3Egil LotheSuggestions Regarding Compiling an Abridged Common Buddhist Canon.docx

3Egil LotheSuggestions Regarding Compiling an Abridged Common Buddhist Canon.docx

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3EgilLotheSuggestionsRegardingCompilinganAbridgedCommonBuddhistCanon

SuggestionsRegardingCompilinganAbridgedCommonBuddhistCanon

EgilLothe

PresidentoftheBuddhistUnionofNorway

AnissueconfrontingBuddhisminthemodernworldishowtopromoteitsscripturesasafoundationforacorrectunderstandingoftheDharmaaswellasameansofpromotingtheDharmaamongitsownfollowersandamonginterestedpeopleingeneral.ThevolumeaswellasthediversityofthetextsfoundinthethreemajorcollectionsofscripturesinPali,ChineseandTibetanmakestheveryideaofdisseminationwidelytheTripitakaintotoquiteuntenable.HistoricallyBuddhisttraditionshave,withfewexceptions,notpromotedthestudyofitsentireTripitaka,evenamongitsownmonasticfollowers.BuddhismasithasdevelopedhistoricallyhastoagreatextentreliedontheinterpretationsoftheDharmabythefoundingpatriarchsofparticularschoolsofBuddhism.ThistendencyisespeciallystrongintheMahayanaandVajrayanatraditions,althoughfarfromabsentintheTheravadatradition,whichpurportstobebasedonthemostancienttransmissionofthewordsoftheBuddha,butwhichreliesverymuchontheirinterpretationsinthelatercommentaries.

ThisinclinationtorelyonlaterinterpretationsoftheDharmaratherthaninvestigatingtheDharmaofShakyamuniBuddhathroughthesearchingforhisownwordsmaynotnecessarilybeviewedasaproblem.Asweknow,thelivingtransmissionofwisdombasedonpracticeandlearningwithincommunitiesofpractitionersmaybeamoretrustworthysourceofknowledgethantheinterpretationsofindividualsbasedonreadingsofbooks.StillitmaybearguedthatthestudyoftheBuddha’sownwords,asfarastheycanbeascertainedthroughscholarlyresearch,offerauniqueandindispensablepathwaytotheunderstandingoftheDharmataughtbyShakyamuniBuddha.Also,thecontemporarysituationofswiftmodernisationandglobalisationrequireBuddhiststoreviewtheirtraditionsinordertojudgecriticallywhatareessentialpartsoftheDharma,thatareeverrelevant,andwhatarelateraccretionsthatmayinsomecasesbetterbedisposed.InordertoreviewBuddhisminthiswayknowledgeofthemostancientBuddhistscripturesisessential.Also,inordertopromotetheDharmainacrediblemanneritseemsnecessarytorefertothescripturescontainingthewordsoftheBuddha.ApointofrelevancehereisalsotheassumptionthatthedifferenttraditionsofBuddhismneedtoagreeonacommonscripturalbasisinordertomaintainitscredibilityasatraditionunitedbyacommonbasisofteachingsoriginatingfromShakyamuniBuddhahimself.

AssumingthatthesereflectionsarevalidthereseemstobeaneedtoemphasiseanapproachthatfocusesmorestronglyontheoriginalscripturalbasiscommontotheBuddhisttraditions.Towhatextentdoessuchacommonscripturalfoundationexist?

ToscholarsofBuddhismtheanswerliesmainlyinthecollectionsreferredasthefourNikāyaoftheSuttaPitakaofthePaliTripitakaandtheAgama（阿含經）intheChineseTripitakaandthecorrespondingtranslations（althoughlesscomplete）intheTibetanTripitaka.RelevantinthisconnectionmayalsobesometextsfromtheVinayacollectionspreservedintheTripitakaaswellascertaintextsreckonedasancient,amongthosepreservedintheKhuddakaNikāyainthePaliTripitaka.

Evenwiththescopelimitedtothesescripturesthereareanumberofchallengeswhentheissueofdisseminatingthemistakenupforconsiderationwhichanyonewhohavestudiedthemarewellawareof.Basicallythesechallengesboildowntothefactthatthesetextsarevoluminous,oftenrepetitiveandgenerallynoteditedaccordingtoanychronologicalortopicalprinciple.DisseminatingthesescriptureswidelywouldforthesereasonsbecounterproductiveasfaraswideningthecircleofreadersofBuddhistscripturesisconcerned.Theobviousanswertothischallengewouldbetocompileanabridgedversionofthesescriptures,aCommonBuddhistCanonapprovedbyrepresentativesofthemajortraditionsofBuddhismwithafocusontextsdealingwithcommonlyacceptedfundamentalteachingsofbroadrelevanceaswellasthelifestoryofShakyamuniBuddha.SuchascripturecouldthenbedistributedwidelytopromoteacorrectunderstandingamongBuddhism’sownadherentsaswellasamongothers.

TheideaofcompilinganthologiesexcerptsfromBuddhistscripturesisofcoursenotnew.Anearlyexampleofsuchabookis“TheSutraof42Chapters”（四十二章經）translatedintoorcompiledinChineseduringtheHandynasty（year67CE）.AmorerecentexampleistheworkbyaJapaneseBuddhistorganisationtopublishanddistributethebook“TheTeachingoftheBuddha”invariouslanguages.ThelimitationofthelatterbookmainlyliesinthefactthatitconsistsofratherfreerenderingsofvarioussourcematerialratherthanaccuratetranslationsofthemandthatitindiscriminatelymixesdifferentteachingsofquitedistinctBuddhisttraditions.AccordingtoinformationreceivedtherearealsoanthologiesofBuddhistscripturescompiledinrecentyearsincountriessuchasThailandandVietnam.Althoughmuchhavebeendoneinthisareathereseemstobeaneedtomakefurtherprogressinthisarea,especiallyifonetakeintoconsiderationtheimmenseeffortsmadebyotherreligionsindisseminatingtheirscripturesevenintraditionallyBuddhistcountries.

RelevantinthiscontextisalsothefactthattheUnitedDayofVesakConferenceinBangkokinMay2006initsJointCommuniquédeclareditsintention“tocompileandpublishaninformedworkonBuddhismtobefreelydistributedtohotelsworldwideaspartoftheefforttodisseminateBuddhismand,inordertofacilitatethat,toformasub-committeeoftheJointInternationalOrganizingCommitteetocarryonthework”ThedecisiontoincludethispointwasmadeasaresponsetothesuggestionmadebythepresidentoftheBuddhistFederationofNorway,thatanabridgedcollectionofcanonicalBuddhistscripturesbepublishedtobemadewidelyavailabletopeoplethroughbeingfreelydistributedinhotelsandsoon.SuchacollectionshouldemphasisefundamentalteachingscommontoallBuddhisttraditionsaswellasthelifestorytheBuddha.

CompletingaprojectofthiskindmaybeexpectedtoleadtoanincreasedawarenessoftheimportanceoftheoriginalscripturesasafoundationfortheunderstandingoftheDharma.SuchaprojectmaythusserveasaneededlinkbetweenthewiderBuddhistcommunityandthecommunityofBuddhistscholarsdoingresearchonthispreciousheritage.ThisresearchisimportantandshouldhaveimplicationsbeyondthepurelyacademiconesandshouldaffectthelargerBuddhistcommunityandindeedcontributetothedisseminationoftheDharmainthecontemporaryworld.

WethereforeneedtolookathowsuchanabridgedCommonBuddhistCanonmaybecompiledandwhatprinciplestoapplyinrelationtoitsstructureandthecriteriafortheselectionoftextstobeincluded.Thefollowingpointsshouldbeconsidered:

a.Aimoftheproject

KeyconsiderationsshouldbetomakethewordsoftheBuddhaaccessibletopeoplewithlittleknowledgeaboutBuddhism,inawaythatmaycatchtheirinterestandinspirethemtohavefaithintheDharmaandtodevelopthewishtopracticeit.TheobjectiveshouldbetoopenthedoortotheBuddhistscripturestoabroadaudience.ThewordsoftheBuddhashouldbeallowedtospeakforthemselvestrustingthatthesewordsinthemselveswillcatchtheinterestofthereadersandinspirethemtohavefaithintheDharma.

b.Relevanceandliteraryquality

Thetranslatedtextshouldfulfilthehigheststandardsintermsofliteraryqualityandscholarlyaccuracy,aswellasbeingsuitableinrelationtotheintendedaudienceinbeingbroadandbalancedinitsdoctrinalfocus,emphasisingteachingsofparticularrelevancetosuchanaudience.Also,theunderstandingofBuddhistdoctrineexpressedinaworkofthiskind,throughtheselectionoftextsaswellasthroughtheprinciplesoftranslationused,shouldbebalanced,avoidingbothtraditionalistdogmatism,ontheonehand,andreductionistmodernismontheother.

c.Athematicanthologyofselectedcanonicaltexts

AnabridgedcanonshouldcontainthelifestoryofLordBuddhaaswellashisteachings.AtextcontainingexcerptsfromthePalicanon,presentingtheseteachingsaswellasthelifestoryofLordBuddha,shouldexpectedtobeacceptabletoalltraditions.Thealternative,whichistoincludetextspresentingtheteachingsofthedifferentBuddhisttraditions,donotappearadvisableforanumberofreasons,onebeingtheriskofconfusingthereaderswithconflictinginterpretationsoftheDharma.

ForthispurposeoneshouldlookatthetextscontainedinthePaliTipitaka,inthosecollectionsintheVinayaandSuttaPitakathatarerecognisedasthemostoriginalones.Oneshouldalsoconsiderconsultingtextscorrespondingtothese,containedintheMahayanacanonsinChineseandTibetan.

AsanyreaderoftheBuddhistscriptureshasexperienced,thedifficultiesconnectedwiththesheervolumeofthesescripturesaswellastheirrepetitiveformsuggeststhatpresentingthesescripturesinanabridgedcanonwillbeveryeffectiveinmakingthesetextsmoreaccessibletoalargeraudience.

d.Commoncoreteachings

Inthepresentsituationacriticalhistoricalapproachtothescripturesseemsnecessary.Realizingthis,afocusonthemostancienttextsappearstobebestwaytoproceedtocompileanabridgedcanonassuggestedhere.

e.Importanceoforiginallanguage

RealizingthatBuddhismoriginallyappearedinaparticulargeographical,historical,culturalandsocialcontextthelinguisticclosenes