Alexander Baky Tran
PhD
Creative Writing
I am a practising Buddhist and published poet, who was born and raised in Melbourne, Australia. Having worked in both the public and private sectors before returning to academia, I have gained valuable insights into a range of fields, including journalism, education, administration and government.
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Thesis
What Warrants the Written Word: The Preservation and Propagation of Buddhism through Poetry and Poetics
My interdisciplinary research is situated in the fields of creative writing and Buddhist studies; my thesis comprises a conventional dissertation component and a creative writing artefact that predominantly utilises practice-based research methodology. With a concentration on Mahāyāna and Vietnamese Buddhism, my PhD examines the practice of writing – specifically of poetry and poetics – in the preservation and propagation of the Buddhist religion. The peculiarity of my research arises through my unique positionality as a second-generation ‘transcultural Buddhist’. I am interested in addressing the dearth of scholarship on Vietnamese Buddhism, in particular, which is one of the most overlooked traditions of buddhology.
Research interests
- Creative Writing
- Buddhist Studies
- Practice-based Research
- Interdisciplinary Research
- Autoethnography