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Division of Integrated Area Studies
HAYASHI, Yukio (Professor)
Cultural Anthropology

Research Interests

My past research dealt with religious practices and socio-cultural change in the Theravada Buddhist cultures of mainland Southeast Asia. In the 1980s， I conducted both intensive and extensive field surveys in northeast Thailand. But since the 1990s I have extended the scope of the research sites to include neighboring countries such as the Lao P.D.R.， Cambodia， and Xishuangbanna of southwestern China. These empirical studies have allowed me to formulate my research theme as two interrelated topics: 1) a comparative study of religion and society in Theravada Buddhist cultures; and 2) inter-ethnic relations in the making of mainland Southeast Asia. The former aims to elucidate the salient features of practices among the Theravadins in each region. The latter， rooted in my field experience， aims to gather ethnographical data in each region and analyze them from a comparative and regional perspective in order to clarify the dynamics of peasant societies in the localities.

In the past four years， I have embarked on the writing of descriptive works in both Japanese and English based on my research findings， including my first monograph on practical Buddhism among the Thai-Lao. I have also organized some seminars and international workshops in Japan， Thailand， China and Lao P.D.R. to promote the exchange of the related ethnographical data between and among other specialists from various countries. The proceedings and products of these successful conferences have been published in English with abstracts in the respective language of the place where the meeting was held. I hope that this kind of inter-regional project， which has broadened my perspective in the course of individual study， will yield a series of undertakings which will further encourage the sharing of substantial data as well as the construction of academic networks among Southeast Asianists.

Current research topics:

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