Joanna Cook & Jonathan Mair (University of Cambridge)
Introduction: Buddhist ethics and detachment
Gustaff Houtman (Royal Anthropological Institute/School of Oriental and African Studies): ‘Vipassana: A reflection on detachment in the context of Van Gennep's theory of rites de passage in the unpartitioned house’
Vipassana is a technique that has facilitated detachment under oppressive regimes in Burma. This paper explores detachment in the context of identity as emergent from Van Gennep's theory of rites de passage, who associates Buddhism with circular repetitive rather than rectilinear shapes in an unpartitioned house.
