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.

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

Tags: #EarlyBuddhism #Buddhastatue

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.

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

Tags: #Buddhastatue #EarlyBuddhism

The Samana in the Archive On Labels, Lineages, and the Search for "Buddhist"

The Samana in the Archive

On Labels, Lineages, and the Search for "Buddhist"

thegentlelaw.substack.com/p/the-samana...

#Sramana #BuddhistHistory #EmptyLabels #Interbeing #EarlyBuddhism

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.

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

Tags: #Pali #EarlyBuddhism #BuddhaQuotes

The Story of the Buddha’s Mahāparinibbāṇa, the Saṅgha’s Schism, and the First Two Buddhist Councils - Buddhistdoor Global Exploring the evolution of the Buddha's Order, from the Buddha-era to the struggle of great elders to defend against schism

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

🔗 Read more: tinyurl.com/yc2nr8rp

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

Statue of a Arhat, found at Yixian, Hebei province, China, Liao dynasty (907–1125). Source: Wikimedia Commonsꜛ (license: CC 1.0)

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 […]

[Original post on mastodon.social]

Greek Buddha: Pyrrho’s Encounter with Early Buddhism in Central Asia Book Review

Greek Buddha: Pyrrho’s Encounter with Early Buddhism in Central Asia.

thegentlelaw.substack.com/p/greek-budd...
#bookreview #pyrrho #earlybuddhism #asia #princeton

Aṭṭhakanāgara Sutra TheGentleLaw Community

We find a deep and stirring conversation between the devoted householder Dasama and the venerable Ananda, the Buddha’s cousin and close attendant.
thegentlelaw.substack.com/p/atthakanag...

#earlybuddhism #majjhimanikaya #buddhistmeditation #theravada

‼️ Interesting project on Gandhara and early Buddhism plus PhD possition (link in comments)

www.gandhara.indologie.uni-muenchen.de/index.html

#gandhara #earlybuddhism #ancientcentralasia

Maha-Dukkhakkhandha Sutra The Greater Discourse on Suffering

In the Maha-Dukkhakkhandha Sutta (MN 13), the Buddha presents a radical and liberating teaching.

thegentlelaw.substack.com/p/maha-dukkh...

#MahaDukkhakkhandha
#earlybuddhism #palicanon #suttastudy #buddhistteachings

Sundara Samudda Thera's Verse Breaking the Chains of Attachment

My wife tried to bind me with love, with sweet and deceptive words,
buff.ly/BxXOGdx#budd... #dhamma #renunciation #spiritualpath #detachment #theravada #earlybuddhism #mindfulnesspractice #lettinggo #monasticlife #sutta

A conversation between the Buddha and a young Brahmin named Saṅgārava.
buff.ly/L0wOeiX #Buddhism #EarlyBuddhism #PaliCanon #SuttaStudy #Buddha #Dhamma #Theravāda #PaliTexts #BuddhistPhilosophy#SuttaPitaka #BuddhistTeachings

Neither mind (nāma) nor body (rūpa) has an independent existence.
buff.ly/iLGPfDl
#namarupa #buddhism #earlybuddhism #theravada #palicanon #dhamma #fournobletruths #dependentorigination #vipassana #mindfulnesspractice #buddhistphilosophy #insightmeditation #wisdompath

Dr. Kapila Abhayawansa Sri Lankan Buddhist scholar

buff.ly/4LwRNyE
Dr. Kapila Abhayawansa, a scholar specializing in Early Buddhism.
#Buddhism #EarlyBuddhism #SuttaStudy #PaliCanon #BuddhistStudies

Hārita Thera's Verse Overcoming Worldly Desires

Hārita Thera stands out for his powerful words on overcoming worldly desires. His verses reveal the inner struggle and ultimate triumph of one who seeks liberation.
thegentlelaw.substack.com/p/harita-the...
#Theragāthā #EarlyBuddhism #BuddhistWisdom #HāritaThera #Mindfulness

(S2 Ep.12) DathuVibbhanga Sutra Six Elements

Dhātuvibhaṅga Sutta (MN 140), a profound discourse where the Buddha deconstructs human experience into elements (dhātu), sense faculties, and the nature of non-attachment.

thegentlelaw.substack.com/p/s2-ep12-da...

#earlybuddhism #suttastudy #palicanon #buddhistteachings #fourelements

(S2 Ep.10) Ratthapala Sutra The Four Summaries of the Dharma (thegentlelaw.substack.com)

In this episode of Sutra Pills, we explore the Raṭṭhapāla Sutta (MN 82).
thegentlelaw.substack.com/p/s2-ep10-ra...

#RatthapalaSutta #buddhism #EarlyBuddhism #SuttaStudy #PaliCanon #Dhamma #Theravada #SpiritualPath #mindfulnesslness #DhammaTalk #BuddhaDhamma #sangha

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

📰 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

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

Tags: #CentralAsian #EarlyBuddhism #Avadana

Buddhism’s Retreat from India: A History Lesson in the Survival and Decline of the Dharma - Buddhistdoor Global Dr. Dipen Barua gives an overview of the diverse factors behind the decline of Buddhism in India, with a prescient warning for the present.

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

Read here: tinyurl.com/2yj3d8cj

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

Nirvāṇa in Early Buddhist Inscriptions > Surveying pre-Gupta inscriptions, it becomes clear that the aspiration for nirvana has one recurring feature attached to it; the aspiration of the donor for the attainment of nirvana occurs when the donation is connected in some way or another to the relics or figural or non-figural representations of the historical Buddha.

📰 Nirvāṇa in Early Buddhist Inscriptions (A free, 27-page article from 2020)

Tags: #EarlyBuddhism #Avadana

The Spirit of Buddhist Truth: Conversations Beyond Sectarianism with Ven. Bhikkhuni Dhammadinna - Buddhistdoor Global Theravada bhikkhuni and scholar Ven. Dhammadinna presents a historical case for moving beyond sectarian boundaries

BDG feature: The Spirit of Buddhist Truth: Conversations Beyond Sectarianism with Ven. Bhikkhuni Dhammadinna

Read here: tinyurl.com/tax7bjec

#buddhism #buddha #buddhisthistory #buddhiststudies #earlybuddhism #theravada #mahayana #vajrayana #buddhistethics #academia

"Wise attention" is too general. It's nice, soft, easy. "Attend to origins" or perhaps "...to causes" is much more specific. And it seems to me it is a prescription for our times. We need to understand how we got here. Not to place blame, but to find ways to do better. #Buddhist #EarlyBuddhism #EBT

SN 10.7 Punabbasu Sutta: With Punabbasu A female spirit hushes her children as she listens to the Dhamma.

☸️ With Punabbasu (A free, 2-page sutta translation from 2018)

Tags: #BuddhaQuotes #Buddha #Life #EarlyBuddhism

Buddhist Quote for Today: The Buddha (Madhyama Āgama)

See more: youtube.com/shorts/Mm5fJ...

#buddhistquotes #dharma #dhamma #buddhism #earlybuddhism #india #mindfulness #meditation #compassion #peace #buddhistpractice

Buddhist Quote for Today: The Buddha, Madhyama Āgama

See more: buddhistdoor.net

#buddhistquotes #dharma #dhamma #buddhism #earlybuddhism #india #mindfulness #meditation #compassion #peace #buddhistpractice