Buddhism in the Sea of Islands Webinar series
June – October 2021
The Asia-Pacific region is home to by far the largest number of Buddhists in the world. While Buddhism in Asian societies has been extensively studied, Buddhism in the Pacific region remains under-explored, despite the fact that Buddhists comprise a significant proportion of the populations in these countries. This project aims to bring together an international, multidisciplinary group of researchers to examine Buddhism in Pacific contexts, with a particular focus on transnational flow and counterflow of Buddhism and interactions between immigrants and the indigenous people, both in historical and contemporary societies in the region.
Buddhism in the Far North of Australia pre-WWII: (In)visibility, colonialism and lived religion
Anna Halafoff (Deakin University)
Enqi Weng (Deakin University)
Kim Lam (Deakin University)
Cristina Rocha (Western Sydney University)
Flows of Innovation in Fo Guang Shan Oceania: transregional dynamics behind the Buddha’s Birthday Festival
Juewei Shi (Nan Tien Institute of Higher Education)
Sioh Yang Tan (Nan Tien Institute of Higher Education)
Japanese Buddhist Women in Hawai’i: Waves of Change
Karma Lekshe Tsomo (University of San Diego)
Casting Indra’s Net across the Pacific: Robert Aitken and the Growth of the Diamond Sangha as a Trans-Pacific Zen Movement
Helen Baroni (University of Hawai’i)
The Social Sources and Cultural Forms of Buddhism in Contemporary Aotearoa New Zealand
Sally McAra (University of Auckland)
Mark Mullins (University of Auckland)
Buddhism in the Pacific Research Network
An international, multidisciplinary group of researchers with a shared interest in Buddhism in historical and contemporary societies in the Pacific region.
Contact: Buddhism_network@nantien.edu.au
Michelle Barker (James Cook University) contact | research profile
Helen Baroni (University of Hawaii) contact | research profile
Jørn Borup (Aarhus University) contact | research profile
Ugo Dessì (University of Cape Town) contact | research profile
Ruth Fitzpatrick (Deakin University) contact | research profile
Anna Halafoff (Deakin University) contact | research profile
Kim Lam (Deakin University) contact | research profile
Nadine Levy (Nan Tien Institute) contact | research profile
Sally McAra (University of Auckland) contact | research profile
Paul Morris (Victoria University of Wellington) contact | research profile
Mark Mullins (University of Auckland) contact | research profile
Ryota Nishino (University of the South Pacific) contact | research profile
Sara Rahmani (Victoria University of Wellington) contact | research profile
Cristina Rocha (Western Sydney University) contact | research profile
Juewei Shi (Nan Tien Institute) contact | research profile
Sue Smith (Charles Darwin University) contact | research profile
Sioh Yang Tan (Nan Tien Institute) contact | research profile
Venerable Karma Lekshe Tsomo (University of San Diego) contact | research profile
Enqi Weng (Deakin University) contact | research profile
Flows and Counterflows of Buddhism 'South of the West'
A special issue in the Journal of Global Buddhism based on research on Buddhism in the Sea of Islands.
Open access full text available here.
- Flows and Counterflows of Buddhism ‘South of the West’: Australia, New Zealand and Hawai’i
Anna Halafoff, Cristina Rocha, Juewei Shi - Buddhism in the Far North of Australia pre-WWII: (In)visibility, Post-colonialism and Materiality
Anna Halafoff, Kim Lam, Cristina Rocha, Enqi Weng, Sue Smith - Seeding Buddhism in New Zealand: Mangyal Rinpoche and the Lake Rotoito Retreat, 1973
Hadleigh Tiddy - Casting Indra’s Net across the Pacific: Robert Aitken and the Growth of the Diamond Sangha as a Trans-Pacific Zen Movement
Helen J. Baroni - Buddhism in Aotearoa New Zealand: Multiple Sources and Diverse Forms
Sally McAra, Mark R Mullins - Flows of Innovation in Fo Guang Shan Oceania: Transregional dynamics behind the Buddha’s Birthday Festival
Juewei Shi, Sioh Yang Tan