Undergraduate Course: Lives of the Buddha: Jataka Stories and Early Buddhism (REST10057)
Course Outline
| School | School of Divinity |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course uses jataka stories - stories of the past lives of the Buddha - as a way to explore key themes and concerns in early Indian Buddhism, including the role of the Buddha, the workings of karma and rebirth, the place of women, and the path to awakening. Through studying this particularly rich and influential genre of early Indian literature, we will come to a better understanding of Buddhist values and attitudes, as well as of the ways in which narrative forms a crucial expression of religious ideas. |
| Course description |
Academic Description
This course explores jataka stories - stories of the past lives of the Buddha - and their place within early Indian Buddhism. We will read a range of stories in English translation, and relate them to key themes and questions such as the role of the Buddha, the workings of karma and rebirth, the place of women, and the path to awakening. From stories of vows to future buddhahood, to tales of talking animals, jatakas offer a fascinating lens through which to view developments in Buddhist ethics and ideology. Through studying this particularly rich and influential genre of early Indian literature, we will come to a better understanding of Buddhist values and attitudes, as well as of the ways in which narrative forms a crucial expression of religious ideas.
Syllabus/Outline Content
The course will proceed through key themes in early Buddhism, drawing on appropriate primary readings as we go. Themes include: animal and human ethics; the role of the Buddha as teacher; karmic consequences and karmic communities; the path to Buddhahood and the perfections required for that attainment; the Buddha's good and bad karma; stories of extraordinary generosity or self-sacrifice; and the role of women in the stories.
Student Learning Experience Information
The course will be delivered through a weekly two-hour class. The first hour will normally be student-led discussion of readings from primary texts (in translation). In some weeks this will involve student presentations. The second hour will be a discussion, led by the lecturer, of key themes and concepts that will enable full comprehension of the following week's readings. Assessment is through class presentations (20%), a 2,000 word essay (30%) consisting of a close analysis of a primary source text, and a 3,000 word essay (50%) that explores a key theme in relation to both primary and secondary scholarship. Formative feedback will be offered on class presentations and essay plans.
|
Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
|
Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | This course is open to visiting students, though it is recommended that students have some prior study of Buddhism. |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Explain the key features of the jataka genre and how these vary across a range of South Asian Buddhist texts and contexts
- Analyse and interpret individual jataka stories in the context of both the wider genre and the broader landscape of early Buddhism
- Assess the role of jataka stories in exploring and presenting key Buddhist ideals, including morality, karma, and the nature of Buddhahood
- Evaluate key issues in South Asian Buddhism through reference to relevant primary and secondary sources
|
Reading List
Indicative Bibliography
Resourcelists will be used to ensure sources are available, and most readings will draw on existing library stock. Many primary sources are available in copyright-free translations online and others will be provided as scanned extracts.
Appleton, Naomi. Jżtaka Stories in Theravżda Buddhism: Narrating the Bodhisatta Path. Farnham: Ashgate, 2010.
Appleton, Naomi żIn the Footsteps of the Buddha? Women and the Bodhisatta Path in Theravżda Buddhismż, Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion, 27/1 (2011): 33-51.
Appleton, Naomi. Narrating Karma and Rebirth: Buddhist and Jain Multi-life Stories. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2014.
Appleton, Naomi and Sarah Shaw (trans.) The Ten Great Birth Stories of the Buddha. Chiang Mai: Silkworm Press, 2015.
Appleton, Naomi. żThe Buddha as Storyteller: The Dialogical Setting of Jżtaka Stories.ż In Dialogue in Early South Asian Religions: Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain Traditions, edited by Laurie Patton and Brian Black, 99-112. Farnham: Ashgate, 2015.
Collins, Steven. Nirvana: Concept, Imagery, Narrative. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010.
Collins, Steven (ed.) Readings of the Vessantara Jżtaka. Columbia University Press 2016.
Cone, Margaret, and Gombrich, Richard F. 1977. The Perfect Generosity of Prince Vessantara. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
Cowell, E. B. (ed. ż several translators) The Jżtaka, or Stories of the Buddhażs Former Births. 6 vols. Cambridge University Press, 1895-1907.
Derris, Karen. żWhen the Buddha was a Woman: Reimagining Tradition in the Theravżdaż, Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion 24/2 (2008): 29-44.
Gombrich, Richard. F. żThe Significance of Former Buddhas in the Theravżdin Tradition.ż In Buddhist Studies in Honour of Walpola Rahula, edited by S. Balasooriya, A. Bareau, R. Gombrich, S. Gunasingha, U. Mallawarachchi and E. Perry, 62-72. London: Gordon Fraser, 1980.
Horner, I. B. (trans.) The Minor Anthologies of the Pali Canon, Part III: Chronicle of Buddhas (Buddhavażsa) and Basket of Conduct (Cariyżpiżaka). Oxford: Pali Text Society, 1975.
Jaini, Padmanabh S. żIndian Perspectives on the Spirituality of Animals.ż In Collected Papers on Jaina Studies, by Padmanabh S. Jaini, 253-66. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 2000.
Jaini, Padmanabh S. żPadżpadżnajżtaka: Gautamażs Last Female Incarnation.ż In Collected Papers on Buddhist Studies, by Padmanabh S. Jaini, 367-74. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 2001.
Jayawickrama, N. A. (trans.) The Story of Gotama Buddha. Oxford: Pali Text Society, 1990.
Jones, J. J. (trans.) The Mahżvastu. 3 vols. London: Luzac & co, 1949-56.
Khoroche, Peter (trans.) 1989. Once the Buddha was a Monkey: żrya żżrażs Jżtakamżlż. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1989.
Lopez Jr., Donald S. żMemories of the Buddha.ż In In the Mirror of Memory: Reflections on Mindfulness and Remembrance in Indian and Tibetan Buddhism, edited by Janet Gyatso, 21-45. Albany NY: State University of New York Press, 1992.
McDermott, James P. żSżdhżna Jżtaka: A Case Against the Transfer of Merit.ż Journal of the American Oriental Society, 94/3 (1974): 385-7.
McDermott, James P. żIs there Group Karma in Theravżda Buddhism?ż Numen 23/1 (1976): 67-80.
McDermott, James P. żAnimals and Humans in Early Buddhism.ż Indo-Iranian Journal 32 (1989): 269-80.
Mellick Cutler, Sally. żStill Suffering After All These Aeons: The Continuing Effects of the Buddhażs Bad Karma.ż In Indian Insights: Buddhism, Brahminism and Bhakti, edited by Peter Connolly and Sue Hamilton, 63-82. London: Luzac Oriental, 1997.
Ohnuma, Reiko. żThe Story of Rżpżvatż: A Female Past Birth of the Buddhaż, Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 23/1 (2000): 103-45.
Ohnuma, Reiko. Head, Eyes, Flesh, and Blood: Giving Away the Body in Indian Buddhist Literature. New York: Columbia University Press, 2007.
Ohnuma, Reiko. Unfortunate Destiny: Animals in the Indian Buddhist Imagination. Oxford University Press, 2017.
Reynolds, Frank E. żThe Many Lives of Buddha: A Study of Sacred Biography and Theravżda Tradition.ż In The Biographical Process: Studies in the History and Psychology of Religion, edited by Frank E. Reynolds & Donald Capps, 37-61. The Hague: Mouton & Co, 1976.
Frank E. Reynolds. żRebirth Traditions and the Lineages of Gotama: A Study in Theravżda Buddhology.ż In Sacred Biography in the Buddhist Traditions of South and Southeast Asia, edited by Juliane Schober, 19-39. Honolulu: University of Hawaiżi Press, 1997.
Samuels, Jeffrey. żThe Bodhisattva Ideal in Theravżda Buddhist Theory and Practice: A Reevaluation of the Bodhisattva-żrżvaka Opposition.ż Philosophy East and West 47/3 (1997): 399-415.
Shaw, Sarah (trans.) The Jżtakas: Birth Stories of the Bodhisatta. New Delhi: Penguin, 2006.
Shaw, Sarah. żAnd that was I: How the Buddha Himself Creates a Path between Biography and Autobiography.ż In Lives Lived, Lives Imagined: Biography in the Buddhist Traditions edited by Linda Covill et al., 15-47. Boston: Wisdom Publications, 2010.
Sheravanichkul, Arthid. żSelf-Sacrifice of the Bodhisatta in the Pańńżsa Jżtaka.ż Religion Compass 2/5 (2008): 769-87.
Simpson, B. żImpossible Gifts: bodies, Buddhism and bioethics in contemporary Sri Lankaż, Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute 10/4 (2004): 839-59.
Skilling, Peter. żJżtaka and Pańńżsa-jżtaka in South-East Asia.ż The Journal of the Pali Text Society 28 (2006): 113-73.
Strong, John S. 1997. żA Family Quest: The Buddha, Yażodharż, and Rżhula in the Mżlasarvżstivżda Vinaya.ż In Sacred Biography in the Buddhist Traditions of South and Southeast Asia, edited by Juliane Schober, 113-28. Honolulu: University of Hawaiżi Press, 1997.
Strong, John S. The Buddha: A Short Biography. Oxford: Oneworld, 2006.
Strong, John S. żThe Buddha as Ender and Transformer of Lineages.ż Religions of South Asia 5/1-2 (2011): 171-88.
Walters, Jonathan S. żThe Buddhażs Bad Karma.ż Numen 37/1 (1990): 70-95.
Walters, Jonathan S. żStżpa, Story, and Empire: Constructions of the Buddha Biography in Early Post-Ażokan India.ż In Sacred Biography in the Buddhist Traditions of South and Southeast Asia, edited by Juliane Schober, 160-92. Honolulu: University of Hawaiżi Press, 1997.
Walters, Jonathan S. żCommunal Karma and Karmic Community in Theravżda Buddhist History.ż In Constituting Communities: Theravżda Buddhism and the Religious Cultures of South and Southeast Asia, edited by John Clifford Holt et al, 9-39. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 2003.
|
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Buddhism,Buddha,religious literature,narrative,early India |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Naomi Appleton
Tel: (0131 6)50 8976
Email: |
Course secretary | Dr Jessica Wilkinson
Tel: (0131 6)50 7227
Email: |
|
|
University Homepage