is the Reischauer Institute Professor of Japanese Religions at

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

. Until May 2004, he was professor of Japanese religions in the departments of religion and

East Asia East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...

n languages and culture at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

. Abe, through his teaching and books, has made an important contribution to the Western understanding of

Buddhism in Japan Buddhism was first established in Japan in the 6th century CE. Most of the Japanese Buddhists belong to new schools of Buddhism which were established in the Kamakura period (1185－1333). During the Edo period (1603–1868), Buddhism was cont ...

. His book on

Kūkai , born posthumously called , was a Japanese Buddhist monk, calligrapher, and poet who founded the Vajrayana, esoteric Shingon Buddhism, Shingon school of Buddhism. He travelled to China, where he studied Tangmi (Chinese Vajrayana Buddhism) und ...

, ''The Weaving of Mantra: Kūkai and the Construction of Esoteric Buddhist Discourse'', underscores Kūkai's impact on 9th-century

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese society. At a time when Confucian discourse dominated Japan, Kūkai developed a “voice” for Buddhism. He has also written about Ryōkan and Saichō. He received his bachelor's degree in economics from

Keio University , abbreviated as or , is a private university, private research university located in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally established as a school for Rangaku, Western studies in 1858 in Edo. It was granted university status in 1920, becomi ...

and his master's degree from School of Advanced International Affairs,

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

. He then received his MPhil and PhD in religious studies from Columbia University. In 1991 he began teaching at Columbia, and in 1998 became the Kao Associate Professor of Japanese Religions. He is a recipient of the Philip and Ruth Hettleman Award for distinguished teaching.. Back of book material.

Books

*''The Weaving of Mantra : Kūkai and the Construction of Esoteric Buddhist Discourse''. 1999. *''Great Fool: Zen Master Ryokan: Poems, Letters, and Other Writings'' (with Peter Haskel). 1996. PDF version online, 302p.

Retrieved 22 August 2020. *''Saicho and Kukai: A Conflict of Interpretations''. Japanese Journal of Religious Studies. Spring 1995, 22/1–2. PDF. version online, 35p.

Retrieved 22 August 2020.

References

External links

Harvard University page
1954 births Living people Japanese academics Harvard University faculty Columbia University faculty Columbia Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni Keio University alumni Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies alumni Japanese expatriates in the United States {{Japan-academic-bio-stub