Religious Studies

This course explores the application of psychological principles, theories, and methods of research in studying religious behavior, cognition, and motivation, as well as the role of religion in human life. The course draws on the contributions of other fields of psychology and focuses on the attitudes, values, and experiences of people and their relationship with the supernatural. Topics covered include: the emergence of psychology of religion; approaches to the study of psychology of religion; religious experience; morality; coping and adjustment; and functions of religion in adult life.

This course is meant mainly for students with basic Tibetan language skills (phonetics, grammar). Students strengthen those skills through intensive reading of Tibetan Buddhist Literature.

Among the handed-down literature in China, Tibetan literature is no less impressive than the Chinese literature due to its great variety and quantity. Tibetan literature is very deep and extensive, which not only provides an inexhaustible basis for the study of Tibetology, but also constructs a strict knowledge barrier for later generations. As an academic tool, Tibetan language plays an indispensable and irreplaceable role in the study of Buddhist philosophy. The advancement and promotion of Indo-Tibetan and Sino-Tibetan Buddhism as well as related research can be said to depend on the researcher’s language ability. Today, Tibetan Buddhism and related philosophical studies are increasingly dependent on the ability of researchers to study, interpret and interpret Tibetan texts, as well as to examine and collate multilingual materials.