David Quinter

David's area of research specialization is East Asian religions, with a focus on medieval Japanese Buddhism. In broad terms, his research examines the interweaving of narratives, rituals, and images in devotional cults and the life portraits of charismatic practitioners. Particular interests center on the Shingon Ritsu 眞言律 movement (also known as the Saidaiji order) founded by Eison (1201–1290) and Ninshō (1217–1303); medieval Nara Buddhism more broadly; the Mañjuśrī cult in China and Japan; Buddhist devotional cults across Asia; and outcasts (hinin), discrimination, and social welfare in Japanese religion. He has an emerging area of research interest in the study of “lived religion” in Asia and the West, in both methodological and empirical terms.