1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910826161403321

Autore

Olson Carl

Titolo

The different paths of Buddhism : a narrative-historical introduction / / Carl Olson

Pubbl/distr/stampa

New Brunswick, N.J., : Rutgers University Press, c2005

ISBN

1-280-36091-7

9786610360918

0-8135-3778-9

Edizione

[1st ed.]

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (x, 291 pages) : illustrations, map

Disciplina

294.3

Soggetti

Buddhism

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Front matter -- CONTENTS -- Acknowledgments -- 1 Crows and Monks: Introduction -- 2 The Elephant and the Buddha -- 3 The Narrative Path of the Buddha -- 4 Ethical and Political Implications of Buddhist Narratives -- 5 The Tale of Beggars and Donors -- 6 The Feminine Narrative in Buddhism -- 7 Stories from Buddhist Villages -- 8 The Bodhisattva’s Path to Perfection -- 9 Secret Narratives: Philosophies of Emptiness -- 10 Devotional Voices of the Pure Land -- 11 Tales of Lamas: Tibetan Buddhism -- 12 The No-Narrative of Seated Meditation: Zen -- 13 New Narratives: Recent Paths of Reform and Revival -- Chronology -- Abbreviations -- Notes -- Index -- ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Sommario/riassunto

For centuries, Buddhist teachers and laypeople have used stories, symbols, cultural metaphors, and anecdotes to teach and express their religious views. In this introductory textbook, Carl Olson draws on these narrative traditions to detail the development of Buddhism from the life of the historical Buddha to the present. By organizing the text according to the structure of Buddhist thought and teaching, Olson avoids imposing a Western perspective that traditional texts commonly bring to the subject. The book offers a comprehensive introduction to the main branches of the Buddhist tradition in both the Mahayana and Theravada schools, including the Madhyamika school, the Yogacara school, Pure Land devotionalism, Tibetan Tantric Buddhism, Zen



Buddhism, and village folk Buddhist traditions. Chapters explore the life and teachings of the Buddha in historical context, the early development and institutionalization of Buddhism, its geographic spread across Asia and eventually to the United States, philosophy and ethics, the relationship between monks and laity, political and ethical implications, the role of women in the Buddhist tradition, and contemporary reinterpretations of Buddhism. Drawn from decades of classroom experience, this creative and ambitious text combines expert scholarship and engaging stories that offer a much-needed perspective to the existing literature on the topic.