THE LIFE OF THE BUDDHA IN ART AND NARRATIVE...The story of the life of the Buddha is one of the most...

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THE LIFE OF THE BUDDHA IN ART AND NARRATIVE

New York University SPRING 2020

Class Time: TUES/THURS 3:30 PM – 4:45 PM

Location: NYU TBD

Course Instructor: Dessi Vendova

Email: [email protected]

Office Hours: TBD, and by appointment.

Schist slab showing one of the Buddha's previous lives as King Sibi sacrificing

himself to save the life of a dove, Gandhara, 2nd-3rd C. AD.

The British Museum, London.

Course Description:

The story of the life of the Buddha is one of the most important religious narratives

with far-reaching influences which has remained important and well-known in all

Buddhist traditions across different regions for more than 2200 years. Together with

the biographical account of Buddha’s last existence as prince Siddhartha, the Buddhist

tradition also celebrates the stories of many of his prior existences recounted in

previous lives stories known as jātakas. Those biographical narratives are also at the

front and center and the main subject of the earliest Buddhist art and their importance

for the Buddhist visual and storytelling tradition and their lasting popularity even until

today are uncontested and without parallel.

This course will be especially interesting to both students interested in Buddhist art as

well as to students interested in the literature of Buddhist narratives and stories. The

materials discussed in the course will be centered on both the narrative of the

Buddha’s final life as Shakyamuni and also stories of his prior existences, examining

both visual and textual examples from India, Central Asia and China between 2 BCE

to around 5-6 c CE with visual examples from famous Buddhist sites such as Sanchi,

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Bharhut, Ajanta, Kucha Kizil Caves, Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes, Yungang Grottoes,

etc.

Through a wide variety of different readings of Buddhist primary texts in translation

(canonical and narrative) and iconographic sources, and also complementary

secondary works discussing them, employing an interdisciplinary approach we will

attempt to explore comparative perspectives, ideas, and approaches concerning a

number of issues related to Buddhist narratives. Among the questions and topics that

will be examined are the role of visual narratives at Buddhist sites such as stupas and

cave temples; different modes of visual narration; the puzzling question of the

absence of anthropomorphic representation of the Buddha in early Indian Buddhist

narrative art; the ideal body of the Buddha; stories of previous existences of the

Buddha as an animal and animals in the Buddha’s life.

Each class will consist of the instructor’s presentation complemented by visual

material. There will be at least one scheduled museum group visit to The Metropolitan

Museum of Art during the weekend of Week 8 or 9 or at another suitable time for all.

Note: Familiarity with the story of the life of the Buddha is a must and students should read

one of the versions of the Buddhacarita (or Acts of the Buddha by Ashvaghosha) any

edition, but preferably at least the longer one translated from Chinese, as early in the

beginning of the course as possible.

Students with no prior formal background in studying Buddhism are strongly

encouraged to acquire a basic level of familiarity with it by (skim) reading either Peter

Harvey, An Introduction to Buddhism (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1990)

or Rupert Gethin’s The Foundations of Buddhism. Oxford University Press, 1998.

Course objectives: Students in this course will come away from it with

(1) an understanding of the history, literature, art, culture, and ideas related to

Buddhist narratives and specifically the stories about the previous lives of the Buddha

and his final life’s ‘biography’;

(2) an introduction to the problems encountered in studying Buddhism due to

remoteness in time and uncertainty of sources’ dating and authorship;

(3) the ability to think reflexively, comparatively, critically and with complexity about

visual narratives and stories in Buddhism;

(4) an appreciation of the religious diversity and complexity of the Buddhist tradition;

(5) the ability to read and analyse primary textual and visual sources and be able to

evaluate some of their meanings and significance;

(6) the ability to develop critical questions about the visual and reading materials for

the class to discuss;

(7) gain a deeper knowledge of one aspect of the subject matter of the course, gained

through the opportunity to research and write a final paper.

Course Readings: Access to the readings is key to this class. It is important that students bring the

assigned readings to class each time.

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All required readings will be listed for each corresponding week and the students

should read and prepare to discuss them in advance before the corresponding class

meeting. Reading from the primary required books are listed in bold.

In addition, there will be recommended (but not required) further readings marked by

asterisk (*) listed for the corresponding week after the required readings. An

additional list of generally further recommended titles will also be provided.

Documentary FILMS:

• Story of The Buddha's Life

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDgd8LT9AL4

• BBC Seven Wonders of the Buddhist World with Bettany Hughes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiEADtRLQfs

• The Boy with Divine Powers (Documentary) https://youtu.be/nG5FqQKrrHI

• Nepal: Little Buddha, the return – Documentary

https://youtu.be/eDho1Y8MekE

Required Books:

➢ Strong, John S. The Buddha: A Beginner's Guide. Oneworld

Publications, 2009. (Also available as: Strong, John S. The Buddha: a

short biography. Oneworld Publications, 2001.)

➢ Olivelle, Patrick transl.. The Life of the Buddha (Buddhacarita) by

Ashvaghosha. (Clay Sanskrit Library). New York University Press, 2009.

(Sanskrit version)

➢ Willemen, Charles, transl., Buddhacarita: In Praise of Buddha's Acts

by Asvaghosa (translated from the Chinese, Taisho volume 4, number

192), Berkeley, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research.

2009. (Chinese version of the Buddhacarita)

➢ Meiland, Justin transl.. Garland of the Buddha’s Past Lives (Jatakamala)

by Aryashura. (Clay Sanskrit Library). Vols. 1 and 2. NYU Press, 2009.

Books to be consulted throughout:

➢ Davids, Thomas William Rhys. Buddhist Birth-stories (Jataka Tales):

The Commentarial Introduction Entitled Nidāna-kātha, the Story of

the Lineage. Asian Educational Services, 1999.

➢ The Mahāvastu, Translated from the Buddhist Sanskrit By J. J. Jones,

Sacred books of the Buddhists; v. 16, 18, 19. London: Luzac & Company,

1949-56. (excerpts)

➢ Khoroche, Peter, transl..Aryasura. Once the Buddha Was a Monkey:

Arya Sura's ‘Jatakamala’. University of Chicago Press, 2006.

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➢ Khoroche, Peter, transl..Once a Peacock, Once an Actress: Twenty-

Four Lives of the Bodhisattva from Haribhatta's Jatakamala.

University of Chicago Press, 2017.

Strongly recommended, but not required:

Alfred Foucher, The life of the Buddha: according to the ancient texts and

monuments of India. Wesleyan University Press, 1963.

John Powers, A Bull of a Man – Images of Masculinity, Sex, and The Body in

Indian Buddhism, Harvard, 2009.

Stanley Frye, transl. The Sutra of the Wise and the Foolish: Or, The Ocean of

Narratives. Library of Tibetan Works & Archives, LTWA, 2006 (3rd edition).

The rest of the course readings will be made available on NYU Classes as PDF files

or otherwise provided.

Assignments and Evaluations:

Attendance and Participation (15%): Class attendance and discussion is essential.

Students will be expected to attend class having completed all of the required reading.

Arriving in class having done all of the reading, thought about it, and developed some

questions or comments about it; contributing actively and thoughtfully to class

discussions is key. (Students may be asked to write short reading responses most

weeks in response to the week’s readings).

Two short paper assignments (6-7 pages each): 2 x 20% (total 40%): These

short essay assignments will draw upon specific readings or film

documentaries (TBD).

Short Paper Assignment #1 (20%): Essay on an assigned topic. Topic will be assigned

in Week 4 – the short paper is expected to be handed in in Week 6 (tentative).

Short Paper Assignment #2 (20%): Essay on an assigned topic. The short paper is

expected to be handed in end of Week 11 (tentative).

Museum Visit (10%): There will be at least one planned museum class visit to The

Metropolitan Museum of Art probably scheduled outside regular class time. This

museum visit is to take place either during the weekend of Week 8 or of Week 9 or at

another time suitable to all.

Final Paper (35%): Students must write one final paper, 8-10 pages, (longer for

graduate students) choosing to discuss one or two images from the Buddhist

collections from a major museum in the USA or abroad (preferably a museum which

the student has visited in person and experienced the work first hand), analysing and

discussing the relevance of the image(s) to the topics and issues discussed in the

course. (Any Buddha life narrative image from India, Central Asia or China dated

from 2 c BCE to 6 c CE is fine). This paper is due on May 14th, Thursday (tentative).

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Papers not handed in on the due date will be marked off a full letter grade each day

late.

Note: Both the short assignment essays and the final paper should be submitted via

both hard copy and email before the set deadlines. No extensions please.

Other Policies:

Plagiarism:

The minimum penalty for plagiarism will be a “0” for the assignment in question.

Penalties may also include a grade of “F” for the entire course, or in particularly

serious instances, expulsion from the University. Refer to the University’s plagiarism

policy for more information: http://cas.nyu.edu/page/academicintegrity.

Electronic Devices:

All phones and electronic devices must be turned off/silent during our class period.

Phones must be put away altogether. I strongly encourage you to also turn off your

computer’s wifi to avoid being distracted.

Notetaking—I would prefer it if laptops not be used for notetaking. Research shows

that taking notes by hand—i.e. using the body is better

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-learning-secret-don-t-take-notes-with-a-

laptop/

You’re welcome to have a laptop or iPad open for the readings, but not for note-

taking. However, that said, of course, please let me and the Moses Center (see below)

know if you do need to use the laptop for notes for any specific reasons and we’ll

accommodate…

Disability Support Services:

If you have a physical, psychological, or learning disability that may impact your

course work, please contact the Moses Center for Disabilities at 212-998-4980, or by

email, at [email protected].

https://www.nyu.edu/students/communities-and-groups/students-with-

disabilities/how-to-register.html

The Moses Center for Students with Disabilities stands by to help us

make your learning experience all that it can be. See them and also talk to me!

WEEKLY SCHEDULE OF ASSIGNMENTS AND ACTIVITIES:

Week 1 (Jan. 28 and Jan 30):

Welcome and hellos and introduction to the course.

Readings:

# Strong, The Buddha, Introduction.

# Shaner, "Biographies of the Buddha," 306-322.

WATCH A FILM DOCUMENTARY (TBD)

http://cas.nyu.edu/page/academicintegrity

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-learning-secret-don-t-take-notes-with-a-laptop/

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/a-learning-secret-don-t-take-notes-with-a-laptop/

https://www.nyu.edu/students/communities-and-groups/students-with-disabilities/how-to-register.html

https://www.nyu.edu/students/communities-and-groups/students-with-disabilities/how-to-register.html

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* Nakamura, Hajime. Gotama Buddha: a biography based on the most reliable

texts. Charles E. Tuttle Co., 2005.

* Foucher, Alfred. The Life of the Buddha: according to the ancient texts and

monuments of India. Wesleyan University Press, 1963. (Recommended to

consult throughout the course)

Week 2 (Feb. 4 and Feb. 6):

I. THE LIFE OF THE BUDDHA

1. The Buddha’s Life Story Readings:

# Strong, The Buddha, Ch. 1.

# Gadjin, and Mark L. Blum. "The Life of the Buddha: An Interpretation," p. 1-31.

# The Great Discourse on the Lineage, Mahapadana Sutta DN 14. In Long

Discourses of the Buddha [Digha Nikaya].

# Reynolds, “The many lives of Buddha: a study of sacred biography and

Theravada tradition.”

* Gregory Schopen, “If you can't remember, how to make it up: some

monastic rules for redacting canonical texts.” In Buddhist monks and business

matters, 395-407.

* Roland Steiner, “Truth Under the Guise of Poetry: Asvagosha’s Life of the

Buddha” (p.89-121) in Lives Lived, Lives Imagined: Biography in the

Buddhist Traditions.


2. The Buddhist Stupa, Buddhist Cave Temples and the Life of

the Buddha Readings:

# Seckel, and Andreas Leisinger. Before and beyond the Image Aniconic

Symbolism in Buddhist Art. [Read only p. 11-39.]

# Dehejia, “On modes of visual narration in early Buddhist art,” p. 374-392.

# Williams, “On viewing Sanci,” p. 93-98.

# Schopen, "The Fragrance of the Buddha, the Scent of Monuments, and the Odor

of Images in Early India," p. 11-30.

* Dehejia, Vidya, Aniconism and the Multivalence of Emblems, Ars

Orientalis, Vol. 21, (1991) , pp. 45-66.

* Miksic, John. Borobudur: Golden tales of the Buddhas. Tuttle Publishing,

2012.

* Murray, Julia K. “Buddhism and early narrative illustration in China.”

Archives of Asian art 48 (1995): 17-31.

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Week 4 (Feb 18 and Feb. 20):

II. PILGRIMAGE AND THE LIFE OF THE BUDDHA

Readings:

# Asher, “From Place to Site: Locations of the Buddha’s Life,” p. 233-45.

# Leoshko, “On the construction of a Buddhist pilgrimage site,” p. 573-597.

# Guy, John. "The Mahābodhi Temple: Pilgrim Souvenirs of Buddhist India," p.

356-367.

# Maud, Jovan. "Buddhist Relics and Pilgrimage,” p. 421-435.

*Karetzky, Patricia Eichenbaum. The Act of Pilgrimage and Guptan Steles

with Scenes from the Life of the Buddha. Oriental art 33, no. 3 (1987) 268-

274.

* Travels of Fah-Hian and Sung-Yun, Buddhist Pilgrims: From China to India

(400 AD and 518 AD). Trübner,1869.

* Xuanzang, The Great Tang Dynasty Record of the Western Regions.

Translated by Li Rongxi.

Berkeley: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 1996.


III. A BULL OF A MAN

1. The Buddha Readings:

# John Powers, “Why Practicing Virtue is Better than Working Out: Bodies and

Ethics in Indian Buddhism.”

# John Powers, “You’re Only as Good As You Look: Indian Buddhist

Associations of Virtue and Physical Appearance.”

# John Powers, A Bull of a Man - Chapter 1. The Ultimate Man (p. 1-23);

Chapter 2. A Manly Monk (p. 24-66); Appendix 1: The Major and Minor Physical

Characteristics of a Great Man (p. 237-239); Appendix 2: Epithets of the Buddha

(p. 241-243).

# The Marks of a Great Man, [DN] 30: Lakkhaṇa Sutta. In The Long Discourses

of the Buddha, p. 441-460.

* Brown, Robert L. “God on earth: the walking Buddha in the art of South and

Southeast Asia.” Artibus Asiae (1990): 73-107.

* Desai, Vishakha N. “Reflections on the History and Historiography of Male

Sexuality in Early Indian Art,” in Representing the Body: Gender Studies in

Indian Art, p. 42-55.

Week 6 (March 3 and March 5):

2. The Bodhisattva Readings:


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# Adam, "Moral Development in the Jātakas, Avadānas, and Pāli Nikāyas," p. 77-

95.

# Meiland, transl.. Garland of the Buddha’s Past Lives by Aryashura. (Stories

to read: #2 King Shibi; #28 Kshantivadin; TBD)

# Ohnuma, and Margo Kitts. "To Extract the Essence from this Essenceless Body:

Self-Sacrifice and Self-Immolation in Indian Buddhism."

* Reiko Ohnuma, from Head, Eyes, Flesh, and Blood - Chapter 1: The Gift of

the Body Genre (p. 26-51) and Chapter 6: Bodies Ordinary and Ideal (p. 199-

241)

* Brown, Robert. “Narrative as icon: the jataka stories in ancient Indian and

southeast Asian architecture.” In Sacred biography in the Buddhist traditions

of South and Southeast Asia, 64-109, ed. by Juliane Schober. Motilal

Banarsidass Publ., 2002.

* Chapter 6 “The Greater Men of the Greater Vehicle.” In Powers, John. A

Bull of a Man, p. 164-202. Harvard University Press, 2009.


3. The Prince Readings:


# Meiland, transl.. Garland of the Buddha’s Past Lives by Aryashura. (Selected

jataka: #9 Vishvantara)

# Max Deeg, The Birth of the Buddha in Chinese Anthologies of the Early Sixth

Century.

# Buddhacarita – (re-)read Prince Siddhartha parts.

* Lee, Junghee. "The Origins and Development of the Pensive Bodhisattva

Images of Asia." Artibus Asiae 53, no. 3–4 (1993): 311–57.

SPRING RECESS (Monday, March 16 - Sunday, March 22) – NO CLASSES

MUSEUM TRIP TO THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART Note: There will be an additionally scheduled class meeting (outside of the regular

scheduled class time) for a museum class visit to The MET which will take place

either during the weekend of Week 8 or of Week 9 at a time suitable for all.


4. The Renunciant Ascetic

5. The Fully Awakened Buddha – the Enlightenment Readings:

# Dipankara jataka - version from the Nidāna-kātha. Davids, Buddhist Birth-

stories.

# Buddhacarita - re-read Great Departure and the ascetic practices parts.

# Relevant excerpts from the Mahavastu (TBD)

# Buddhacarita - re-read the part about the Enlightenment.

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*Pali canon suttas: The Longer Discourse to Saccaka MN 36 Maha Saccaka

Sutta; Fear and Terror MN 4 Bhaya Beravava Sutta; The Noble Search MN 26

Ariyapariyesana Sutta. (Nanamoli, Bhikkhu, and Bhikkhu Bodhi. The Middle

length discourses of the Buddha. A Translation of the Majjhima Nikaya,

Wisdom Publications, 1995.)

Week 9 (March 31 and April 2):

6. The Buddha as a Teacher Readings:

# Strong, The Buddha, Ch. 5 and 6.

# McClintock, "Compassionate Trickster: The Buddha as a Literary Character

in the Narratives of Early Indian Buddhism," p. 90-112.

# Brown, "The Śrāvastī Miracles in the Art of India and Dvāravatī," 79-95.

Week 10 (April 7 and April 9):

7. The Buddha’s Nirvana Readings:


# Dillon, "Dialogues with Death: The Last Days of Socrates and the Buddha,"

p. 525-58.

* Strong, John S. "The Parinirvana of the Buddha.” In Relics of the

Buddha, 98-123. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2004.

*SN 47.9 “Linked Discourses” Sutta 47: Sick

https://suttacentral.net/sn47.9/en/sujato

* Zin, Monika. About Two Rocks in the Buddha's Life Story. East and

West 56, no. 4 (2006): 329-58.

April 9 (tentative) - Watch a documentary and have a discussion.

The Boy with Divine Powers (Documentary)

https://youtu.be/nG5FqQKrrHI

Nepal: Little Buddha, the return – Documentary

https://youtu.be/eDho1Y8MekE


IV. BASIC BUDDHIST TENETS AND COSMOLOGY

EXPLAINED THROUGH THE BUDDHA’S LIFE

Readings:

What is karma; cycle(s) of rebirth; realms of existence; gods; the Bodhisattva

practice of perfections; giving; suffering; impermanence; the four noble truths;

dependent origination; the “Middle Way”; the Eightfold Path; Buddhist ethics of

inter-personal relationships, etc.

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# "Karma." In Harvey, The Oxford Handbook of Buddhist Ethics, 6-28.

# “Rebirth and karma” – p. 11-19. “The Four Noble Truths” – p. 31-42. In Peter

Harvey, An introduction to Buddhist ethics: Foundations, values and issues.

# Gadjin, and Mark L. Blum. "The Buddha's Life as Parable for Later Buddhist

Thought," p. 1-32.

* Walters, Jonathan S. "The Buddha's Bad Karma: A Problem in the History

of Theravâda Buddhism." Numen 37, no. 1 (1990): 70-95.


V. ANIMALS IN THE BUDDHA’S LIFE

1. “Once the Buddha Was a Monkey”- stories about previous lives

of the Buddha as an animal Readings:

# Garland of the Buddha’s Past Lives by Aryashura.

(Stories to read: 1 The Tigress; 6 The Hare; 24 The Great Ape; 26 The Antelope;

27 The Great Monkey (King of the Monkeys)

# The Sutra of the Wise and the Foolish: Or, The Ocean of Narratives.

(Selected stories)

# Once the Buddha Was a Monkey: Arya Sura's ‘Jatakamala’ (Selected

stories).

* Cowell, Edward Byles, ed. The Jātaka: Or, Stories of the Buddha's Former

Births. Cambridge University Press, 1895-1913.

* Khoroche, Peter, transl..Once a Peacock, Once an Actress: Twenty-Four

Lives of the Bodhisattva from Haribhatta's Jatakamala. University of Chicago

Press, 2017.


2. Animals in the life of the Buddha Readings:

# Brown, “Telling the Story in Art of the Monkey's Gift of Honey to the Buddha.”

# Selection from Reiko Ohnuma, Unfortunate Destiny: Animals in the Indian

Buddhist Imagination.

[Stories about the horse Kanthaka, the elephant Nalagiri, the elephant

Parileyyaka and the monkey’s offer of honey.]

Week 14 (May 5 and May 7):

VI. ONCE THE BUDDHA WAS A WOMAN

Readings:

# “Rupavati gives away her breasts” in Buddhist Scriptures, p. 159-184.

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# Ohnuma, Reiko. “The Story of Rupavati: A Female Past Birth of the Buddha”, p.

103-145.

# Kajiyama, Yuichi “Women in Buddhism,” p.53-70.

# Derris, “When the Buddha Was a Woman,” p.29-44.

* Paul, Diana Y. Chapter 8 A Female Buddha? In Women in Buddhism:

images of the feminine in Mahāyāna tradition. University of California Press,

1985. p. 281-302.

* Paul, Diana Y. "Buddhist Attitudes Toward Women's Bodies." Buddhist-

Christian Studies (1981): p. 63-71.

* Schuster, Nancy. "Striking a balance: Women and Images of Women in

early Chinese Buddhism." Women, Religion, and Social Change (1985): 87-

112.

* Ohnuma, Reiko: “Woman, Bodhisattva, and Buddha”, Journal of Feminist

Studies in Religion, Vol. 17, No. 1 (Spring, 2001), p. 63-83.

May 14th, Thursday (tentative): FINAL PAPERS DUE via hard copy and email by

12PM.

The Ruru Jātaka, or the Tale of the Deer of Nine Colours (mural painting detail),

Dunhuang Mogao cave 257.

List of Weekly Readings (with full citations):

1. Strong, John S. The Buddha: a short biography. Oneworld Publications, 2001.

[Introduction]

2. Shaner, David Edward. "Biographies of the Buddha." Philosophy East and

West, Vol. 37, No. 3 (1987): 306-322.


[Ch. 1]

4. Gadjin, Nagao, and Mark L. Blum. "The Life of the Buddha: An

Interpretation." The Eastern Buddhist, New Series, 20, no. 2 (1987): 1-31.

5. The Great Discourse on the Lineage, Mahapadana Sutta DN 14. Walshe,

Maurice. The long discourses of the Buddha: A translation of the Digha

Nikaya. Wisdom Publications, 2005.

6. Reynolds, Frank E. “The many lives of Buddha: a study of sacred biography

and Theravada tradition.” In The Biographical Process, 37-61. Edited by F.

Reynolds and D. Capps, Mouton, 1976.

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7. Seckel, Dietrich, and Andreas Leisinger. "Before and beyond the Image:

Aniconic Symbolism in Buddhist Art." Artibus Asiae. Supplementum 45

(2004): 3-107. [To read only p. 11-39.]

8. Dehejia, Vidya. “On modes of visual narration in early Buddhist art.” The Art

Bulletin 72, no. 3 (1990): 374-392.

9. Williams, Joanna. “On viewing Sanci.” Archives of Asian Art 50 (1997): 93-

98.

10. Schopen, Gregory. "The Fragrance of the Buddha, the Scent of Monuments,

and the Odor of Images in Early India." Bulletin De L'École Française

D'Extrême-Orient 101 (2015): 11-30.

11. Asher, Frederick. “From Place to Site: Locations of the Buddha’s Life.”

Artibus Asiae 69, no. 2 (2009): 233-45.

12. Leoshko, Janice. On the construction of a Buddhist pilgrimage site. Art

History 19.4 (1996) 573-597.

13. Guy, John. "The Mahābodhi Temple: Pilgrim Souvenirs of Buddhist India."

The Burlington Magazine (1991): 356-367.

14. Maud, Jovan. "Buddhist Relics and Pilgrimage." In The Oxford Handbook of

Contemporary Buddhism, p. 421-435. Oxford University Press, 2017.

15. Powers, John. “Why Practicing Virtue is Better than Working Out: Bodies and

Ethics in Indian Buddhism.” Chung-Hwa Buddhist Journal 22 (2009): 125-

152.

16. Powers, John. “You're Only as Good as You Look: Indian Buddhist

Association of Virtue and Physical Appearance.” In Destroying Mara Forever:

Buddhist ethics essays in honor of Damien Keown, p. 67-94. Snow Lion

Publications, 2009.

17. Powers, John. A Bull of a Man. Harvard University Press, 2009.

18. The Marks of a Great Man, [DN] 30: Lakkhaṇa Sutta (p. 441-460) - Walshe,

Maurice. The long discourses of the Buddha: A translation of the Digha

Nikaya. Wisdom Publications, 2005.

19. Strong, John S. The Buddha: a short biography. Oneworld Publications, 2001. [Ch. 2]

20. Adam, Martin. "Moral Development in the Jātakas, Avadānas, and Pāli

Nikāyas." In The Oxford Handbook of Buddhist Ethics, p. 77-95. Oxford

University Press, 2018.

21. Meiland, Justin transl.. Garland of the Buddha’s Past Lives by Aryashura.

Vols. 1 and 2. NYU Press, 2009.

22. Ohnuma, Reiko, and Margo Kitts. "To Extract the Essence from this

Essenceless Body: Self-Sacrifice and Self-Immolation in Indian Buddhism."

Martyrdom, Self-Sacrifice, and Self-Immolation: Religious Perspectives on

Suicide (2018): 241-265.


[Ch. 3]



25. Max Deeg, The Birth of the Buddha in Chinese Anthologies of the Early Sixth

Century. In The birth of the Buddha: proceedings of the seminar held in

Lumbini, Nepal, October 2004. Lumbini International Research Institute,

Lumbini, 2010.

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26. Willemen, Charles, transl., Buddhacarita: In Praise of Buddha's Acts by

Asvaghosa (translated from the Chinese, Taisho volume 4, number 192),

Berkeley, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research. 2009.

[Or/and] Olivelle, Patrick transl.. The Life of the Buddha (Buddhacarita) by


27. Davids, Thomas William Rhys. Buddhist Birth-stories (Jataka Tales): The

Commentarial Introduction Entitled Nidāna-kātha, the Story of the Lineage.

Asian Educational Services, 1999.






29. The Mahāvastu, Translated from the Buddhist Sanskrit By J. J. Jones, Sacred

books of the Buddhists; v. 16, 18, 19. London: Luzac & Company, 1949-56.






31. Strong, John S. The Buddha: a short biography. Oneworld Publications, 2001. [Ch. 4]


[Ch. 5 and 6]

33. McClintock, Sara L. "Compassionate Trickster: The Buddha as a Literary

Character in the Narratives of Early Indian Buddhism." Journal of the

American Academy of Religion 79, no. 1 (2011): 90-112.

34. Brown, Robert L. "The Śrāvastī Miracles in the Art of India and Dvāravatī."

Archives of Asian Art 37 (1984): 79-95.


[Ch. 7]

36. Dillon, Matthew. "Dialogues with Death: The Last Days of Socrates and the

Buddha." Philosophy East and West 50, no. 4 (2000): 525-58.

37. Harvey, Peter. "Karma." In The Oxford Handbook of Buddhist Ethics, 6-28.

Oxford University Press, 2018.

38. Harvey, Peter. An introduction to Buddhist ethics: Foundations, values and

issues. Cambridge University Press, 2000. (To read: Rebirth and karma – p.

11-19. The Four Noble Truths – p. 31-42.)

39. Gadjin, Nagao, and Mark L. Blum. "The Buddha's Life as Parable for Later

Buddhist Thought." The Eastern Buddhist, NEW SERIES, 24, no. 2 (1991): 1-

32.



41. Frye, Stanley, transl. The Sutra of the Wise and the Foolish: Or, The Ocean of

Narratives. Library of Tibetan Works & Archives, LTWA, 2006.

42. Khoroche, Peter, transl..Aryasura. Once the Buddha Was a Monkey: Arya

Sura's ‘Jatakamala’. University Of Chicago Press, 2006.

43. Brown, Robert L. “Telling the Story in Art of the Monkey's Gift of Honey to

the Buddha.” Bulletin of the Asia Institute (2009): 43-52.

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44. Ohnuma, Reiko. Unfortunate Destiny: Animals in the Indian Buddhist

Imagination. Oxford University Press, 2017.

45. “Rupavati gives away her breasts” translated by Reiko Ohnuma. In Buddhist

scriptures, edited by Donald S. Lopez, London: Penguin, 2004. p. 159-184.

46. Ohnuma, Reiko. "The story of Rūpāvatī: A female past birth of the Buddha."

Journal of the international association of Buddhist studies (2000): 103-145.

47. Kajiyama, Yuichi “Women in Buddhism,” Eastern Buddhist 15.2 (1982): 53-

70.

48. Derris, Karen. When the Buddha Was a Woman: Reimagining Tradition in the

Theravāda. Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion (2008): 29-44.

A list of further recommended related readings:

Beal, Samuel. The Romantic Legend of Sâkya Buddha: From the Chinese-Sanscrit. A

translation of the Chinese version of the Abhiniskramanasutra. Trübner &

Company, 1875. (available as a Google e-book)

Covill, Linda, Ulrike Roesler, and Sarah Shaw. Lives Lived, Lives Imagined:

Biography in the Buddhist Traditions. Wisdom Publications, 2010.

Cowell, Edward Byles, ed. The Jātaka: Or, Stories of the Buddha's Former Births.

Cambridge University Press, 1895-1913.

Fausböll, Michel Viggo, ed. Buddhist Birth Stories, Or, Jātaka Tales: The Oldest

Collection of Folk-lore Extant Being the Jātakatthavaṇnanā for the First Time.

Trübner & Company, 1880. (Google eBook).

Foucher, Alfred. The Beginnings of Buddhist Art: And Other Essays in Indian and

Central-Asian Archaeology. Varanasi: Indological Book House, 1972.

Legge, James, ed. A Record of Buddhistic Kingdoms: Being an Account by the

Chinese Monk Fâ-Hien of His Travels in India and Ceylon, AD 399-414, in

Search of the Buddhist Books of Discipline. Translated and Annotated with a

Corean Recension of the Chinese Text. Clarendon press, 1886.

Li Rongxi, transl. The Great Tang Dynasty Record of the Western Regions. Vol. 79.

Berkeley, Calif.: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation & Research, 1996.

Mair, Victor H. Painting and performance: Chinese picture recitation and its

Indian genesis. University of Hawaii Press, 1988.

Miksic, John. Borobudur: Golden tales of the Buddhas. Tuttle Publishing, 2012.

Nattier, Jan. A Guide to the Earliest Chinese Buddhist Translations: Texts from the

Eastern Han and Three Kingdoms Periods. International Research Institute for

Advanced Buddhology, Soka University, 2006.

Rotman, Andy, transl. Divine Stories: Divyavadana, Part I. Classics of Indian

Buddhism. Boston: Wisdom Publications, 2008.

Rotman, Andy. Divine Stories: Divyavadana. Vol. 2. Simon and Schuster, 2017.

Snellgrove, David L., ed. The image of the Buddha. Serindia Publ., 1978.

Stanleyk Abe. Art and Practice in a Fifth-Century Chinese Buddhist Cave Temple.

Ars Orientalis 20 (1990) 1-31.

The Play in Full (Lalitavistara), The Noble Great Vehicle Sūtra “The Play in Full”

(Āryalalitavistaranāmamahāyānasūtra) translated from Tibetan and Sanskrit by

The Dharmachakra Translation Committee, Toh 95, Degé Kangyur, vol. 46

(mdo sde, kha), folios 1b–216b, PDF version.

Quintanilla, Sonya Rhie. “Transformations of Identity and the Buddha's Infancy

Narratives at Kanaganahalli.” Archives of Asian Art 67.1 (2017): 111-142.

https://books.googleusercontent.com/books/content?req=AKW5QaeVIPoipazQ0Kn9-BusRwpTTUnk-cfWddPur3hlcbkCanm_sFz-0NwocBJeK-HWJ4ySJktf7FxU2sAzd4rE9ne8oLjHmqbX-c381Aj9RYNSlL7FmxCaO6RwK7d_xuwyHw5D2vSOkCl-wQNsGh757Mu8cazaab8-4F_181tKmYk_Z-QmaRPQEiPD8P3Sa6uYGU95ynNCtZICImfKgWw_GAEYevyJ2VM1Ro1InLVANHRmvTSvdPm02IveUOWFKNypbIAlOkTqc0D2oexxkQOTNUaPyvjBog

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Digital Resource: Dunhuang Mogao Caves: https://www.e-dunhuang.com/index.htm

Dunhuang Mogao Cave 275. King Sibi Jataka (mural painting detail). Northern Liang (421-439)

https://www.e-dunhuang.com/index.htm

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