While in London, I visited Dr. Ulrich Pagel, my old academic supervisor at SOAS. He is a senior scholar who is representative of the Germanic school of Buddhist studies. During my time as a student, he had a colleague—an Italian-born lecturer with a truly estimable intellect, considerable teaching ability, and immersion in Classical Chinese. When I remember Dr. Antonello Palumbo, I cannot help but think of how the Italian contribution to Buddhist studies is not always well-known, at least compared with those of the Anglo-German or Franco-Belgian schools.
Italian names of erudition and knowledge were always there, like philologist Prof. Mauro Maggi, Japanese expert Prof. Lucia Dolce (also a senior SOAS academic), and Sinologists Dr. Francesco Tarocco and Dr. Ester Bianchi. They are, fortunately, becoming more well-known. Scholars like Dr. Bianchi either started at or are working with the University of Naples “L’Orientale.” L’Orientale University of Naples (UNIOR) is one of Europe’s most important institutions for Asian studies, and a hub of Italian Buddhist Studies.
UNIOR boasts imperial origins. In 1732, it was founded as the “Chinese College” (Collegio de’ Cinesi) of Naples. The College’s founder was a missionary called Matteo Ripa (1682–1746), one of the few foreigners permitted to come—and go—from the Qing court of the Kangxi Emperor (1654–1722) freely. After Kangxi’s death, Ripa, whose Chinese name was Ma Guoxian, was permitted in 1723 to return to Naples with four Chinese Christians, with their new College being sanctioned by Pope Clement XII to teach Chinese for missionaries going to the Qing Empire. After the Italian unification in 1861, the Chinese College focused on its specialization in global and Asian studies, becoming the “L’Orientale” as we know it today.
UNIOR is also the institution where Dr. Carmela Simioli (or Carmen Simioli) works. Carmen is a Khyentse Postdoctoral Researcher and adjunct professor of Tibetan Language and Literature in UNIOR’s Department of Asian, African, and Mediterranean Studies. Her main field of research is the history of Tibetan medical and alchemical traditions. “As a textual scholar, I have translated sections of medical collections and alchemical treatises that are deeply interrelated with meditative and yogic practices,” she told me in our meeting. “In this regard, we may consider, for example, Orgyenpa Rinchen Pel (1230–1309) and his iatrochemical system for producing mercury medicines.” Iatrochemistry is a school that sees medicine and physiology in terms of chemistry.
“I have analyzed his literary production and have learned how Orgyenpa Rinchen Pel’s iatrochemical writings are strictly rooted in the formative tantric literatureon the sadangayoga such as the Guhyasamaja and Kalachakra-related literature, or the ‘body mandala’ in the Cakrasamvaratantra system,” she noted, adding, “I am finishing a monograph devoted to this master and his alchemical legacy.”
Simioli has also worked on the history of Tibetan theriacs—medicinal compounds and antidotes to poison or disease—and explored how these recipes of Hellenistic origin came to Tibet and were transformed and reshaped within a Buddhist framework. “For this specific case, I started a comparative study and learned a great deal from Tibetan pharmacopeias. I am also interested in knowing more about the living tradition, and my work with Tibetan doctors can be very helpful.”
In October last year, she spoke at a conference titled, “Beyond Borders: Transmission of Buddhism in Asian Contexts.” True to the UNIOR spirit, the conference addressed innovative and unique ways in which Buddhist teachings were carried from regions as diverse as Central Asia, India, the Himalayas, and the regions of North and Inner Asia. “This conference was very fruitful. My contribution focused on the transmission history of raksha cycles containing complex protective rituals to counteract poisoning and which are associated with the cult of wrathful deities such as Vajrabhairava, Janguli, and the rNying ma Pad ma dbang chen (Hayagriva),” Dr. Simioli told me. “My aim was to highlight the models and the dynamics through which non-Buddhist knowledge (the Nilakantha system of Garuda Tantras) was integrated in the analyzed Tibetan medical literature during the 14th century.”
It was striking how her words reflected how British Library scholar Sam Van Schaik’s book, Buddhist Magic (2020), argued that magical healing and Buddhism have been bedfellows since effectively the beginning of the Buddhist faith. “The discourse on the origin and transmission of medical and pharmacological knowledge reflects, indeed, a complex intellectual and religious history, interrelating teachings transmitted by masters of diverse Indian and Tibetan Buddhist schools and traditions such as the Sakya, Kagyu, Jonang and Nyingma traditions.”
Simioli is part of a proud tradition of Tibetan studies at UNIOR that was initiated by Prof. Chogyal Namkhai Norbu (1938–2018), an important master of the Nyingma Dzongchen tradition. “He taught Tibetan and Mongolian languages and literatures at L’Orientale for many years, from 1962 to 1992,” she said. “It was the seminal Italian Tibetologist, Giuseppe Tucci, who invited him to come to Italy in the 1950s. At that time, Namkhai Norbu began teaching at the Ismeo Institute in Rome. I had the chance to meet him on several occasions. He has certainly inspired me and encouraged me to deepen my knowledge of Tibetan language and culture.”
During her MA study, she spent two years in Lhasa (2006–08), where she completed an advanced Tibetan language program. “I remember that period with gratitude and joy: I studied Tibetan poetry and novels and even learned to compose verses in Tibetan. I wish to thank all the dedicated Tibetan professors at Tibet University.” Simioli also worked as a translator for Tibetan masters and doctors over the years. “I owe a great deal to Geshe Dorjee Wangchuk, resident master of the Samantabhadra Institute in Rome. I have had the great opportunity to translate his teachings and be blessed by his joyful compassion. He is also an expert Tibetan physician and patiently helped me clarifying many difficult points of the medical and pharmacological sources I studied during my postdoctoral period.”
As she continues her fascinating academic path on yogic practices, alchemical, and magical traditions in Tibetan spiritual life and history, Simioli feels greatly indebted to the Khyentse Foundation. “I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the Khyentse Foundation. I was very fortunate to become an awardee for many reasons. Thanks to the Khyentse Academic Development Committee, who supported my research with a generous postdoctoral scholarship, I had the chance to continue my research on the history of Tibetan medicine and alchemical traditions,” she reflected. “I started this research during my PhD research conducted at L’Orientale many years ago, but during these last years I had the chance to integrate my research by exploring other related themes such as the meditative and yogic practices.”
She also benefited from the Northwestern Khyentse Foundation Buddhist lecture Series organized by Prof. Sarah Jacoby, who created an inspirational learning environment. “I have also been deeply inspired by Prof. Giacomella Orofino, who is the full professor of Tibetan language and literature at L’Orientale. Her extensive studies on Indo-Tibetan tantric traditions, Bon literature and Tibetan poetry—just to refer to a few topics she has addressed in her numerous publications—have truly nourished my passion and interest for Tibetan Buddhism and culture, as well as in religious and textual studies in general,” she said. “I have benefited immensely from her institutional support and guidance over the years, from her formal lessons and wisdom during my graduate studies and research period at L’Orientale. I was inspired by many other professors at the university and attended the late Prof. Antonino Forte’s lessons on Chinese Buddhism before his passing.”
Dr. Simioli is currently conducting two projects. “While continuing with my research on Tibetan alchemical traditions, I have started another project geared toward the transmission of medical knowledge in Tibet. The first research thread has led me to start new research on the development of ‘the rainbow body’ in diverse Tibetan traditions. The second research tread is connected to the transmission and development of Greco-Arab anatomical and pharmacological knowledge in Tibet.”
Despite her forward momentum, Simioli is clear-eyed about the fact that Tibetan studies are at risk. “Many departments have been or are being shut down for different reasons whether economical or due to some sort of external interference,” she noted. However, there are many “sparkling lights,” as she put it, in these difficult times. “There is an increasing number of European Research Council-funded projects involving Tibetan Buddhist and Bon studies,” she highlighted. “For example, we may consider the projects conducted at the Universities of Vienna, Hamburg, Paris, and Leiden. I think that we should direct our efforts in this direction and try to develop and replicate more European projects of these kinds in other universities.”
Simioli would like to develop a project on Tibetan medical traditions and try to demonstrate how the history of Tibetan medicine can provide valuable insights into the global history of science. These collaborative initiatives may help prevent the isolation of Tibetan studies and give a boost to the departments where Tibetan language and culture are taught. The future of Dharma-oriented academia is very much intertwined with how scholars like Simioli can build on their momentum and help their sub-fields in Buddhist Studies shine ever brighter.
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