Dr. Upali Sraman
Lecturer in Buddhist Languages and Cultures

Contact details
- Email: usraman@ed.ac.uk
Address
- Street
-
School of Divinity
New College
Mound Place - City
- Edinburgh
- Post code
- EH1 2LX
Availability
Dr. Sraman is available to meet by appointment.
Background
Dr. Upali Sraman received his Ph.D. in Religion from Emory University. He was born in Bangladesh and has studied at several prestigious universities. He completed his undergraduate degree in Sanskrit at the University of Peradeniya, earned an MA in Buddhist Studies at the Sri Lanka International Buddhist Academy, and an MDiv in Buddhist Ministry at Harvard. Dr. Sraman's research focuses on Buddhist narratives, ethics, and texts in Pali, Sanskrit, and Tibetan languages. He is also interested in how Buddhism is practiced and interpreted in modern times, as well as the ways in which different religions in South Asia share religious figures, pilgrimage sites, and devotional practices. Dr. Sraman is proficient in several South Asian languages, including Bengali, Hindi, and Sinhala.
CV

Qualifications
PhD (Emory University, 2023)
MDiv (Harvard University, 2016)
MA (Sri Lanka International Buddhist Academy, 2013)
BA (Hons) (University of Peradeniya, 2011)
Responsibilities & affiliations
Steering Committee Member, Edinburgh Buddhist Studies.
Undergraduate teaching
Introducing Sanskrit
Intermediate Sanskrit
Open to PhD supervision enquiries?
Yes
Research summary
Dr. Sraman's research interests encompass the following themes
- Buddhist Narratives
- Buddhist Monasticism
- Buddhist Ethics
- Devotional Practices in Buddhism
- Theories and Practices of Ethical and Spiritual Self-formation
- Contemporary Buddhism in South Asia
- Religious Intersection in South Asia
Invited speaker
- “Why do Monks Punch Each Other: Humor and Ethics in Buddhist Vinaya Texts.” South Asia Seminar. Emory University. October 7, 2022.
- “How to Make Sense of the Non-Legal Aspects of Buddhist Monastic Law?” invited talk at the CSLR Colloquy. Center for the Study of Law and Religion. Emory University. 20th November, 2019.
- “Buddhism and Youngsters”, Panel Discussion in Tibetan language at the Trans-Himalayan Seminar organized by the Himalayan Buddhist Library and Cultural Centre. Kathmandu. 30th April, 2019.
- “Is Theravāda the Lower Vehicle?” Invited Talk at Rangjung Yeshe Institute, Kathmandu, 7th November, 2018.
- “Buddhist Understanding of Human Personhood: Doctrine of non-self (anattā),” invited talk, "The Sacred and the Self in World Religions: Explorations in Comparative Theology” lecture series, March 10th, 2015, Episcopal Divinity School, Cambridge, Massachusetts.
- “Bengalizing (Bengali reproductions of) Buddhist Narratives in Modern times”, World Religions Cafe Talk at the Centre for the Study of World Religions, Harvard. Spring 2014.
- “Sangha (Community) as a Lived Experience”, World Religions Cafe Talk at the Centre for the Study of World Religions, Harvard. Fall 2014.
Papers delivered
- “Rival Monastic Groups and the Messiness of Ethical Practice in Buddhist Vinaya Texts.” Monasticism in South Asia Panel. American Academy of Religion Annual Meeting. Denver, Colorado, November 22, 22.
- “Examine with Clear Eyes: Filtering Water as an Ethical Practice in Buddhist Monastic Training,” Conference on the Study of Religions of India. Colby College, Maine, June 23-26, 2022.
- “The Transnational Character of Buddhism in Bangladesh (1864-present)”, “Buddhism in Motion” Panel, “Asia in Motion: Ideas, Institutions, Identities” Conference, Association of Asian Studies, Academia Sinica, Taiwan, 22-24 June, 2015.
- “Healing through Spiritual Care: Arts and Ethics of Chaplaincy as Gleaned from Some Buddhist Narratives”, Buddhism and Wellbeing Conference, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada 28-30 May, 2015.
Articles in Peer-reviewed Journals
- “Connecting with and Distancing from: Transnational Influences in the Formation of Buddhist Identity and Practices in Bangladesh,” Journal of Global Buddhism, Vol.21, 2020: 205-222.
- “Why are the Samacitta-devas called “Same-minded Deities”?”, Sri Lanka International Journal of Buddhist Studies (SIJBS), Vol. III, Ed. Bhikkhuni Suwimalee et.al., Pallekele, 2014: 149-160.
- “Elements of a Buddhist Literary Theory as Depicted in Pali Literature”, Journal of Royal Asiatic Society of Sri Lanka, New Series, Volume LVII, Ed. Hema Goonatilake, Colombo, 2012: 19-40.
Book Chapters
- “Cognitive Distortions (vipallāsa) in Theravāda Texts”, in: Understanding Mind, Consciousness and Person. Ed. by Ramala Sharma. New Delhi: Rawat Prakashan. 2021: 115-134.
- “Understanding Buddhist, Sikh, and Hindu Students on Campus”, co-authored with Rahuldeep Singh Gill and Varun Soni, in Educating About Religious Diversity and Interfaith Engagement - A Handbook for Student Affairs. Ed. Kathleen M. Goodman et al., Bloomfield: Stylus Publishing. 2019: 275-290.
- “Abhisār – Rabindranath Tagore’s Poetic Adaptation of an Episode from Upagupta Legend: An Example of Buddhist Narratives in the Time of Bengal Renaissance”, Journal of Rabindranath Tagore Society of Sri Lanka, Ed. Leel Gunasekera, Colombo, 2011: 36-41.
Book Review
- “Voice of the Buddha: Buddhaghosa on the Immeasurable Words by Maria Heim (review)”, Philosophy East and West, Vol. 71 (2), 2021: 1-5.
Newspaper Articles, Public Facing Blog-posts, Long Conference Abstracts,
- “ Utterances from 'Oṁ' – Poems of Quazi Johirul Islam.” Daily Sun. 26th April. 2022.
- “Counter-realism in poems.” New Age, 4 th December, 2020.
- “Grandeur of Tibetan Monastic Training and Some Reflections.” Rangjung Yeshe Student Blog.14th October, 2019.
- “The Plight of Buddhist Minorities in Bangladesh | Buddhistdoor.” Buddhistdoor International. 18th October, 2013.
- “Sangharaja Saramedha’s Role in the Revival of Buddhism in Bengal”, International Pali Conference, Research Papers, Ed. Magammana Pannananda Thera et. al., Department of Pali and Buddhist Studies, University of Sri Jayawardhenapura, Colombo, 2011: 51-57. [written in Pali]
- “Seven Games of India in the 6 th Century B.C.E. As Depicted in the Mahātaṇhāsaṅkhayasutta of Majjhima Nikāya”, Proceedings of the Peradeniya University Research Sessions – PURSE 2009, Volume 14, Part II: 660-662.
Articles written in Bengali Language
- "Sinhali folk-lore and Bengalis", Dhaka Post - a national newspaper in Bangladesh, April 1, 2022. শ্রীলঙ্কার লোকসংস্কৃতি ও বাঙালি
- “A Bengali Poet in the Fifteenth Century Royal Court of Sri Lanka.” Sāmpratik Deshkal – a national newspaper in Bangladesh, 25th January, 2021: 9. পঞ্চদশ শতাব্দীতে শ্রীলঙ্কার রাজ দরবারে এক বাঙালি কবি
- “Vaṅgīsa Thera – the First Bengali Poet in Recorded History.” Sāmpratik Deshkal – a national newspaper in Bangladesh, 2nd January, 2020: 9. বঙ্গীশ থের: ইতিহাসের প্রথম বাঙালি কবি
- "What we can learn from the life of Atisha Dipankar." Sāmpratik Deshkal – a national newspaper in Bangladesh, 8th June, 2020. অতীশ দীপঙ্করের জীবন থেকে আমরা যা শিখতে পারি
- “Bengali Translation of Jamgön Khontrul Lodro Thaye’s Tibetan Devotional Poem ‘Calling the Guru from Afar.’” Sougoto – Quarterly Buddhist Magazine, Ed. Bhikkhu Sunandapriya, October, 2017: 47-49.
- “Devotion in Insight Meditation.” In: Samādhi – An Annual Buddhist Magazine, No: 14, ed. Ven. Dharmalankar Bhikkhu, Pomra Gyanankur Meditation Centre, Chittagong, 2013:13-15.
- “The Story of Five Sages on the most Severe Suffering in the World, based on ṛṣipañcakaavadāna in Avadānasārasamuccaya.” In: Samādhi – An Annual Buddhist Magazine, No: 13, Ed. Ven. Dharmalankar Bhikkhu, Pomra Gyanakur Meditation Centre, Chittagong, 2012: 16-19.