The Winter School in Buddhist Textual Scholarship is an intensive
teaching program organized jointly by academics of the École française
d’Extrême-Orient (EFEO), the École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE–
PSL, Paris) and the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU). It is
offered to international postgraduate students carrying out research in
the domain of Buddhist Studies, and will provide a solid grounding into
philology, codicology, and epigraphy. Its focus will be on primary sources
transmitted across the Buddhist world, with close consideration of their
material dimension, their contexts of production, and their socio-religious
functions. The course will introduce students to fieldwork and will allow
them to hone their broader methodological approach as well as the skills
specific to their area of research. The Winter School has a transregional
dimension, with lecturers specializing in South Asia, Southeast Asia, China
and Tibet.
The Winter School is organized by Gregory Kourilsky (EFEO), Costantino
Moretti (EFEO), Marta Sernesi (EPHE & LMU) and Vincent Tournier (LMU).
The 3rd edition of the Winter School will be held from March 2 to 9, 2026
at the EFEO center in Chiang Mai (Thailand). Tuition, lodging and lunch are
free of charge.
Students interested in participating in the 3rd Winter School are invited to
consult the details of the program from 24 November 2025 and to
complete the online application form, available at the following link:
https://forms.efeo.fr/index.php?r=survey/index&sid=853573&lang=en
The deadline for applications is 5 December 2025 (11:59 PM, Paris
time). Admissions will be announced on 16 December 2025.