Common Ground: Tibetan Buddhist Expansion and Qing China's Inner Asia

In the eighteenth century, the Qing empire and the Geluk School of Tibetan Buddhism interacted, shaping regional politics and the geopolitical history of Inner Asia. Lan Wu's book "Common Ground" explores how these two powers negotiated and interacted, revealing the interdependency of two expanding powers and the creation of a Buddhist Inner Asia.

Format: Hardback
Length: 248 pages
Publication date: 23 August 2022
Publisher: Columbia University Press

The Qing empire and the Geluk School of Tibetan Buddhism, led by the Dalai Lama, came into contact in the eighteenth century, marking a significant period in the geopolitical history of Inner Asia. In her book, Common Ground, Lan Wu delves into the intricate interactions and negotiations between Tibetan Buddhists and the Qing imperial rulers. Wu challenges the traditional view of the Qing empire as a monolithic project of imperial administration and presents it as a complex network of encounters among different communities.

Wu examines a series of interconnected sites within the Qing empire where Tibetan Buddhism played a central role. She traces the movement of objects, flows of people, and circulation of ideas between China and Tibet, highlighting the transregional Tibetan Buddhist knowledge network that provided institutional, pragmatic, and intellectual common ground for both polities. Through the voices of lesser-known Tibetan Buddhists, Wu reveals an alternative Buddhist space beyond the state, showcasing the interactions between Mongols and Tibetans within the Qing empire.

Wu argues that Tibetan Buddhism occupied a central but often overlooked role in the Qing vision of empire. By revealing the interdependency of two expanding powers, Common Ground sheds new light on the intricate histories of political, social, and cultural ties between Tibet and China. This book offers valuable insights into the complex dynamics of power, religion, and cultural exchange in eighteenth-century Inner Asia, contributing to our understanding of the region's rich and multifaceted past.

Weight: 472g
Dimension: 161 x 237 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780231206167