Early Buddhist Wisdom Literature: The “Book with Verses” (Sagāthāvagga) of the Saṃyutta nikāya

The Sagāthāvagga, the “Book with Verses”, is presented here as a collection of early Buddhist wisdom literature. As the first book of the Pāli Saṃyutta-nikāya, the Book with Verses seems as an anomaly—the other four books contain some of the denser articulations of early Buddhist philosophy in the c...

Ausführliche Beschreibung

Gespeichert in:  
Bibliographische Detailangaben
1. VerfasserIn: Shulman, Evyatar 1973- (VerfasserIn)
Medienart: Elektronisch Aufsatz
Sprache:Englisch
Verfügbarkeit prüfen: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
Lade...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Veröffentlicht: MDPI 2023
In: Religions
Jahr: 2023, Band: 14, Heft: 10
weitere Schlagwörter:B Pāli Canon
B Tipiṭaka
B early Buddhist literature
B early Buddhist philosophy
B Saṃyutta-nikāya
B Sagāthāvagga
B Wisdom Literature
Online Zugang: Volltext (kostenfrei)
Volltext (kostenfrei)
Beschreibung
Zusammenfassung:The Sagāthāvagga, the “Book with Verses”, is presented here as a collection of early Buddhist wisdom literature. As the first book of the Pāli Saṃyutta-nikāya, the Book with Verses seems as an anomaly—the other four books contain some of the denser articulations of early Buddhist philosophy in the canon. Thus, scholars question whether the first book, which normally introduces verses with stories, is a real part of the collection. Scholars are also inclined to assume that the verses are the heart of the text and have shown less interest in the work’s compelling literary style. This article has three aims: First, it shows how the book and most distinctly its third chapter, is a form of wisdom literature, with protagonist King Pasenadi of Kosala being comparable to wisdom-kings like King Solomon or Alexander the Great, and anticipating the classic Buddhist wisdom-king Aśoka. Second, it shows how this collection was designed for a performance by storytellers or preachers, suggesting that this is a feature of the Buddhist genre of a prose story that introduces verses. Third, it demonstrates the organic connection between the first book and the other books of the Saṃyutta.
ISSN:2077-1444
Enthält:Enthalten in: Religions
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.3390/rel14101322