Robert DeCaroli

Professor

Arts of South Asia, Southeast Asia, and East Asia

Robert DeCaroli received his Ph.D. in the field South and Southeast Asian art history from UCLA. He is a specialist in the early history of Buddhism and has conducted fieldwork in India, Sri Lanka, and Southeast Asia.

He is the author of Haunting the Buddha: Indian Popular Religions and the Formation of Buddhism (Oxford UP 2004). This books - and many of his journal articles and book chapters - explore early (3rd c. BCE - 5th c. CE) aspects of South Asian material culture and its interaction with forms of terrestrial gods, spirits, and regional religious practices.

His second book, Image Problems: The Origin and Development of the Buddha’s Image in Early South Asia (U Washington Press 2015), examines the origin of the Buddha image and the social, political, and religious factors that led to its codification and spread.

He is co-curator of the Encountering the Buddha exhibit at the National Museum of Asian Art at the Smithsonian Institution and is a frequent speaker for the Smithsonian Associates.

He has been the recipient of the George Mason University Teaching Excellence Award and has received research grants from the Asian Cultural Council and the Getty Research Institute. He was awarded the ACLS/The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Program in Buddhist Studies Research Fellowship.

From 2005 to 2014 he served as Director of the Art History Program.

Selected Publications

Books

Haunting the Buddha: Indian Popular Religions and the Formation of Buddhism. (New York: Oxford University Press, 2004).

Image Problems: the Origins and Development of the Buddha's Image in Early South Asia (Seattle:University of Washington Press, 2015).

Edited Volumes

Buddhism and the Senses. Co-edited with Donald S. Lopez Jr. (Somerville, MA: Wisdom Press, 2024).

Across the South of Asia: A Volume in Honor of Robert L. Brown. Co-edited with Paul A. Lavy. (New Delhi, DK Printworld Books, 2020).

Selected Articles and Chapters

“Making Room for the Buddha: The Rise of the Buddhist Image Cult at the Kānherī Caves,” in Minding the Buddha’s Business: Essays in Honor of Gregory Schopen. S. Clarke and D. Boucher eds. Studies in Indian and Tibetan Buddhism. Wisdom Books. 2025.

“Avoiding Eye Contact: The Negative Aspects of Sight in Early South Asian Buddhism” in Buddhism and the Senses. D. Lopez Jr. and R. DeCaroli eds. Somerville, MA: Wisdom Press. 2024

“Heat and Hunger: The Emaciated Buddha and the Significance of Fasting,” in Across the South of Asia: A Volume in Honor of Robert L. Brown. R. DeCaroli and P. Lavy eds. 3-21. 2020

“Conspicuous Absences: The Avoidance and Use of Images in Early South Asia,” in The Image Debate: Figural Representation in Islam and across the World. Christiane Gruber and Stefano Carboni eds. Ginko Library Art Series. 2019. 142-155. 2019

"Snakes and Gutters: Nāga Imagery, Water Management, and Buddhist Rainmaking Rituals in Early South Asia," Archives of Asian Art. vol 69 no.1. April 2019.

Introductory chapter and section openings. Paths to Perfection: Buddhist Art at the Freer/Sackler. (Smithsonian Publications, 2017.

"Art of South and Southeast Asia before 1200" and "Art of South and Southeast Asia after 1200" (Chapters 10 and 24) in Art History. 5th edition, M. Stokstad and M. Cothren eds. (Boston: Pearson/Prentice Hall. 2016)

“‘The Abode of a Naga King’: Questions of Art, Audience, and Popular Deities at the Ajanta Caves” Ars Orientalis. vol. 40 (2011) 142-161.

“Shedding Skins: Naga Imagery and Layers of Meaning in South Asian Buddhist Contexts” in Buddhist Stupas in South Asia. A. Shimada and J. Hawkes eds. (New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2009) 94-113.

“From the Living Rock: Understanding Images in Early South Asia” in What’s the Use of Art?: Asian Visual and Material Culture in Context. J Mrazek and M Pitelka eds. (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2008) 21-45.

“Reading Bhaja: A Non-Narrative Interpretation of the Vihara 19 Reliefs.” East and West. vol. 50. (2000) 259-280.

Courses Taught

ARTH 102 Symbols and Stories in Art

ARTH 203: Survey of Asian Art

ARTH 382: Arts of India

ARTH 383: Arts of Southeast Asia

ARTH 384: Arts of China

ARTH 494/599: The Museum

ARTH 400/600: Historiography and Methodology in Art History

ARTH 495/595: Curating an Exhibit

ARTH 482/599: Art of Colonial India

ARTH 482/599: Cave Temples of Asia

HNRS 122: Reading the Arts

Recent Presentations

The Nāga Cult and a Reassessment of Imagery at the Nasik Caves. Invited Lecture for Opening of Tree and Serpent: Early Buddhist Art in India 200 B.C- A.D 400. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City.

Buddhist Borrowing: Inter-Religious Influence and the Development of Ritual Practices in Early Historic South Asia. Invited Keynote for the Society of South Asian Archaeology, the Ministry of Culture and the Indian Museum Kolkata. Kolkata, India.

Avoiding Eye Contact: Aspects of Sight in Early South Asian Buddhism. 10th MaMa Charitable Foundation Lecture Series at Hong Kong University’s Centre of Buddhist Studies. Online. Hong Kong, China.

Ritual and Narrative at the Ajanta Caves. International Association of Buddhist Studies 2011 Taipei, Taiwan.

Buddhist Art and Ritual Practice. American Academy of Religions Oct. 2010. Atlanta GA

Standing Guard: The Terracotta Army. Invited Lecture at the National Geographic Society, Washington DC April 2010.

Dead and Gone: Negotiating Absence and Presence in Images of the Buddha. The American Council of Southern Asian Art Conference. Denison Museum Denison, Ohio. Oct. 2009

Footsteps of the Buddha: Art and Pilgrimage in India. Invited Lecture at the Smithsonian Institution. Sept. 2009

Serpents in the Family Tree: Art of and for the Gods. Invited Lecture for the Center for Indian and South Asian Studies and the Department of Archaeology at University of California, Los Angeles. May 2009.

“The Abode of a Naga King”: Questions of Art, Audience, and Popular Deities at the Ajanta, Invited Lecture at Houston Museum of Fine Arts. April 2009.

Invited Discussant and Respondent at “Nativism in Buddhism” Conference held in Dusseldorf, Germany sponsored by EKO – Haus. September 2008.

In the Media

“Understanding Borobudur” for AP Testing Service. For AP high school instruction (available online).

Interviewed by Thai television and print news regarding Rediscovering Gotama conference and documentary film.

Rediscovering Gotama. Interviewed for documentary film on early Buddhism. CTFOB Films, Canada and the Buddhist Film Foundation. Bangkok, Thailand.

Interviewed by WAMU, National Public Radio affiliate. For segment promoting “Encountering the Buddha” exhibition. “Most Tranquil Spot on The National Mall? It’s the Newly Reopened Freer and Sackler Galleries” by Ally Schweitzer

Audio book recordings for Chapters 10 and 24 of Art History. 5th edition, M. Stokstad and M. Cothren eds. Boston: Pearson/Prentice Hall. 2016

Consultant for Fairfax County, Virginia school system World History textbook selection. Mentioned in April 17, 2005, Washington Post.