Formation

研究成果の概要(英文):This research project focuses upon the Buddhist ritual, especially its formation, development and transformation in the history of Buddhism in Asian countries. The research was carried out in the style of the interdisciplinary joint project consisting of several researchers of various fields: such as Indology, Buddhist studies, history, anthropology, art history, architecture, religious studies and so on. In order to realize the interdisciplinary research we set up five frameworks, i. e. kingship, representation, space, technique and human body. One of the most significant results of the project is the proceedings of the symposium about consecration ritual (abhiseka). This publication has enabled to display the general picture of this ritual all over Asian countries and to lead to the new horizon of ritual studies. As a concluding project we organized an international symposium about the relationship between rituals and the visual imagery.