The Open Buddhist UniversityMay 15

📰 The Belgian Étienne Lamotte, Japanese Buddhologists, the Chinese Monk Yìnshùn 印順 and the Formation of a Global ‘*Dà Zhìdù Lùn* 大智度論 Scholarship’ (A free, 30-page article from 2019)

Tags: #Sutras #Modern #Madhyamaka #BuddhistStudies
https://buddhistuniversity.net/content/articles/reception-history-and-limits-of-interpretation_travagnin-stefania

Reception History and Limits of Interpretation: The Belgian Étienne Lamotte, Japanese Buddhologists, the Chinese Monk Yìnshùn 印順 and the Formation of a Global ‘Dà Zhìdù Lùn 大智度論 Scholarship’

Lamotte’s argument led to various debates that gave rise to a wide array of hypotheses on who the author of Dà Zhìdù Lùn could have been. The theory that Dà Zhìdù Lùn could have been a text not (or not only) written by Nāgārjuna reached Chinese Buddhist monks and scholars as well, including the monk Yìnshùn (1906-2005). This paper will show the impact of Western scholarship on East Asian Buddhism, highlight the (pluri)directionality of knowledge.

The Open Buddhist University
Apologetics Of EmptinessJan 4

All sutras begin, ‘Thus have I heard.’

This ‘I’ is said to be Ananda.

Yet now it appears to me, across the long continuity of mind, it actually is every one of us.

It is consciousness hearing itself, life after life, remembering what it never forgot.

#sutras #Buddhism #rebirth

Weekend StoriesDec 27

#Buddhism's relationship with #vegetarianism reflects diverse #ethical interpretations across traditions. While early texts permitted meat under specific conditions, #Mahāyāna #sūtras strongly advocate plant-based diets as expressions of #compassion and the #Bodhisattva ideal. Contemporary movements increasingly link dietary #ethics to #environmental concerns and #interbeing, demonstrating Buddhism's adaptive response to modern challenges.

🌍 https://www.fabriziomusacchio.com/weekend_stories/told/2025/2025-11-18-buddhism_and_vegetarianism/

#WeekendStories

SasuDec 18

#TIL that the original source for the Six-Syllable #Mantra

Oṃ maṇi padme hūm̐

is the Kāraṇḍavyūha #Sūtra which was compiled in the 4th or 5th century CE.

An English translation from the #Tibetan is freely available at 84000: https://read.84000.co/translation/toh116.html

#6SyllableMantra #OmManiPadmeHum #Buddhism #Sutras #Mantrayana #Vajrayana #Bodhisattva #Avalokiteśvara #Guanyin #Guanshiyin #Chenrezig #compassion #karuṇā

The Basket’s Display / 84000 Reading Room

The Basket’s Display (Kāraṇḍavyūha) is the source of the most prevalent mantra of Tibetan Buddhism: oṁ maṇipadme hūṁ. It marks a significant stage in the growing importance of Avalokiteśvara within Indian Buddhism in the early centuries of the first millennium. In a series of narratives within narratives, the sūtra describes Avalokiteśvara’s activities in various realms and the realms contained within the pores of his skin. It culminates in a description of the extreme rarity of his mantra, which, on the Buddha’s instructions, Bodhisattva Sarva­nīvaraṇa­viṣkambhin obtains from someone in Vārāṇasī who has broken his monastic vows. This sūtra provided a basis and source of quotations for the teachings and practices of the eleventh-century Maṇi Kabum, which itself served as a foundation for the rich tradition of Tibetan Avalokiteśvara practice.

84000 Translating The Words of The Buddha
The Open Buddhist UniversityJun 23, 2025

🗒️ Amida Buddha and the Ideal of Universal Salvation (A free, 3-page essay from 2006)

Tags: #JapaneseBuddhism #Pureland #Sutras
https://buddhistuniversity.net/content/essays/amida-buddha-ideal-of-universal-salvation_bloom-a

Amida Buddha and the Ideal of Universal Salvation

Everything has the potential to support and realize spiritual life.

The Open Buddhist University
The Open Buddhist UniversityMay 28, 2025

📰 The Modern Significance of the Lotus Sūtra (A free, 11-page article from 2004)

Tags: #JapaneseBuddhism #Sutras
https://buddhistuniversity.net/content/articles/modern-significance-of-the-lotus-sutra_kanno-hiroshi

The Modern Significance of the Lotus Sūtra

A basic introduction to the Lotus Sutra, pitching it to a modern audience.

The Open Buddhist University
Diamond BooksMay 13, 2025

📘 Chanakya Neeti with Chanakya Sutras
Ancient wisdom from India’s greatest strategist—timeless lessons on politics, ethics, and life.
एक पुस्तक, जो जीवन के हर मोड़ पर मार्गदर्शन देती है।

🔗 Read now: https://zurl.co/aZWub
#ChanakyaNeeti #Sutras #AncientWisdom #DiamondBooks

Diamond Books | Leading Publisher of Bestselling Books

Discover Diamond Books, a top Indian publisher of fiction, non-fiction, comics, and spiritual books. Explore bestselling titles and stories for all age groups.

Diamond Books
The Open Buddhist UniversityMar 18, 2025

📰 The Chinese Biography of Jīvaka, Buddhist King of Physicians (A ✨NEW✨, free, 33-page article)

Tags: #StoryTime #Sutras
https://buddhistuniversity.net/content/articles/chinese-biography-jivaka_giddings-salguero

The Chinese Biography of Jīvaka, Buddhist King of Physicians

A translation of the “Āmrapāli and Jīvaka Avadāna Sutra” (佛說㮈女祇域因緣經) from T. 553 along with an introduction to the story’s many versions and legacies.

The Open Buddhist University
The Open Buddhist UniversityDec 27, 2024

📖 A Living Text From the Buddhist Tradition (A free, 300-page thesis from 2018)

Tags: #Avadana #Sutras #FridayReads
https://buddhistuniversity.net/content/booklets/nandimitravadana-living-text-from_chen-ruxin

The Nandimitrāvadāna: A Living Text From the Buddhist Tradition

This dissertation offers a comprehensive treatment of the textual sources of the Nandimitrāvadāna, a Buddhist narrative which is deemed an authoritative source for the cult of the Elders or Arhats in Central and East Asia.

The Open Buddhist University
The Open Buddhist UniversityNov 23, 2024

🆓 Translations of the Chinese Bhikkhunī Vinayas (A ✨NEW✨, free resource)

Tags: #Vinaya #Bhikkhuni #Sutras
https://buddhistuniversity.net/content/reference/chinese-bhikkhuni-vinayas_vimalanyani

Translations of the Chinese Bhikkhunī Vinayas

Less conservatively preserved than the monks’ rules, the Bhikkhunī Pātimokkha must be studied comparatively to get a sense for what their original rules might have been: a scholarly process which continues to this day.

The Open Buddhist University