Tagged: Theravāda
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Anālayo - Teaching the Abhidharma in the Heaven of the Thirty-three, The Buddha and his Mother (2012)
1This paper analyzes the story of the Buddha's rainy season retreat in the Heaven of the Thirty-three to teach his mother, using a translation from the Samyukta-āgama as its basis. The author argues that the tale serves several functions, primarily as an act of "inclusivism" that elevates the Buddha's status above traditional Indian deities like Śakra, who are depicted as subservient. By comparing various textual versions and early aniconic art, the paper suggests that the famous motif of the three stairs for the Buddha's descent likely originated as an artistic necessity in aniconic depictions and was later absorbed into textual narratives, indicating that versions without it, such as the Samyukta-āgama account, may be earlier. The narrative also highlights the theme of filial piety, a significant concept in Indian Buddhism. Finally, the paper contends that the Theravāda tradition's unique claim that the Buddha taught the Abhidharma in heaven, rather than the general Dharma as other schools maintain, was a later innovation to provide celestial authentication and superior status for the Abhidharma canon.
Clough - The higher knowledges in the Pāli Nikāyas and Vinaya (2010)
2In early Buddhist texts like the Pāli Nikāyas and Vinaya, the *abhiññās* or "higher knowledges" are an integral, though often overlooked, component of the path to liberation. These extraordinary abilities, attained in advanced states of meditation, typically include five mundane powers - supernormal feats (iddhi), divine ear, mind-reading, recollection of past lives, and the divine eye. A sixth, supermundane knowledge—the destruction of the mental defilements (āsavakkhayañāna) — is uniquely Buddhist and constitutes enlightenment itself. Although the Buddha expressed wariness about their pursuit and display, and they were not always considered essential for liberation, the abhiññās served crucial pedagogical, epistemological, and soteriological functions. They acted as signs of meditative progress, tools for teaching, and, most importantly, as a means to experientially verify core Buddhist doctrines like kamma, rebirth, and the Four Noble Truths, with the final three knowledges being central to the traditional account of the Buddha's own awakening.
Hinüber - The Buddha As A Historical Person (2019)
3In response to claims that the Buddha was not a historical person, Oskar von Hinüber argues for his historicity by analyzing early Pāli texts for archaic elements and genuine memories. He posits that details contradicting later, more mythological biographies are unlikely to be inventions and may represent a historical core. Evidence includes the Aśokan inscription confirming Lumbinī as the Buddha's birthplace; textual accounts of his father as a working farmer rather than a king; and a description of his parents weeping as he left home, which conflicts with later narratives. A key example is the Buddha's failure to impress the Ājīvika Upaka, an embarrassing episode for the tradition, whose antiquity is supported by archaic linguistic forms and its subsequent alteration or omission in later texts. Further evidence from the *Mahāparinibbānasuttanta*, such as the obscure name of the Buddha's last meal (*sūkaramaddava*) and moments of human frailty, also suggest the preservation of authentic details from the life of a real person.
Karpik - Light on Epigraphic Pali - More on the Buddha Teaching in Pali (2023)
4Stefan Karpik argues that the 20th-century scholarly consensus that the Buddha spoke Māgadhī, as reflected in Eastern Aśokan inscriptions, is a myth. He contends, based on computer searches and a re-examination of Pali commentaries, that the term 'Māgadhī' was deliberately avoided and that the Buddha, a Kosalan, most likely spoke Pali. Karpik introduces the concept of 'Epigraphic Pali' to reclassify what others have called 'central-western epigraphic Prakrit', demonstrating through analysis of nine inscriptions from various contexts that this widespread inscriptional language is a later, naturally evolved form of canonical Pali. This evidence suggests Pali was not an artificial, ecclesiastical language but a standard, non-sectarian vernacular used across India for centuries. Consequently, he proposes that all early Buddhist canons were originally composed in Pali, the language of the Buddha, before being transmitted and adapted into other dialects and languages, a hypothesis that resolves questions of linguistic authenticity without privileging any single canon.
Krishan - Buddhism and Belief in Ātman (1984)
5The central question in Buddhism regarding a permanent soul, or *ātman*, presents a significant dilemma - the doctrine of *anattā* (no-soul) appears to contradict the belief in karma and rebirth, as it leaves no entity to bear the consequences of actions. The Buddha himself rejected the extreme views of both an eternal, unchanging soul and complete annihilation after death, instead advocating a middle path. Various Buddhist schools attempted to resolve this by proposing concepts that function like a soul without being one, such as a "rebirth-linking consciousness" (*patisandhi viññāna*), an "intermediate existence" (*antarābhava*), or an inexpressible "person" (*pudgala*). The author argues that the doctrine of *anattā* is primarily a rejection of the ego and the notions of "I" and "mine," which are the root of suffering, rather than a denial of a conscious principle. This is supported by the development of concepts like the "store-consciousness" (*ālaya-vijñāna*) and post-mortem rituals in Buddhist cultures, which imply belief in a transmigrating entity. Ultimately, Buddhism seems to deny a static, eternal soul but affirms a dynamic, impermanent yet continuous empirical self that carries karma and memory, likened to a river's current, which is only extinguished upon attaining *nirvāṇa*.
Seeger - The Bhikkhunī-ordination controversy in Thailand (2006)
6The ordination of Chatsumarn Kabilsingh as Bhikkhunī Dhammanandā has sparked a significant controversy within Thai Theravāda Buddhism regarding the revival of the extinct female monastic lineage. Proponents argue for the legitimacy of female ordination by citing the validity of descendant lineages like the Dharmaguptaka, interpreting the Buddha's teachings as prioritizing spiritual potential over social convention, appealing to the Thai constitution's principles of gender equality and religious freedom, and critiquing the historical decision to "freeze" the monastic code (*Vinaya*). Conversely, traditionalists, including the Thai *saṅgha* and the influential monk Phra Payutto, maintain that a valid ordination is impossible because the *Vinaya* requires a dual ceremony involving an unbroken line of Theravāda nuns, which no longer exists. They argue that altering the canon or using a different lineage (*nānāsaṃvāsa*) would violate sacred texts and destroy the consensus essential for preserving the tradition's integrity. Amid this debate, some prominent female practitioners (*maechis*) and laywomen argue that a *bhikkhunī* order is unnecessary for spiritual practice and that women should focus on self-development within existing structures, while others propose para-monastic alternatives to accommodate modern needs without conflicting with canonical authority.