• SUVANNABHUMI
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.1-16
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• 2012

In 2010, nearly thirteen hundred Buddhist monks from all over the world converged on to the small Indonesian resort town of Berastagi to celebrate the inauguration of the Taman AlamLumbini, a replica of Myanmar's most iconic Theravada Buddhist temple, the ShwedagonPaya. Nestled on Christian lands within a predominantly Muslim country, the building of the Taman AlamLumbini marked several years of negotiation amongst various religious communities, local government mediators, and patrons. This study makes a preliminary assessment of the ways in which cultural and historical discourses were used by participants to evoke a sense of transnational connectedness outside the realm of formal bilateral diplomacy. Through particular Buddhist ceremonies, rituals, and imagery, Myanmar sponsors and Indonesian patrons promoted a sense of broad pan-Asianism that linked monks, state officials, and local lay practitioners into a single community. A brief examination of the key speeches during the opening ceremony reveals that national interest and identity were still very much in play.

• Journal of the Daesoon Academy of Sciences
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• v.35
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• pp.393-426
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• 2020

In the past, holy sites were mainly designated on a basis of archaeological norms and endowed with a specific fixed identity according to historical, religious, and contextual interpretations. However, approaches to these sites are more flexible in recent times. These locations transcend the boundaries of space and time to enable the experience of diverse transformation and reveal multiple religious identities which are embedded in the complex interaction between power and authority. In this regard, the dynamic meanings of the religious symbology of Daesoon Jinrihoe's temple complexes, imagery, and the spatial structures enable us to grant them a new identity by re-establishing these structures as World Heritage sites. Temple complexes (dojang) correspond to the outstanding universal values identified by UNESCO in that the spiritual activities conducted at these holy sites draw the same attention as would be drawn by historical value. In this context, this study aims to explore the potential for Daesoon Jinrihoe's temple complexes to be designated UNESCO world heritage sites. To carry out this study, existing religious heritage sites such as Mount Athos Monasteries in Greece and Lumbini in Nepal are examined as case studies, and the operational plan, conservation, protection of relics, and interaction with its neighboring community and tourists are likewise closely examined in this study.