A popular protective chant in South‐East Asia and Sri Lanka salutes eight arahats, companions of Gotama Buddha. The chant says that these arahats “sit” to protect the person who chants to them, with the Buddha at the center. The nature of arahatship is an issue that needs to be addressed. In an early Buddhist Abhidhamma root chant, three kinds of states are described: those of beings not in training, those of beings in training, and those of beings who are neither (...) in nor not in training. Two figures tower over early Buddhism: Sāriputta and Moggallāna, the chief disciples of the Buddha. The presence and description of female arahats is a testament to the Buddha's rejection of caste, gender, or status as an impediment to meditation and the attainment of enlightenment. In the study of Buddhist texts it is inevitably the doctrinal and philosophical expositions that have received the most attention. (shrink)

Emotional labour has been widely recognized in a variety of industries, but not yet in publishing. By examining 126 survey responses from current or former publishing employees, this study identifies the primary forms of emotional labour present in the publishing industry, and how these vary between employees. Also examined is the extent to which industry leaders recognize the emotional labour performed by employees, and the impact that this emotional labour has on the latter. The survey responses demonstrate a high prevalence (...) of emotional labour in the publishing industry and that this work is largely unrecognized and sometimes entirely dismissed. Emotional labour also has a generally negative impact on employees, particularly working-class and black, Asian, and minority ethnic employees, which contributes to low diversity in the industry. I conclude with recommendations for further research and for industry change to reduce emotional labour, improve employee welfare, and facilitate increased retention of working-class and BAME employees. (shrink)

This paper discusses the role of the Buddha’s wife, Yasodhar?/R?hulam?t?, in P?li J?takas. Noting her continued popularity in South and Southeast Asian Buddhism, it considers her path to liberation seen as a composite whole, through many lifetimes, and considers some of the literary implications of this multiple depiction. The intention of this paper is to initiate more discussion about this figure as a sympathetic and central presence in Southern Buddhist text and practice.

Buddhist Painting in Cambodia by Vittorio Roveda and Sothon Yem. Bangkok: River Books, 2009. 328pp., 630 colour illustrations. Hb. £38.00/US$80.00, ISBN-13: 9789749863527. Past Lives of the Buddha Wat Si Chum: Art, Architecture and Inscriptions. Edited by Peter Skilling, with contributions from Pattaratorn Chirapravati, Pierre Pichard, Propad Assavavvirulhakarn, Santi Pakdeekham, Peter Skilling. Bangkok: River Books, 2008. 296pp., 390 colour images and 30 plans and maps. Hb. £29.75/US$75.00, ISBN-13: 9789749863459.