Brief History Of Buddhist Studies In Europe And Maerica

This text, "A Brief History of Buddhist Studies in Europe and America" by J.W. De Jong, provides a detailed overview of the development of Buddhist scholarship in the Western world, tracing its origins from antiquity to the early 1970s. The author divides the history into three main periods:

1. The Early Period (c. 300 B.C. - 1877):

• Ancient Roots: Early awareness of Buddhism in the West dates back to Greek sources (e.g., Clement of Alexandria mentioning "Boutta") and later Roman accounts (e.g., Hieronymus on Buddha's birth).
• Medieval Legends: The legend of Saint Josaphat, a Christian saint, was later recognized as a Christianized version of the Buddha's life story, popularized through the legend of Barlaam and Josaphat.
• 13th-14th Century Encounters: Papal envoys to the Mongol Khans (like John of Pian di Carpino and William of Rubruck) and Marco Polo's travels brought back accounts of Buddhism, though often mixed with legends and limited in their understanding of doctrines. Marco Polo's descriptions of Ceylon are noted for their surprisingly accurate summary of the Buddha's life, including reincarnation.
• Missionary Accounts (16th-18th Centuries): The arrival of European missionaries in Asia, particularly Francis Xavier and later Jesuit and Capuchin missionaries in Tibet, provided early, albeit often anecdotal, information about Buddhism. Francesco Orazio della Penna's Tibetan-Chinese dictionary and translations, and Ippolito Desideri's extensive work on Tibetan religion and language, are highlighted as significant contributions from this era.
• Dawn of Philology (Late 18th - Mid-19th Century): The crucial turning point began with the study of Pāli, the sacred language of Theravada Buddhism, and Sanskrit Buddhist texts.
  • Pāli Studies: Simon de La Loubère's work on Siam in the late 17th century is noted, but the real foundation was laid by Paulinus a Sancto Bartholomaeo and William Chambers who identified the relationship between Sanskrit and Pāli. The publication of the Kammavācā and later works by Benjamin Clough, Rasmus Rask, George Turnour, and Daniel J. Gogerly in Ceylon marked important early steps. Eugène Burnouf and Christian Lassen's Essai sur le Pali (1826) was a landmark.
  • Sanskrit Buddhist Studies: Brian Houghton Hodgson's donation of Sanskrit Buddhist manuscripts from Nepal was instrumental. Eugène Burnouf was a pivotal figure, undertaking significant translations and studies of texts like the Saddharmapundarika and Introduction à l'histoire du Buddhisme indien.
  • Tibetan and Mongolian Studies: The early studies of Buddhism among Kalmyks by Benjamin Bergmann and Isaak Jakob Schmidt, and Alexander Csoma de Körös's work on the Tibetan canon, laid the groundwork for understanding Mahayana Buddhism through these languages.
  • Chinese Pilgrim Accounts: Abel-Rémusat and Stanislas Julien translated early Chinese accounts of Buddhism in India, such as Fa-hsien's Fo-kuo-chi and Hsuan-Tsang's Hsi-yü-chi.
  • Theravada Buddhism: Missionaries like R. Spence Hardy, P. Bigandet, and Henry Alabaster contributed to the understanding of Theravada Buddhism through their work in Sinhalese, Burmese, and Siamese sources.
• Foundational Works: The period culminated with Burnouf's foundational work on Sanskrit Buddhist texts and early Pāli studies, establishing the philological basis for Western Buddhist scholarship.

2. The Middle Period (1877-1942):

• Rise of Textual Editions and Translations: This era saw a significant increase in the publication of critical editions of Pāli and Sanskrit Buddhist texts, largely driven by the founding of the Pali Text Society by T.W. Rhys Davids in 1881.
• Key Scholars and Methodologies:
  • Émile Senart: His Essai sur la légende du Buddha (1873-1875) introduced a "historical mythology" approach, interpreting Buddhist narratives through Indo-European mythological concepts, particularly solar hero parallels.
  • Hendrik Kern: His History of Buddhism in India (1882-1884) also adopted a solar mythology interpretation, linking Buddhist figures to astronomical phenomena.
  • Hermann Oldenberg: He countered Senart and Kern with his Buddha. Sein Leben, seine Lehre, seine Gemeinde (1881), defending the reliability of canonical Pāli texts and emphasizing a more historical and euhemeristic approach. He also focused on textual criticism to distinguish earlier and later strata within Buddhist texts.
  • T.W. Rhys Davids: Advocated for the primacy of Pāli texts and sought the historical basis of the Buddha's life.
  • The Aśoka Inscriptions: The decipherment and interpretation of Aśoka's inscriptions by scholars like James Prinsep, Burnouf, Kern, Cunningham, and Senart provided crucial historical data, leading to debates about "Asokan Buddhism."
• Central Asian Discoveries: The late 19th and early 20th centuries witnessed significant discoveries of Buddhist manuscripts in Central Asia (Kashgar, Turfan), yielding texts in various languages (Sanskrit, Kuchean, Khotanese, etc.) that significantly enriched the corpus of Buddhist literature available to scholars. Expeditions led by Aurel Stein, Albert Grünwedel, and Paul Pelliot were particularly important.
• Emergence of Key Figures: This period saw the rise of influential scholars who shaped the field for decades: Sylvain Lévi (pivotal for his broad research and emphasis on Indian, Tibetan, and Chinese sources), Louis de La Vallée Poussin (a giant in Mahāyāna philosophy and Abhidharma), and Theodor Stcherbatsky (whose work on Buddhist logic and epistemology was groundbreaking). Other significant figures included Jean Przyluski, Hermann Beckh, Heinrich Lüders, Ernst Waldschmidt, and Wilhelm Geiger.
• Continued Philological Work: The focus remained on critical editions, translations, and detailed linguistic analysis of Pāli and Sanskrit texts. Work on Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit began to emerge.

3. The Recent Period (1943-1973):

• Continued Scholarly Output: Despite the passing of some key figures, scholars like Weller, Waldschmidt, Lamotte, Frauwallner, and Tucci continued their important work.
• Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit (BHS): Franklin Edgerton's Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Grammar and Dictionary (1953) was a monumental achievement, though it sparked considerable debate regarding its methodology and the classification of BHS texts, with scholars like Helmer Smith offering significant critiques. John Brough's definitive edition of the Gāndhārī Dharmapada also contributed to the understanding of Middle Indic languages in Buddhism.
• Refinement of Methodologies: The period saw a move towards more nuanced textual criticism, with scholars like Ernst Waldschmidt producing exemplary editions of Central Asian fragments, and others emphasizing the importance of manuscript studies.
• Expanding Research Areas: The study of Mahāyāna philosophy (Conze, Lamotte, Nobel, Weller), Mātṛceta, Abhidharma (Pradhan, Jaini), Tantrism, Tibetan Buddhism, and Chinese Buddhism (Demíeville, Zürcher, Ch'en) flourished.
• Key Comprehensive Works: Étienne Lamotte's Histoire du bouddhisme indien is highlighted as a monumental work on early Indian Buddhism.
• Challenges and Future Tasks: The author points to the need for more critical editions of Chinese Buddhist texts, better utilization of Japanese scholarship, and more systematic bibliographical surveys. The importance of interdisciplinary approaches, combining philology with history, philosophy, and archaeology, is stressed.

Chapter IV: Future Perspectives:

• The Role of Japanese Scholarship: De Jong emphasizes the vast amount of research conducted by Japanese scholars on Buddhist studies, particularly concerning the Chinese Buddhist canon, and the need for Western scholars to engage with this work. He highlights the differences in scholarly traditions (Western focus on philology vs. Japanese reliance on the Chinese canon) and the challenges of accessing Japanese publications.
• Critical Editions and Textual History: The need for critical editions of Chinese Buddhist texts, drawing on systematic collection of print editions and manuscripts (including Tun-huang findings), is paramount. Understanding the linguistic peculiarities of translators and scribes is crucial.
• Collaborative Efforts: De Jong calls for increased collaboration between Western and Japanese scholars, particularly in translating Chinese Buddhist texts and producing synoptic editions that compare Sanskrit, Tibetan, and Chinese versions.
• Broader Contextualization: He stresses that Indian Buddhism cannot be studied in isolation but must be integrated within the broader context of Indian culture, Vedic literature, Jainism, and other Indian religions. Similarly, Chinese Buddhism needs to be understood within Chinese history and culture.
• Call for Cooperation: The text concludes with a hopeful wish for future generations of scholars in Japan and the West to work closely together in the study of Buddhism.

In essence, De Jong's work charts the evolution of Western Buddhist studies from its nascent stages of encountering religious and legendary accounts to the sophisticated philological, historical, and philosophical analyses of the 20th century, while also looking ahead to the challenges and opportunities for future research, particularly the integration of Japanese scholarship.