Religion, Belief and the State

Research

The Department’s research in religion is wide-ranging, but with a particular focus on Buddhism, Islam, and the theme of death, embodiment and the person. Geographically, our ethnographic expertise covers Iceland, South and Central Asia, North Africa, and Tibet and the Himalayas, and our research interests include ritual theory, moral subjectivity, anthropology beyond the secular, and evolutionary theories of religion.

Living with sacred text in Morocco: anthropology in conversation with an Islamic tradition. Photo: Johan Rasanayagam

Teaching

Teaching anthropological perspectives on religion takes place at all levels of study. Specific courses include:

• AT3534 Religion, Power and Belief
• AT4525 The Constitutional Imagination: Religion, Politics and the State in Human Society
• AT4533 Morality and Belief in Islam