Burley, M (2013) Reincarnation and ethics. Journal of the American Academy of Religion, 81 (1). 162 - 187. ISSN 0002-7189
Abstract
Studies of reincarnation beliefs often assume that these beliefs are logically and historically prior to certain ethical values and practices, and hence that the values and practices are based on, and explained by, the beliefs (or "theory"). This assumption has been challenged by Catherine Osborne, who argues with reference to certain ancient Greek philosophers that the order of priority is the other way round. Through critical engagement with Osborne and also Gananath Obeyesekere, this article seeks to question the deeper presupposition that there must be an order of priority here at all. Along the way, objections are raised to Obeyesekere's model of how South Asian "karmic eschatologies" evolved from "nonethicized" "rebirth eschatologies," and it is argued that Obeyesekere's notion of "ethicization" runs the risk of obscuring the pervasiveness of ethics within supposedly "nonethicized" forms of reincarnation belief in small-scale societies. This pervasiveness is illustrated by some examples from anthropological literature.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Cultures (Leeds) > School of Philosophy, Religion and History of Science (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 30 Jan 2014 14:16 |
Last Modified: | 30 Jan 2014 14:16 |
Published Version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jaarel/lfs104 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Oxford University Press |
Identification Number: | 10.1093/jaarel/lfs104 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:77245 |