Institutional Information
University of Colorado Colorado Springs
Department of Philosophy
Education
Ph.D., M.A., Philosophy, University of Hawaii at Manoa
M.A., South Asian Languages and Civilizations, University of Chicago
Regional and Thematic Interests
South Asia; Southeast Asia
Religion
Profile
Geoff Ashton has studied Sanskrit and Thai and conducted research at numerous institutions of higher learning in Asia, including Deccan College (Pune, India), the J帽膩na-Pravaha Institute (Varanasi, India), Chiang Mai University (Chiang Mai, Thailand), and Chulalongkorn University (Bangkok, Thailand). His areas of specialization include Indian philosophy, Buddhist philosophy, philosophy of religion, and aesthetics. Geoff is currently working on a book that examines Indian models of soteriology through developments in philosophical aesthetics. A separate project of his explores the interrelation between Buddhist meditation practices and social engagement in the writings of Buddhad膩sa, the 20th century Thai Buddhist philosopher.
Selected Publications
2014.聽鈥淚magining Oneself as the Avat膩ra: An Elaboration on Antonio de Nicol谩s鈥檚 Interpretation of the Bhagavad G墨t膩,鈥� Chapter in聽Antonio de Nicol谩s: A Journey of Eternal Return, Christopher Chapple, ed., Ahmedabad, India: Sriyogi Publications.
2014.聽鈥淩ole-Ethics or Ethics of Role-Play? A Comparative Critical Analysis of the Ethics of Confucianism and the Bhagavad G墨t膩,鈥� in聽Dao: A Journal of Comparative Philosophy听(闯补苍耻补谤测).
2013. 鈥淭he Role of Mindfulness Meditation and Aesthetic Virtue in the Transition from the Emptiness of Self to Social Engagement: Buddhad膩sa鈥檚 Appropriation of D. T. Suzuki鈥檚 Theory of Buddhist Enlightenment,鈥� in Rian Thai, vol. 6.
2013.聽鈥淟osing my Mind and Loving Mosquitoes, Crickets, and other Jungle Inhabitants: Reflections on Field Research and its Frustrations at a Buddhist Meditation Retreat in Southern Thailand,鈥� Chapter in 鈥淭weets from the Field鈥�: Ethnographic Updates from Asia and the Pacific, Forest Young, Mary Conran, Guido Pigliasco, and Suzanne Finney, eds., Honolulu, Hawaii: University of Hawaii Press.
2013.聽鈥淭he Soteriology of Role-Play in the Bhagavad G墨t膩,鈥� in Asian Philosophy: An International Journal of the Philosophical Traditions of the East, 23: 1鈥�23 (January).
2009.听Cross-Currents 2007: Comparative Philosophy Today and Tomorrow, Sarah A. Mattice, Geoff Ashton, and Joshua P. Kimber, eds., Newcastle, United Kingdom: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
* I am co-editor, co-author of Introduction to the book, co-author of Introduction to Chapter 6, and author of Introductions to Chapters 4 & 5.
WORKS IN PROGRESS
The Aesthetics of Liberation in the Bhagavad G墨t膩 and Classical Indian Philosophies, sole-authored book in progress.