Divination and the Bon Tradition of Tibet. Some Epistemological and Semiotical Reflections

29.04.2016 15:15 - 16:45

Donatella Rossi | Department of Oriental Studies, Università di Roma “La Sapienza”

The lecture introduces to the rich world of mantic arts in Tibet, which, since time immemorial, constitute an articulated resource for the Tibetan people in terms of discovering hidden circumstances and coping with Fate. In this regard we should note the absence, so far, of systematic and comprehensive studies on Tibetan divination from the historical-religious standpoint and from the perspective of symbolic anthropology, including the influence of the latter on the construction of semantic fields, which – unfolding within their prismatic extent – vest the culture of the Land of Snows with distinct and complex modes. In order to properly contextualize the subject matter, some fundamental aspects related to the old Bon culture will first be addressed, in order to provide an adequate appreciation of the weltanschauung underlying Tibetan Bon divination. The lecture will then focus on the ancient divinatory system styled Zhang Zhung Ju thig and will offer observations on the semiotic and epistemological aspects linked to divination as well as on the ethos involved in the role of the diviner.

Organiser:
Institut für Südasien-, Tibet- und Buddhismuskunde
Location:
Seminarraum 1, AAKH, Spitalgasse 2, Hof 2.7 1090 Wien