Buddhist mythology
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Buddhist mythology is maintained in texts, but these have always existed alongside oral traditions of storytelling, as well as creative retellings of myths as drama or artworks.[2][3][4][5] This creative mythology continues to this day, and includes film, television, and musical adaptions of Buddhist myths.
Myth has always been an important part of the way Buddhists see themselves and form communities. Attitudes to myths vary, with some people seeing the stories as entirely factual, while others see them as symbolic. In this article, as in scholarly study of mythology generally, the use of the term “myth” does not imply a value or truth judgement. Rather, it refers to the study of sacred stories and their meaning within a community.
Scholars have long recognized that Buddhism contains one of the world's great mythologies.
The myth of the Buddha's life
The life of the Buddha in early texts
Mythology in Buddhism is used at various intellectual levels in order to give symbolic and sometimes quasi-historical expression to religious teachings. As noted by scholars such as
- Gautama's birth.[10]
- Some details of his life growing up.
- References to the Vipassī, not Gautama.[11]
- Detailed accounts of Gautama's practices before awakening. These include his encounter with earlier teachers,
- Various accounts of the night of the Awakening.
- The events following awakening are told in a famous narrative that is found either in Sutta[17] or Vinaya.[18]
- Events involving the Buddha's family, including his return home and the ordination of his son,bhikkhuni,[20]found mostly in the Vinayas.
- The Buddha's last journey, Mahāparinibbāna Sutta.[21]
Most of the relevant texts from the Pali canon have been gathered and arranged in
The early texts also include references to Indian deities (devas), extraordinary beings such as Yakkhas, Nagas and other mythic content.
The extended life of the Buddha in Jātakas
One of the “three knowledges” (
The Jātakas appear to be mostly derived from vernacular Indian folk tales, fables and legends in mixed prose and verse.[25][26] Like the lives of the Buddha, they are not sectarian, as many Jātakas are shared among traditions. Some of the stories are related to Brahmanical legends, such as those found in the Rāmayaṇa and Mahābharata, while others show similarities to Aesop's fables and other world literature. While most of the Jātakas contain a “moral”, in most cases these pertain to simple and universal ideas, such as non-violence or honesty, and only a few of the stories feature distinctively Buddhist ideas. A typical Jātaka tale features a conflict or challenge, which the hero overcomes through his courage, intelligence, or other virtues. The hero of the story is identified with the Buddha, while other characters in the story are often identified with familiar associates of the Buddha, such as his close disciples, family, or Devadatta as the antagonist.
Since the Jātakas are in essence the preliminary chapters of the Buddha's spiritual development, they are sometimes included together with the Buddha's life. In the Pali sources, for example, the life of the Buddha is featured as the opening framing narrative of the Jātaka collection.
There is a similar class of literature known as Apadāna. Originally the term seems to have simply meant a tale of the past, as the Mahāpadāna Sutta of the Dīgha Nikāya tells the story of a Buddha in a past age. However it came to refer to a class of stories about the past lives of the Buddha's monk and nun disciples. These often depict how enlightened disciples of the Buddha achieved that status by making offerings to a Buddha in a past life.
In Vinaya texts
The doctrinal texts (suttas) of the early period contain little narrative and less myth. However, in the texts on monastic discipline (Vinaya), each rule or procedure must be preceded by an origin story. These are frequently simple narratives that merely give a context for the rule. However, in several cases the narrative is developed and includes significant mythic motifs. Most of these occur in relation to important events in the Buddha's life, especially those involving his family. But they also occur independently.
Erich Frauwallner argued that the portion of Vinaya known as the Khandhakas was formed around one of the earliest versions of the Buddha's life story.[27] Later Vinaya texts such as the Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya and the Mahāvastu added even more mythic material while some texts also arose out of this material becoming detached from the Vinaya and beginning to circulate as independent biographies of the Buddha.[28]
Some of the myths told in the Vinayas include:
- The Buddha's awakening.[29]
- The period after the Buddha's awakening such as the 'first sermon' (this corresponds to the “return” portion of Campbell's hero cycle)
- The ordination of the Buddha's stepmother Mahāpajāpatī. This episode is particularly rich in mythic imagery and meaning.[30]
- The rebellion of Devadatta.[31] (betrayal by a close relative is familiar in the myths of, for example, Jesus, Balder, and Osiris.)
- The medical training of the doctor Jīvaka.[32]
- The story of Prince Dīghāvu.
- Multiple original stories for Vinaya rules include mythic motifs, for example the stupa rule.
In post-Ashokan texts
While the early texts were mostly completed in the pre-Ashokan period, the post-Ashokan period saw the widespread adoption of Buddhism as a popular religion. At this time, Buddhism was spreading across the Indian subcontinent and beyond, and several distinct schools were emerging in different regions. It seems likely that each school would have used the life of the Buddha as a primary teaching vehicle. Several distinctive versions of this story survive. While these vary greatly in their literary forms, there is little doctrinal difference between them. Such texts include the following:
- Mahāvastu (“Great Story”) of the Mahāsaṁghika-Lokuttaravāda. This text is written in Hybrid Sanskrit, and is a loose compilation of diverse texts from multiple sources, sometimes repeating the same story, and with little attempt to create literary unity.
- Buddhacarita (“Life of the Buddha”) by Aśvaghoṣa. This is a sophisticated and polished Sanskrit epicpoem by one of India's foremost poets.
- Lalitavistara Sūtra (“The Play in Detail”) of the Sarvāstivādins.[33] Styled as a Sanskrit sutra, the Lalitavistara was very popular in northern forms of Buddhism. It is the basis for many events carved in Borobudur.
- The
- Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya. While all the Vinayas contain some narrative, this text—extant in Sanskrit, Tibetan, and Chinese—includes a full life of the Buddha, replete with abundant legendary narrative.
- Abhiniṣkramana Sūtra.
Despite the fact that these texts emerged in different schools over a long period, in different literary forms, they each share a range of motifs in the Buddha's life that is not found in the early texts. Such motifs include:
- The Buddha's mother, Māyā, dreaming of a white elephant.
- Lotuses springing up under the feet of the bodhisattva as he walked immediately after birth.
- Various encounters with Devadatta and others as a child.
- Seeing the four signs.
- The bodhisattva leaving his wife and child, often on the night of the birth.
- The bodhisattva's horse, Kaṇṭhaka, who carried him away, but later died of grief.
- Meeting a hunter and exchanging robes.
- Floating the bowl upstream.
- The offering of milk rice by Sujātā.
- The attack by Māra's armies.
- The earth goddess witnessing the bodhisattva's past practice.
Many of these motifs are represented in early artwork, and one of the motivating factors in such developments was to present the teachings in a way that could form a dramatic personal story, which could be visually represented. For example, the Padhāna Sutta,[35] an early text, depicts the assault of Māra in purely psychological terms, while the developed versions imagine a vast army of demons attacking the Buddha, an image which is frequently depicted in Buddhist artwork.
These later works also show a much greater emphasis on the miraculous and extraordinary character of the Buddha, as they depict him more like a godlike being in contrast to the earlier texts.[36] These developments in the mythology have their counterparts in the more philosophical texts, where the Buddha is conceived as omniscient and with trascendental powers (lokuttara).
Other Indian Buddhist myths
Past and future Buddhas
Buddhist mythology contains legends of
Buddhist works also include a wide range of prophetic myths, which speak of future events. As with the Jātakas, there are a few such stories in the early texts. The most famous is the Cakkavatti Sīhanāda Sutta of the
Later texts such as the Maitreyavyakarana introduce Mahayana elements to the prophetic story of Maitreya.[38] A complex mythology developed around the messianic figure of the future Buddha Maitreya, which has inspired multiple Buddhist cults of both the past and the present. He became an influential figure in the millennarian and messianic movements throughout East Asia. According to Paul Williams, there were "nine such movements in China in the fifth and early sixth centuries alone."[39]
Kings, saints and gods
Buddhist traditions contain large numbers of stories and spiritual narratives in addition to the above. These are often simple moral fables, similar to Jātakas. In some cases, mythic complexes can be discerned that have no counterparts in the orthodox texts, but are found widely in popular culture. Various figures other than the Buddha appear in these myths, including Buddhist kings, important monastics and saints, as well as heavenly beings or gods (devas).
Indian kings feature in many Buddhist stories and myths. The earliest texts speak of various kings paying respects to the Buddha such as
Buddhist myths also tell stories about important disciples of the Buddha and later Buddhist saints (known as
Later Buddhist saints such as Mahinda and Sanghamitta, both children of Ashoka are also part of Buddhist myths. Another example are stories related to the cult of the monk Upagupta who, according to legend, lived in the time of Ashoka. He does not appear in central Pali texts, but is a well known figure in the northern regions of Theravāda, including northern Myanmar, Thailand, and Laos. In these regions a variety of tales with related themes and motifs occur, and form the basis of ritual activity, usually carried out by the lay people. Such activities occur in a liminal space on the edge of the officially sanctioned Theravādin praxis.
Buddhist myths also feature heavenly beings, called devas. Buddhist myth adopted several Indian figures such as Brahma, Indra (also known as Sakka) and Prithvi.
Sectarian myths
The schools of Buddhism told stories of the origin of their own particular school. These narratives function like creation myths, explaining how the school came to be, and why it has a special authority to convey the Buddha's teaching. Unlike the pan-sectarian myths of the Buddha's life or the Jātakas, these exist specifically to promote one's own school in relation to contemporary rivals. Such sectarian myths also typically include an account of how the Dharma triumphed over primitive and violent religious cults, especially human or animal sacrifice in worship of yakkhas.
The
Other stories developed to give authority to certain texts. The Mahāyānists needed to address the fact that their texts were unknown in the initial period of Buddhism, and developed stories such as that they had been hidden in the realm of the nagas (snake-like supernatural beings) until people wise enough to understand them were born. Some versions of the myth state that the Indian philosopher Nagarjuna magically flew to the city of the nagas and retrieved the hidden sutras.[42] Other myths deal with Buddhas in other worlds which can be reached through dreams or meditative visions such as Maitreya or Amitabha and who reveal new texts and teachings such as the five treatises of Maitreya. Later Mahayana Buddhists also wrote their own biographies of the Buddha which included Mahayana elements, such as the biography in the Tibetan Bu-ston's (1290–1364) Chos ’byung (“History of Buddhism”).
Similarly, the promoters of the
.Likewise, with the development of
Such mythologies developed, not just as “official” sectarian doctrines, but as local tales. For example, in most Buddhist countries there is a story of how the historical Buddha visited their country and foretold that the Dharma would be established there.
Mahāyāna mythology
In addition to the
A central figure in
Other bodhisattvas are depicted as being still in the process of developing their skill in means (
Buddhahood is also central to Mahayana mythology. A Buddha in Mahayana texts is also much more exalted and extraordinary than in earlier texts. A godlike being, a Buddha in the Mahayana imaginary has lived and will continue to live for countless eons preaching his doctrine in innumerable ways and means to innumerable numbers of beings.[49] Regarding the Buddha Gautama, his limited "human" life on earth was merely an illusion, a docetic mirage which merely appears to perform human actions such as eating and so on.[50] Another important feature of Mahāyāna Buddhist myths is that they include Buddhas other than Gautama Buddha, such as Amitābha, Bhaisajyaguru, Vairocana and Akshobhya, each with their own texts. These Buddhas are said to live in other realms, called Buddhafields (buddhakṣetra, also known as Pure Lands) and to still be reachable in meditation, visions or through their intermediaries. These other worlds are said to extend infinitely in all directions, each containing a Buddha which teaches in their Buddhafield.[51] A Buddha such as Amitābha for example (one of the most popular Buddhas in East Asia), was associated with his vow that anyone who recited his name would be reborn in his pure land as well as with the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara.[52] These other Buddhas were also seen as the source of some of the Mahayana sutras like the Pure land sutras and the Aksobhyavyuha sutras.[53]
The hagiographies of Indian Mahayana figures such as Asanga and Nagarjuna, and the stories associated with them are also important in the mythology of Mahayana Buddhism. Biographies of the Indian philosopher Nagarjuna for example, depict him as a great brahmin sorcerer with powerful magics who made himself and his friends invisible once to enter a palace and violate the women. After his escape, his friends were all killed and this led him to the spiritual life and to the study of all the Buddha Dharma. This eventually led him to the discovery of the prajñaparamita sutras with the aid of the Naga king[54]
These stories and figures also further evolved in
Another very popular example of East Asian Buddhist myth is contained in one of China's classical novels, Journey to the West, which developed around stories of the Chinese monk Xuanzang and his travels to India. These stories merge Buddhist myth with ideas from Chinese folk religion, Chinese mythology, as well as Confucian and Taoist beliefs.
Forms of myth
Literature
The primary source for Buddhist myth is the vast Buddhist literature. The corpus is extensive; over 500 Jātakas exist in Pali alone and there are various complete Buddhist canons in different languages.
The Jātakas remain closely linked to the
By way of contrast, a developed literary work such as the
Performance
There are indications that Indian Buddhists developed edifying dramas, perhaps with musical accompaniment.
In pre-modern Asia, the oral and dramatic performance of Jātaka stories was another way in which Buddhist myth was propagated. This tradition remains active in Southeast Asian countries today, where Jātakas tales are performed in theater, dance and recitations during certain special occasions like during Buddhist holidays.[60]
In Tibet and other regions where Tibetan Buddhism has spread, various performances of sacred myth are also popular, such as the Cham Dance a costume dance which illustrates Buddhist moral values.[61]
Art
There is no art, or any other physical remains, from the earliest period of Buddhism. The first Buddhist art appears in the Ashokan period. But Ashoka's pillars, while artistically superb, do not tell myths.
Perhaps 100 years after Ashoka, we have our first known Buddhist stupa complexes, which contain substantial and elaborate art. As well as drawing on motifs from the early texts, these frequently depict episodes from Jātakas and from the evolved form of the Buddha's life. The art that has survived is sculpture in stone, although this must be the remnants of a much richer heritage in more perishable materials.
In addition to purely decorative motifs, we frequently find art arranged in a sequence, or a roundel, depicting various events selected from a particular story. These would presumably have been used as a story-telling framework, a precursor to our modern graphic novels. A teacher, presumably a monk or nun, would tell the story illustrated by the pictures, or else people who knew the story would remind themselves of it. This method was developed fully in Borobudur, where the stories wind around the huge structure. In many modern Buddhist temples, especially those that are popular tourist sites, murals play the same role.
Themes
Renunciation
The key event in the life of the Buddha is his leaving home. This event dramatizes the conflict between the “worldly” values of sex, family, career, and prosperity and the “spiritual” values of renunciation and dispassion (virāga).[62] This tension is a defining characteristic of Buddhist myth. Numerous Buddhist stories each tell the event in different ways, sometimes evoking the bodhisattva's pain in leaving his wife and child, as well as his father's efforts to entice him to stay and the sadness experienced by his wife Yashodhara and his charioteer Channa.
The renunciation is also dealt with repeatedly in the Jātakas, with further variations. In some cases, the bodhisattva leaves home with his wife, or with both wife and children, or even with the whole city. In one case, the wife leaves the bodhisattva to raise the children.
Awakening and final Nirvana
Following on from renunciation is the event of the Buddha's awakening (bodhi) or liberation (vimutti, nirvana). In Buddhism this refers to an insight into the truth that leads to the end of suffering. In the doctrinal texts this is presented in psychological and existential terms, which the myths translate into narrative and imagery.
Thus the armies of the demon of Death, Māra, the forces of darkness and desire, are no longer simply psychological impulses, but literal armies of demonic forces, depicted in lavish detail. And they are not overcome simply by insight, but by evoking the Earth Goddess (dhārinī). She, as an elder deity, has borne witness to the bodhisattva's heroic deeds in the countless past lives as depicted in the Jātakas, and testifies to this fact, dispelling the forces of darkness.
Each detail of the awakening experience become imbued with mythic significance. The place where the Buddha sat, described in the early texts simply as a pleasant place suitable for meditation, becomes the “navel of the world”. It is the only place on earth strong enough to bear the weight of the awakening, and is used by all Buddhas, past, present, and future.
The event of his death and final release (paranirvana) from the realm of rebirth (samsara) are also important themes which are taken up in numerous Buddhist myths. For Buddhists, it was important to explain the death of the Buddha as a monumental event. Some Buddhists such as the Lokuttaravada developed a docetic myth, which said that the Buddha did not really die, only appearing to do so, since his nature was supramundane.
Geography and Cosmology
Despite this expansive view on time, the historical framework of Buddhist myth is in fact quite narrow. With few exceptions, the Jātakas, and even the stories of the future, imagine a world that is much like the India of the 5th century BCE, or more precisely, in the case of the Jātakas, a little earlier. Thus the many hundreds of births of the bodhisattva are set within a historical window of only a few centuries and are strongly rooted in the
Origin of life
One tale told by the Buddha in the Aggan̄n̄a Sutta describes the process of recreation on this grand scale. An old world-system has just been destroyed, and its inhabitants are reborn in a new system. To begin with they are luminious being, floating happily above the earth, luminescent and without form, name or sex.
At that period, The world in these early stages is without light or land, only mass waters. Neither moon nor sun appeared, no constellations or stars appeared, night and day were not yet distinguished, nor months and fortnights, nor years and seasons. And sooner or later, after a very long period of time, Earth appears and the luminious being or spirits come to taste and enjoy it. It looked just like the skin that forms itself over hot milk as it cools. It was endowed with color, smell, and taste. It was the color of fine ghee or butter and it was very sweet, like pure wild honey. Their greed causes their ethereal bodies to become solid and coarse and differentiate into male and female, good-looking and ugly. As they lose their luminescence the sun and moon come into being.
Gradually the beings fall into further wicked habits, causing themselves - and the earth itself - to become less pleasant.
Psychology and virtues
Buddhist myths use the standard story types and heroic journeys, always with a strong psychological emphasis. While the behaviour of the bodhisattva in the Jātakas is not always beyond reproach, there is a strong emphasis on overcoming hate and greed, and using intelligence and kindness to solve problems. The bodhisattva is more commonly represented as clever and resourceful than as a fierce warrior or powerful king.
The stories of the Jātakas as well as the post-Ashokan biographies also take important
The
Kingship and politics
One of the earliest mythic motifs in the Buddha's life is the notion that he is a “Great Man” (mahāpurisa), who must choose his destiny. If he remains in the home, he will become a righteous universal emperor or "wheel turning monarch" (
The stories Mauryan emperor Ashoka also added to the mythological elements of the myth of "Dharma King" (dhammaraja) and his great deeds. In much of Buddhist myth, Ashoka is the royal "exemplar par excellence" who exemplifies the ten royal virtues: generosity, moral virtue, self-sacrifice, kindness, self-control, non-anger, nonviolence, patience, and adherence to the norm of righteousness.[69] This figure was much emulated by later Buddhist kings, who built stupas and temples and patronized the monastic community in imitation of Ashoka. This mimesis of the Ashoka myth by Asian Buddhist rulers is one way in which Buddhist myth influenced the Asian political ideology of states such as Angkor, Sukhothai and Pagan.[70]
The Jātakas depict many examples of kings and of the bodhisattva Gautama himself who was a king in many past lives, the most famous throughout Southeast Asia being the
Kingship in the Jātakas displays many of the classic features familiar in James Frazer’s analysis of sacred kingship. The king has not just worldly power, but had a connection to the gods. His behaviour affects the weather: a righteous king ensures good crops. The king is sometimes sacrificed, or stories of escaping and reforming sacrifice are told. Mahayana Buddhist accounts also add notions of the bodhisattva ideal to myths of Buddhist kingship.
The Aggañña Sutta depicts an alternative, and arguable earlier, ideal of a Buddhist king. There, in a manner not dissimilar to the practices prevailing among the Buddha's own Sakyan people, the king is not destined but elected by the people. This model of elective monarchy, however, was largely ignored, and subsequent Buddhist myths almost always featured hereditary kings.
Buddhist myths continue to have an impact on the political world of Asian Buddhist nations.
Manhood and physical prowess
John Powers has noted how the story of the Buddha in Indian texts presents themes of male physical perfection, beauty and virtue. The Buddha is often depicted in Indian art and literature as a virile "Ultimate Man" (purusottama) and "is referred to by a range of epithets that extol his manly qualities, his extraordinarily beautiful body, his superhuman virility and physical strength, his skill in martial arts, and the effect he has on women who see him."[74] He is given numerous epithets such as “god among men,” “possessing manly strength,” “victor in battle,” “unsurpassed tamer of men,” “bull of a man” and “fearless lion.”[75] He is seen as having lived hundreds of past lives as cakravartins and as manly gods such as Indra and in his final life as Gautama, he excelled as a lover to many women in his palace harem as well as a warrior in the martial arts of a ksatriya.[76] Texts such as the Lalitavistara (extensive sport) dwell on the martial contests that the young bodhisattva had to complete in order to gain his wife, concluding in an archery contest in which he "picks up a bow that no one else could draw and that few could even lift. He grasps it while sitting down, lifts it easily, and shoots an arrow through every target, which utterly eclipses the performances of all the others."[77] The depictions of his ascetic training as well as his victory over the temptations of Mara and his final awakening are also often described as a result of his manly effort in a heroic battle.[78] The ascetic life is also connected to virility. In ancient India, the celibacy and the retaining of semen was said to bring about strength, health and physical energy. The practice of celibacy and austerity was said to accumulate a spiritual energy called tapas.[79] Thus even as a celibate ascetic, the Buddha can fulfill the mythical archetype of the supreme man and heroic warrior.
All these good qualities are associated with the idea that the Buddha has excellent karma and virtue and thus in Indian Buddhism, moral transformation was seen as being related to physical transformation.
The Buddha's perfection is also associated with supranormal feats (abhiñña) such as levitation, walking on water and telepathy. His powers are superior to that of the gods, and Indian deities like Brahma are depicted as being his disciples and accepting his superiority.[83]
Women and gender
Feminine figures and issues of gender are also an important feature of Buddhist mythology. Traditionally, women are seen as capable of achieving the highest levels of spiritual attainment.
Buddhist myths and stories show an ambiguity in relation to gender. On the one hand, gender is seen as not a binary phenomenon. For example, there is fluidity in gender across lives. Frequently women are strong and capable. Gender roles are sometimes reversed, as when the bodhisattva's wife leaves him to raise the children as she becomes a nun. In some texts, gender is presented as a performance, and both men and women can engage in that performance with awareness. Transformation and escape from the traps of gender roles is made possible through a spiritual life, especially as a renunciant, and women are seen as capable of awakening just like men. Suzanne Mrozik, citing Elizabeth Grosz holds that in Indian Buddhism, bodies are "pliable" and "subject to transformation, because bodies are largely the products of our own actions.... Karma dictates the kind of body we get in any given lifetime—whether male or female, healthy or sick, beautiful or ugly, and so forth."
At the same time, there are many Buddhist stories that depict women in negative terms which continue to influence modern Buddhist views. Indian Buddhist views of women's sexuality are typical of ancient India, which saw women as inherently lustful creatures of passion, and who are often depicted as seductresses who are a danger to men seeking to live the celibate religious life.[87] These negative attitudes towards women continue to influence contemporary Buddhist cultures, where it is widely believed that birth as a woman is due to bad karma. This is also said to influence the future of Buddhism. One story which illustrates this is that of the first nun, Mahapajapati Gotami, which includes a prediction that because the Buddha allowed the ordination of women as nuns, the Buddhist Dharma will decline faster.[88]
In his White Bones Red Rot Black Snakes,
Animals
Animals feature prominently in Buddhist myths, whether domesticated beasts like the cow or the cat, or wild beasts such as the lion or crocodile. The Jātakas frequently feature talking animals and common fable tropes such as the donkey that clothes himself in a lion's skin.[89] A distinctive feature of Buddhist tales, however, is that the ethical implications of such talking beasts are not dismissed. Instead, it is in dialogue with talking beasts that ethics of non-violence and restraint in killing animals are developed. In some Jātakas it is also common that an animal acts in a more moral manner than a human.[90]
Several kinds of animals appear regularly enough that they assume the role of stock characters. The lion is strong and fearless, the jackal, his nemesis, is weak, craven, and duplicitous. Animals can also symbolically represent other Buddhist themes, the lion for example is said to represent the Buddha (who is also known as the "lion of the Sakya clan", Sakyasimha), since the lion is the king of the animals, with the loudest roar and the Buddha is the foremost of all humans with the most superior teaching. The deer represents renunciation, since it never sleeps in the same place.[91] Mythical animals such as the Garuda and Nagas also play a part in Buddhist animal fables and myths.
Extraordinary beings
The Buddhist tradition shares with the wider Indian culture a range of extraordinary beings and places. Myth often deals with the supernatural. However, while Buddhist myth frequently deals with events normally regarded as supernatural, such as stories of devas, miracles, and so on, these are all seen as aspects of dharma, and thus as part of nature. In Buddhist context, then, it is best to describe these phenomena as “extraordinary”, in the sense of lying outside ordinary experience, rather than “supernatural”, being “above nature”.
Buddhist mythology also adopt Brahmanical myths and deities, frequently inverting motifs to illustrate a point of difference between Buddhism and orthodox Brahmanism. When the Indian creator deity Brahmā appears, he is sometimes depicted as a magnificent devotee of the Buddha, but sometimes he is mocked. Some Buddhist texts make fun of Brahma's belief that he is the creator of the universe.[92] Likewise, the ferocious war god of the Vedas, Indra, is transformed into the gentle Sakka (usually given the epithet devanam indrah "king of the gods"), who is said to have reached his godly status through public works.[93]
Buddhist saints and historical figures are also important in Buddhist myth. The stories of quasi-legendary figures such as Padmasambhava and Milarepa serve as important foundational myths for Tibetan Buddhist schools.
Symbols
In Buddhist literature as well as in Buddhist art, myth is also communicated using various Buddhist symbols which have become widespread across the Buddhist world. Among the earliest and most common symbols are the stupa (symbolizing the Buddha), the Dharma wheel (a symbol of the Dharma), the Bodhi Tree (and its leaves) and the lotus flower (both symbolizing awakening).
Buddhist cultures typically preserve relics or places that tie them with the Buddhism of the past, and especially with the historical Buddha. These things are given meaning by telling sacred stories about them.
In
Myth and ritual
It is common for mythic events to be performed or re-experienced and ritual, and in fact some myths arise as explanations of ritual. We find this frequently in Buddhism, as the ordination procedure mimics the renunciation of the Buddha. Although the Vinaya texts describing ordination depict it as a simple, almost bureaucratic, procedure, some Buddhist cultures have rituals in which they dress the candidate up like a prince and parade him through the streets in a reenactment of the renunciation of the Buddha. These rituals can be quite elaborate, with some candidates riding a while horse, and other individuals playing different roles such as the tempter Mara.[94] In Myanmar, a parallel life passage ritual also exists for women, called a shinbyu ceremony.
Another Buddhist ritual which includes reenactments of the Buddha life myth is the ritual of the consecration of a Buddha image. Among other things, the statue's head is covered, symbolizing the Buddhas withdrawal from householder life and various symbolic offerings are placed before the statue. including a sweet milk rice mixture symbolizing the offering of Sujata.[95]
In
Interpretations of Buddhist myth
Emic interpretations
There is no developed tradition of myth interpretation within Buddhist traditions. Writers acknowledged that the various lives of the Buddha were similar, differing in only inconsequential details. The more spectacular aspects of Buddhist myth were likely treated for their entertainment value. Vasubandhu, writing around the 4th century CE, took it for granted that his audience understood that the so-called “guardians of hell” were in fact just projections of the mind. It is, however, not uncommon to find strictly literal interpretations of myth.
The reform movements in Buddhism that emerged around the end of the 19th century are known as Buddhist modernism. They are characterized by a rational approach to Buddhist ethics, philosophy, and meditation, and tend to reject or downplay mythic elements. As a result, many contemporary forms of Buddhism influenced by Buddhist modernism rarely pay much attention to myth or tend to downplay their importance, seeing them as later "accretions" or "distortions".[96] Perhaps because of this, modern scholarly analyses of Buddhist mythology are rare.
Bhikkhu Sujato has written an extensive analysis of Buddhist myth, focusing on women. He shows the extensive correlations between Buddhist myths and broader world myth, drawing on such sources as Joseph Campbell and Erich Neumann, a student of Carl Jung.[97]
Modern Etic interpretations
Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey analyzed the Buddha's life myth as part of the universal hero's journey which he also compares to the life of Jesus, both being forms of what he saw as "an archetypal World Savior".[98] Campbell mapped the life of the Buddha into what he saw as the standard formula for heroic myths: separation—initiation—return.[98] Separation maps into the Buddha's renunciation, initiation into his quest for and attainment of awakening and return is his return to the world to preach the Dharma to all (and thus for Campbell, he is a "universal hero" who brings a message to the entire world).[99]
Roberto Calasso in his Ka discusses Buddhist myth in the context of Indian myth more generally. He argues that the Buddha came to “put an end to gesture”, as his journey was ultimately inwards and dispensed with outward forms of spirituality such as ritual.
As Calasso sees it, the ancient world of sacrifice, of prohibition and authority, is ruined by the coming of the Buddha. The Buddha wishes to “eliminate the residue,” the leftovers from which everything new is generated (the pursuit of nirvana is nothing less than a wish to extinguish the residue of a lived life–rebirth). His doctrine prefigures our own world: “What would one day be called ‘the modern’ was, at least as far as its sharpest and most hidden point is concerned, a legacy of the Buddha. Seeing things as so many aggregates and dismantling them. . . . An arid, ferocious scholasticism. . . . Total lack of respect for any prohibition, any authority.”[100]
David Adams Leeming in his Mythology: The Voyage of the Hero sees the Buddha's enlightenment as a culmination of the theme of the hero quest in which a hero seeks a goal such as immortality (note that amrita is actually a term for nirvana), specifically a related theme called the "withdrawal theme". Leeming states that "the myth of the hero's meditative withdrawal is the myth of the preparation of the shaman - the great teacher savior - who, having faced the unknown in himself, can now convey and apply this experience to us."[101]
Mythology in Contemporary Buddhism
Hagiographies of Buddhist saints
Hagiography is one of the most popular forms of contemporary myth in Buddhist cultures. These come in the form of biographies, sometimes autobiographies, of revered monks or other spiritual practitioners. These stories typically draw on basic elements of the hero's journey as exemplified in the Buddha's life: special signs in youth, renunciation, struggle, awakening, teaching, and establishing a legacy. However their form is that of the modern biography, with more or less inclusion of paranormal events.
Such hagiographies are one of the staple forms of literature in the
In the Chinese tradition, we find the biography of Hsu Yun (Empty Cloud), which similarly relates stories of spiritual and psychic prowess in the very long life of this Chinese Buddhist master.
Likewise, the Tibetan tradition contains many biographies of famous teachers such as the Dalai Lama, including one recent comic book adaptation. A unique mythic feature of this tradition is the story of the identification of the master as a reincarnation of a former master.
Contemporary depictions in media
Numerous films have been made depicting the life of the Buddha. Bertolucci's Little Buddha included elements of the Buddha's story as part of a more contemporary tale. Recently the film Siddhattha was made in Sri Lanka, which focused on the emotional tensions around the decision of the bodhisattva to go forth.
The Saiyūki (西遊記, lit. "Journey to the West"), also known by its English title 'Monkey', was a Japanese TV series that told the story of the pilgrimage of Xuan Zang to the India to retrieve the Buddhist sutras. More recently, a popular series on the life of the Buddha has aired on Indian television.
The life of the Buddha has been adapted as a manga by Osamu Tezuka and this in turn has been adapted into animated film.
Buddhist themes in contemporary media
Since Buddhism and meditation became a part of popular culture in US in the 1970s, it has become common to see Buddhist themes expressed in contemporary mythmaking.
The film series Star Wars, which was deliberately constructed as a modern myth on the Campbell model, features many Buddhist motifs. These include the Jedis who a mix of monk and warrior elite who meditate, and are asked to “be mindful of their feelings”.
The 1999 film The Matrix features themes of illusion, reality, and freedom that are fundamental to Buddhism.
See also
Notes
- ^ There are three principal sources for Bodhidharma's biography:[55]
- Yáng Xuànzhī's The Record of the Buddhist Monasteries of Luoyang (547);
- Tánlín's preface to the Two Entrances and Four Acts (6th century CE), which is also preserved in Ching-chüeh's Chronicle of the Lankavatar Masters (713-716);
- Daoxuan's Further Biographies of Eminent Monks (7th century CE).
References
- ^ Myths are "stories about divine beings, generally arranged in a coherent system; they are revered as true and sacred; they are endorsed by rulers and priests; and closely linked to religion. Once this link is broken, and the actors in the story are not regarded as gods but as human heroes, giants or fairies, it is no longer a myth but a folktale. Where the central actor is divine but the story is trivial … the result is religious legend, not myth." [J. Simpson & S. Roud, "Dictionary of English Folklore," Oxford, 2000, p.254]
- ^ Pia Brancaccioa1 and Xinru Liu, Dionysus and drama in the Buddhist art of Gandhara, Journal of Global History, vol. 4.2, July 2009, pp 219–244
- S2CID 162955653.
- ^ Professor Kulatilaka Kumarasinghe, Buddhism in Noh Drama, University of Kelaniya
- ^ "Publications - Prof. Kulatilaka Kumarasinghe". Archived from the original on 2017-07-02. Retrieved 2018-12-07.
- ^ "Buddhist India -- Chapter 11". Archived from the original on 2018-10-20. Retrieved 2018-12-07.
- CAF Rhys Davids, Stories of the Buddha: being Selections from the Jataka, introduction, p. xix.
- ^ Jātaka Nidāna and Lalitavistara Sūtra. See Hero, prologue, note 38; chap 1, note 44, etc.
- ^ Endo, Toshiichi., (2002)Buddha in Theravada Buddhism-A Study of the Concept of Buddha in the Pali Commentaries, pp. 1-2
- ^ MN 123, MA 32
- ^ DN 14 Mahāpadāna Sutta, also told at Parallels for DN 14 Mahāpadāna (DN ii 1): EA 48.4 (T ii 790a07); T 4 (T i 159a24); T 2 (T i 150a03); T 3 (T i 154b05); DA 1 (T i 001b11); SN 12.65 (SN ii 104); SHT 3, 768, 685 (94–119V), 690, 916, 165.41, 412.34, 1592, 2009, 2032, 2033, 2034, 2172, 2446, 2995; also cf. ix p. 393ff; SF 31 (ÖLMEZ (eds.), Bahşi Ögdisi, Festschrift für Klaus Röhrborn, Freiburg/Istanbul, 363–378.). Retrieved from https://suttacentral.net/dn14 on 20/01/2016. 1987a. Bonbun Daihongyō dai-ni shō oboegaki [A note on chapter 2 of the Mahāvadānasūtra]. Bukkyō Ronsō 31 (Sep): 121–124.); SF 32 ( 1987b. Bonbun Daihongyō shahon Cat. No. 498 ( = MAV 82, 83) ni kansuru chūkan hōkoku [Provisional report on the MAV Ms. Cat. No. 498]. Bukkyō Bunka Kenkyūsho Shohō 4: 20–19.); SF 36 ( 2003. The Mahāvadānasūtra: A new edition based on manuscripts discovered in northern Turkestan ( = Sanskrit-Wörterbuch der buddhistischen Texte aus den Turfan-Funden, Beiheft 10). Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht.); SF 30 ( 1985b. Bonbun Daihongyō no fukugen ni kansuru jakkan no mondai [Some problems relating to the reconstruction of the Sanskrit Mahāvadānasūtra]. Indogaku Bukkyōgaku Kenkyū 33.2 (Mar): 547–548.); SF 28 ( 1982. Bonbun Daihongyō engisetsu no fukugen ni tsuite [On a restoration of the pratītyasamutpāda in the Mahāvadānasūtra]. Bukkyō Shigaku Kenkyū 24/2: 26–43.); SF 33 ( 1987c. Vipaśyin-Butsu ichie sanga no ninzū o megutte: Bonbun Daihongyō dai-jusshō kessonbubun no fukugen [On the number of bhikṣus in Buddha Vipaśyin’s first Sangha: A reconstruction of the lost part of chapter 10 of the Mahāvadānasūtra]. Jōdo-shū Kyōgakuin Kenkyūsho-hō 9: 22–26.); SF 250 ( 1953. Das Mahāvadānasūtra: Ein kanonischer Text über die sieben letzten Buddhas. Sanskrit, verglichen mit dem Pāli nebst einer Analyse der in chinesischer Übersetzung überlieferten Parallelversionen. Auf Grund von Turfan-Handschriften herausgegeben. Teil I-II. Abhandlungen der deutschen Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin, Klasse für Sprachen, Literatur und Kunst, 1952/8, 1954/3.); SF 296 ( 2006. The Sanskrit Fragments Or. 15003 in the Hoernle Collection. Buddhist Manuscripts from Central Asia, The British Library Sanskrit Fragments, S. Karashima et al. (ed.), Tokyo: Soka University, vol. 1 pp 65–153.); SF 34 ( 1988a. Daihongyō to Hasōji ni miru kyōtsū no dentō to chihōteki hensen, tokuni Bosatsu-tanjō-densetsu o chūshin to shite [Common tradition and local development of the Mahāvadānasūtra and the Saṃghabhedavastu, particularly focusing on the Bodhisattva’s birth legend]. Hōnen Gakkai Ronsō 6: 5–22.); SF 56 ( 1991. Untersuchungen zum Dīrghāgama der Sarvāstivādins. Habilitationsschrift. Göttingen: Georg-August-Universität.); SF 29 ( 1985a. The Mahāvadāna sūtra: A reconstruction of chapters IV and V. Bukkyō Daigaku Daigakuin Kenkyū Kiyō 13: 17–52.); Uigh frgm ( 1998. Three Fragments of Uighur Āgama. In and
- ^ Parallels for MN 26 Ariyapariyesanā [Pāsarāsi] (MN i 160): MA 204 (T i 775c07); EA 19.1 (T ii 593a24); EA 24.5 (T ii 618a27); T 1450.5 (T xxiv 125c29); T 765.3 (T xvii 679b23); Zh Mi Kd 1 (T xxii 104b23–105a02); Zh Dg Kd 1 (T xxii 779a06); SHT 1332, 1714, 1493; Mvu (https://suttacentral.net/mn26 on 20/01/2016. 1965. Mahāvastu Avadāna, vol. 2 (Calcutta Sanskrit College Research Series). Calcutta: Sanskrit College. / SENART, Emile 1890. Le Mahāvastu (vol 2): Texte sanscrit publié pour la première fois et accompagné d’introductions et d’un commentaire (Société Asiatique, Collection d’Ouvrages Orientaux, Seconde série. Paris: Imprimerie Nationale.); Lal 16 ( 1958b. Lalita-vistaraḥ (Buddhist Sanskrit Texts No. 1). Darbhanga: Mithila Institute. / LEFMANN, S. 1902. Lalita Vistara: Leben und Lehre des Çakya-Buddha, Textausgabe mit Varianten-, Metren- und Wörterverzeichnis. Halle: Verlag der Buchhandlung des Waisenhauses.); Sbv ( 1977. The Gilgit manuscript of the Saṅghabhedavastu: Being the 17th and last section of the Vinaya of the Mūlasarvāstivādin, Part I ( = Serie Orientale Roma, XLIX, 1). Roma: Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente.); SF 259 ( 1957d. Das Catuṣpariṣatsūtra, eine Kanonische Lehrschrift über die Begründung der Buddhistischen Gemeinde. Text in Sanskrit und Tibetisch, verglichen mit dem Pali nebst einer Übersetzung der chinesischen Entsprechung im Vinaya der Mūlasarvāstivādins. Auf Grund von Turfan-Handschriten herausgegeben und bearbeitet. Teil II. Berlin: Akademie-Verlag = Abhandlungen der Deutschen Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin, Klasse für Sprachen, Literatur und Kunst, 1956/1.). Retrieved from
- ^ Parallels for MN 36 Mahāsaccaka (MN i 237): EA 31.8 (T ii 670c02); T 757.2 (T xvii 598a04–599c29); MN 85 (MN ii 91); MN 100 (MN ii 209); MN 85 (MN ii 91); SHT 931, 997A; SF 5 (https://suttacentral.net/mn36 on 20/01/2016. 1989. Three New Fragments of the Bodharājakumārasūtra from Eastern Turkestan. Journal of the American Oriental Society 109: 509–512.); SF 64 ( 1991. Untersuchungen zum Dīrghāgama der Sarvāstivādins. Habilitationsschrift. Göttingen: Georg-August-Universität.); Mvu ( 1965. Mahāvastu Avadāna, vol. 2 (Calcutta Sanskrit College Research Series). Calcutta: Sanskrit College. / SENART, Emile 1890. Le Mahāvastu (vol 2): Texte sanscrit publié pour la première fois et accompagné d’introductions et d’un commentaire (Société Asiatique, Collection d’Ouvrages Orientaux, Seconde série. Paris: Imprimerie Nationale.); Divy 27 ( 1999. Divyāvadāna (Buddhist Sanskrit Texts No.20). Darbhanga: Mithila Institute. / COWELL, E. B. et al. 1886. The Divyāvadāna, a Collection of Early Buddhist Legends. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.); SF 287 ( 2006. The Sanskrit Fragments Or. 15003 in the Hoernle Collection. Buddhist Manuscripts from Central Asia, The British Library Sanskrit Fragments, S. Karashima et al. (ed.), Tokyo: Soka University, vol. 1 pp 65–153.); Lal 17 & Lal 22 ( 1958b. Lalita-vistaraḥ (Buddhist Sanskrit Texts No. 1). Darbhanga: Mithila Institute. / LEFMANN, S. 1902. Lalita Vistara: Leben und Lehre des Çakya-Buddha, Textausgabe mit Varianten-, Metren- und Wörterverzeichnis. Halle: Verlag der Buchhandlung des Waisenhauses.); Sbv ( 1977. The Gilgit manuscript of the Saṅghabhedavastu: Being the 17th and last section of the Vinaya of the Mūlasarvāstivādin, Part I ( = Serie Orientale Roma, XLIX, 1). Roma: Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente.). Retrieved from
- ^ Parallels for MN 4 Bhayabherava (MN i 16): EA 31.1 (T ii 665b17); SHT 164c+g, 32.33–41, 165.15–16, 500.4, 2401. Retrieved from https://suttacentral.net/mn4 on 20/01/2016.
- ^ Parallels for MN 19 Dvedhāvitakka (MN i 114): MA 102 (T i 589a11). Retrieved from https://suttacentral.net/mn19 on 20/01/2016.
- ^ Parallels for MN 128 Upakkilesa (MN iii 152): MA 72 (T i 532c09); EA 24.8 (T ii 626b11); Zh Mi Kd 10B (T xxii 159a02); Zh Mg Bu Vb Pc 4 (T xxii 335a01); T 212.15 (T iv 693b21); Zh Dg Kd 9 (T xxii 880b01); Ja 371 (Ja iii 211); Ja 428 (Ja iii 488); Pi Tv Kd 10.15 (Vin i 342); SHT 1384; SF 13 (https://suttacentral.net/mn128 on 20/01/2016. 1984a (part 1), 1984b (part 2). Gilgit Manuscripts ( = Bibliotheca Indo-Buddhica No. 16, No. 17). Delhi: Sri Satguru, vol. 3.). Retrieved from
- ^ Parallels for SF 259 Catuṣpariṣat (Waldschmidt 1957d: 108–140): MA 204 (T i 775c07); MN 26 (MN i 160); SHT 1332, 1714, 1493; Sbv (https://suttacentral.net/sf259 on 20/01/2016. 1977. The Gilgit manuscript of the Saṅghabhedavastu: Being the 17th and last section of the Vinaya of the Mūlasarvāstivādin, Part I ( = Serie Orientale Roma, XLIX, 1). Roma: Istituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente.); Mvu ( 1965. Mahāvastu Avadāna, vol. 2 (Calcutta Sanskrit College Research Series). Calcutta: Sanskrit College. / SENART, Emile 1890. Le Mahāvastu (vol 2): Texte sanscrit publié pour la première fois et accompagné d’introductions et d’un commentaire (Société Asiatique, Collection d’Ouvrages Orientaux, Seconde série. Paris: Imprimerie Nationale.); Lal 16 ( 1958b. Lalita-vistaraḥ (Buddhist Sanskrit Texts No. 1). Darbhanga: Mithila Institute. / LEFMANN, S. 1902. Lalita Vistara: Leben und Lehre des Çakya-Buddha, Textausgabe mit Varianten-, Metren- und Wörterverzeichnis. Halle: Verlag der Buchhandlung des Waisenhauses.). Retrieved from
- ^ a b Parallels for Pi Tv Kd 1 Mahākhandhaka (Vin i 1–Vin i 100):. Retrieved from https://suttacentral.net/pi-tv-kd1 on 20/01/2016.
- ^ Parallels for Pi Tv Kd 17 Saṃghabhedakakkhandhaka (Vin ii 180–Vin ii 206):. Retrieved from https://suttacentral.net/pi-tv-kd17 on 20/01/2016.
- ^ Parallels for Pi Tv Kd 20 Bhikkhunikkhandhaka (Vin ii 253–Vin ii 283):. Retrieved from https://suttacentral.net/pi-tv-kd20 on 20/01/2016.
- ^ Parallels for DN 16 Mahāparinibbāna (DN ii 72): T 5 (T i 160b05); T 7 (T i 191b02); T 6 (T i 176a02); T 1451.35 (T xxiv 382b29–393a01, 394b14–402c04); DA 2 (T i 011a07); SN 47.9 (SN v 152); SN 51.10 (SN v 258); AN 4.180 (AN ii 167); AN 4.76 (AN ii 79); AN 7.22–27 (AN iv 17); AN 8.70 (AN iv 308); AN 8.65 (AN iv 305); AN 8.66 (AN iv 306); AN 8.68–70 (AN iv 307); AN 8.69 (AN iv 307); Ud 6.1 (Ud 62); Ud 8.5 (Ud 81); Ud 8.6 (Ud 85); SHT 370, 402, 425, 427, 431, 498, 513, 585, 587, 588, 592, 618, 619, 684, 694, 788, 789 (?), 790, 791, 399, 685.119R–120, 967, 1002, 412.62, 1024, 1271, 1508, 1512, 1650, 2305, 2491, 2508, 2616, 2976, also cf. ix p. 394ff; Avs 40 (https://suttacentral.net/dn16 on 20/01/2016. 1958a. Avadāna-śataka (Buddhist Sanskrit Texts No. 19). Darbhanga: Mithila Institute. / SPEYER, J. S. 1970ab (1906). Avadānaśataka: A Century of Edifying Tales Belonging to the Hīnayāna, vols 1 & 2 (Bibliotheca Buddhica III). Osnabrück: Biblio Verlag.); SF 289 ( 2006. The Sanskrit Fragments Or. 15003 in the Hoernle Collection. Buddhist Manuscripts from Central Asia, The British Library Sanskrit Fragments, S. Karashima et al. (ed.), Tokyo: Soka University, vol. 1 pp 65–153.); SF 54 ( 1991. Untersuchungen zum Dīrghāgama der Sarvāstivādins. Habilitationsschrift. Göttingen: Georg-August-Universität.); Avs 100 ( 1958a. Avadāna-śataka (Buddhist Sanskrit Texts No. 19). Darbhanga: Mithila Institute. / SPEYER, J. S. 1970ab (1906). Avadānaśataka: A Century of Edifying Tales Belonging to the Hīnayāna, vols 1 & 2 (Bibliotheca Buddhica III). Osnabrück: Biblio Verlag.); SF 245 ( 1950–1951. Das Mahāparinirvāṇasūtra: Text in Sanskrit und Tibetisch, verglichen mit dem Pali nebst einer Übersetzung der chinesischen Entsprechung im Vinaya der Mūlasarvāstivādins, auf Grund von Turfan-handschriften. Teil I-III. Abhandlungen der Deutschen Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin, Klasse für Sprachen, Literatur und Kunst, 1949/1, 1950/2, 1950/3. Berlin: Akademie-Verlag.); SF 268 ( 1961a. Der Buddha preist die Verehrungswürdigkeit seiner Reliquien. Nachrichten der Akademie der Wissenschaften in Göttingen, Philologisch-Historische Klasse 1961.11: 375–385. Reprinted 1967 in (ed.), Ernst Waldschmidt, Von Ceylon bis Turfan, Schriften zur Geschichte, Literatur, Religion und Kunst des indischen Kulturraumes. Festgabe zum 70. Geburtstag am 15. Juli 1967, Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 417–427.); SF 285 ( 2002. Fragments of the Mahāparinirvāṇasūtra. In BRAARVIG, Jens (ed.) Buddhist Manuscripts vol II ( = Manuscripts in the Schøyen Collection III): 17–24. Oslo: Hermes Publishing.); SF 272 ( 1968a. Drei Fragmente buddhistischer Sūtras aus den Turfan-handschriften. Nachrichten der Akademie der Wissenschaften in Göttingen, Philologisch-Historische Klasse 1968.1, 3–26. Reprinted 1989 in & (editors), Ernst Waldschmidt, Ausgewählte kleine Schriften, Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag, 232–255.); Gandh frgm ( & 2000. Kharoṣṭhī Fragments of a Gāndhārī Version of the Mahāparinirvāṇasūtra. In BRAARVIG, Jens (ed). Buddhist Manuscripts vol. I ( = Manuscripts in the Schøyen Collection 1), Oslo: Hermes Publishing, 242–284.). Retrieved from
- ISBN 9781921842030
- ^ One early example is the Pacetana Sutta, AN 3.15.
- ^ Eg. Parallels for DN 17 Mahāsudassana (DN ii 169): MA 68 (T i 515b03); T 6 (T i 176a02); T 7 (T i 191b02); T 5 (T i 160b05); T 1451.37 (T xxiv 393a01–394b13); DA 2 (T i 011a07); SF 102 (https://suttacentral.net/dn17 on 20/01/2016. 1988. The Mahāsudarśanāvadāna and the Mahāsudarśanasūtra ( = Bibliotheca Indo-Buddhica no. 47). Delhi: Sri Satguru Publications.); SF 245.34.1–SF 245.34.169 ( 1950–1951. Das Mahāparinirvāṇasūtra: Text in Sanskrit und Tibetisch, verglichen mit dem Pali nebst einer Übersetzung der chinesischen Entsprechung im Vinaya der Mūlasarvāstivādins, auf Grund von Turfan-handschriften. Teil I-III. Abhandlungen der Deutschen Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin, Klasse für Sprachen, Literatur und Kunst, 1949/1, 1950/2, 1950/3. Berlin: Akademie-Verlag.). Retrieved from
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- ^ Powers, John, A Bull of a Man: Images of Masculinity, Sex, and the Body in Indian Buddhism, 2012, p. 24-25.
- ^ Sutta Nipāta 3.2
- ^ Anålayo, "The Buddha and Omniscience", Indian International Journal of Buddhist Studies, 2006, vol. 7 pp. 1–20.
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- ^ Ronald M. Davidson. Indian Esoteric Buddhism: A Social History of the Tantric Movement, (New York: Columbia University Press, 2002): 242 – 245.
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- ISBN 0-941532-89-5.
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- ^ Michael Fuss, Buddhavacana and Dei Verbum: A Phenomenological and Theological Comparison of Scriptural Inspiration in the Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Sūtra and in the Christian Tradition, BRILL, 1991, p. 184.
- ^ Rev. Sengpan Pannyawamsa, Recital of the Tham Vessantara Jātaka: a social-cultural phenomenon in Kengtung, Eastern Shan State, Myanmar, Institute of Pali and Buddhist Studies, (University of Kelaniya), Sri Lanka
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- ^ Kloetzli, Randy, Buddhist Cosmology: From Single World System to Pure Land : Science and Theology in the Images of Motion and Light, Motilal Banarsidass, 1983, p. 75.
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- ^ Jamgon Kongtrul; Kalu Rinpoche translation group, The Treasury of Knowledge: Book One: Myriad Worlds, Shambhala Publications, 2003, p. 46.
- ^ Harvey, Peter (2000), An Introduction to Buddhist Ethics Foundations, Values and Issues., New York: Cambridge University Press, p. 114-115.
- ^ Martine Batchelor, Kerry Brown (editors), Buddhism and Ecology, 1994, p. 23-24.
- ^ Swearer, Donald K. Buddhist World of Southeast Asia, The: Second Edition, SUNY Press, 2012, p. 72-73.
- ^ Swearer, Donald K. Buddhist World of Southeast Asia, The: Second Edition, SUNY Press, 2012, p. 84.
- ^ Winternitz, Moriz, A History of Indian Literature: Buddhist literature and Jaina literature, Motilal Banarsidass, 1996, p. 151.
- ^ "Making merit at Bun Phawet : TTR Weekly". Archived from the original on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2018-12-07.
- ^ "King Bhumibol and King Janak- Nepali Times". Archive.nepalitimes.com.
- ^ Powers, John, A Bull of a Man: Images of Masculinity, Sex, and the Body in Indian Buddhism, 2012, p. 1.
- ^ Powers, John, A Bull of a Man: Images of Masculinity, Sex, and the Body in Indian Buddhism, 2012, p. 26.
- ^ Powers, John, A Bull of a Man: Images of Masculinity, Sex, and the Body in Indian Buddhism, 2012, p. 32-33.
- ^ Powers, John, A Bull of a Man: Images of Masculinity, Sex, and the Body in Indian Buddhism, 2012, p. 34.
- ^ Powers, John, A Bull of a Man: Images of Masculinity, Sex, and the Body in Indian Buddhism, 2012, p. 46.
- ^ Powers, John, A Bull of a Man: Images of Masculinity, Sex, and the Body in Indian Buddhism, 2012, p. 79.
- ^ Powers, John, A Bull of a Man: Images of Masculinity, Sex, and the Body in Indian Buddhism, 2012, p. 5, 19.
- ^ Powers, John, A Bull of a Man: Images of Masculinity, Sex, and the Body in Indian Buddhism, 2012, p. 9.
- ^ Powers, John, A Bull of a Man: Images of Masculinity, Sex, and the Body in Indian Buddhism, 2012, p. 22.
- ^ Powers, John, A Bull of a Man: Images of Masculinity, Sex, and the Body in Indian Buddhism, 2012, p. 25.
- ^ Swearer, Donald K. Buddhist World of Southeast Asia, The: Second Edition, SUNY Press, 2012, p. 1.
- ^ Powers, John, A Bull of a Man: Images of Masculinity, Sex, and the Body in Indian Buddhism, 2012, p. 132.
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- ISBN 9781921842030
- ^ Winternitz, Moriz, A History of Indian Literature: Buddhist literature and Jaina literature, Motilal Banarsidass, 1996, p. 126.
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- ^ Beer, Robert, The Handbook of Tibetan Buddhist Symbols, p. 62-63.
- ^ Harvey, Peter (2013), An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History and Practices (2nd ed.), Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press, p. 36-8.
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- ^ Swearer, Donald K. Buddhist World of Southeast Asia, The: Second Edition, SUNY Press, 2012, p. 55-56.
- ^ Swearer, Donald K. Buddhist World of Southeast Asia, The: Second Edition, SUNY Press, 2012, p. 30.
- ^ McMahan, David L. The Making of Buddhist Modernism, p. 65.
- ISBN 9781921842030
- ^ a b Campbell, Joseph, The hero with a thousand faces, Princeton university press, Commemorative edition 2004, p. 28.
- ^ Campbell, Joseph, The hero with a thousand faces, Princeton university press, Commemorative edition 2004, p. 35.
- ^ "The First Syllable". archive.nytimes.com. Retrieved 8 December 2018.
- ^ Leeming, David Adams, Mythology: The Voyage of the Hero, Oxford University Press, May 28, 1998, p. 97.
- ^ Swearer, Donald K. Buddhist World of Southeast Asia, The: Second Edition, SUNY Press, 2012, p. 12.