Jinhua Chen

Professor Jinhua Chen (PhD, McMaster University, 1997) is a leading scholar in East Asian Buddhism at the University of British Columbia’s Department of Asian Studies, Faculty of Arts. Holding a Canada Research Chair (2001-2011) and inducted into the Royal Society of Canada (2020), his work spans trans-regional Buddhist narratives, monastic institutions, relic veneration, and technological innovations in medieval Asian religions.

• Key Affiliations: UBC Buddhist Forum (Director), Peter Wall Institute for Advanced Studies (Resident Scholar), and editorial roles in Brill Book Series on East Asian Religions and Studies in Chinese Religions.
• Research Themes: Combines textual analysis with interdisciplinary methods to explore Buddhist sacred sites, doctrinal transmissions, and church-state dynamics. His projects include From the Ground Up (SSHRC Partnership Grant 2016-2023), examining East Asian religions through multi-media sources, and studies on ruixiang (propitious signs) in medieval Chinese prognostication.
• Scientific Awards: Royal Society of Canada Fellow, Canada Research Chair, SSHRC Insight Grants, Humboldt Research Fellowship, and Max Planck Institute funding.
• Publications: Over 30 book chapters and journal articles (2000-2016), including monographs on Fazang, Shingon-Tendai conflicts, and Buddhist sacred geography.
• Teaching: Courses on Chinese thought, Chan/Zen Buddhism, and Buddhist text interpretation, emphasizing methodological rigor and cross-cultural analysis.
• Projects: Directed international collaborations on Buddhist manuscripts, palace chapels, and relic cultures, with grants totaling over $4 million CAD.