Books by Joshua Schapiro
For generations, Buddhist masters in Tibet have composed sheldam, poignant instructions tailored ... more For generations, Buddhist masters in Tibet have composed sheldam, poignant instructions tailored to the needs of their disciples in the form of short works of advice. These works cover topics ranging from practicing while ill to sitting in solitary retreat to recognizing the nature of mind. This collection focuses on an influential generation of Buddhist teachers: the nineteenth-century ecumenical, or rimé, tradition of eastern Tibet.
A Gathering of Brilliant Moons provides lively translations of nineteen pithy and profound works by these great masters, along with essays by their translators which explore the aesthetic qualities of their chosen works, highlight their ecumenical features, and comment on the journey of translation.
Includes works from Jamgon Kongtrul, Dza Patrul Rinpoché, Ju Mipham Rinpoché, Dudjom Lingpa, The Third Dodrupchen, Do Khyentsé, Tokden Sakya Sri, Jikmé Lingpa, Shardza Tashi Gyaltsen, Getsé Mahapandita, Shangton Tenpa Gyatso, and Bamda Thupten Gelek Gyatso.
Edited Volumes by Joshua Schapiro
A special issue of Religions (MDPI, 2017)
Papers by Joshua Schapiro
This essay explores the pedagogy of Dza Patrul Rinpoche (1808–1887), a well-respected Buddhist te... more This essay explores the pedagogy of Dza Patrul Rinpoche (1808–1887), a well-respected Buddhist teacher from Eastern Tibet, by considering examples where Patrul frames his teachings as oratorical performances. Patrul operates under the guiding pedagogical principle that self-promoting performance is good teaching. The term " performance " describes the competitive exchanges that appear in certain of Patrul's writings, where the quality of the sermons in question is at issue. Patrul habitually directs focus to his teachings' delivery, including instances where his lessons emerge out of conversations between invented characters. Patrul puts the oratorical capacity of his protagonists under a microscope and accentuates the artistry of their teachings. In so doing, he draws attention back to his own mastery, prolixity, cunning, and wordplay. His style allows him to communicate content while demonstrating competence and creativity. By telegraphing these qualities, he interests students in aspiring to similar expertise and provides them with opportunities to generate devotion towards him. According to Patrul, devotion is a crucial mechanism for learning, as it transforms and empowers each step of students' progress along the path to awakening.
Buddhist forms of "ethical advice"-instructions that address life's problems and offer methods fo... more Buddhist forms of "ethical advice"-instructions that address life's problems and offer methods for alleviating them-are widespread in Buddhist literary history. This dissertation studies four such works, all written by the nineteenth-century Tibetan teacher Dza Patrul Rinpoche (Rdza dpal sprul O rgyan 'jigs med chos kyi dbang po, 1808-1877). I provide a
Book Chapters by Joshua Schapiro
Teaching Documents by Joshua Schapiro
This course will address themes that appear in Buddhist writings from the past twentyfive hundred... more This course will address themes that appear in Buddhist writings from the past twentyfive hundred years, including the problem of human suffering and its cause, the qualities and role of a spiritual guide, and the nature of "enlightenment." We will focus almost exclusively on primary materials, whether they be discourses attributed to the Buddha and his disciples, narratives about preeminent Buddhist figures, treatises by Buddhist luminaries, or contemporary commentaries on the above.
This course will address themes that appear in Buddhist writings from the past twenty-five hundre... more This course will address themes that appear in Buddhist writings from the past twenty-five hundred years, including the problem of human suffering and its cause, the status of selfhood, the existence of the material world, the meaning of "nonduality," and the mysterious power of innate awareness. The approach to these materials will be thematic and comparative. We will focus almost exclusively on primary materials, whether they be discourses attributed to the Buddha and his disciples, philosophical treatises and poetry by Buddhist luminaries, or recent dharma talks for European and American audiences.
Book Reviews by Joshua Schapiro
Material Religion: The Journal of Objects, Art and Belief, 2016
Review of Tibet on Fire: Buddhism, Protest, and the Rhetoric of Self-Immolation, by John Whalen-B... more Review of Tibet on Fire: Buddhism, Protest, and the Rhetoric of Self-Immolation, by John Whalen-Bridge
Dissertation by Joshua Schapiro
Buddhist forms of "ethical advice"-instructions that address life's problems and offer methods fo... more Buddhist forms of "ethical advice"-instructions that address life's problems and offer methods for alleviating them-are widespread in Buddhist literary history. This dissertation studies four such works, all written by the nineteenth-century Tibetan teacher Dza Patrul Rinpoche (Rdza dpal sprul O rgyan 'jigs med chos kyi dbang po, 1808-1877). I provide a rhetorical analysis of these compositions and endeavor to show how each aspires to reach outside of itself to act on its respective audience. The compositions do so, I argue, by deploying special literary devices that encourage their audiences to invest themselves, emotionally and imaginatively, in the practices of selfdevelopment that the works themselves advocate. The aim of the project is to use Patrul's writing as a case study to suggest modes of analysis that can offer us insight into the ways in which specially designed modes of writing enable moral selfcultivation. The dissertation specifically addresses the relationship between the recurring themes of singularity, performativity and reflexivity as they appear in Patrul's advice writings. I argue that these compositions employ discursive devices that play on their audience's feelings and expectations, aspiring to generate affective responses that range from utter hopelessness to profound relief. They employ expositional strategies iv designed to compel their audiences to imagine familiar practices anew. Finally, their performative character calls attention to the status of Patrul, the model author, as a singularly capable and skillful teacher. The reflexive nature of Patrul's works thereby serves to provoke the implied audience's imagination about "Patrul" the heroically talented teacher. These self-reflexive writings also act as devices for Patrul's own selftransformation. They are sites of imagination, opportunities for Patrul to enact a selfcreation via the medium of advice writing.
Dissertation Review by Joshua Schapiro
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Books by Joshua Schapiro
A Gathering of Brilliant Moons provides lively translations of nineteen pithy and profound works by these great masters, along with essays by their translators which explore the aesthetic qualities of their chosen works, highlight their ecumenical features, and comment on the journey of translation.
Includes works from Jamgon Kongtrul, Dza Patrul Rinpoché, Ju Mipham Rinpoché, Dudjom Lingpa, The Third Dodrupchen, Do Khyentsé, Tokden Sakya Sri, Jikmé Lingpa, Shardza Tashi Gyaltsen, Getsé Mahapandita, Shangton Tenpa Gyatso, and Bamda Thupten Gelek Gyatso.
Edited Volumes by Joshua Schapiro
Papers by Joshua Schapiro
Book Chapters by Joshua Schapiro
Teaching Documents by Joshua Schapiro
Book Reviews by Joshua Schapiro
Dissertation by Joshua Schapiro
Dissertation Review by Joshua Schapiro
A Gathering of Brilliant Moons provides lively translations of nineteen pithy and profound works by these great masters, along with essays by their translators which explore the aesthetic qualities of their chosen works, highlight their ecumenical features, and comment on the journey of translation.
Includes works from Jamgon Kongtrul, Dza Patrul Rinpoché, Ju Mipham Rinpoché, Dudjom Lingpa, The Third Dodrupchen, Do Khyentsé, Tokden Sakya Sri, Jikmé Lingpa, Shardza Tashi Gyaltsen, Getsé Mahapandita, Shangton Tenpa Gyatso, and Bamda Thupten Gelek Gyatso.