Jan Willis
Encyclopedia
Janice Dean Willis, or Jan Willis (born 1948) is Professor of Religion at Wesleyan University
, where she has taught since 1977; and the author of books on Tibetan Buddhism
. She has been called influential by Time Magazine, Newsweek
(cover story), and Ebony Magazine. Aetna Inc.
’s 2011 African American History Calendar features professor Willis as one of thirteen distinguished leaders of faith-based health initiatives in the United States.
Willis grew up in Docena, Alabama (near Birmingham), as the daughter of a Baptist deacon and steelworker. While traveling through Asia during the early 1970s, she became the student of Tibetan lama Thubten Yeshe
, who encouraged her academic pursuits. She received BA and MA degrees in philosophy from Cornell University
(thesis: History, Faith, and Kerygma; A Critique of Bultmann's Existentialist Theology.), and a Ph.D. in Indic and Buddhist Studies from Columbia University
(dissertation: A Study of the Chapter on Reality Based Upon the Tattvartha-patalam of Asanga's Bodhisattvabhumi.).
She is the author of the following books:
Since 2006 she has contributed to the group blog On Faith (sponsored by Newsweek and the Washington Post) alongside Elie Wiesel
, Desmond Tutu
, and Madeline Albright, among others. In 2003, she was awarded Wesleyan University’s Binswanger Prize for Excellence in Teaching.
Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...
, where she has taught since 1977; and the author of books on Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India . It is the state religion of Bhutan...
. She has been called influential by Time Magazine, Newsweek
Newsweek
Newsweek is an American weekly news magazine published in New York City. It is distributed throughout the United States and internationally. It is the second-largest news weekly magazine in the U.S., having trailed Time in circulation and advertising revenue for most of its existence...
(cover story), and Ebony Magazine. Aetna Inc.
Aetna
Aetna, Inc. is an American health insurance company, providing a range of traditional and consumer directed health care insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmaceutical, dental, behavioral health, group life, long-term care, and disability plans, and medical management...
’s 2011 African American History Calendar features professor Willis as one of thirteen distinguished leaders of faith-based health initiatives in the United States.
Willis grew up in Docena, Alabama (near Birmingham), as the daughter of a Baptist deacon and steelworker. While traveling through Asia during the early 1970s, she became the student of Tibetan lama Thubten Yeshe
Thubten Yeshe
Thubten Yeshe was a Tibetan lama who, while exiled in Nepal, co-founded Kopan Monastery and the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition...
, who encouraged her academic pursuits. She received BA and MA degrees in philosophy from Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
(thesis: History, Faith, and Kerygma; A Critique of Bultmann's Existentialist Theology.), and a Ph.D. in Indic and Buddhist Studies from Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
(dissertation: A Study of the Chapter on Reality Based Upon the Tattvartha-patalam of Asanga's Bodhisattvabhumi.).
She is the author of the following books:
- Dreaming Me: An African American Woman’s Spiritual Journey. New York: Riverhead Books, 2001.
- The Diamond Light: An Introduction to Tibetan Buddhist Meditation. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1972.
- On Knowing Reality: The Tattvartha Chapter of Asanga's Bodhisattvabhumi. Columbia UP, 1979.
- Enlightened Beings: Life Stories from the Ganden Oral Tradition. Wisdom Publications, 1995.
- Feminine Ground: Essays on Women and Tibet. (Editor, and contributor of two of six, essays) Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion, 1989.
Since 2006 she has contributed to the group blog On Faith (sponsored by Newsweek and the Washington Post) alongside Elie Wiesel
Elie Wiesel
Sir Eliezer "Elie" Wiesel KBE; born September 30, 1928) is a Hungarian-born Jewish-American writer, professor, political activist, Nobel Laureate, and Holocaust survivor. He is the author of 57 books, including Night, a work based on his experiences as a prisoner in the Auschwitz, Buna, and...
, Desmond Tutu
Desmond Tutu
Desmond Mpilo Tutu is a South African activist and retired Anglican bishop who rose to worldwide fame during the 1980s as an opponent of apartheid...
, and Madeline Albright, among others. In 2003, she was awarded Wesleyan University’s Binswanger Prize for Excellence in Teaching.
External links
Other sources
- Paine, Jeffrey. Re-Enchantment: Tibetan Buddhism Comes to the West. Norton, 2004. Willis's experience with Lama Yeshe is discussed on pp. 64–70.