Wittenberg University Journals

Within the past few decades, scholars, analysts and politicians alike have speculated, on multiple occasions, that collapse of the reclusive Democratic People\u27s Republic of Korea (DPRK, or North Korea) was imminent. While they were mistaken each time, the DPRK remains weak and reunification under the present South Korean government is a possibility. Such reunification would raise many issues, including the fate of present DPRK leaders. In the interest of successful democratic transition, how should South Korea and the international community approach the question of amnesty for North Korean officials? This essay examines the question of transitional justice in North Korea within the context of case studies of past transitions in societies with pre-transitional characteristics similar to North Korea, taking into account current political and social realities in North Korea

Petrushka, John

English

Transitional Justice and North Korea: The Question of Amnesty for North Korean Officials

Tan, Hui Sian

Traces of Wenzhou: A Translation of Zhu Ziqing’s “Wenzhou de zongji” 温州的踪影 (1924)

Caroline Schmid is a graduating senior at Wittenberg University and a native of Springfield. She is an art studio major with a Japanese minor. In the coming year Caroline hopes to be teaching in Japan while she continues to pursue her passion for modern and contemporary art

Schmid, Caroline

Cover Art by Caroline Schmid

This research explores how the development of quantum mechanics theory has facilitated a growing conversation between leading authorities of modern science and Tibetan Buddhism around the world, in search of new answers about the mind, the body and the nature of the universe

DuBois, Bailey

Buddhism and Quantum Physics: Sharing a Path

Review of&nbsp;Zen Past and Present&nbsp;by Eric Cunningha

Boedicker, Sarah

 Spring 2013, Volume XXXVIII  •  88
Cunningham, Eric. Zen Past and 
Present. Key Issues in Asian Studies, 
no. 8. Ann Arbor: Association for Asian 
Studies, 2011.
Sarah Boedicker 
 In this essay booklet titled Zen Past and Present, Eric Cunningham 
attempts to put into plain academic text the complicated and, in some cases, 
indescribable history, teachings, and practices of Zen Buddhism from its ancient 
beginnings until the modern day.  In many ways, he succeeds in transferring 
complex ideas into conversational topics that are easily understandable, even if 
one does not have a background in Buddhist history and teachings.  However, 
the helpful manner in which he presents many of the legends and teachings in 
his essay booklet must be taken with a grain of salt and a lack of assumption 
in the professionalism of this work.  With both the good and the bad, it can 
be seen that this essay is, at best, an all right source as an introduction to Zen 
Buddhism, albeit one that would not be useful in any form of academic work.
 With many topics and teachings of Zen Buddhism, an emphasis is placed 
on indescribable qualities of the world, and the ability to understand without 
words.  This can make it very difficult for beginners to jump into a study or 
history of Zen, but Cunningham handles his description of Zen teachings very 
well, putting them into conversational terms that the beginning student can 
understand.  Furthermore, he offers his reader a concise look at the history of 
Buddhism itself, and some unique closer looks at some key Buddhist sutras 
such as the Prajnaparamita Sutras, and the koan questions specific to Zen. 
The structure of this essay is also very easy to follow in that it flows from the 
history of Buddhism, from its roots in India, across Asia, into Japan, where 
Zen has become most prominent, and into its modern-day influences such as 
in the translation works of D.T. Suzuki—a prominent figure in the introduction 
of Zen to American society—and Punk Zen.
 In the chapters where he describes the integration of Buddhism 
into Chinese culture, Cunningham does an excellent job of comparing and 
89  •  Wittenberg University East Asian Studies Journal
contrasting the teachings of Buddhism with native Chinese philosophies such 
as Confucianism and Taoism.  This allows the reader to see, in a more detailed 
way, how Buddhism was able to adapt to philosophical ideas that were already 
present in Chinese society, and thus become an integral part of the culture. 
He presents a similar view of when Zen reaches Japan, but it is not nearly 
as detailed as the integration of Buddhism into Chinese culture.  Finally, in 
his description of topics related to Zen teachings, such as Zen gardens and 
many Japanese art forms that were based off of Zen ideas, he takes a very 
conversational standpoint.  This dialogue form of presenting these facts again 
helps beginning students of Zen history and teachings to understand what is 
usually intended to be understood without words.
 Unfortunately, apart from the helpful way in which Cunningham 
presents the history, teachings, and related topics of Zen Buddhism, he has 
many errors in his presentation of Buddhist history, and some very unhelpful 
breaks in his train of chronological and academic thought.  Firstly, when 
describing the birth and early life-story of Siddhartha Gautama, there are 
many errors in comparison to the traditional canon of Buddhist history.  For 
starters, Cunningham compares the birth of Siddhartha Gautama to the birth of 
Jesus Christ, and while he explains it as a perhaps imprecise analogy, there is a 
difference between “imprecise” and “erroneous.”  Siddhartha Gautama, while 
his mother had a vision of a divine white elephant during her pregnancy, was 
not present at his own conception and birth the way that Cunningham tries to 
explain it.  Furthermore, Siddhartha Gautama was not born the Buddha, but 
rather became the Buddha through his choice to pursue transcendence from 
suffering.  Cunningham also claims that Siddhartha Gautama was kept isolated 
by his father because he was attempting to change his son’s fate to become a 
holy man, while in fact, it was prophesized that Siddhartha Gautama would 
become either a holy man or a great king, and his father was simply trying to 
promote one possible destiny over another.  Later, long after he has attained 
enlightenment and is approaching death, Cunningham claims that the Buddha 
appointed Mahakasyapa to follow him as the patriarch of Buddhism, when in 
fact, the Buddha did not appoint an heir, which resulted in the many different 
schools of Buddhism.  Also, as someone who has also learned about Buddhist 
artwork, I feel I must point out that the figure of a statue on page eight of the 
essay booklet is incorrectly described by Eric Cunningham.  He describes this 
statue as the Buddha sitting in meditation, when in fact the hand positions of the 
main figure and the smaller figures underneath it indicate that it is a depiction 
of the Buddha’s first sermon at Sarnath.
 Some other difficulties in reading this essay booklet arise after about 
Chapter Five, in Cunningham’s organization and representation of some 
 Spring 2013, Volume XXXVIII  •  90
ideas.  After the fifth chapter, Cunningham switches his narrative randomly 
and without prelude between China, Japan, and their respective time periods. 
I myself was able to understand when and where he was referring to, but only 
because I already have a basic knowledge of Chinese and Japanese history, 
while anyone without that knowledge would have been completely lost.  An 
example of this is seen in Chapter Seven, where Cunningham jumps from 
China and the invasion of Manchuria to World War One and the impact of that 
conflict on Zen as a budding international school of Buddhism.  Also, when the 
booklet reaches Chapter Seven, which covers Zen in Japan, it becomes more 
of a lesson on pre-modern Japan with a few miscellaneous points about Zen’s 
influence rather than a full description of how Zen became such a prominent 
school of Buddhism in Japan.  Another issue with writing style that might 
impact beginning readers of works about Zen Buddhist is in the occasional 
breaks that Cunningham takes from academic form with a statement or question 
that is really very unprofessional in academia.  Some examples of this are on 
page 31, where he asks, after introducing the Prajnaparamita, an important 
Buddhist text, if the Prajnaparamita is ‘true,’ with the implication that he wants 
the reader to decide then and there if that Buddhist text is ‘true’ or false,’ or 
on page 68 when he asks if Punk Zen is really Zen.  Both of these questions, 
while irrelevant and useless in actual Zen teachings, are also completely 
unprofessional in the type of academic work that he is presenting.
 So all in all, this essay booklet by Eric Cunningham about Zen Buddhism 
is a decent source for someone who is a complete beginner to Zen Buddhism, 
but it should not be used for anything other than a piece of basic, and flawed, 
introductory work.  Cunningham offers a list of additional sources and further 
reading at the end of his essay, but I am of the opinion that any one of those 
sources, even though they are sources that focus on particular areas, or sections 
of history.  Thus, depending on what it is that the reader is attempting to learn, 
this essay is either a great way to start learning about Zen Buddhism, or a bad 
academic source for further learning.
 


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Transitional Justice and North Korea: The Question of Amnesty for North Korean Officials

Traces of Wenzhou: A Translation of Zhu Ziqing’s “Wenzhou de zongji” 温州的踪影 (1924)

Cover Art by Caroline Schmid

Buddhism and Quantum Physics: Sharing a Path

Cunningham, Eric. Zen Past and Present. Key Issues in Asian Studies, no. 8. Ann Arbor: Association for Asian Studies, 2011.

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