DOCSLIB.ORG

GIPE-004908-Contents.Pdf

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
GIPE-004908-Contents.Pdf · l_·,-t e_'f(X\j h~s1:o"{J of Sctn~k"(:t C-\ Y'\c\ B \.A J J 'n·; ~ 'rr'> OFFERED AS A TRIBUTE OF APPRECIATION TO Sir RABINDRANATH TAGORE THE POET SCHOLAR OF AWAKENING oRiENT. CONTENTS. FOREWORD. PAGEt. Introductory ... - 1 CHAPTER I. The two schools of Buddhism 8 Essence of Mahayana .•• ... 5 CHAPTER II. Sanskrit Buddhist canon 7 CHAPTER III. Mahavastu ... .... 11 Importance of Mahavastu ' IS Its Jatakas 14 Mabavastu and Puranos 15 More Mahayana affinities ... 17 Antiquity of Mabavastu ... ... 17 CHAPTER IV. Lalitavistara ... 19 Extravagant imagery ... 20 Conception and Birth of Buddha 20 Sin of unbelief 22 Pali and Sanskrit go back to an older source ... 28 The Buddha at school ... ... 28 Acts of the Buddha ... ... .. 24 Component elements of Lalitnvistara H Translation into Chinese and Tibetan . 25 Relation to Buddhist art ... - ... !6 No image in primitive Uuddbism ... ... ~6 General estimate of Lalitnvistara ... .... ... ... 27 ii. CHAPTER V. PAGil. Ashvaghosha and his school ... ... .. 28 Life of Ashvaghosha ... 29 Ashvagbosha's great work: the Buddha's biography ... 80 Buddhacarita and Kalidasa 82 Statecraft, erotic art and warl'aie - 88 Love and religion ... s' Synthesis of Schools ... ... 88 Sutralankara . ... ... .. 86 Vajrasuci; polemic against caste ... 88 Other works of Asbvaghosha ... 89 Matriceta ... ... 40 Buddhist poet Shum 41 Master's selfiess love - 42 CHAPTER VI. Literature of A vadanas ... ... 45 Veneration for the Buddha ... 45 What is Avadana? ... ... 46 Tbe fixed model ... 48 Culture evidences ... ... 49 Maiden disciple: Story 28 ... ... 30 Extreme Compassion : Story 84 ... ... ... 50 Dismter.Sted pity : Story 36 ... ... 60 Princess devout : Story 54 61 Guerdon of service to Buddha: Story 100 ... 61 Avadanasbataka and cognate tales ... 62 Tibetan and Chinese analogies ... ... ... 62 Cbamcteristics ... 58 Anaiysis of components ... ... ... ..,- 54 Sbardulakama : love of the untouchable ... 65 Ashokavadana ... ... ... 67 Kunala: Queen mother and step son ... ·~· ... ... 38 Pali parallels ... ... ... ... ... ... 58 Rupavati's oacrifice •• ... ... ... ... u liL PAGB. Kalpadrumavadanamala ... ... •.•• ... 59 Unequivocal lllabayanism ... ... ... 60 Miscellaneous Avadanas ... ... ... 61 Avadanas in Chinese and Tibetan 62 CHAPTER VII. Mabayanasutras ... ... 6~ Worship of Books in Nepal ... ... s~ Saddharmapundarika ... ... ... 64 Parable of house on fire ... 67 Reclaimed son: a parable 68 Figurative language ... ... 69 Exaggeration of phrase and figure 69 In praise of Sutra 70 Persistence of Puranic infiueoce ' ... .... 71 Elements of diverse epochs ... ... 71 Age of the Sutra ... ... ... 78 Karandavyuha: its Theistic tendency ... 74, Potency of Avalokitesbvara ... 75 His peregrinations 76 Sukhavativyuba: the Land of Bliss 77 M•njushri ... ... 79 Kurunapundarika Sutra so LUlkavatrua ... ... 80 ~amadhiraja ... ... ... ... ... 82 Suvarnaprabhasa Sutra ... 82 Rashtrapala Sutra ... ... ... ... 88 Prevision of degeneracy ... ... 8~ CHAPTER VIII, Nagarjuna ... ... ... ... 89 Vindication of middle doctrine .... ... .. 90 Other works attributed to Nagarjuna ... ... ... .. 91 iY. PAGE. Nagarjuna's life ... ... ... ... 92 Aryadeva ... ... ... ... 9' Asanga ... ... ... ... 9' More philosopher than poet ... ... ... .. 95 Asanga- ... ... 96 Buddhist humour ... ... .. 98 Opponent of Samkhya philosophy ... 99 Candragomi ... ... 100 Shantideva ... ... ... ... .. 100 Core of doctrine ... 101 Importance of the hook ... 102 Other virtues ... ... ... 108 Quotations from previoUS-works ... lOB Moral ideal ... 105 Books contrasted ... .... 105 The aspinmfs obligations 107 Self and other : the difference .. ... 107 Psychic identity lOS Philosophical doubt ... ... 108 Reaction 109 CHAPTER IX. Stotras, Dharanis, Tantras 110 Hymns : Buddhist and Hindu ... ltO Tara and her poet devotees ... ... ... ll1 Dharanis or Necromantic fonnulre 112 Sanskrit Dharanis in Japan ... ... .. 116 Antiquity of Dharanis 117 The Adikarmapradipa ... ... 118 Varieties of Tantras : Yogi's training ... ... 118 Degrading instructions ... ... 113 Supreme Yogiship ... ... ... 120 The authorship ... ... ... 121 Printed Tantra literature ... ... 122 Christianity and Buddhism ... ... ... 128 v. CHAPTER. X. PAGL Are Similarities accidental ? ... ... ••• 128 Seydel's hypothesis ... ... .. 124 " LClllns " from Buddhism ... ... ... 124 American scholar's researches ... ... 125 Parallel texts ... - ... 12& Legends ... ... 126 Miracles 127 Resurrection and Nirvana ... ... ... 128 Jlesults of comparison ... ... ... 129 Vitality of Suddhism 181 CHAPTER XI. Ancient Indian National Literature ... ... ISS Importance and extent of Indian literature ... ... 1S3 Peculiar traits of Indian genius ... 134 Aryan unity of speech ... ... .. ... 186 Impact of Indian genius on German thought ... ... 138 CHAPTER XII.. Beginnings of Indian Studies in Europe ... ... 141 Great Britain and Brahmanic learning 142 Early English scholars us Jones and Colebrooke ... "' 14S Sanskrit learning and Germany ... U7 Dara Sbukoh's Persian Upanishad ... ... 150 Seginnings of Vedic studies ... 153 Leader of research in three great religions ... 15ll Christian Lassen ... 158 The Great Dictionary ... ... 158 Histories of literature ... ... 154. Catalogues of Mss. ... '" ... ... 154, Encyclopredia of Sanskrit knowledge ... ... 155' CHAPTER XIU. The Chronology of Indian Literature ... ... .. 156 A few dated events ... ... ... ... ... 167 • . "' PAGB. Extr&·Indian helps ... ... ... ... 158 Indian's sense of history - ... ... ... ... 160 APPENDIX L Constitution of the Buddhist Canon, by Sylvain Levi ... 162 APPENDIX n. Sutralankara ... ... ... ... ... .. .. 177 Prefatory ... ... ... .. 177 The outraged Pandit ... ... ... ... .. 178 Buddhist and Brahmanic controversy ... 179 Chinese Aid ... ... ... ... ... 180 Japanese co-operation ... ... 181 In seareb of treasure ... ... ... 188 Life of Ashvaghosba. ... ... ... .. 184 Chinese reverence for Sanskrit texts ... ' ... 185 Was he a King? ... ... 187 His method ... ... .... 189 Authorship established ... 191 The persorue of the Story Book ... 196 The gra.de of civilisation ... ... ... ... 198 The Arts ... ... ... ... 200 Vindication of a neglected school ... ... 201 Preserved in China though lost in India ... ... 202 His renowned predecessors ... ... ... 203 APPENDIX lll, Most ancient Buddhist records, by M. \'{intemitz 207 The Pali Canon ... ... ~· ... 207 APPENDIX IV. I B11ddhist Drama, by M, Wintemitz ... ... ... ... 219 'Vii. APPENDIX V. Treasure-Trove of Ancient Literatures 224 The discovery-Scientific expeditions ... ••• 224: New old toDgUes-Resurrection or dead languages-tho last creed or lllanes-Pahlavi the religious and secular idiom of medi:eval Iran 280 EnormoUs Buddhist Sanskrit literature in original lind · vernacular versions-Great discovery or the century; Pali not the mother tongue or Buddhism ; . Pa1i represents translation from perished vernacular • 285 The hiatus in classical Sanskrit supplied-Buddhist poetry or drama in Sanskrit-Mairiceta and Ashvaghosha the forerunners or Kalidasa-Authenticity and verification or Tibetan ~res 240 APPENDIX VI. The Inscription of Ara. By Prof. H. Uders, Ph.D~ (Berlin) ·••• ••• U5 Postscript 255 APPENDIX VII. The Sources or the Divyavadana. Chinese translation or Sanskrit-Buddhi•t Literature 257 How Chinese helps Sanskrit .•• 260 APPENDIX VIII. Inscribed frescos of Turfan, by Ed. Huber ... 264 A Bharhut Sculpture ... ... ••• ••• 269 King Kanishka and the Mula Sarvastivadis ... .•• 27, ' APPENDIX IX. The Medical Science of the Buddhists ••• ... 276 APPENDIX X. Tbe Abbidharma Kosba Vyakhya ...• APPENDIX XI. Reference to Buddhism in Brahmanical and Jain "Writings. 287 APPENDIX XIL Notes on the Divyawdan& ... 293 Notes ••• ... 8111 lndex ••• ... SH ABBREVIATIONS. BEFEO-Bull~tin de !'Ecole fran~aise d'Extreme Orient. Bib!. Jnd-Bibliotbeca Indica. Ep. Jnd.-Epigrapbia Indica. ERE-Encrclopredia of Religion and Ethics, edited by James Hastings, Edinburgh. GGA-Gottinger Gelebrte Anzeigen. Grundriss-Grundriss der indo-arischen Philologie und Altertums­ kunde, founded by G. Bahler, continued by F. Kielhom, edited by H. Loders and IV ackemage~ Strassburg, Tro bner. · Ind. Ant-Indian Antiquary (Bombay). JA-Joumal Asiatique. JAOS-Joumal of the American Oriental Society. JASB-Joumal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. ~RAS-Joum&l of the Bombay Brnncb of the Royal Asiatic Society. · • JRAS-Journal of the P&li Text Scciety. NGGW-Nachrichten von der K. Gesellschaft der Wissenscbaften zu GOttingen. OC-Orientalistenkongresse (Verbandlungen, Transactions. Acts.) .. PTS-P&Ii Text Society. RHR-Revue de l'histoire des Religions, Paris. SBA-Sitzungsberichte der Berliner Akademie der Wissenschaften. SBE-Sacred Books of the East, edited by F. Max Muller. SIV A-Sitzungsberichte der Wiener Akademie der Wissenschaften, WZKM-Wiener Zeitschrift fur die Kunde des Morgenlandes. ZDMG-Zeitscbrift der Deutcben Morgenlllndischen Gesellscbaft. FOREWORD. The works with which our standard literary histories of Sanskrit Iiteratnrc deal nrc almost exclusively conpned to Brahmanic texts. Weber, Barth and Hopkins and after them even Barnett and Keath have scarcely assigned its due place in the history of Sanskrit literatnre to the contribution made by the Buddhist authors. The brilliant and outstanding exception in English is still the Renaissance chapter of l11dia: ll'llat can it teac/• us by Max Mnllcr. That there was a vast literature embodied in Sanskrit by Buddhist thinkers is attested even by the spnrec references in classical Sans­ . krit to them
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Buddhism from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia Jump To: Navigation, Search
    Buddhism From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search A statue of Gautama Buddha in Bodhgaya, India. Bodhgaya is traditionally considered the place of his awakening[1] Part of a series on Buddhism Outline · Portal History Timeline · Councils Gautama Buddha Disciples Later Buddhists Dharma or Concepts Four Noble Truths Dependent Origination Impermanence Suffering · Middle Way Non-self · Emptiness Five Aggregates Karma · Rebirth Samsara · Cosmology Practices Three Jewels Precepts · Perfections Meditation · Wisdom Noble Eightfold Path Wings to Awakening Monasticism · Laity Nirvāṇa Four Stages · Arhat Buddha · Bodhisattva Schools · Canons Theravāda · Pali Mahāyāna · Chinese Vajrayāna · Tibetan Countries and Regions Related topics Comparative studies Cultural elements Criticism v • d • e Buddhism (Pali/Sanskrit: बौद धमर Buddh Dharma) is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha (Pāli/Sanskrit "the awakened one"). The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE.[2] He is recognized by adherents as an awakened teacher who shared his insights to help sentient beings end suffering (or dukkha), achieve nirvana, and escape what is seen as a cycle of suffering and rebirth. Two major branches of Buddhism are recognized: Theravada ("The School of the Elders") and Mahayana ("The Great Vehicle"). Theravada—the oldest surviving branch—has a widespread following in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, and Mahayana is found throughout East Asia and includes the traditions of Pure Land, Zen, Nichiren Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism, Shingon, Tendai and Shinnyo-en. In some classifications Vajrayana, a subcategory of Mahayana, is recognized as a third branch.
    [Show full text]
  • HT-101 History.Pdf
    Directorate of Distance Education UNIVERSITY OF JAMMU JAMMU SELF LEARNING MATERIAL B. A. SEMESTER - I SUBJECT : HISTORY Units I-IV COURSE No. : HT-101 Lesson No. 1-19 Stazin Shakya Course Co-ordinator http:/www.distanceeducation.in Printed and published on behalf of the Directorate of Distance Education, University of Jammu, Jammu by the Director, DDE, University of Jammu, Jammu ANCIENT INDIA COURSE No. : HT - 101 Course Contributors : Content Editing and Proof Reading : Dr. Hina S. Abrol Dr. Hina S. Abrol Prof. Neelu Gupta Mr. Kamal Kishore Ms. Jagmeet Kour c Directorate of Distance Education, University of Jammu, Jammu, 2019 • All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced in any form, by mimeograph or any other means, without permission in writing from the DDE, University of Jammu. • The script writer shall be responsible for the lesson/script submitted to the DDE and any plagiarism shall be his/her entire responsibility. Printed at :- Pathania Printers /19/ SYLLABUS B.A. Semester - I Course No. : HT - 101 TITLE : ANCIENT INDIA Unit-I i. Survey of literature - Vedas to Upanishads. ii. Social Life in Early & Later Vedic Age. iii. Economic Life in Early & Later Vedic Age. iv. Religious Life in Early & Later Vedic Age. Unii-II i. Life and Teachings of Mahavira. ii. Development of Jainism after Mahavira. iii. Life and Teachings of Buddha. iv. Development of Buddhism : Four Buddhist Councils and Mahayana Sect. Unit-III i. Origin and Sources of Mauryas. ii. Administration of Mauryas. iii. Kalinga War and Policy of Dhamma Vijaya of Ashoka. iv. Causes of Downfall of the Mauryas.
    [Show full text]
  • Ashoka-Emperor.Pdf
    Newsletter Archives www.dollsofindia.com Ashoka the Great A Journey from Monarch to Monk Copyright © 2015, DollsofIndia India is a land of great spirituality – a land which has seen much spiritual upheaval; where mighty kings and emperors suddenly attained a realized state; gave up all the wealth, position and power they possessed; and followed the hallowed path to true freedom and liberation. Such is the story of Emperor Ashoka Maurya, popularly referred to as Ashoka the Great. In this post, we bring you the tale of that great ruler. Introduction to Ashoka Ashoka Comic Book Ashoka Maurya ruled almost the entire Indian subcontinent from c. 268 to 232 BCE. Rapidly rising to fame, he went on to become one of India's greatest ever emperors. His realm spanned the Hindu Kush mountains in Afghanistan, to present-day Bangladesh in the East. Barring small regions in present-day Tamil Nadu and Kerala, his rule spread over all of India. Pataliputra in Magadha (present-day Bihar) was his capital – he also maintained provincial capitals at Takshashila and Ujjaini. In 260 BCE, King Ashoka waged a great war against Kalinga (present-day Odisha) and won the same. All his ancestors had failed at their previous attempts to conquer this region. The war brought on much destruction, which saddened him. He started looking for inner peace and finally embraced Buddhism. He later dedicated his entire life for the propagation of Buddhism, eventually coming to be known as one of the greatest ever philanthropists that the motherland gave birth to. Birth and Early Life Ashoka Maurya was born to the Emperor of the Mauryan dynasty, Bindusara and his wife Dharma or Dhamma.
    [Show full text]
  • The Mysterious Lonely Saint
    Why is the ‘Lonely Saint’ so lonely in Korea’s Buddhist Monasteries? Beatrix Mecsi Associate Professor ELTE University Budapest ABSTRACT In Joseon Korea where Buddhism was suppressed by the Confucian ideology, different iconographies appeared and a special syncretism can be observed. From the 17th century onwards we can trace a special figure, called the “Lonely Saint” (Dokseong) or Naban jonja, who is usually represented as a monk in landscape settings, full of symbols of immortality. His figure is usually enshrined together with shamanist and daoist images, thus making a special connection with those practices. The connection is especially strong with them, since he is also used in the same fashion, for real-world benefits and for long life. From these features we can identify this Buddhist saint with one of the foremost pupils of Shakyamuni Buddha, the Indian Pindola Bharadvaja, who is called Binduro in Korea, and Binzuru in Japan. This particular Arhat, Pindola Bharadvaja, was worshipped as a separate figure from the very early times (we have evidence that in China the cult of Pindola was existent by the 5th century CE.). Since he has associations with magic and longevity (he had to stay in Earth until the coming of the Future Buddha, Maitreya), he became surrounded by longevity symbols and placed together with Daoist and folk-deities in Korea. This form of enshrinement is unique to Korea. In Japan he is conceived as a healing saint and his figure is usually represented in a sculpted form outside the halls of Buddhist temples from the Edo period onwards. The common feature of these images in Korea and Japan that both are approachable and very human figures who are intermediators to the holier and more psychologically-distant Buddha-realms.
    [Show full text]
  • 10.1: Literature: Sanskrit, Pali, Prakrit and Tamil 10.2: Scientific and Technical Treatises Author: Dr
    Subject: History Lesson: Cultural development Course Developers : 10.1: Literature: Sanskrit, Pali, Prakrit and Tamil 10.2: Scientific and technical treatises Author: Dr. Shonaleeka Kaul Assistant Professor, Department of History, University of Delhi 10.3: Understanding Indian art: changing perspectives Author: Dr. Parul Pandya Dhar Associate Professor, Department of History, University of Delhi 10.4: Art and architecture: patronage 10.5: The Mauryan phase: monumental architecture, stone sculpture and terracottas Author: Dr. Snigdha Singh Associate Professor, Miranda House, University of Delhi 10.6: The early stupa: Sanchi,Bharhut, Amaravati and Nagarjunakonda 10.7: The rock-cut cave: Western Ghats, Udayagiri and Khandagiri 10.8: Sculpture: regional styles (up to c. 300 CE): Gandhara, Mathura and Amaravati Author: Dr. Devika Rangachari Post-Doctoral Fellow, Department of History, University of Delhi, and writer 10.9: Rock cut caves: architecture, sculpture, painting 10.10: Temple architecture, c. 300 - 750 CE 10.11: Ancient Indian sculpture, c. 300 - 700 CE Author: Sanjukta Datta Ph.D Scholar, Department of History, University of Delhi Language Editor: Veena Sachdev Production Editor: Ashutosh Kumar Assistant Professor, Lady Shri Ram College, University of Delhi NOTE: The dates in modern historical writings are generally given according to the Christian calendar. In recent years, the use of AD (Anno Domini) and BC (Before Christ) has to some extent been replaced by BCE (Before Common Era) and CE (Common Era). Both usages are acceptable,
    [Show full text]
  • Lay Ritual in the Early Buddhist Art of India
    lay ritual in the early in the early ritual lay B uddhist art of india art uddhist lay ritual in the early MoreBuddhist evidence against art the of aniconic india theory susan l. huntington M ore evidence against the aniconic theory the aniconic theory against ore evidence j. gonda lecture j. gonda j. gonda lecture J. Gonda Lecture 1 Lay Ritual in the Early Buddhist Art of India © Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences Some rights reserved. License, Attribution 3.0 Netherlands. To view a copy of this licence, visit:Usage http://www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/nl/ and distribution of this work is defined in the Creative Commons Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences T +31 (0)20 551 0700 FPO +31 Box (0)20 19121, 620 NL-1000 4941 GC Amsterdam [email protected] www.knaw.nl pdf available on www.knaw.nl Basic design edenspiekermann, Amsterdam Typesetting: Ellen Bouma, Alkmaar Illustration cover: Scene showing devotion to Buddhist relics in a stupa. Stupa 1 at Sanchi, India. Photo by Eric Huntington. ISBN: 978 90 6984 652 1 December 2012 2 J. Gonda Lecture susan l. huntington Lay Ritual in the Early Buddhist Art of India More Evidence Against the Aniconic Theory 3 Lay Ritual in the Early Buddhist Art of India Iacknowledgments am extremely grateful to the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Scien- ces, Amsterdam, to have been invited to give the Jan Gonda Lecture and for the generosity and kindness of the many individuals responsible for organizing the lecture and publication.
    [Show full text]
  • Imperial Conversion: When Empire Co-Opts Religion
    IMPERIAL CONVERSION: WHEN EMPIRE CO-OPTS RELIGION by JORDAN SHARP A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of the James & Carolyn McAfee School of Theology at Mercer University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF DIVINITY Atlanta, GA 2018 Copyright 2018 JORDAN ROBERT SHARP All Rights Reserved IMPERIAL CONVERSION: WHEN EMPIRE CO-OPTS RELIGION by JORDAN SHARP Approved: ___________________________________________ Date_______________________ Robert N. Nash, Ph.D. Faculty Advisor for Thesis ___________________________________________ Date _______________________ Nancy L. deClaisse-Walford, Ph.D. Faculty Advisor for the Academic Research Track ___________________________________________ Date________________________ Karen G. Massey, Ph.D. Associate Dean, Masters Degree Programs, James & Carolyn McAfee School of Theology ___________________________________________ Date________________________ Jeffrey G. Willetts, Ph.D. Dean, James & Carolyn McAfee School of Theology TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT ..................................................................................................................... vi CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND............................................................. 1 Thesis Question ...................................................................................................... 2 Historical Background ........................................................................................... 3 Methodology .........................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • |||GET||| the Buddha and the Terrorist 1St Edition
    THE BUDDHA AND THE TERRORIST 1ST EDITION DOWNLOAD FREE Satish Kumar | 9781565125209 | | | | | The Buddha and the Terrorist: The Story of Angulimala by Satish Kumar (Paperback, 1990) A real story Buddhists recount. One's obligation to the Teacher should be recompensed even by smashing bones to bits! Consequently, politicized Buddhism has contributed to ethnic tensions in the island between the majority Sinhalese Buddhist population and other minorities, especially the Tamils. Japanese Lotus Millennialism. Together with the Vijaya The Buddha and the Terrorist 1st editionit introduces the bases for the Sinhalese Buddhist belief that Lord Buddha designated the island of Sri Lanka as a repository for Theravada Buddhism. The story shows the hidden message of compassion and forgiveness. The central figure in the formation of modern Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism was the Buddhist revivalist Anagarika Dharmapala —who has been described as "the father of modern Sinhalese Buddhist nationalism". Dharmapala insisted that the Sinhalese were racially pure Aryans The Buddha and the Terrorist 1st edition by which he meant that they had racial ties with north Indians, Iranians, and Europeans. In a world where incomprehensible acts of violence occur every day, this story is a well-told and humble message about understanding and forgiveness. There are sins we have the power to forgive the sins against ourselvesand the sins we do not have the power to forgive, unless we are God the sins against others. Riots then spread throughout the country, killing hundreds of people. Only knowing the one version is somewhat of an advantage though, because I was able to read everything with a fresh mind and absorb the story as a first telling.
    [Show full text]
  • Component-I (A) – Personal Details
    Component-I (A) – Personal details: 1 Component-I (B) – Description of module: Subject Name Indian Culture Paper Name Outlines of Indian History Module Name/Title The Mauryan empire Module Id I C/ OIH/ 10 Pre-requisites Pre-Mauryan history of India/ Sources of Mauryan empire Objectives Dynastic history provides an essential frame work for political history, but not for understanding other aspects such as social, economic or religious history. Therefore this chapter will focus specially on the Mauryan empire referring other aspects briefly. Keywords Maurya/Chandragupta/Bindusara/Ashoka E-text (Quadrant-I): 1. Introduction: The rise of the Mauryas in the fourth century BCE opened a new chapter in the history of ancient India. It was during the Mauryan age that the whole of India was politically united for the first time under the rule of one king. Under the dynamic rule of the Mauryas the Magadha imperialism became a reality. The credit of achieving political and cultural unification of India and establishing an empire in the true sense of term invariably goes to them. Moreover, the history writing has also become clear from this period due to accuracy in chronology and sources. The Mauryans brought qualitative changes in Polity, administration, economy, society, and religion. 2. Major Sources for the Mauryan History: The sources for the Mauryan period are more varied than those of earlier period. The history of their rule is rendered comparatively reliable on account of evidence obtained from a variety of sources. The Buddhist and Jaina traditions, early Dharmasastra texts, and the material retrieved from archaeological excavations continue to remain important base of historical reconstruction.
    [Show full text]
  • Nature and Identity of the Texts in the Sacred Traditions of Buddhism
    Nature and Identity of the Texts in the Sacred Traditions of Buddhism Professor Augustine Pagolu South Asia Institute of Advanced Christian Studies, Bangalore. To establish the nature of religious texts in the Indian context is huge task as it has been the birthplace for many living religions, some of them having large number of undefined religious literature. India is barely 50% literate and most of them do not know what their Scriptures are, not to talk about their contents.[1]Why are we Christians interested in others' Scriptures? My interest in this subject began as I saw many Indian Christian theologians started using Hindu and Buddhist texts to explain certain NT passages and claiming that we might use our own religious traditions instead of the OT which is alien to both our contemporary times and native culture. It does make sense, but my immediate question was, in what sense are the Indian religions and culture similar to the NT? Ironically, Indian Buddhism openly rejects all forms of Hinduism even though they both have many things in common. Recently, in a mass conversion to Buddhism, thousands of Dalits openly denounced Hindu gods and Hinduism in all its forms. Therefore, what are our criteria to borrow or not to borrow ideas from other religions? On what basis one must compare one religion with the other and for what purpose? One thing is certain that every religion regards its own traditions as sacred. Perhaps this gives us the basis to examine any religious text in order to understand its contribution to the common good of the humanity.
    [Show full text]
  • Ashoka in Ancient India'
    H-Asia Trautmann on Lahiri, 'Ashoka in Ancient India' Review published on Thursday, May 26, 2016 Nayanjot Lahiri. Ashoka in Ancient India. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2015. 408 pp. $35.00 (cloth), ISBN 978-0-674-05777-7. Reviewed by Thomas Trautmann (University of Michigan)Published on H-Asia (May, 2016) Commissioned by Sumit Guha Ashoka Ashoka is one of the most remarkable figures of the ancient world. We are fortunate to have a new biography of him by the eminent historian and archaeologist of ancient India Professor Nayanjot Lahiri of, aptly, the newly created Ashoka University. Professor Lahiri aimed to write a biography of Ashoka for a general audience, and in doing so to relieve the grind of an administrative job at Delhi University, where she then was. She has succeeded admirably at the first and, I take it from the cheery good nature evident in the writing, at the second as well. Issues of evidence and interpretation, large and small, are elucidated clearly and briefly. The tone is light and the pace brisk. She engages the vexing problems and the scholarly debates they have provoked but she does not linger over them. She turns to other societies of the ancient world when comparison is illuminating. There is no academic throat-clearing and portentous speech meant to signal the writer’s authority. It is a pleasure to read. She succeeds so well in the accessibility and plain-speaking department that scholars may get the idea that it is intended for beginners. They would be making a mistake. The nub of the matter is Ashoka’s great change of heart, occasioned by his successful war of annexation against Kalinga, c.
    [Show full text]
  • Ashoka and the Making of Modern India” Held in Delhi, 5 - 7 August 2009, Cmde
    OccASIONAL PUBLicATION 13 AshokaIIC and the Making of Modern India by Romila Thapar INDIA INTERNATIONAL CENTRE 40, MAX MUELLER MARG, NEW DELHI-110 003 TEL.: 24619431 FAX: 24627751 OccASIONAL PUBLicATION 13 AshokaIIC and the Making of Modern India Ashoka – A Retrospective o speak of the king Ashoka of the Maurya dynasty in a retrospective vein is to race through virtually the span of Indian history. The question frequently Tasked is, why was this extraordinary ruler seemingly ignored in the past centuries and why has he become so prominent in recent times. Subsequent to his reign he is thought to have been gradually set aside. Only in recent times were his inscriptions deciphered, providing evidence of his ideas and actions. Nevertheless, we have to ask whether these were actually ignored through much of Indian history, or whether they were appropriated and if so, by whom, in what form and are we still appropriating them or ignoring them in any essential way ? The Many modern assessments have tended to view him largely as a question Buddhist. When placed in a historical context in more recent times the frequently man and his ideas come to be liberated from this single perspective. asked is, why was We need to see him both as a statesman in the context of inheriting this extraordinary and sustaining an empire in a particular historical period, and as a person with a strong commitment to changing society through what ruler seemingly might be called the propagation of social ethics. ignored in the past centuries, Empires of the ancient world are often thought to have operated and why has through the violence of conquest and the persuasion of ideology, the latter often intended to bring about a relative cultural uniformity.
    [Show full text]