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On 3 September 2026, GCBS PhD researcher Xi DUAN successfully defended his doctoral dissertation, “Materialising Frontier Authority: Institutions, Commemoration and Spatial Order in Late Imperial Menghua.”

The public defence took place at 14:00 in the Aud. Vandenhove, Pavilion Charles Vandenhove (Campus Boekentoren), Ghent University.

The dissertation explores how institutions, commemorative practices, and spatial organisation contributed to the construction and materialisation of authority in late imperial Menghua, in present-day Yunnan. By examining the interplay between institutional structures, commemorative activities, and the organisation of space, the research sheds light on the ways in which authority was established, represented, and made tangible in a frontier region of late imperial China.

Xi Duan’s doctoral research was supervised by Prof. Dr. Ann Heirman (Ghent University), Prof. Dr. Christoph Anderl (Ghent University), and Prof. Dr. Lia Wei (Sorbonne Alliance / INALCO).

The examination committee consisted of Prof. Dr. Jo Steenbergen (chair, Ghent University), Dr. Mathieu Torck (rapporteur, Ghent University), Emeritus Prof. Dr. Timothy H. Barrett (examiner, SOAS, University of London), Prof. Dr. Megan Bryson (examiner, University of Tennessee), Dr. Mariia Lepneva (examiner, Ghent University), and Prof. Dr. Sara Mondini (examiner, Ghent University).

The Ghent Centre for Buddhist Studies warmly congratulates Xi Duan on this important achievement and wishes him every success in his future academic career.

On 19 August, the Ghent Centre for Buddhist Studies (GCBS) was pleased to welcome a student group from Nanjing University, led by Professor Shao Jiade (邵佳德), Deputy Dean of the School of Philosophy at Nanjing University.

Professor Ann Heirman, Head of the GCBS, gave a short lecture introducing her recent research and illustrating the methodology she applies in her work. In particular, she emphasized the importance of letting the sources speak for themselves, approaching normative sources critically, and making use of approaches and methodologies specific to the field.

Professor Heirman and Professor Bart Dessein also introduced the Ghent Centre for Buddhist Studies and the research group East Asian Culture in Perspective: Identity – Historical Consciousness – Modernity, respectively. They highlighted the research opportunities available at Ghent University and the possibilities for international students to pursue their academic interests in a stimulating and international research environment.

The visit also provided an opportunity for the students to introduce themselves and share their individual research interests. The presentations were followed by a lively discussion, with questions and exchanges on Buddhist Studies, Chinese philosophy, and approaches to the study of East Asian cultures.

The Ghent Centre for Buddhist Studies is proud to be strongly represented at the 26th Biennial Conference of the European Association for Chinese Studies (EACS), taking place 21–25 July 2026 at Ca’ Foscari University of Venice. The conference brings together scholars from around the world working across all fields of Chinese Studies.

This year, numerous members of GCBS will present their latest research:

• Ann Heirman – Lice, Fleas and Bedbugs in Buddhist Monasteries: Moving from India to China
• Anna Sokolova – Politics of Initiation: Maṇḍala Ritual and Esoteric Integration under the Tang Dynasty
• Jiahang Yu – Animal Redemption in Dunhuang Manuscripts: Concepts of Karma and Rebirth in Buddhist Belief
• Longyu Zhang – Delayed Grammaticalization of kǒng 恐 in Buddhist Chinese: Constraints from Discourse-Specific Semantic Domain
• Massimiliano Portoghese – Is There Any Chinese Buddhist Apologetic at All? Some Methodological Consideration
• Ruopu Zhang – Shells, Dragons, and Silence: Curating the Paradox of Chinese Labour Corps Trench Art
• Wenzhuo Shi – Buddhism, Local Cults, and Edicts of Self-Punishment: Juqu Mengxun’s Narratives of the Throne
• Wushi Lin – Subjectless Moral Agent: Zibo Zhenke’s Interpretation of ‘Non-self’ in Response to Yangmingist Ethical Critique
• Yuchen Liou – Astral Symbols and Social Precarity in Tang–Song China: Cross-Tradition Responses to Calamity
• Yurui Zhao – “Prosecution from the Grave” as Cultural Practice: A New Inquiry into Six Dynasties Society through the Zhen’gao

From Buddhist Studies and intellectual history to archaeology, language, ritual, manuscript studies, and digital approaches, these presentations reflect the breadth and vitality of research at the Ghent Centre for Buddhist Studies.

On Friday, June 5, the Ghent Centre for Buddhist Studies celebrated the successful PhD defense of Massimiliano Portoghese, whose dissertation, The Advent of Buddhist Monastic Bodies in China: Symbolic Appearance, Identity Markers and Social Perceptions, offers a significant contribution to the study of early Chinese Buddhism.

The dissertation investigates the emergence and reception of distinctive Buddhist monastic bodily practices in China during the first centuries of the Common Era. Focusing on markers such as tonsure, sitting posture, and the practice of baring the right shoulder, the study explores how these visible expressions of monastic identity became the subject of debate and negotiation between Buddhist communities and their elite lay interlocutors. Through a close examination of textual sources, the dissertation sheds new light on the formation of Buddhist identity and the social perceptions of Buddhist monastics in early medieval China.

The research was conducted under the supervision of Prof. Ann Heirman (GCBS) and co-supervision of Prof. Christoph Anderl (GCBS).

The examination committee consisted of Prof. John Kieschnick (Stanford University), Prof. Ester Bianchi (University of Perugia), Prof. Sylvie Hureau (École Pratique des Hautes Études), and Prof. Anna Andreeva (GCBS). The committee was chaired by Prof. Michael Meeuwis (Ghent University), and Dr. Paride Stortini (GCBS) served as secretary.

The Ghent Centre for Buddhist Studies warmly congratulates Dr. Massimiliano Portoghese on this outstanding achievement and wishes him every success in the next stage of his academic career.

Many congratulations!

The Ghent Centre for Buddhist Studies (GCBS) was honored to welcome a distinguished delegation from Thailand, led by H.E. Mrs. Kanchana Patarachoke, Ambassador of Thailand to Belgium, and including three senior Buddhist monks together with accompanying members of the Thai Embassy.

During the visit, Professor Ann Heirman, Head of the GCBS, presented an overview of the Centre’s history, educational programs, academic staff, and activities in research and public outreach. Professor Charles DiSimone also shared his experiences from his research stay at Mahidol University and introduced the ongoing Corpora in Greater Gandhāra project, which has recently established an office in Bangkok to collaborate on the rich manuscript collections preserved in Thailand.

The Thai delegation expressed their appreciation for the presentation and showed strong interest in the activities and international profile of the GCBS. They highlighted Thailand’s deep Buddhist heritage and noted that, while Buddhist higher education in Thailand has traditionally focused on Theravāda studies and Pāli, there is now growing interest in promoting the study of Mahāyāna, Vajrayāna, and Sanskrit. In this regard, the delegation emphasized that the academic strengths of GCBS — particularly its expertise relating to India, China, Japan, and Tibet — make it a highly compatible partner for future collaboration.

The Thai delegation also outlined several concrete possibilities for future academic cooperation. They noted that scholarships are available for both Buddhist monks and lay students from Thailand to pursue studies abroad, and expressed particular interest in developing joint PhD opportunities with Ghent University. In addition, they warmly welcomed the possibility of GCBS researchers undertaking research visits and academic exchanges in Thailand, including collaborations with Buddhist universities and research institutions in Bangkok.

Following the meeting, the delegation was given a tour of the Library of the Faculty of Arts and Philosophy, with particular attention devoted to the collections in Indology and Buddhist Studies.

On 3 March 2026, members of the Ghent Centre for Buddhist Studies, Prof. Anna Andreeva and Prof. Andreas Niehaus, will deliver two lectures—“Japanese–Belgian/Ghent Relations” and “Japanese Art Objects in Belgium”—as part of the Japan Lecture Café Series 2026. The lecture series is organized on the occasion of the 160th anniversary of friendship between Japan and Belgium and brings together scholars and the wider public to reflect on the long-standing cultural and historical connections between the two countries.

Within the framework of this series, the East Asia Platform, in cooperation with Ghent University’s Institute for Japanese Studies (Department of Languages and Cultures, Faculty of Arts and Philosophy), is organizing five lunchtime lectures in the Sint-Baafshuis (Kapel) in the city centre of Ghent. The first lecture took place on 10 February. Each session runs from 12:00 to 14:00 and consists of a one-hour lecture in the Kapel, followed by a one-hour networking reception in the Foyer. The events are held at Kapittelstraat, 9000 Ghent, and offer an opportunity for academic exchange as well as informal discussion.

On February 18, 2026, early career researchers of the Ghent Centre for Buddhist Studies participated in a meeting with Aike Rots, Professor of East Asian Religions at the University of Oslo. The discussion was moderated by GCBS member Dr. Paride Stortini. Professor Rots introduced his current and upcoming externally funded projects, including the ERC Consolidator Grant project Maritime Goddesses: Transnational Connections, Blue Environments, and Ritual Care in East and Southeast Asia (MARGO; 2026–2031), and Coastal Lives in Flux: Environmental Crisis, Resistance, and Ritual Innovation Across Asia (CLiF; 2026–2030), funded by the Norwegian Research Council (FRIPRO). Earlier in his career, he was awarded an ERC Starting Grant for the project Whales of Power: Aquatic Mammals, Devotional Practices, and Environmental Change in Maritime East Asia (WhoP; 2019–2025), which is now resulting in a monograph. He is also the author of Shinto, Nature and Ideology in Contemporary Japan: Making Sacred Forests (Bloomsbury, 2017).

Drawing on his extensive experience with competitive funding, Professor Rots shared practical advice on writing strong grant proposals, especially for applicants to the European Research Council grants and Marie Skłodowska-Curie postdoctoral fellowships. He noted that one common pitfall is that proposals can become too heavy with theory or specialized jargon, making it difficult for reviewers to clearly grasp the core idea of the project. Clear and straightforward language helps reviewers quickly understand what the project is about and why it matters. He also encouraged applicants to make sure they are proposing a project they truly want to carry out and can realistically complete within the given timeframe.

Professor Rots further emphasized the importance of being concrete about how time and funding will be used. A strong proposal should clearly describe planned activities, such as research tasks, collaboration with PhD students or postdoctoral researchers, fieldwork, and publication strategies, including open-access dissemination where relevant. For individual fellowships in particular, it is crucial to demonstrate a good fit with the host institution and supervisors, and to explain how both sides will benefit from the collaboration. He also suggested reading successful proposals when possible and politely asking colleagues for advice, while respecting confidentiality.

The meeting concluded with an extended Q&A session, during which participants discussed their own project ideas and raised practical questions about application procedures. The exchange provided valuable insights and inspiration for researchers preparing future grant applications.

The first meeting of the Chinese Reading Group of the Ghent Centre for Buddhist Studies this year featured a presentation by Yuchen Liou, a joint PhD candidate at National Chengchi University and Ghent University. Her research focuses on Chinese Buddhism, particularly Esoteric Buddhism of the Tang dynasty. Her dissertation, “Tang Society and the Formation of Chinese Buddhist Rituals: Contrasting Royal and Local Rituals,” examines rituals for “Protecting the Country and Preventing Calamities,” with special attention to the role of astrology in ritual practice.

In this and several upcoming sessions, the reading group is studying the esoteric ritual manual “Supreme Buddha Crown Buddha Cultivation Ritual Manual” 尊勝佛頂脩瑜伽法軌儀, translated by Śubhakarasiṃha (善無畏, 637–735). The meeting provided a forum for close reading of primary sources, focusing this time of the opening verses of the text, and stimulated discussion of methods for studying Chinese Esoteric Buddhist ritual texts, emphasizing the need to compare electronic versions available through CBETA with earlier witnesses preserved amid Dunhuang manuscripts.

We are pleased to welcome Arghyadip Mondal and Zhengyan Fan as new PhD researchers at the Ghent Centre for Buddhist Studies (GCBS). They join Prof. Charles DiSimone’s ERC Starting Grant project, “Corpora in Greater Gandhāra: Tracing the development of Buddhist textuality and Gilgit/Bamiyan manuscript networks in the first millennium of the Common Era.”

Arghyadip Mondal‘s academic work lies at the intersection of Buddhist Studies, Sanskrit philosophy, manuscript cultures, and comparative literature. He holds a Master’s degree in Sanskrit from Jadavpur University, specializing in Advaita Vedānta, and he has graduated with top academic distinctions throughout his studies.

His research interests include Indian and Buddhist philosophy, manuscriptology and palaeography, gender and ecological thought in classical literature, and cross-cultural literary reception. He is trained in several classical and modern languages, including Sanskrit, Pali, Prakrit, German, English, Bengali, and Hindi, and he has teaching experience in Sanskrit, German, and English. Alongside his academic work, he is actively involved in social education initiatives and perform Bengali folk music and Rabindra Saṅgīt.

Zhengyan Fan received an M.A. in Buddhist Studies from the University of Hamburg (2025). His earlier research primarily focused on Yogācāra and Vajrayāna buddhism.