For the first time in the history of the University of Cambridge, there is an Assistant Professorship in Buddhist Studies.
Cambridge alumnus Dr Christopher Jones was recently appointed by the Faculty of Divinity, and he’s eager to step into his post.
“I’m interested in putting my field on the map here,” said Jones. “It’s important to nurture Buddhist Studies at the undergraduate and postgraduatelevels and grow not just my field but adjacent ones as well.”
Divinity students can currently study courses in Indian religion, but beginning in autumn 2027, the University will have its first tripos paper devoted exclusively to Buddhist Studies.
“The inauguration of this post fulfils a long-held ambition of the faculty”, said Professor Richard Rex, head of the Faculty of Divinity. “As the study of theology and religion at Cambridge continues to widen its scope beyond the confines of the Christian tradition within which it was historically rooted, the establishment of a post devoted to Buddhist Studies both broadens the appeal of our academic programme and offers a fuller reflection of the connected world in which we all live.”
Collaboration with the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies (AMES) is very much on the agenda, most notably through offering the paper in Buddhist Studies to AMES as well as Divinity students.
The collaboration is a natural fit, as Buddhist Studies embraces Sanskrit, Chinese and Tibetan languages, as well as history, literature, and the philosophy of the Buddhist tradition.
An invitation for students to think differently
Buddhism is a 2,500-year-old tradition that takes “an ancient, still living, heterogeneous, and sophisticated worldview with fundamentally different foundations to that of the Judeo-Christian traditions,” said Jones.
“For example, the basic problem of the human condition is different, because in ancient Indian you are understood to be transmigrating. You are not racing toward death and not knowing what happens at the end. You are going to be born again, in a cycle of old age, sickness and death. Buddhism offered a response, focused on the transformation of the mind and its activity.”
About this and many other things, Buddhism is, he said, an invitation to think differently about fundamental questions, foundations of thought, and responses to all manner of problems.
“This is something that excites students, the opportunity to get under the skin of something radically different and think critically, while appreciating there is more than one perspective.”
Buddhism has long been a major transcultural force across most of Asia, and since the 19th century has been a growing presence across Western cultures.
Studies than span time and space
The scope of Buddhism is difficult to measure. Jones does say that more words are attributed to Buddha than any other figure in premodern literature. “There’s just no comparison. He continues to be the voice that speaks over thousands upon thousands of pages of text.”
The massive amount of Buddhist literature waiting to be investigated is one of the things Jones finds exhilarating about this field of study.
“It shows how vibrant and creative the Buddhist imagination has been for well over 2 millennia.”
One-on-one study
As Jones prepares to leave his post in the Department of South Asian, Tibetan and Buddhist Studies at the University of Vienna, he looks forward to unique opportunities at Cambridge.
“Cambridge also allows us to teach students one-on-one. For scholars, this is such a luxury, as there aren’t many places in the world where you can do that. After a couple of years working with students, you can see them transforming as an intellect, and that's incredibly satisfying.”