intellectual perspectives. This outstanding textbook demonstrates how philosophy of religion should be studied and taught in the global age. * Yujin Nagasawa, H.G. Wood Professor of the Philosophy of Religion, University of Birmingham, UK *Table of ContentsIntroduction PART I: PHILOSOPHY, RELIGION, AND PHILOSOPHY OF RELIGION Chapter 1: The Traditions of Philosophy of Religion Chapter 2: What Is Religion? Chapter 3: What Is Philosophy? Chapter 4: The Content, Method, and Goals of Global-Critical Philosophy of Religion PART II: JOURNEYS OF THE SELF Chapter 5: Who Am I? Chapter 6: Where Do I Come From? Chapter 7: Where Am I Going? Chapter 8: How Do I Get There? Chapter 9: What Obstacles Stand in My Way? PART III: JOURNEYS OF THE COSMOS Chapter 10: What is the Cosmos? Chapter 11: Where Does the Cosmos Come From? Chapter 12: Where Is the Cosmos Going? Chapter 13: What is the Path of the Cosmos? Chapter 14: What Obstacles Stand in the Way of the Cosmos? Epilogue: Which Journey, if any, Leads to its Destination? Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisIn a society that has seen epochal change over a few generations, what remains to hold people together and offer them a sense of continuity and meaning? In Songs for Dead Parents, Erik Mueggler shows how in contemporary China death and the practices surrounding it have become central to maintaining a connection with the world of ancestors, ghosts, and spirits that socialism explicitly disavowed. Drawing on more than twenty years of fieldwork in a mountain community in Yunnan Province, Songs for Dead Parents shows how people view the dead as both material and immaterial, as effigies replace corpses, tombstones replace effigies, and texts eventually replace tombstones in a long process of disentangling the dead from the shared world of matter and memory. It is through these processes that people envision the cosmological underpinnings of the world and assess the social relations that make up their community. Thus, state interventions aimed at reforming death practices have been deeply co

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Book SynopsisIn a society that has seen epochal change over a few generations, what remains to hold people together and offer them a sense of continuity and meaning? In Songs for Dead Parents, Erik Mueggler shows how in contemporary China death and the practices surrounding it have become central to maintaining a connection with the world of ancestors, ghosts, and spirits that socialism explicitly disavowed. Drawing on more than twenty years of fieldwork in a mountain community in Yunnan Province, Songs for Dead Parents shows how people view the dead as both material and immaterial, as effigies replace corpses, tombstones replace effigies, and texts eventually replace tombstones in a long process of disentangling the dead from the shared world of matter and memory. It is through these processes that people envision the cosmological underpinnings of the world and assess the social relations that make up their community. Thus, state interventions aimed at reforming death practices have been deeply co

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Book SynopsisTracing Japan's religions from the Hein Period through the middle ages and into modernity, this book explores the unique establishment of Shinto, Buddhism, and Confucianism in Japan, as well as the later influence of Roman Catholicism, and the problem of Restoration--both spiritual and material--following World War II.Table of ContentsPreface to the Paperback Edition Preface Abbreviations Emperor, Shaman, and Priest Kami, Amida, and Jizo The Pure Land, Nichiren, and Zen Kirishitan, Neo-Confucianism, and the Shogunate Modernity, Culture, and Religion Old Dreams or New Vision Chronological Table Glossary Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisUsing the ethics and aesthetics of the Asian martial arts to enrich our knowledge of human behavior, bodily movement, technical knowledge, and artistic creation.Trade ReviewStriking Beauty presents a beautifully and forcefully written account of the philosophical background of martial arts in Eastern and Western traditions. At the same time, it also presents the author's vision of a contemporary philosophy, and phenomenology, of the martial arts and their aesthetic, somatic, and ethical dimensions. It is a ground-breaking and inspiring book that will appeal to everyone interested in the practice, theory, and history of martial arts. -- Hans-Georg Moeller, University of Macau An incredible book that views the Chinese martial arts from every angle-philosophical, psychological, and practical-from their home of origin throughout the world at large, from ancient times to the present. Truly a breathtaking experience. -- Stanley Henning, independent scholar of Chinese martial arts history One might think that there is no connection at all between the martial arts and philosophy; but there are many, as Barry Allen shows in Striking Beauty. The book is both knowledgeable and perceptive, and Allen writes with a clarity that makes it a pleasure to read. This is an engaging book for any martial artist or any philosopher with an interest in the martial arts, as well as for any other philosopher who welcomes a novel perspective on his or her subject -- Graham Priest, Graduate Center, CUNY Striking Beauty is a necessary book, connecting themes from Chinese and Western spiritual and philosophical traditions with the embodied aesthetics of self-cultivation found in the martial arts. Allen's discussion is lively, wide-ranging, and multiply revealing. From Buddha and Laozi to Bruce Lee and postmodernism, from dance to sport to sculpture: Allen displays mastery of incredibly wide-ranging materials. Both philosophers and practitioners will find his treatment accurate, broad, profound, and potentially transformative, revealing much about combat and art, life and intellect, body and mind. -- Crispin Sartwell, Dickinson College, author of Six Names of Beauty Displaying a firm understanding of both Western and Chinese philosophical traditions, Striking Beauty instructively addresses the much neglected topic of East Asian martial arts philosophy, providing scholarly insights into ethics, aesthetics, and comparative philosophy from a convincing somatic perspective. -- Richard Shusterman, author of Thinking through the Body: Essays in Somaesthetics Allen presents a dazzling display of intellectual moves that strike to the core of the wisdom behind the Asian martial arts. As though we were on the mat, he gracefully throws the reader from illuminating historical accounts to pages of penetrating philosophical analysis. He locks up with broad issues about the nature of violence and power as well as such strange but compelling questions as how it is that some of us can find a violent punch an object of sublime beauty.Both a romp and a workout, this elegantly written book should be mandatory reading for all students of the martial arts. -- Gordon Marino, St. Olaf College Allen is our preeminent student of artistry in the applied arts, the beauty that comes as an unsought byproduct of devotion to instrumental effectiveness. Here he writes as a seasoned practitioner about Asian martial arts-disciplines whose devotion to bodily excellence and violence pose special challenges to sympathetic philosophical understanding -- David Hills, Stanford University A significant contribution to comparative philosophy, Allen's Striking Beauty is a focused investigation of the intersection of Asian martial arts, the philosophical traditions surrounding them, and Western philosophy... Highly recommended. ChoiceTable of ContentsPreface Acknowledgments 1. The Dao of Asian Martial Arts: Themes from Chinese Philosophy 2. From Dualism to the Darwinian Body: Themes from Western Philosophy 3. Power and Grace: Martial Arts Aesthetics 4. What a Body Can Do: Martial Arts Ethics Epilogue: Martial Arts and Philosophy Chinese-English Glossary Notes Index

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Book SynopsisIn China’s Green Religion, James Miller shows how Daoism orients individuals toward a holistic understanding of religion and nature. Explicitly connecting human flourishing to the thriving of nature, Daoism fosters a “green” subjectivity and agency that transforms what it means to live a flourishing life on earth.Trade ReviewThis book presents a novel interpretation of Daoism as a 'green religion' that can transcend its premodern, Chinese origins and offer to the world a distinctive ecological orientation of wider relevance. Miller is arguably the world's leading scholar of Daoism and the environment, and China's Green Religion makes a striking and important contribution to the field of religion and ecology. -- Bronislaw Szerszynski, Lancaster University This book breaks new ground and may serve as a model for more sophisticated engagements with Daoism in terms of ecology. It is at the cutting edge of Daoist Studies. -- Louis Komjathy, Associate Professor of Chinese Religions and Comparative Religious Studies at the University of San Diego James Miller's book is a rich and deeply informed exploration of the relationships of Daoist religion and philosophy with nature and the environment. Miller discusses Daoist principles in new and exciting ways, often related to current ecological and ecocritical topics. He applies Daoist principles to current problems and possible futures, arguing that Daoism could help us develop not only sustainability but also flourishing. This is an important book with new and exciting ideas for environmentalists and citizens. -- Eugene Anderson, University of California, Riverside There is perhaps no scholar in the West who could have written such a valuable book on the contributions of Daoism to ecological thought and practice in China. Meticulously researched and clearly written, this is a book that will indispensable for academics and policy makers alike who are concerned about China's future. -- Mary Evelyn Tucker, Forum on Religion and Ecology, Yale UniversityTable of ContentsAcknowledgments Introduction 1. Religion, Modernity, and Ecology 2. The Subjectivity of Nature 3. Liquid Ecology 4. The Porosity of the Body 5. The Locative Imagination 6. The Political Ecology of the Daoist Body 7. From Modernity to Sustainability 8. From Sustainability to Flourishing Notes Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisJinhua Jia draws on a wealth of previously untapped sources to explain how Daoist priestesses marked themselves as a distinct gendered religious and social group. The first comprehensive study of the lives and roles of Daoist priestesses in Tang China, Gender, Power, and Talent restores women to the landscape of Chinese religion and literature.Trade ReviewAn incredibly important book for both scholars and students, one which will remain for years to come a pivotal resource for classrooms and related studies. * Reading Religion *Gender, Power, and Talent succeeds in demonstrating the breadth of achievement of Daoist priestesses in the Tang. -- Daniel Burton-Rose, Northern Arizona University, USA * Nan Nu *[This] volume presents an impressive wealth of material for historical studies on women as well as on religion. * Religious Studies Review *[Gender, Power, and Talent's] contributions to the scholarship on Chinese religion, literature, and women studies make it a useful reference for scholars and students interested in related areas. Overall, it is a worthy beginning to what we hope will be increased emphasis on women and Daoism, and it should stimulate further research on Daoism and gender studies. -- Yue Wu * Chinese Literature: Essays, Articles, Reviews *Written by a rising leader in Chinese religious studies applying an interdisciplinary approach that combines religious, literary, and gender studies, and searching through all available sources and recovering many new texts, Gender, Power, and Talent examines both the conventional and ‘unconventional’ roles played by Tang Daoist priestesses in the historical context of the Tang dynasty. -- Nanxiu Qian, Rice UniversityGender, Power, and Talent argues that Daoist women of medieval China played an important role in the religion and in the society of the time; that their emergence as a major social force is unprecedented in Chinese history; and that they developed a new form of identity both as women and as Daoists. The gender-critical perspective of the book together with its meticulous historical research makes it a unique contribution to the field. -- Livia Kohn, Boston UniversityElite Daoist nuns of the Tang dynasty used to have a scandalous reputation. Jinhua Jia does them justice; the gossip is accounted for, but more important elements are added to the picture: the uneasy invention of Daoist monasticism, the debates around female religiosity and poetic expression, and the rise of early modern self-cultivation practices. This gendered history of medieval Daoism is a major addition to our understanding of Chinese religious cultures. -- Vincent Goossaert, Université PSL, École Pratique des Hautes ÉtudesUsing previously unknown mortuary inscriptions, rare Dunhuang manuscripts, and a broad range of received texts, Jia offers a revealing panorama of women's religious practices from medieval China. This study of Tang Daoist priestesses from various backgrounds brings the lives of these many remarkable women out of the shadows. Cultural and social history at its best. -- Paul W. Kroll, University of Colorado, BoulderBy making meticulous use of important new sources and re-viewing older ones with an informed and insightful gender-critical eye, Jinhua Jia has admirably succeeded in finally releasing Tang dynasty Daoist women from the traditional stereotypes, whether romantically idealistic or moralistically censorious, that have so long obscured their significant accomplishments in such diverse areas as scriptural exegesis, ritual practice, medicine, literature, and the arts. -- Beata Grant, Washington University in St. LouisTable of ContentsList of Figures and TablesAcknowledgmentsList of AbbreviationsIntroduction1. The Rise of Daoist Priestesses as a Gendered Religio-Social Group2. Destiny and Power of the Ordained Royal Women3. Religious Leadership, Practice, and Ritual Function4. Liu Moran and the Daoist Theory of Inner Cultivation5. Longevity Techniques and Medical Theory: The Legacy of Hu Yin6. The Yaochi ji and Three Daoist Priestess-Poets7. Unsold Peony: The Life and Poetry of the Priestess-Poet Yu XuanjiConclusionAppendix: Du Guangting and the Hagiographies of Tang Daoist WomenNotesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisHuaiyu Chen examines how Buddhist ideas about animals changed and were changed by medieval Chinese culture. He explores the entangled relations among animals, religions, the state, and local communities, considering both the multivalent meanings associated with animals and the daily experience of living with the natural world.Trade ReviewThe question of how humans treat, and should treat, non-human animals has become more urgent in the face of biodiversity loss, and we might find some answers by considering how we have lived with animals in other times and places. Huaiyu Chen’s In the Land of Tigers and Snakes. . . provides openings to do so. * The Times Literary Supplement *Huaiyu Chen makes a significant contribution to our understanding of human–animal interactions in medieval China…[He] tells a fascinating story of the changing boundaries between the “wild and untamed” and the “civilized” world. Particularly rich and cohesive…In the Land of Tigers and Snakes would be an excellent reading for either an undergraduate- or a graduate level class in religious studies and Asian history. * Journal of Chinese History *...by learning from the work presented in this book, we can promote deeper conversations and mutual understandings between religions, allowing scholars across multiple disciplines other than religious studies to gain inspiration for their respective fields of study. * Religion *. . . engaging and rich in detail. In all, this is a much-needed addition to the ever-growing field of Chinese animal studies, demonstrating the applicability and range of the “animal lens” in scholarship. * School of Oriental & African Studies *In the Land of Tigers and Snakes is meticulously researched, richly documented, and well contextualized. Chen shows excellent command of his source materials, and I really learned a tremendous amount from reading this book. A must-read for anyone interested in animals and religion! -- Barbara Ambros, author of Bones of Contention: Animals and Religion in Contemporary JapanAn unprecedented survey of some very rich sources, In the Land of Tigers and Snakes is a major contribution to the study of the interactions between the human and animal realms in a pivotal period of Chinese history. -- T.H. Barrett, author of Taoism Under the T'ang: Religion and Empire during the Golden Age of Chinese HistoryIn this fascinating and important study, Huaiyu Chen overturns facile beliefs that Buddhism and Daoism have long promoted ecologically beneficent attitudes and practices toward wild animals. Instead, he shows the complex ways religious leaders and laypeople viewed, controlled, killed, and according to legends, tamed and converted wild animals, in processes producing religious hierarchies, involving interreligious competition, and contributing decisively to the spread of agricultural civilizations at the expense of wildlife and wildlands. Highly recommended. -- Bron Taylor, Author of Dark Green Religion: Nature Spirituality and the Planetary Future and editor of the Encyclopedia of Religion and NatureBy learning from the work presented in this book, we can promote deeper conversations and mutual understandings between religions, allowing scholars across multiple disciplines other than religious studies to gain inspiration for their respective fields of study. * Religion *Table of ContentsList of IllustrationsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Buddhists Categorizing Animals: Medieval Chinese Classification2. Confucians Civilizing Unruly Beasts: Tigers and Pheasants3. Buddhists Taming Felines: The Companionship of the Tiger4. Daoists Transforming Ferocious Tigers: Practical Techniques and Rhetorical Strategies5. Buddhists Killing Reptiles: Snakes in Religious Competition6. Buddhists Enlightening Virtuous Birds: The Parrot as a Religious AgentEpilogueNotesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisHuaiyu Chen examines how Buddhist ideas about animals changed and were changed by medieval Chinese culture. He explores the entangled relations among animals, religions, the state, and local communities, considering both the multivalent meanings associated with animals and the daily experience of living with the natural world.Trade ReviewThe question of how humans treat, and should treat, non-human animals has become more urgent in the face of biodiversity loss, and we might find some answers by considering how we have lived with animals in other times and places. Huaiyu Chen’s In the Land of Tigers and Snakes. . . provides openings to do so. * The Times Literary Supplement *Huaiyu Chen makes a significant contribution to our understanding of human–animal interactions in medieval China…[He] tells a fascinating story of the changing boundaries between the “wild and untamed” and the “civilized” world. Particularly rich and cohesive…In the Land of Tigers and Snakes would be an excellent reading for either an undergraduate- or a graduate level class in religious studies and Asian history. * Journal of Chinese History *...by learning from the work presented in this book, we can promote deeper conversations and mutual understandings between religions, allowing scholars across multiple disciplines other than religious studies to gain inspiration for their respective fields of study. * Religion *. . . engaging and rich in detail. In all, this is a much-needed addition to the ever-growing field of Chinese animal studies, demonstrating the applicability and range of the “animal lens” in scholarship. * School of Oriental & African Studies *In the Land of Tigers and Snakes is meticulously researched, richly documented, and well contextualized. Chen shows excellent command of his source materials, and I really learned a tremendous amount from reading this book. A must-read for anyone interested in animals and religion! -- Barbara Ambros, author of Bones of Contention: Animals and Religion in Contemporary JapanAn unprecedented survey of some very rich sources, In the Land of Tigers and Snakes is a major contribution to the study of the interactions between the human and animal realms in a pivotal period of Chinese history. -- T.H. Barrett, author of Taoism Under the T'ang: Religion and Empire during the Golden Age of Chinese HistoryIn this fascinating and important study, Huaiyu Chen overturns facile beliefs that Buddhism and Daoism have long promoted ecologically beneficent attitudes and practices toward wild animals. Instead, he shows the complex ways religious leaders and laypeople viewed, controlled, killed, and according to legends, tamed and converted wild animals, in processes producing religious hierarchies, involving interreligious competition, and contributing decisively to the spread of agricultural civilizations at the expense of wildlife and wildlands. Highly recommended. -- Bron Taylor, Author of Dark Green Religion: Nature Spirituality and the Planetary Future and editor of the Encyclopedia of Religion and NatureBy learning from the work presented in this book, we can promote deeper conversations and mutual understandings between religions, allowing scholars across multiple disciplines other than religious studies to gain inspiration for their respective fields of study. * Religion *Table of ContentsList of IllustrationsAcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Buddhists Categorizing Animals: Medieval Chinese Classification2. Confucians Civilizing Unruly Beasts: Tigers and Pheasants3. Buddhists Taming Felines: The Companionship of the Tiger4. Daoists Transforming Ferocious Tigers: Practical Techniques and Rhetorical Strategies5. Buddhists Killing Reptiles: Snakes in Religious Competition6. Buddhists Enlightening Virtuous Birds: The Parrot as a Religious AgentEpilogueNotesBibliographyIndex

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Book SynopsisAn anthology that provides a view of the lives of ordinary citizens in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. It explores key themes in understanding the region, including gender, caste, class, religion, globalization, economic liberalization, nationalism, and emerging modernities.Trade ReviewEveryday Life in South Asia . . . is extremely accessible and has plenty to offer as introductory material for a wide range of topics. * New Asia Books *[T]he book offers keenly observed ethnographic snapshots, theorized by the authors and contextualized by the engaging section introductions. Indeed, the varied, rich, and sensitive portrayal of the ordinary (and extraordinary) lives of South Asians of vastly diverse backgrounds is just one of the volume's many strengths. * Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute *Richly informative but accessible and user friendly for classroom use. . . . This excellent volume of essays belongs in many places—on the shelves of specialists and non-specialists alike. * Journal of Asian Studies *Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsNote on TransliterationIntroductionMapI. The Family and the Life Course Introduction1. One Straw from a Broom Cannot Sweep: The Ideology and Practice of the Joint Family in Rural North India Susan S. Wadley2. Allah Gives Both Boys and Girls Patricia Jeffery and Roger Jeffery3. "Out Here in Kathmandu": Youth and the Contradictions of Modernity in Urban Nepal Mark Liechty4. Rethinking Courtship, Marriage and Divorce in an Indian Call Center Cari Costanzo Kapur5. Love and Aging in Bengali Families Sarah LambII. GendersIntroduction6. New Light in the House: Schooling Girls in Rural North India Ann Grodzins Gold7. Offstage with Special Drama Actresses in Tamilnadu, South India: Roadwork Susan Seizer8. Breadwinners No More: Identities in Flux Michele Ruth Gamburd9. Life on the Margins: A Hijra's Story Serena Nanda10. Crossing "Lines" of Difference: Transnational Movements and Sexual Subjectivities in Hyderabad, India Gayatri ReddyIII. Caste, Class and CommunityIntroduction 11. Seven Prevalent Misconceptions about India's Caste System12. God-Chariots in a Garden of Castes: Hierarchy and Festival in a Hindu City Steven M. Parish13. High and Low Castes in Karani Viramma, with Josiane Racine and Jean Luc Racine14. Weakness, Worry Illness, and Poverty in the Slums of Dhaka Sabina Faiz Rashid 15. Anjali's Alliance: Class Mobility in Urban India Sara Dickey16. Recasting the Secular: Religion and Education in Kerala, India Ritty LukoseIV. Practicing ReligionIntroduction17. The Hindu Gods in a South Indian Village Diane P. Mines18. The Feast of Love McKim Marriott19. The Delusion of Gender and Renunciation in Buddhist Kashmir Kim Gutschow20. Muslim Village Intellectuals: The Life of the Mind in Northern Pakistan Magnus Marsden21. In Friendship: A Father, a Daughter and a Jinn Naveeda Khan22. Vernacular Islam at a Healing Crossroads in Hyderabad Joyce Burkhalter FlueckigerV. Nation-making Introduction23. Voices from the Partition Urvashi Butalia24. A Day in the Life Laura Ring25. Living and Dying for Mother India: Hindu Nationalist Female Renouncers and Sacred Duty Kalyani Devaki Menon26. Political Praise in Tamil Newspapers: The Poetry and Iconography of Democratic Power Bernard Bate27. Mala's Dream: Economic Policies, National Debates, and Sri Lankan Garment Workers Caitrin Lynch28. Interviews with High School Students in Eastern Sri Lanka Margaret TrawickVI. Globalization, Public Culture and the South Asian DiasporaIntroduction29. Cinema in the Countryside: Popular Tamil Film and the Remaking of Rural Life Anand Pandian30. Dangerous Desires: Erotics, Public Culture, and Identity in Late-Twentieth-Century India Purnima Mankekar31. A Diaspora Ramayana in Southall Paula Richman32. British Sikh Lives, Lived in Translation Kathleen Hall33. Examining the "Global" Indian Middle Class: Gender and Culture in the Silicon Valley/Bangalore Circuit Smitha Radhakrishnan34. Placing Lives through Stories: Second Generation South Asian Americans Kirin Narayan35. Unexpected Destinations E. Valentine DanielReferencesContributorsIndex

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Book SynopsisThe peoples and cultures of Southeast AsiaTrade ReviewThe pages [of Everyday Life in Southeast Asia] are packed with useful insight that can infuse the travelers [sic] journey (particularly if they explore areas off the beaten track) with an enlightening understanding of deeply rooted traditions still practiced throughout South East Asia. . . . [I]t is highly readable in both a casual and on-the-go context, and contains facts that will challenge the reader to re-assess their own cultural practices and observe those of others in a new light. * ExpatGoMalaysia.com *This book offers an exceedingly rich conucopia of stories, themes, and analytical insights into contemporary southeast Asia. Moreover, it is a pleasure to read. Many edited collections in the social sciences aim ar at least claim to appeal to an audience beyond specialists. Everyday Life in Southeast Asia is one of the rare collections compiled and written by academics that should indeed speak to a broad audience as an introduction to the societies and peoples of one of the world's most richly diverse regions. Specialists, too, will take pleasure and find insights in this book. * Sojourn *One of the main contributions of this volume is its ability to unite extremely disparate topics under clearly defined theoretical themes. As such, it makes a wonderful textbook, not just for anthropology students, but also for those taking courses in the sociology, history and politics of South East Asia. * South East Asia Research *Table of ContentsAcknowledgmentsNote on TransliterationMapsIntroduction: Southeast Asia and Everyday LifePart 1. Fluid Personhood: Conceptualizing Identities 1. Living in Indonesia without a Please or Thanks: Cultural Translations of Reciprocity and Respect / Lorraine V. Aragon 2. Toba Batak Selves: Personal, Spiritual, Collective / Andrew Causey 3. Poverty and Merit: Mobile Persons in Laos / Holly High 4. A Question of Identity: Different Ways of Being Malay and Muslim in Malaysia / Judith NagataPart 2. Family, Households, and Livelihoods 5. Maling: A Hanunóo Girl from the Philippines / Harold C. Conklin 6. Marriage and Opium in a Lisu Village in Northern Thailand / Kathleen Gillogly 7. Merit and Power in the Thai Social Order / Lucien M. Hanks, Jr.Part 3. Crafting the Nation-State 8. Recording Tradition and Measuring Progress in the Ethnic Minority Highlands of Thailand / Hjorleifur Jonsson 9. Everyday Life and the Management of Cultural Complexity in Contemporary Singapore / John Clammer 10. Youth Culture and Fading Memories of War in Hanoi, Vietnam / Christina SchwenkelPart 4. World Religions in Everyday Life: Buddhism, Islam, Hinduism, and Christianity 11. The Ordination of a Tree: The Buddhist Ecology Movement in Thailand / Susan M. Darlington 12. Javanese Women and the Veil / Nancy Smith-Hefner 13. Everyday Catholicism: Expanding the Sacred Sphere in the Philippines / Katharine L. WiegelePart 5. Communicating Ideas: Popular Culture, Arts, and Entertainment 14. Cultivating "Community" in an Indonesian Era of Conflict: Toraja Artistic Strategies for Promoting Peace / Kathleen M. Adams 15. The Fall of Thai Rocky / Pattana Kitiarsa 16. Everyday Life as Art: Thai Artists and the Aesthetics of Shopping, Eating, Protesting, and Having Fun / Sandra Cate 17. Eating Lunch and Recreating the Universe: Food and Cosmology in Hoi An, Vietnam / Nir AvieliPart 6. War and Recovery 18. Living with the War Dead in Contemporary Vietnam / Shaun Kingsley Malarney 19. Producing the People: Exchange Obligations and Popular Nationalism / Elizabeth G. Traube 20. The Question of Collaborators: Moral Order and Community in the Aftermath of the Khmer Rouge / Eve Monique ZuckerPart 7. Global Processes and Shifting Ecological Relations 21. When the Mountains No Longer Mean Home / Chris Lyttleton 22. "They Do Not Like to Be Confined and Told What To Do": Schooling Malaysian Indigenes / Robert Knox Dentan, Anthony (Bah Tony) Williams-Hunt, and Juli Edo 23. Narratives of Agency: Sex Work in Indonesia's Borderlands / Michele Ford and Lenore Lyons 24. Just below the Surface: Environmental Destruction and Loss of Livelihood on an Indonesian Atoll / Gene AmmarellReferencesSelected Film ResourcesContributorsIndex

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