Wayward Distractions

Justin Thomas McDaniel is Edmund J. and Louise W. Kahn Endowed Professor of the Humanities at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of Gathering Leaves and Lifting Words, and The Lovelorn Ghost and the Magic Monk.

Introduction: Cajoleries, Non-Human Ontology and the Importance of Thin Description in the Study of Thai Buddhist Stuff Ethnicity and the galactic polity: Ideas and actualities in the history of Bangkok Creative Engagement: the Sujavanna Wua Luang and its Contribution to Buddhist Literature Beautifully Buddhist and Betrothed: Marriage and Buddhism as described in the Jatakas The Bird in the Corner of the Painting: Problems with the Use of Buddhist Texts to Study Buddhist Ornamental Art in Thailand The Material Turn: An Introduction to Thai Sources for the Study of Buddhist Amulets Strolling through Temporary Temples: Modern Buddhist Art Installations in Thailand This Hindu Holy Man is a Thai Buddhist Encountering Corpses: Notes on Zombies and the Living Dead in Buddhist Southeast Asia Buddhist 'nuns' (mae chi) and the teaching of Pali in contemporary Thailand Works Cited

"This work is a treasure for any fan of McDaniel's outstanding work on Thailand. A selection of ten articles published between 2000 and now, this first volume shows the diversity of his work and his efforts to challenge limiting understandings of Buddhism in Thailand. . . . An extremely helpful book for beginner and experienced scholars of Thai studies and Thai Buddhism." * The Review * "[Wayward Distractions] showcases McDaniel's diverse interests and deep knowledge of the featured Buddhist topics. McDaniel draws on his wide experiences, including teaching at a school in Thailand and time spent as an ordained monk in the northeast near the border with Laos during his fieldwork. As a result, he gained deep knowledge and insight on Thai and Lao lifeways, languages, Buddhism and its rituals (including meditation, and chanting in Pali)." * Journal of Southeast Asian Studies * "This book presents complex topics and methods of analysis, but it does so in a storytelling style that makes it accessible to a broad range of readers-from the general reader who seeks knowledge and enjoyment and is prompted to observe or question familiar things around them, to scholars and students of Thai Buddhism, Thai literature, Thai culture, and ethnography and folklore. They will not only gain new perspectives and explanations on Thai literature and Buddhist culture but also observe the methods of study, questioning, analysis, and synthesis that come from literature review, field data collection, comparison with other cultures, leading to new interpretations and critical thinking skills." * Southeast Asian Studies * "These studies offer significant engagement with and detail to a field that has often prioritized very particular and often doctrinal focuses on Buddhism in Southeast Asian countries.... NUS [Press] and the Center of Southeast Asian Studies at Kyoto University have done a service to scholars of Buddhism, Thailand and the region by bringing [this] volume into publication." * SOJOURN * "The very waywardness of McDaniel's itinerary - his willingness to wander off-topic, to pay attention to things that others might find trivial, or to stray across well-policed academic boundaries - brings to our attention phenomena that we might otherwise miss, we were less distracted, and less wayward, and perhaps more high-minded.... Taken together, these essays are fascinating windows into the complexity of Thai life, religion and society, and a testament to the value of renewed attentiveness that comes once we get over our hang-ups over the meaning of things." * The International Journal of Asian Studies *