Between self-expression and convention: Tibetan reflections on autobiographical writing

This paper addresses the issue of literary criticism within Tibetan autobiographical writing. It begins with a survey of traditional Tibetan forms of life writing and then zooms in on autobiographies and their specific features. Through an analysis of autobiographical prefaces, it filters out certain recurring themes and topics, such as the modes of apology and self-confidence, the debate whether one should write about one’s previous lives or not, and the claim to truthfulness of the autobiographical account. Finally, it addresses the relationship between the autobiographical preface and the work itself by introducing two diametrically opposed types. It concludes that Tibetan autobiographies and their modes of self-presentation are situated between literary convention and personal expression, and each author balances these in individual ways. The choices made are related to parameters such as the time of composition, the purpose of the work, and—last but not least—the individual who is writing

Health of entrepreneurs versus employees in a national representative sample

Prior research has found entrepreneurs to experience significantly higher job control and job demands compared with employees. This suggests that entrepreneurs have so-called active jobs and thus may benefit from positive health consequences. The present research compared entrepreneurs' health with employees' health in a national representative sample with regard to the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, 10th revision (ICD-10) diagnoses of somatic diseases, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (DSM-IV) diagnoses of mental disorders, blood pressure, well-being (life-satisfaction) as well as behavioural health indicators (sick days, physician visits). Entrepreneurs showed significantly lower overall somatic and mental morbidity, lower blood pressure, lower prevalence rates of hypertension, and somatoform disorders, as well as higher well-being and more favourable behavioural health indicators. The results are discussed with regard to the active job hypothesis and recommendations for future research are provided

A palace for those who have eyes to see: Preliminary remarks on the symbolic geography of Reting (Rwa-sgreng)

University of FreiburgAn important feature in Tibetan ‘constructions of place’ is the cult of mountain gods, in which a central mountain is venerated as the lord of the surrounding territory and the people living in his realm. In the present study, it is not a mountain god, but a newly founded Buddhist monastery that assumes the central position and thereby the notions of centrality and royal power: Rwa-sgreng, the first monastic seat of the bKa’-gdams-pa school. ’Brom-ston, the founder of the school, is described as the heir of a highly symbolical legacy, since he comes to be regarded as an incarnation of Tibet’s first Buddhist king, Srong-btsan sgam-po, and as a manifestation of Avalokiteśvara, the Bodhisattva of compassion. Through this literary construction of place in space and in time, the significance of the bKa’-gdams-pa school itself is re-assessed and amplified.The sources discussed here exhibit slightly different attitudes: The earliest work, a biography of ’Brom-ston, describes the landscape as a natural maṇḍala with auspicious features. The slightly later ‘Book of the bKa’-gdams [tradition]’ shifts to a ‘pure vision’ of the place and identifies ’Brom-ston with King Srong-btsan sgam-po and Avalokiteśvara. The last work is a pilgrimage guide that gives practical advice for visitors. An unexpected feature in this work is the notion of evil influences ascribed to certain places, slightly undermining the success of the appropriation of the site by the Buddhist tradition

Operas, novels, and religious instructions: life-stories of Tibetan Buddhist masters between genre classifications

The present volume contains case-studies of hagiographies from various cultural and religious backgrounds and explores context specific and culturally embedded narrative strategies of religious life-writing. Tibet has a vast and vibrant tradition of religious biography and autobiography, and the articles by Sernesi, Scherer and Schwieger in this volume illustrate its richness by an in-depth analysis of selected (and in part rather unexpected) examples of this literature. The present article tries to provide a somewhat more general framework, introducing several types of hagiographies and their respective textual structures and relating their narrative format to the purposes and the effects they may have on their audience. My focus is on traditional religious life-writing from Tibet, but the features observed here can easily be extended to contemporary biographies and modern contexts, as the contributions by Schwieger and Scherer in this volume show. I restrict myself to written life-stories, but it should be born in mind that Tibet has a lively and vibrant oral tradition of storytelling as well, including the life stories of Buddhist masters which are often recounted at religious gatherings, such as public teachings or rituals, or in the context of pilgrimage