Mastodawn

📰 Early Buddhist Stupas and the Origin of Mahayana Buddhism (A free, 33-page article from 2014)

Tags: #EarlyBuddhism #Buddhastatue
https://buddhistuniversity.net/content/articles/material-practice-and-metamorphosis_fogelin-lars

Material Practice and the Metamorphosis of a Sign: Early Buddhist Stupas and the Origin of Mahayana Buddhism

Where earlier stupas were icons and indexes of the Buddha encased within indexes of his presence, later stupas were symbols of the Buddha and Buddhist theology. This change in the material practice of Buddhism reduced stupas ’ emotional immediacy in favor of greater intellectual detachment. In the end, this shift in the meaning ascribed to stupas created the preconditions from which the Buddhist image cult and Mahayana Buddhism emerged in the first through fifth centuries A.D. The development of Mahayana Buddhism and Buddha images signified a return to iconic worship of the Buddha.

The Open Buddhist University

The Open Buddhist University Feb 27

📼 Buddhist Art in Early India (A free, 59-minute video from 2023)

Tags: #Buddhastatue #EarlyBuddhism
https://buddhistuniversity.net/content/av/fragrant-stories_guy-john

Fragrant Stories: Buddhist Art in Early India

The celebrations, you can see, were not subdued meditation events. Dancing, instruments being played and so on. This is hardly restrained. This is extatic worship.

The Open Buddhist University

Sasu Dec 15

"The fact that such texts as this sutta and the Kālāma Sutta do not dwell on the doctrines of kamma and rebirth does not mean, as is sometimes assumed, that such teachings are mere cultural accretions to the Dhamma that can be deleted or explained away without losing anything essential. It means only that, at the outset, the Dhamma can be approached in ways that do not require reference to past and future lives. The Buddha’s teaching has many sides, and thus, from certain angles, it can be directly evaluated against our concern for our present well-being and happiness. Once we see that the practice of the teaching does indeed bring peace, joy, and inner security in this very life, this will inspire our trust and confidence in the Dhamma as a whole, including those aspects that lie beyond our present capacity for personal verification. If we were to undertake certain practices—practices that require highly refined skills and determined effort—we would be able to acquire the faculties needed to validate those other aspects"

— Bhikhu Bodhi: In the Buddha's Words

One of the best explanations for how to approach the notions of #kamma and #rebirth I've seen. And also one of the readings of the Kālāma #Sutta which is well-integrated into the context of the rest of the #Nikāyas.

#karma #reincarnation #Buddhism #Buddha #KalamaSutta #suttas #EarlyBuddhism #Dhamma #Dharma

The Open Buddhist University Oct 25

📰 Apadana-Atthakatha/Visuddhajanavilasini (534 13-537 28, Vv 12–48) (A free, 55-page article from 2021)

Tags: #Pali #EarlyBuddhism #BuddhaQuotes
https://buddhistuniversity.net/content/articles/dravidian-poem-translated-into-pali_levman

Dravidian Poem Translated Into Pali?: Apadana-Atthakatha/Visuddhajanavilasini (534 13-537 28, Vv 12–48)

This article examines a poem in the Kaludayittherapadanavannana which expands on the poem attributed to Kaludayitthera in the Theragatha; the poem in the Kaludayittherapadanavannana did not make it into the final canon. The hypothesis of this paper is that the poem may be a popular Dravidian song adapted to Buddhist use and translated into Pali, and this is the primary reason it was excluded from the canon.

The Open Buddhist University

PistonPin Sep 22

"One of the most counterintuitive and powerful aspects of early Buddhist thought is the practice of not clinging to views and opinions. What does this really mean? And why is clinging to views and opinions so dangerous?"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IzinQ4r7s10

#buddhism #earlyBuddhism

Why Did the Buddha Warn Against Views?

YouTube

Buddhistdoor Global (BDG)Sep 11, 2025

BDG feature: The Story of the Buddha’s Mahaparinibbana, the Sangha’s Schism, and the First Two Buddhist Councils

🔗 Read more: https://tinyurl.com/yc2nr8rp

#Buddhism #Buddha #BuddhistHistory #BuddhistStudies #EarlyBuddhism #BuddhistCouncil #Shakyamuni #Theravada #PaliCanon

Weekend Stories Aug 29, 2025

The #Arhat, central to early #Buddhism, embodies complete liberation through the eradication of mental defilements and the illusion of self. Unlike later #Mahāyāna ideals, #Arhatship marks irreversible freedom from #suffering and #rebirth, highlighting Buddhism's unique #psychological and #ethical insights. Here is a short overview:

🌍 https://www.fabriziomusacchio.com/weekend_stories/told/2025/2025-08-29-arhat/

#WeekendStories #EarlyBuddhism

The Open Buddhist University Jan 30, 2025

📰 Archaeologies of Human:non-Human Suffering and Well-Being in Early Buddhist and Hindu Contexts (A free, 27-page article from 2016)

Tags: #EarlyBuddhism #Nature
https://buddhistuniversity.net/content/articles/religion-nature-and-environmental-ethics_shaw-julia

Religion, ‘Nature’ and Environmental Ethics in Ancient India: Archaeologies of Human:non-Human Suffering and Well-Being in Early Buddhist and Hindu Contexts

For early Buddhism, I mediate between two polarized views: one promoting the idea of ‘eco-dharma’ as a reflection of Buddhism’s alignment with non-violence (ahiṃsā), and the alleviation of suffering (dukkha); a second arguing that early Buddhist traditions have been misappropriated by western environmentalism. I argue that the latter view subscribes to canonical models of passive monks removed from worldly concerns, despite archaeological evidence for socially-engaged monastic landlordism from the late centuries BCE. Others cite this evidence only to negate Buddhism’s eco-credentials, overlooking the human:non-human entanglement theme

The Open Buddhist University

The Open Buddhist University Dec 30, 2024

☸️ The Storehouse of Sundry Valuables (A free, 274-page sūtra translation from 1994)

Tags: #CentralAsian #EarlyBuddhism #Avadana
https://buddhistuniversity.net/content/canon/t0203

T0203 雜寶藏經: The Storehouse of Sundry Valuables

A collection of 121 stories ostensibly from the Sarvāstivāda spanning from the time of Śākyamuni and his disciples to the era of King Kaniṣka and Aśvaghoṣa in the second century C.E.

The Open Buddhist University

Buddhistdoor Global (BDG)Dec 27, 2024

BDG feature: Buddhism’s Retreat from India: A History Lesson in the Survival and Decline of the Dharma

Read here: https://tinyurl.com/2yj3d8cj

#buddhism #buddhisthistory #earlybuddhism #india #ashoka #engagedbuddhism #brahmanism #humanisticbuddhism #hindusim #islam #nalanda #soteriology #tantricbuddhism