Jewish Encounters with Buddhism in German Culture
Between Moses and Buddha, 1890–1940
Authors: Musch, Sebastian
Free Preview- Traces the entanglement of Buddhism and Judaism in German culture from the turn of the century up to World War II
- Applies postcolonial theory to show the fluidity of and to underline the inherent hybridity of the German-Jewish self-understanding
- Highlights the forces of antisemitism that shaped the reception of Buddhism in German culture
- Appeals to scholars of Jewish Studies, Asian German Studies, Orientalism, and Postcolonial Studies
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- About this book
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In Germany at the turn of the century, Buddhism transformed from an obscure topic, of interest to only a few misfit scholars, into a cultural phenomenon. Many of the foremost authors of the period were profoundly influenced by this rapid rise of Buddhism—among them, some of the best-known names in the German-Jewish canon. Sebastian Musch excavates this neglected dimension of German-Jewish identity, drawing on philosophical treatises, novels, essays, diaries, and letters to trace the history of Jewish-Buddhist encounters up to the start of the Second World War. Franz Rosenzweig, Martin Buber, Leo Baeck, Theodor Lessing, Jakob Wassermann, Walter Hasenclever, and Lion Feuchtwanger are featured alongside other, lesser known figures like Paul Cohen-Portheim and Walter Tausk. As Musch shows, when these thinkers wrote about Buddhism, they were also negotiating their own Jewishness.
- About the authors
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Sebastian Musch is a research fellow in the Department of History at Osnabrück University, Germany.
- Reviews
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“The book contributes to the emerging field of Asian-German Studies and appeals to scholars of Jewish Studies, German Studies, Orientalism, and Postcolonial Studies.” (H-Net Reviews Humanities and Social Sciences, January 28, 2020)
“In this highly original and exciting study, Sebastian Musch calls attention to the German-Jewish fascination with Buddhism. His book is a superb work of scholarship that revises our conventional views of modern Jewish thought, Orientalism, and the importance of Buddhism for Europeans.” (Susannah Heschel, Eli Black Professor of Jewish Studies, Dartmouth College, USA)“This exciting new work sheds light on key German-Jewish writers interested in Buddhism, placing them well within existing Asian German, Orientalist, colonial, and postcolonial scholarship. It is a superb book, a welcome addition to the field of Asian German Studies, and an excellent way to gain familiarity with the field.”( Douglas T. McGetchin, Associate Professor of History, Florida Atlantic University, USA)
- Table of contents (6 chapters)
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Introduction
Pages 1-18
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Buddhism and German-Jewish Orientalism
Pages 19-40
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The Buddha, the Rabbis, and the Philosophers: Rejections and Defenses
Pages 41-99
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The Bridgebuilders: Jewishness Between Asia and Europe
Pages 101-187
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The Assimilation and Dissimilation of a Buddhist Jew: Walter Tausk’s Contested Identities
Pages 189-244
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Table of contents (6 chapters)
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Bibliographic Information
- Bibliographic Information
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- Book Title
- Jewish Encounters with Buddhism in German Culture
- Book Subtitle
- Between Moses and Buddha, 1890–1940
- Authors
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- Sebastian Musch
- Series Title
- Palgrave Series in Asian German Studies
- Copyright
- 2019
- Publisher
- Palgrave Macmillan
- Copyright Holder
- The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG
- eBook ISBN
- 978-3-030-27469-6
- DOI
- 10.1007/978-3-030-27469-6
- Hardcover ISBN
- 978-3-030-27468-9
- Softcover ISBN
- 978-3-030-27471-9
- Edition Number
- 1
- Number of Pages
- IX, 289
- Topics
