What is enlightenment? In this world of lust, violence, and delusion, can writing lead us to liberation? In this course we examine Buddhist bildungsroman or “coming of age” narratives, beginning with the ancient Indian biographies of the Buddha Śākyamuni himself, continuing to the classic early-modern Chinese novels, and ending with contemporary Tibetan memoirs of trauma and survival. Along the way, students will develop core academic writing skills, including how to read texts closely, think critically, form strong arguments, structure sentences and paragraphs, perform library research, cite sources, and workshop papers to arrive at a polished final draft. No prior knowledge of Buddhism or Asian languages required.