William LaFleur, noted scholar at Penn

WILLIAM R. LaFleur was a distinguished professor of religious studies at the University of Pennsylvania, delving into such subjects as bioethics, Zen Buddhism, Japanese culture and the like, but one subject that also caught his interest was abortion.

In an article he wrote for the Inquirer in 2003, he explained the Japanese attitude to a subject that has aroused fierce and sometimes violent disputes in this country.

In Japan, he explained, abortion has always been legal, but women who have them often go to temples where they express their troubled feelings before a Buddha-like image of Jizo.

Jizo, LaFleur explained, is the heavenly protector of deceased children and fetuses. The aborted are called "mizuko," or "water children."

He wrote on this subject in a book, "Liquid Life: Abortion and Buddhism in Japan," one of his many books on subjects ranging from medieval literature to unethical medical research, religious thought, Zen and many other topics.

He died of a massive heart attack Friday at the age of 73.

"As a gifted poet and philosopher, Bill brought humanity and wisdom to the study of everything he encountered, from the taste of tea to the technology of medicine, from hungry ghosts to haiku poets," the university wrote in an obituary. "His students, colleagues, friends and family will miss him immensely."

A native of Patterson, N.J., LaFleur came to Penn in 1990 as the E. Dale Saunders Professor of Japanese Studies in the Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations, as well as a professor in the Department of Religious Studies.

Prior to coming to Penn, he taught Japanese intellectual history at Princeton University, the University of California at Los Angeles and Sophia University, in Tokyo.

Jacqueline Stone, professor of Japanese religions and Buddhism at Princeton University, wrote: "Besides being a scholar of extraordinary scope and imagination, Bill was also an exemplary teacher and mentor.

"His abounding sense of good humor, warmth of spirit and unfailing kindness toward his students will not soon be forgotten.

"William LaFleur was a groundbreaking figure in the interdisciplinary study of Buddhism and culture in Japan, and trained two generations of graduate students in these fields.

"He was a scholar of far-reaching interests and expertise, one who refused to be confined by any single research area, historical period or method of approach."

LaFleur was a translator and interpreter of the works of the medieval monk-poet Saigyo. He also wrote on Dogen, the 13th century Japanese Zen teacher, and Watsuji Tetsuro, Japanese moral philosopher and cultural historian, who died in 1960.

In 1989, LaFleur became the first non-Japanese to win the Watsuji Tetsuro Prize for scholarship.

LaFleur was a graduate of Calvin College, in Grand Rapids, Mich., and took graduate studies at the University of Michigan and the University of Chicago.

His published books covered topics from medieval literature in "Mirror of the Moon" (1978) and "Awesome Nightfall" (2003), both studies of the poet Saigyo.

Other works covered broader issues of religious thought, including "The Karma of Words" (1986) and "Buddhism in Cultural Perspective" (1988).

He edited "Zen and Western Thought: Essays by Masao Abe" (1985), and "Dark Medicine: Rationalizing Unethical Medical Research" (2008), a study of Japanese critics of American biotechnology and bioethics.

LaFleur is survived by his wife, Mariko; a son, David; and two daughters, Jeanmarie and Kiyomi.

Services: Memorial service 2 p.m. April 4 at the Radnor Meeting House, Conestoga Road and Route 320, Radnor.