Talks Line-up for Buddhist Studies Lecture Series

"The Hidden Lineage of Yujia yankou: From Tibetan Buddhism to the Tangut State and the Mongol Empire."

6 PM, room 400.02.12 (HCTS)

Abstract:
Yujia yankou 瑜伽焰口, whether understood as a corpus of Buddhist texts that emerged in the Mongol Yuan Empire (1260–1368) or as the ritual complex articulated through them, exerted a profound influence on Chinese Buddhist liturgy in subsequent centuries and continues to play a vital role in Chinese Buddhism today. Yet its origins have long remained unclear. Recent scholarship has significantly advanced the discussion by demonstrating that the Yuan Yujia yankou was formulated by the Tangut monk Budong Jingang 不動金剛. Building on this insight, this paper traces Budong Jingang’s sources back to the Tangut Xia state (1038–1227) and argues that his innovation drew heavily on preexisting liturgical manuals associated with state-sponsored Buddhism in Xia. These materials, in turn, had already incorporated Tibetan elements through the transmission of Tibetan Buddhism into the Tangut realm. 

"The Apprenticeship of a Tibetan Scholar in Eleventh-Century Kaśmīr: An Analysis of Pa tshab Nyi ma grags’s Commentary on the Mūlamadhyamakakārikā (MMK)."

6 PM, room 400.02.12 (HCTS)

Abstract:
During the second period of Buddhism in Tibet, known as the 'Later Diffusion' (phyi dar)—beginning in the late tenth century—many Tibetan scholars travelled to regions such as Kaśmīr to study Buddhist philosophy and the Sanskrit language under renowned Indian paṇḍitas. Among these scholars was Pa tshab Nyi ma grags (1055–ca. 1145), who would later become one of Tibet’s most prominent translators (lo tsā ba). His extensive contributions include the translation of key Madhyamaka texts such as the Mūlamadhyamakakārikā (MMK), Prasannapadā (PsP), and other related works. Within this lecture the commentary attributed to Pa tshab Nyi ma grags on Nāgārjuna’s MMK, recently rediscovered in manuscript form, will be examined. Comprising 52 folios, the manuscript is preserved in the 11th volume of the bKa’ gdams gsung ’bum (Collected Works of the Kadam Tradition) and was published in 2006 by the Peltsek Institute for Ancient Tibetan Manuscripts in Lhasa. This text provides valuable insights into the historical development of translation and exegetical activity in Tibet, contributing significantly to the understanding of the transition of Madhyamaka. A discussion will analyse the citation of the MMK verses, along with other topics such as Pa tshab Nyi ma grags’s interpretation of the *Svātantrika–*Prāsaṅgika distinction.

“A Sarvāstivāda Abhidharma Text from Gandhāra.”

6 PM, room 400.02.12 (HCTS)

Abstract:
Spectacular manuscript discoveries in Afghanistan and Pakistan since the 1990s have brought to light a large and growing number of ancient Buddhist texts written on birch-bark scrolls. Among these manuscripts is a significant number of exegetical texts (commentaries and scholastic treatises), a genre that is particularly well represented in the British Library  and Bajaur collections. Exegetical manuscripts represent one of the most important genres of the rediscovered Gāndhārī literature. Yet, until now, scholars have not been able to identify a single Gāndhārī exegetical text with a known source from other traditions. While similarities in topic, exegetical terminology and techniques have been observed between Gāndhārī sources and texts from other traditions, the general lack of textual correspondences in other languages has, until now, supported the view that Gāndhārī exegetical texts belong to a regionally restricted textual tradition. The recent identification of a Chinese text that closely parallels a Gāndhārī manuscript from a cache allegedly found in northwestern Pakistan or eastern Afghanistan challenges this assumption. This discovery provides important new evidence in the study of the relationship between Gāndhārī literature and other Buddhist traditions. In my talk, I will discuss the striking similarities between Bajaur Collection Scroll Fragment 9 verso and the Citta-skandha section (Chin. xin jiandu 心揵度) of a Sarvāstivāda Abhidharma text otherwise preserved only in Chinese translation, namely the Zun Poxumi pusa suoji lun尊婆須蜜菩薩所集論 (‘Discourses Collected by the Venerable Bodhisattva Vasumitra’, *Āryavasumitrabodhisattvasaṃgītiśāstra, T1549).

"A Missing Link? Phraseological Clues to the Central Asian Transmission of Buddhism to China."

6 PM, room 400.02.12 (HCTS)

Abstract:
The role of the Central Asian regions in transmitting Buddhism to China remains a matter of debate. Although the area has traditionally been considered a primary conduit, chronological discrepancies challenge this narrative, with evidence of Central Asian Buddhism postdating the earliest Chinese records. Furthermore, Central Asian manuscripts exhibit limited textual overlap with translated Chinese texts, which calls into question the region’s direct influence. However, shifting the analytical focus from direct textual translation to comparative phraseology offers a new perspective. Analysis reveals parallels between Central Asian and Chinese Buddhist phraseologies that lack Indic antecedents, but which partly reflect a distinct Iranian religious background. This talk explores these linguistic parallels and the associated methodological challenges, ultimately illustrating how an peculiar interpretation of several Buddhist concepts was transmitted into early Chinese Buddhism.