The abhidhamma is most profitably considered, not as a psychology or as a philosophy, but as a mystical cult. –Sujato |
This major work combines scrupulous research with creative imagination to investigate the diverse and sometimes problematic roles that women have played in Buddhist stories.
The foundations of modern understanding of Buddhist history have been challenged by skeptical scholars like Gregory Schopen, who allege that the methods of the ‘higher criticism’ are so dubious as to be worthless. However, Schopen’s critique badly misrepresents how text crticism has been used, and his influence has led to a worrying decline in scholarship of early Buddhism.
Serenity and insight are the two great wings of Buddhist meditation. This book collects virtually all the significant passages on this topic from the early discourses, carefully elucidated for the modern reader.
Does Early Buddhism categorically reject or, on the contrary, tacitly admit the possibility of an intermediate state between two adjacent lives? How can these descriptions and views be used to make sense of research findings on ‘Near Death Experiences’ bring us closer to a more accurate understanding of death and beyond?
The First Council was a critical turning point in Buddhist history, defining the direction Buddhism was to take after the death of its founder. Here is the account from the Mahīśāsaka Vinaya, translated from the Chinese canon.
In the debate about bhikkhuni ordination, information plays a key role. We have made substantial strides in our understanding of Buddhism in history, the relation between different Buddhist traditions, and so on. Unfortunately, little of this information has permeated into the tradition Sangha bodies. Century-old textbooks are not corrected, not matter how obvious their mistakes are.
Exploration of issues confronting fully ordained nuns (bhikkhunis) in modern Buddhism. Includes detailed textual analysis based on comparison of the original Vinaya texts.
While the abhidhamma is presented as being based on the Buddha’s ultimate discernment of ‘mind & matter’, in reality the classical Theravādin abhidhamma is a scholastic philosophy which is little understood, and which, if examined critically, is full of incoherencies. Within Buddhist tradition, however, the abhidhamma is perhaps more significant for its purely religious or mystical significance, rather than as a guide for practice or understanding.
The Buddha’s words exemplify peace, teach us peace, and lead to the ultimate peace of Nibbana. It is a sad thing that in the complexities and contradictions of Buddhist history, peace has sometimes been sacrificed on the altar of Buddhist nationalism. By asking the hard questions and accepting the answers fearlessly we can arrive at the essential, the true state of peace, for the sake of which all Buddhist ethics, meditation, and wisdom are taught.
The basis of insight meditation is the contemplation of impermanence, suffering, and not-self. Yet even here we are faced with a tricky interpretive problem: for while all saṅkhāras are said to be impermanent and suffering, all dhammas are said to be not-self. Why this subtle, enigmatic shift, and what are the implications for meditation?
