HISTORY OF KOREAN PHILOSOPHY AND RELIGIONS 1

This is one of the core courses of the “Korea” curriculum of the Bachelor's Degree Programme in “Languages, Cultures and Societies of Asia and Mediterranean Africa". The course contributes to the achievement of the educational goals of the Degree Programme in the area of cultural and humanistic studies. The main educational objectives of the course are: to provide the student with knowledge on those religious and philosophical traditions (such as Shamanism, Daoism, Buddhism, Confucianism) that over the centuries have contributed to the formation of classical Korean thought; to allow the student to acquire the ability to analyze the religious and philosophical texts produced in the classical period, covered by the programme; to provide effective tools for a critical analysis of religious phenomena and guide the student to see in depth the fundamental problems involved in the different religious discourses, improving his capacity of judging autonomously and communicating clearly his personal interpretations of the topics discussed in the course.

Knowledge and understanding:
- to know and understand the fundamental ideas, the meditative techniques and the ritual practices of the religious traditions that have contributed to the formation of classical Korean thought;
- to know and understand the different methodological approaches that characterize the scientific study of religious phenomena.
- to deepen, through the analysis of religious texts and rituals, a deeper and more sophisticated understanding of Korean culture, being able to see the interrelation between the religious doctrines and the social context, in different historical periods.
Ability to apply knowledge and understanding:
- to be able to analyze and interpret the philosophical and religious texts of the classical period, using philological, historiographical and socio-anthropological methodologies;
- to be able to apply, in a personal and critical way, the analytical approaches of the sciences of religions.
Judgment skills:
- to be able to elaborate, in a personal and well-articulated manner, a critical analysis on the religious phenomena examined during the course;
- to reinforce one's capacity for critical distancing towards essentialist and stereotyped discourses on "oriental religions".
Communication skills:
- to be able to re-elaborate and express in a personal way the contents of the programme, in a clear and well-structured manner, without resorting to a purely mnemonic preparation.
Learning ability:
- to know how to take notes in a synthetic and effective way, highlighting the crucial points of the themes examined by the teacher;
- to know how to integrate in a personal and critical way the study of different materials (notes, manuals, virtual texts, academic articles)
- to be able to study independently scientific texts recommended by the teacher of themes that were not addressed during the lectures.
- to strenghten the ability to study texts in English
- to refine the capacity to use the online teaching platform.

The student should have a good knowledge of the history of Korea, acquired through (but not exclusively) the acquisition of the educational objectives of the course "History of Korea 1". It is also desirable that the student knows, in broad terms, the history of China and the foundations of Chinese thought, learned with the courses of "History of China 1" and "Religions and philosophy of China 1".

The course will trace the development of the main religious and philosophical traditions that have contributed to the construction of classical Korean thought, up to the nineteenth century and the advent of modernity.
Lesson 1: presentation of the main theoretical and methodological problems of the study of religions, with a special attention to the processes of construction of the "Oriental” exotic imaginary.
Lessons 2-5: the mythical tradition and the conceptions that have founded the Korean thought, on the gods, on the beginning and the creation of life, on the end, death and afterlife, on purity and impurity.
Lesson 6: characteristics and originality of the shamanic tradition in Korea. Ascetic practices and ritual for communicating with the gods and the spirits of the dead.
Lessons 7-8: the Daoist tradition in Korea. Classical texts. The fundamental concepts: Dao. Yin and Yang, Five Phases. Physical body and body of the universe. Meditative practices of the Inner Alchemy. The ideal of non-action. The different schools of thought.
Lesson 9-10: Confucian and Neo-Confucian thought. Ethics and political ideology in Korean society up to the turning point of modernity.
Lessons 11-15: Buddhism in Korea. Texts and commentaries. The originality of the speculation of the Korean masters and the development of the different traditions of thought and of meditative practices.

Bruno, Antonetta, “La sciamanesimo coreano: teorie e pratiche”, in A.A., Fili di seta: Introduzione al pensiero filosofico e religioso dell’Asia, Ubaldini Editore, Roma 2018, pp. 465-493.
Jung, Jae-Seo, “Daoism in Korea”, in Livia Kohn (a cura di), Daoism Handbook, cap. 27, E.J. Brill, Leiden 2000, pp. 792-820.
Raveri, Massimo, “Il Buddhismo”, in G. Filoramo, M. Massenzio, M. Raveri, P. Scarpi, Manuale di Storia delle Religioni, Laterza, Roma-Bari 2017.
Shim, Jae-ryong, Korean Buddhism: Tradition and Transformation, Jimoondang, Seoul 1999.
Buswell, Robert E., “Ch'an Hermeneutics: A Korean View”, in Donald S. Lopez (a cura di), Buddhist Hermeneutics, University of Hawai’i Press, Honolulu 1988.

Written exam (90 min.)
- 6 open questions (each answer on a half A4 page)
Each answer receives a score in 30/30 points. The overall vote is given by the average between these answers.
All questions are posed in order to evaluate the knowledge of classical Korean thought, the understanding of the conceptions and practices of the main religious traditions and their development in the historical context. They are also useful to verify the acquisition by the student of the tools of critical analysis, his ability to learn independently. The choice of the open questions is aimed at evaluating the student's ability to express his analysis in a clear and well structured manner.

Lectures with the help of powerpoint presentations.
Bibliography, presentations and in-depth materials available on the moodle platform.

Italian

For logistical reasons and to ensure the quality of teaching, compliance with alphabetic partitions is recommended.

written

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "International cooperation" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development