Message biography of the Buddha

Gautama achieved enlightenment, uttered a lot of sermons and founded a community of students who were destined to grow and develop, turning into one of the world religions. We can say that we always deal only with tradition. Therefore, the researcher is faced with the task of establishing the meaning of each episode of the legend, to understand what influenced the appearance of this episode in tradition and how he was rethought in the future.

If we turn to the oldest Buddhist texts, we will not find the consistently stated life of Gautama Buddha. Vinia - the rules of conduct for Buddhist monks and nuns. But the point is not only this. The fact is that the genre of biography in ancient India itself was not. Large literary forms necessary for this kind of narrative were developed inside the community gradually.

Comparing the sources, we can trace the path from short texts dedicated to one small episode, to extensive hagiographic monuments covering the entire biography of the enlightened. In other words, the subject of study is not the history of the Buddha, but the history of the legend about it. Interview with a lecturer - tell us why you began to deal with the Buddha?

What was most affected by you when choosing? In addition, not one of these monuments has been translated into Russian. Many Buddhist ideas in the twentieth century entered European culture, influenced literature and philosophy. But Buddhist philology is a long way that should begin with the initial Sanskrit course. Then you need to get acquainted with Pali - the language of the canon of southern Buddhism.

Then, having learned to read simple texts in these languages, one should proceed to more complex, etc. For ancient cultures, such a view seems quite natural and the only possible. But for me, as for many of my colleagues, the problem is that there are too many interesting topics that I would like to do and that you take up, even realizing that time is not enough for everything. Where to learn more John Strong.

Brief biography ”well -written work of a modern American Buddhist and religious scholar John Strong is designed for a wide reader who does not have special knowledge, and can serve as the first book to get acquainted with Buddhist hagiography. Edward Condze. In addition, he is an outstanding translator, and readers who speak English, both Buddhists and those interested in Buddhism, get acquainted with Buddhist texts precisely in his translation.

Arya Shura. Each story of the collection is dedicated to one of the countless exploits of the bodhisat, who sacrifices itself for living creatures. Without acquaintance with these subjects, it is impossible to understand the Buddhist fine art, in many ways inspired by the same legends that Arya Shura outlined. The exhibition will present unique publications of the Buddhist canon from the fund of the price of the eastern literature of the RSL.

The highest means of liberation of the spirit. Illustration: Buddha Shakyamuni. Watercolor of an unknown Tibetan artist.