Livia (Knaul) Kohn (born March 14, 1956) is an

emeritus professor ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". In some c ...

of Religion and East Asian Studies at

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

, specializing in studies of

Taoism Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ' ...

(or Daoism). Kohn completed her Ph.D. at

Bonn University The University of Bonn, officially the Rhenish Friedrich Wilhelm University of Bonn (), is a public research university in Bonn, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was founded in its present form as the () on 18 October 1818 by Frederick Will ...

in 1980. She has held academic positions at

Kyoto University , or , is a National university, national research university in Kyoto, Japan. Founded in 1897, it is one of the former Imperial Universities and the second oldest university in Japan. The university has ten undergraduate faculties, eighteen gra ...

(1981–1986),

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

(1986–1987), and Boston University (1988–2006). Kohn has authored or edited over 50 books and many articles on Daoism. She has served as an executive editor of Three Pines Press since 2000 and the ''Journal of Daoist Studies'' since 2008. Kohn is a multilingual scholar and has written or translated works in German, English, Chinese, and Japanese. Livia Kohn was cited as a prolific scholar of Daoism early in her career. However, her influence on Western cultural understanding of Daoism and other East Asian religious practices extends beyond the scholarly literature. Kohn practices

tai chi is a Chinese martial art. Initially developed for combat and self-defense, for most practitioners it has evolved into a sport and form of exercise. As an exercise, tai chi is performed as gentle, low-impact movement in which practitioners ...

, is a certified instructor of

yoga Yoga (UK: , US: ; 'yoga' ; ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines that originated with its own philosophy in ancient India, aimed at controlling body and mind to attain various salvation goals, as pra ...

and

qigong Qigong ()) is a system of coordinated body-posture and movement, breathing, and meditation said to be useful for the purposes of health, spirituality, and martial arts training. With roots in Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chinese medicine, Chin ...

, and leads workshops, seminars, and tours of Japan.

Selected works

* ''Early Chinese Mysticism: Philosophy and Soteriology in the Taoist Tradition.'' Princeton University Press, 1992, ISBN 978-0691073811 * ''The Taoist Experience: An Anthology''. State University of New York Press, New York, 1993, ISBN 978-0791415801 * ''Daoism Handbook''. Brill Verlag, Leiden, Boston, Cologne, 2000, ISBN 90-04-11208-1 * ''Daoist Identity: History, Lineage and Ritual''. University of Hawai'i Press, 2002, ISBN 978-0824825041 * Monastic Life in Medieval Daoism: A Cross-Cultural Perspective. University of Hawai'i Press, 2003, ISBN 978-0824826512 * ''Daoism and Chinese Culture''. University of Hawai'i Press, 2005, ISBN 978-1931483001 * ''Daoist Body Cultivation: Traditional Models and Contemporary Practices''. Three Pines Press, 2006, ISBN 978-1931483056 * ''Chinese Healing Exercises: The Tradition of Daoyin''. University of Hawai'i Press, 2008, ISBN 978-0824832698 * ''Seven stages of Taoist meditation: the Zuòwànglùn''. Medical-Literary Publishing Company, Uelzen, 2010, ISBN 978-3-88136-248-1

References

1956 births Living people {{reli-studies-bio-stub