Adv. Reading in Buddhist Lit

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Undergraduate

This seminar will focus on readings of Buddhist texts with an emphasis on developing an appreciation for the literary forms of classical Buddhist literature as well as an understanding of the content. Sources will consist primarily of translations from the Pali and Sanskrit language texts of Buddhist India. These readings will be supplemented by secondary commentary and scholarship connecting our primary sources with the historical development of Buddhist traditions. Our explorations of these texts will include discussion of their connections with the ritual and artistic traditions of Buddhist communities. Specific topics to be considered will include literary representations of the lives of the Buddha, Buddhist theories of language, the figure of the bodhisattva as hero in Mahayana Buddhist sutras, varieties of “path” and journey images and narratives, and the uses of humor in Buddhist literature. This seminar is open to any student who has successfully completed “Introduction to Buddhism” or a comparable course.