Himalayan Passages ─ Tibetan and Newar Studies in Honor of Hubert Decleer

Explore new research on the religious and cultural traditions of the Himalayan Buddhist world.

Over decades, hundreds of American undergraduates spending a semester abroad have been introduced to Tibetan culture in India, Nepal, and China by Hubert Decleer. A number went on to become prominent scholars in the field at institutions such as Yale, Berkeley, and Georgetown, and as a tribute to him they have put together this collection of cutting-edge research in Himalayan studies, bringing together contributions of this new generation with those of senior researchers in the field. This new research on the religion and culture of the Himalayan Buddhist world spans a broad range of subjects, periods, and approaches, and the diversity and strength of the contributions ensures Himalayan Passages be warmly welcomed by scholars, travelers, and Tibetan Buddhists alike.
Highlights include:

Donald S. Lopez, Jr. tells the story of Gendun Chopel's unusual visit to Sri Lanka in 1941.

Leonard van der Kuijp examines the Bodhicittavivarana, an ancient work on the enlightened resolve to free all beings.

Kabir Mansingh Heimsath compares Western and Chinese curatorial approaches to Tibetan modern art.

Alexander von Rospatt illuminates the fascinating history and artistic details of the famous Svayambhu stupa in Kathmandu.

Sara S. Jacoby translates the short autobiography of Sera Khandro, the celebrated female Tibetan mystic of a century ago.

Additional contributors include Franz-Karl Ehrhard, Ernst Steinkellner, Jacob P. Dalton, Iain Sinclair, Anne Vergati, Punya Prasad Parajuli, and Dominique Townsend.

Benjamin Bogin is an Associate Professor of Asian Studies at Skidmore College. He received his M.A. and Ph.D. (Buddhist Studies) from the University of Michigan and spent six years living in Kathmandu, Nepal where he directed study-abroad programs in the Himalayas for American students. His primary research interests are Tibetan Buddhist autobiography and the intersections of visual art, narrative, and sacred geography in Buddhist cultures. He lives in Ballston Spa, NY.
Andrew Quintman is assistant professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Yale University, specializing in the Buddhist traditions of Tibet and the Himalaya. For seven years he served as the Academic Director of the School for International Training's Tibetan Studies program based in Kathmandu. His study of Milarepa's biographical tradition, The Yogin and the Madman: Reading the Biographical Corpus of the Great Tibetan Saint Milarepa, is forthcoming from Columbia University Press. His English translation of The Life of Milarepa was published in 2010 by Penguin Classics. He lives in New Haven, CT.