Drops of virtue: The ethics of collective sponsorship in Tibet
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Drops of virtue : The ethics of collective sponsorship in Tibet. / Caple, Jane Eluned.
In: Religion and Society, Vol. 8, 2017, p. 145-157.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Drops of virtue
T2 - The ethics of collective sponsorship in Tibet
AU - Caple, Jane Eluned
PY - 2017
Y1 - 2017
N2 - A significant strand of anthropological work on Buddhist generosity practices in Theravādin and Tibetan Buddhist societies has examined their role in reproducing and reinforcing social and economic hierarchies. Inspired by the recent ‘moral turn’ in anthropology, this article addresses the moral dimensions of these practices by analyzing debates, decisions, and judgments about what to sponsor and how to do so during times of accelerated ‘modernizing’ change. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork in northeastern Tibet (Amdo) conducted between 2008 and 2015, I focus on a mode of collective sponsorship that has, in different contexts, been considered good, problematic, or even wrong. The moral grounds for such evaluations show that sponsorship is evaluated and experienced not only as a Buddhist practice but also as a social and economic practice with direct consequences for both individuals and communities. The moral stakes of generosity practices are shown to extend beyond individual ethics to the common good.
AB - A significant strand of anthropological work on Buddhist generosity practices in Theravādin and Tibetan Buddhist societies has examined their role in reproducing and reinforcing social and economic hierarchies. Inspired by the recent ‘moral turn’ in anthropology, this article addresses the moral dimensions of these practices by analyzing debates, decisions, and judgments about what to sponsor and how to do so during times of accelerated ‘modernizing’ change. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork in northeastern Tibet (Amdo) conducted between 2008 and 2015, I focus on a mode of collective sponsorship that has, in different contexts, been considered good, problematic, or even wrong. The moral grounds for such evaluations show that sponsorship is evaluated and experienced not only as a Buddhist practice but also as a social and economic practice with direct consequences for both individuals and communities. The moral stakes of generosity practices are shown to extend beyond individual ethics to the common good.
KW - Faculty of Humanities
KW - Buddhism
KW - gift exchange
KW - Tibet
KW - morality
KW - China
KW - patronage
U2 - 10.3167/arrs.2017.080109
DO - 10.3167/arrs.2017.080109
M3 - Journal article
VL - 8
SP - 145
EP - 157
JO - Religion and Society
JF - Religion and Society
SN - 1437-5370
ER -
ID: 214465708