Summer courses in Oxford

[Richard Gombrich]

The Oxford Centre for Buddhist Studies and the Society for the Wider  
Understanding of the Buddhist Tradition are offering two free courses  
in Oxford this summer.

1. Pali Summer School.  The Society for the Wider Understanding of the  
Buddhist Tradition (So-Wide) offers an intensive Pali course this  
summer, 14-26 August inclusive.
  Aim.  At the end of the course you should be able, using the normal  
aids available, i.e. dictionaries, grammars and translations, slowly  
to read a Pali canonical text and understand it for yourself.

  Is this really possible? I devised the course and have already given  
it five times with great success.  Pali can be learnt in twelve days  
because the aim is only to read it, not to write or speak it – though  
you do learn to pronounce it and recite a few chants.  There is also  
much less emphasis on memorisation than in a traditional course: why  
memorise things you can easily look up?

  Method.  Accordingly, the course is built on learning how to use the  
Pali-English Dictionary published by the Pali Text Society (www.palitext.com 
  ).  The course begins with learning Pali alphabetical order (it is a  
good idea to start on this before arriving) and throughout the course  
each pupil is constantly using the Dictionary.  Tables of the main  
grammatical forms are supplied and, again, students constantly consult  
them for themselves, until they become familiar.

You are strongly encouraged to buy your own copy of the Dictionary.   
If you live overseas and do not want to carry it to Oxford, you may  
ask the Pali Text Society, when you buy it, to post it to you at the  
OCBS Office (address below).

             Students and teachers sit round a table together  
throughout the course.  Students are urged to keep asking questions,  
and to work in cooperation.

  Organisation.  The first day, 14 August, is in a sense preliminary.   
Mr. Geoffrey Bamford will explain the grammatical terms and principles  
you need to understand for the course.  Experience has shown us that  
unless you have already studied Latin, Greek or Sanskrit you  
definitely should attend.

             The rest of the course is extremely intensive.  It is  
cumulative, so that to miss an early lesson is disastrous.  The one  
rigid rule is that no one may miss a class in the first week.  We  
shall work out the precise timetable when we meet, but the general  
pattern will be that there will be classes each day from 9.30 to 5.30,  
with a long lunch break.  There will be homework every evening.

             The course will end at mid-day on Thursday 26th; I hope  
we can then all lunch together.

  Content.  We shall start to read original texts from the first  
Monday.  I shall be open to suggestions about texts to read.  Besides  
the Pali language, the course will discuss the Pali canon and many  
questions concerning the Buddha’s teaching and our evidence for it.

  Practical Arrangements.  The course will take place at the main  
(Headington) campus of Oxford Brookes University.  Students who do not  
live locally will be housed in single rooms in Clive Booth Hall  
(formerly Morrell Hall), which is ten minutes easy walk from the main  
campus on the Gipsy Lane site, where the classes will be held (http://www.brookes.ac.uk/studying/accommodation/halls/clivebooth 
).  I am afraid that normally there is no parking available.

There are cooking facilities at Clive Booth Hall, at no extra charge.   
There are bar and cafeteria facilities, including breakfast, on the  
Gipsy Lane site, except on Sundays, and we shall ourselves maintain a  
supply of tea and coffee in the lecture room. The charge for the  
bedroom is £25.00 per night, payable in advance for the whole course.

             My tuition and course materials are provided free, but we  
have to pay for some teaching assistance, the lecture room and some  
other expenses.  We are therefore charging each student £150.00.   
Since this sum will not entirely cover our expenses, any further  
donation will be very welcome.

  Booking.  Please apply to me, Richard Gombrich, at Richard.gombrich at balliol.ox.ac.uk 
, asap.  When applying, please supply full contact details, including  
telephone, and let me know your highest educational qualification. We  
also need to know whether you require accommodation, and if so whether  
you want it for the night of Friday 13 August.  The closing date for  
applications is 14 July and by that date we require payment in  
advance.  Normally that would be £325 for accommodation (if you are  
staying the first Friday night) + £150 fee, total: £475.00. If you  
feel you can afford to make that up to or towards £1,000, so much the  
better. Please send a sterling cheque payable to the Society for the  
Wider Understanding of the Buddhist Tradition. I am afraid it is too  
expensive for us to accept payment in a foreign currency.  Please  
address your payment to OCBS Office attention Hazel Benyon, Wolfson  
College, Linton Road, Oxford OX2 6UD.

  Admittance will be first come, first served.  No more than 14 will  
be admitted, so hurry to book a place.



2. Meditation in Yogācāra Buddhism

Teacher: Professor Florin Deleanu

  Course content:

   The course will offer an introduction to the formation and early  
history of the meditative path of spiritual cultivation in the  
Yogācāra tradition (also known as Yogācāra-Vijñānavāda or  
Cittamātra), one of the major Mahāyāna schools in the Indian  
Buddhism. We shall first survey some of the earlier Śrāvakayāna and  
Mahāyāna ideas which influenced the formation of the Yogācāra path  
of spiritual cultivation. Then we shall focus on this path as it  
appears depicted in some of the key texts of the school, such as the  
Bodhisattvabhūmi, Saṃdhinirmocanasūtra,  
Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra, Madhyāntavibhāgabhāṣya,  
Mahāyānasaṃgraha, etc. Throughout the course, attention will also  
be paid to the basic Yogācāra doctrines which are closely connected  
to its spiritual praxis.

  Requirements:

   Knowledge of canonical Buddhist languages is not required. However,  
if most of the participants are familiar with any of the major  
languages of the Buddhist tradition, i.e. Sanskrit, Pali, Classical  
Tibetan, and Classical Chinese, more emphasis can be placed on reading  
and analysing primary sources related to Yogācāra meditative praxis.

  Dates of course: 1 -14 September

Wednesday 1 September - Tuesday 14 September (except weekends:  
Saturday 4 September, Sunday 5 September, Saturday 11 September, and  
Sunday 12 September)

  Daily timetable: 3-6 p.m.

   1st Class: 3:00 – 4:00

4:00-4:30: coffee break

2nd Class: 4:30-5:30

5:30-6:00: questions and discussion

  Venue: OCBS premises, Wolfson College

A charge of £40 for administrative expenses will be payable on arrival  
in Oxford.

Bookings should be made through me,  and all inquiries addressed to me.



Richard Gombrich