The collection of papers included in this volume constitutes research conducted under the auspices of the ‘Vihāra Project’ (2017–20), supported by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Scientific Research (KAKEN-hi). Each contribution focuses on collating and (re)interpreting various underrepresented aspects of the extant art-historical, archaeological, epigraphic, and textual records in South Asia, collectively providing new insights into the history of early medieval Buddhist monasticism (6th-9th centuries CE).

Abhishek Singh Amar, PhD (2009, University of London), is Professor of the Asian Studies Program at Hamilton College, New York. He has co-authored a book entitled ‘Archaeological Gazetteer of Gaya District’ (KPJRI, 2017) and his most recent journal publication is an article entitled ‘A Material History of the Daśanāmī Mañha of Bodhgaya’ in The Journal of Hindu Studies. Need journal info here issue number, year.

Nicolas Morrissey, Ph.D. (2010, UCLA, History of Asian Art/Buddhist Studies) conducts research primarily on the Buddhist material cultures of ancient and early medieval South Asia. Recent publications include “The Buddhist Cult of Images and the Business of Buddhist Monasticism,” in D. Klein and A. Klein eds. Ellora: Cross-Fertilization of Style in Buddhist, Hindu and Jain Cave Temples. Mapin: Ahmedabad, 2026.

Akira Shimada, PhD (2006, University of London), is Professor of History at the State University of New York at New Paltz. He has published on the history of early Buddhist art and architecture of India, including Early Buddhist Architecture in Context: The Great Stūpa at Amarāvatī (ca. 300 BCE – 300 CE), Brill 2013.