Paper 2306
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Foundations of Buddhism
Syllabus
Description
The paper deals with the main doctrines and practices of mainstream (pre-Mahāyāna) Buddhism, as reflected by the surviving literature of the various schools. Tutorials will enable students to further discuss and analyse the main topics dealt with during the course, thus representing an ideal complement to the lectures. It is hoped that in this way the students will be able to develop a critical perspective on the subject of the paper and the relevant scholarship.
Aims
To introduce students to the ideas of early Buddhism in a way which stimulates thought and relates to any knowledge they may already have of other religions.
Objectives
Students who have studied this paper will:
a) Have a basic knowledge of mainstream Buddhism and its doctrines.
b) Have a basic knowledge of the major trends in modern scholarship on the subject.
c) Have written a series of coherent essays on topics central to the subject.
Delivery
8 lectures; 8 tutorials.
Assessment
is by one three-hour written examination in TT of the second year of the Honour School.
Reading list
(II = Indian Institute Library; Bod = Bodleian)
Reference works and bibliographies
Robert Buswell, Donald Lopez: The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, Princeton University Press, Princeton, Oxford, 2014.
The Stanford Enclyclopedia of Philosophy (plato.stanford.edu) contains various detailed entries on Buddhist concepts and schools.
Oxford Bibliographies Online (http://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/obo/page/buddhism) contains a substantial list of annotated bibliographies on different Buddhist topics.
Hajime Nakamura: Indian Buddhism: A Survey with Bibliographical Notes, Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi, 1997.
Nyanatiloka: Buddhist Dictionary. Manual of Buddhist Terms and Doctrines, Frewin & Co, Colombo, 1956.
Silk, Jonathan A. (ed.), Brill's Encyclopedia of Buddhism (vol. 1), Brill, Leiden, 2015.
Brief introductions
Carrithers, Michael: The Buddha. Oxford OUP, 1983. (Bod L Camera S Th B 49.9 Res)
Lowenstein, Tom: The Vision of the Buddha. London: Macmillan in association with Duncan Baird, 1996. (II Budd A217)
Rahula, Walpola: What the Buddha Taught. Bedford: Gordon Fraser, 1967 (Includes a few texts) (II Budd B 91)
Longer introductions and historical works
Bechert, Heinz and Richard Gombrich (ed.) The World of Buddhism. London: Thames & Hudson, 1984. (II Budd C 69)
Gethin, Rupert: The Foundations of Buddhism. Oxford, OUP, 1998. (II Buddh A 207)
Harvey, Peter: An Introduction to Buddhism: Teachings, History and Practices. Cambridge: University Press, 1990. (II Budd B 252)
Lamotte, Etienne: Histoire du bouddhisme indien. Louvain, 1958. (Tr. Sara Webb-Boin (1988): History of Indian Buddhism Louvain-la-Neuve: Universite Catholique.) (II Budd C 49a)
Williams, Paul and Anthony Tribe: Buddhist thought: a complete introduction to the Indian tradition. London: Routledge, 2000. (II Budd A213)
Key texts
Sangharakshita: The Eternal Legacy: An Introduction to the Canonical Literature of Buddhism, Tharpa Publications, London, 1985.
Martin Perenchio (ed.): Guide to the Tripiṭaka: Introduction to the Buddhist Canon, White Lotus Co, Bangkok, 1993.
Bhikkhu Bodhi: A Systematic Study of the Majjhima Nikāya, a series of audio lectures available at http://bodhimonastery.org/a-systematic-study-of-the-majjhima-nikaya.html
Rupert Gethin (tr.), Sayings of the Buddha. New Translations from the Pali Nikayas OUP 2008
Bhikkhu Ñāṇamoli, Bhikkhu Bodhi: The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha, Wisdom, Boston, 2001.
Bhikkhu Ñyāṇamoli: The Path of Purification (Visuddhimagga), Shambala, Berkeley, London, 1976.
Beyer, Stephan (ed.): The Buddhist Experience: sources and interpretations. Encino, Ca.: Dickenson, 1974. (II Budd B 120)
Conze, Edward et al. (eds): Buddhist Texts Through the Ages. Oxford: B. Cassirer, 1954. (II 11 D 26)
Olson, Carl: Original Buddhist Sources, New Jersey London: Rutgers University Press, 2005
Philosophy and doctrine
Collins, Steven: Selfless Persons: imagery and thought in Theravada Buddhism. Cambridge: CUP, 1982. (II Budd B 186)
Collins, Steven: Nirvana: Concept, Imagery, Narrative. Cambridge, CUP, 2010
Peter Della Santina: The Tree of Enlightenment: An Introduction to the Major Traditions of Buddhism, Yin-Shun Foundation, 1999.
Gombrich, Richard: How Buddhism Began: the conditioned genesis of the early teaching. London: Athlone Press, 1996. (II Budd B 315)
Richard Gombrich: What the Buddha Thought. London: Equinox, 2009.
Hamilton, Sue: Early Buddhism: a new approach: the I of the Beholder. Richmond: Curzon, 2000.
Jurewicz, Joanna: "Playing with Fire: The Pratityasamutpada from the perspective of Vedic thought". Journal of the Pali Text Society, vol. 26: 77-103. 2000, (Obtainable from R. Gombrich)
Keown, Damien: The Nature of Buddhist Ethics. Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1992. (II Budd B 287)
Saddhatissa, Hammalawa: Buddhist Ethics: essence of Buddhism. London: Allen & Unwin, 1970. (II Budd B 100)
Harvey, Peter: An Introduction to Buddhist Ethics (2000) Cambridge: CUP
Meditation
Kate Crosby: Traditional Theravada Meditation and its Modern-Era Suppression, Buddha Dharma Centre, Hong Kong, 2013.
Sarah Shaw: Introduction to Buddhist Meditation, Routledge, London, 2009.
Sarah Shaw: Buddhist Meditation: An Anthology of Texts from the Pāli Canon, Routledge, London, 2006.
Eviatar Shulman: Rethinking the Buddha. Early Buddhist Philosophy as Meditative Perception, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2014.
Nyanaponika Thera: The Heart of Buddhist Meditation. London: Rider, 1962. (II 11 D 29)