Buddhist canon

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The teachings (sutras) of the Buddha , the disciplinary writings ( Vinaya ) and the scholastic or philosophical texts (pali: Abidhamma ), together form the canon of the writings of Buddhism . This is generally referred to with the Sanskrit expression Tripiṭaka , which in German means "three basket". With "canon" this collection is meant as a size of its own. The content is very different in the individual language areas in terms of composition and scope. There are three collections that are particularly important because they are fully preserved. The Tipiṭaka ( Pali ), the Sanzang ( Chinese  三藏 , Pinyin Sānzàng , W.-G. San tsang  - "three treasure houses") of China and the Kanjur of Tibet. Not all schools have Abidhamma scriptures.

history

One of the reasons why the historical Buddha (563–483 or 448–368 BC) was rejected by the Brahmins was his denial of the revelatory value of the sacred books of Hinduism , the Vedas . However, it could not be prevented that after his death, which Buddhists termed entering nirvana , the desire arose to keep his discourses as complete and pure as possible. During the Buddha's lifetime it was not customary in India to write down texts. The font was only used for legal agreements. Religious texts were usually handed down through memorization and recitation by specialists, so-called bhāṇaka . That is why the introduction of many sūtras ( discourses ) reads: “That's how I heard it” (pali: evam me suttam ).

The oral form of transmission can be clearly read from the Pali canon . As a result of being passed on orally, the canonical material had “ assumed mnemonic peculiarities early on , which intensified further in the centuries to come. Many passages of the Buddha's speeches were frozen into blocks of words that were repeated in all appropriate places; some suttas were contained in different places in the canon, others exaggerated by repetition. "

There cannot have been a “primordial canon”; the individual pitakas are too different for that. The text was secured at the first three Buddhist councils , at which the first two "baskets" were made binding and supplemented with the Kathavatthu as the basis of the third basket .

Traditions

Pali Canon (Theravada)

The Pali canon is the only canon fully preserved in an Indian language. It goes back to the Vibhajyvāda sect of the Theravada direction that was widespread in rear India and Ceylon . The wording can be considered certain since the great commentaries were written on Ceylon in the 5th or 6th century.

Until the 6th Council, the canon was only distributed in handwritten form in Ceylon, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos. Usually it was held on palm leaves (rarely wood). In particular, the new copying suggested by the respective Burmese king was common. Issues on other materials, such as the one probably made in the 6th or 7th century and found in Hmawanza (Burma) in 1897 on gold leaves, are rare.

This canon was first printed in the late 19th century, stimulated by the interest of European researchers. This Pali canon was and is still wrongly called the original, or the only correct one, an error that goes back to the Indologists of this time. The editions of the Pali Text Society and the philologically controversial but poetic German translation by Karl Eugen Neumann have made it accessible in Western languages.

Modern editions:

  • Text Series (Pali in Latin script) since 1882 and Translation Series (English) since 1909 of the Pali Text Soc.
  • Nālandā-Devanāgarī-Pāli-ganthamālā; Patna 1956–1961 ( Devanagari )
  • Bengali script : Barigaṭṭhassa Tepiṭakam; Cetiga Nagare 1975
  • Thai script : 5 issues between 1900 and 1950. Partly printed on palm leaves - Title: Thai พระ ไตรปิฎก [ pʰrá tʰrai-pì-dòk ]; BUDSIR (CD-ROM edition, Bangkok 1988); further electronic versions available on the Internet.
  • Mŭl script (Khmer): Braḥ Traipiṭ , 1931–1969, 110 volumes
  • Laotian script: Vientiane 1957, 3 volumes
  • Tai- khun language: Bra tripiṭaka. 1994-2001, 45 volumes
  • North Thai script: Bangkok 1996, 45 volumes
  • Shan : Vinepitakat Pārācikan; Rankun 1959-1989; 35 volumes
  • Mon : Vinayapiṭ ka Mahavibhanga ; s. l. 1973–
  • Jin Tripitaka (1115–1234) discovered in 1933 in Guangsheng Monastery ( Hongdong County )
  • Japanese: Nanden daizōkyō. Tōkyō 1935–1941 (Daizō Shuppan)

Sanskrit canon

Early in Buddhism in India, different schools emerged, each with its own canon; how complete it was in each case cannot be said. Most of the texts were lost with the suppression of Buddhism in India (around 1200). It must be emphasized that it is not the Pali canon, but the original Sanskrit texts (beginning around the 1st century BC) that are the older ones.

These texts are only preserved in manuscript finds from Central Asia - such as Turfan  - or Northern India - such as Gilgit  - or as reconstructions from translations of the Chinese San-zang and Tibetan Kanjur.

Central Asia

In Central Asia there was a large number of schools which based their tradition on various texts, mostly in Sanskrit. Most Chinese translations are based on such texts.

Chinese canon

According to tradition, Buddhism was introduced in China in 61, but it is certain that it was introduced as early as the 1st century BC. There were Buddhists there. The Chinese canon, Sanzang ( 三藏 , Sānzàng  - "three canons"), also called Dazangjing ( 大 藏經  /  大 藏经 , Dàzàngjīng  - "large collection of canonical writings") is, like the Pali canon in Sūtra ( 經  /  经 , jīng ), Abidharma ( 論  /  论 , lùn ) and Vinaya ( 律 , lǜ ; from five different traditions), however, based on the origin of the texts, Hinayāna and Mahāyāna are still separated. In addition there is the group “miscellaneous” ( 雜  /  杂 , zá ). The so-called agama sutras essentially correspond to the Pali canon. Furthermore, apocryphal writings emerged early on .

The need for systematisation arose at an early stage. Occupied, but mostly lost, are u. a. the handwritten compilations commissioned by Emperor Wu Di ( Liang Dynasty ) of 518, with 2213 works. Also 533 or 534 under Xiao Wu ( Northern Wei Dynasty ). From the first golden age of Chinese Buddhism in the Sui Dynasty , two under Emperor Wen Di of 594 and 602, another 605 to 616 under Emperor Yang Di . At the following Tang time two more 695 and, through Emperor Xuanzong , 730. There was also a collection from the time of Kublai Khan (1285–1287).

Block prints were first created under the Song Dynasty . The non-Chinese Kitan and Jurchen dynasties also had them made. Beijing was a center of canon translation under the Manju emperors. Tibetan, Mongolian and Manjurian editions were also initiated.

Block prints from this period (selection):

  • Shu-pen ( 蜀 本 , shǔběn = Ssu-ch'uan and K'ai-pao-tsang 開 寶藏  /  开 宝藏 , Kāibǎozàng ), 972–983, 1076 works in 480 volumes, printed in Chengdu
  • Liao / Kitan edition; Peking 1031-1064, 579 volumes
  • Ch'ung ning wan-shou ta-tsang. Fu-chou 1080–1104, 564 volumes, plus addition: Shou leng-yen i-hai ching. 1172, 595 volumes
  • Ssu-ch'i yuan-chüeh tsang. Hu-chuo 1132-; 548 volumes, known in Japan as the Sung edition of 1239
  • Chi-sha tsang. 1231-1322; 591 volumes, also as microfiche
  • Ssu-ch'i tzu-fu tsang. Hu-chuo 1237-1252
  • P'u-ning tsang. 1278–1294, 578 volumes, known in Japan as the Yuan edition
  • Nan-tsang. Nanking 1368-1398
  • Pei-tsang. Beijing 1402-1424; Supplement: Hsü ju tsang ching 1584, 693 volumes; reprinted as Mi-tsang 1586–1606, based on this edition by Emperor Yung-cheng 1735–1738

With the Chinese cultural export, the Chinese canon came to Korea, Japan and Vietnam.

Canon carved in stone

The following Shijing ( 石 石  /  石 经 ) collections are set in stone :

Korea

Although Buddhism in Korea is said to go back to Indian monks since the 4th century, the first Korean canon is based on the Sung canon, which was sent to Emperor Sŏng-jong (ruled from 982 to 997). Based on this, a first Korean print followed about 20 years later (around 1010, 570 volumes). During the Mongol invasion in 1232, the printing plates were destroyed, after which the first major Korean edition in Chinese script was initiated. These printing blocks are still available today.

Japan

For the first time Buddhism, and with it the Chinese script, reached Japan around 450 through the kingdom of Paekche , whose ruler was linked to the Japanese. It was not until the 7th century that there were direct connections to China, which was taken as a model, especially during the Tang period. A first bloom followed during the Nara period (8th century); The first Buddhist manuscripts are from around 750. A first print is said to have come to Japan in 987. Emperor Horikawa initiated the first Japanese printing in 1102. Others are said to have followed between 1278 and 1288 and between 1338 and 1358.

The Tripiṭaka ( Japanese 一切 経 , Issaikyō “all scriptures” or 大 蔵 経 , Daizōkyō “large collection of scripts”) in Japanese tradition is divided into the following departments: Kyōzō (Sutra), Ritsuzō (Vinaya), Ronzō (Abidharma) and Zatsu (miscellaneous).

The Japanese canon is still read in unchanged original Chinese script, although the characters are spoken in Japanese. For Abidhamma literature originated in Japan, the classic Kanbun style is mostly used, in which the Chinese characters are supplemented by reading aids.

The edition of the entire Sino-Japanese Buddhist canon compiled by Tetsugen Dōkō consists of 6956 fascicles that were produced using the wood printing process. The print is characterized by the clarity and size of the characters. The basis was the Chinese Wan Li edition of the Ming dynasty, which was supplemented by Ōbaku-specific texts. The compilation is alternatively known as Ōbakuban Daizōku or Ōbaku Tetsugen Issaikyō .

In recent times the Buddhists of Japan have distinguished themselves with frequent prints of the canon, but also in the scientific research of Buddhism. Nanjio's canon catalog was groundbreaking (mostly in older literature: NJ [number]). The not error-free Taishō edition (Japanese Taishō Shinshū Daizōkyō ) 大 正 新 脩 大 藏經 , Dàzhèng xīnxiū dàzàngjīng , Ta-cheng hsin-hsiu ta-tsang-ching , named after the era name of the Tennō (Taishō 1912–1926 by the Japanese Emperor Yoshihito 嘉仁) at the time of publication, is now considered the most complete edition of the Chinese canon (usually quoted as "T. [Vol. No.]"). The Bukkyō Dendō Kyōkai ( Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research ) began translating the entire Taishō (uncommented) into English in 1982, a project that is expected to take about 100 years to complete.

Tangu table

Already the Empress Luo of North Tibetan Tangutenreiches (11th to 13th century; W.-G .: Hsi-hsia; pinyin: Xixia ) was promoted in 1190 the spread of Buddhist scriptures. In 1302 a Tangut edition was completed.

Vietnam

Vietnam, although close to India, received Buddhism from China. In the year 1008 Lê Đại-Hành asked for the complete Tripiṭaka (viet .: Đại-tạng) from China and received it. Likewise 1018, 1034 and 1239. This latter version was published at the instigation of Trân Anh-tôn .

Manjurian

The Manjur translations are partial editions of the Chinese San-tsang that were not published until the 18th century.

Tibetan Canon

The tantric Vajrayāna scriptures, which were written in the 1st millennium C.E. Z. were no longer considered part of the Sanskrit canon. Therefore, the Tibetan Canon that incorporated such material is structured differently. Namely, 'Dul-ba ( Vinaya ), Śerphyin ( Prajñāpāramīta ), Phal-chen ( Buddhāvataṃsaka ), dKon-brtsegs ( Ratnakŭṭa ), mDo-se ( Sūtrānta ), rGyud-'bum ( Tantra ).

Buddhism is said to have been brought to Tibet by Padmasambhava in the 7th century , but there was also Chinese influence. King Khri-sron-lde-btsan chose the Indian tradition. This was followed by the suppression of Buddhism in the 9th century, which was followed by a second ("late") conversion in the 10th or 11th century . Beginning in the 8th century, the "early translation period" when Indians and Tibetans worked together, a binding terminological dictionary, the Mahāvyutpatti , was created. Around 900 catalogs of the existing fonts, so-called them-byan , were created for the first time .

In the " second translation period " from the 11th century onwards, important collections of texts by Indian pundits were added, which were then Kanjur (Tibetan བཀའ་ འགྱུར, bKa '-' gyur "translation of words") and Tanjur (བསྟན་ འགྱུར, bsTan- 'gyur "translation of the doctrine"), whereby only the former contains canonical literature. Tibetan translations are important for the reconstruction of the Indian originals as they are literal translations, unlike Chinese editions.

The first Tibetan catalog was the one created around 1320 in the Narthang Monastery , the revision of which, the Tshal-pa bKa '-' gyur , formed the basis of later editions. The revision of the Tanjur was done by Bu'ston (1290-1364), who also standardized the orthography.

For the Kanjur , roughly speaking, based on the criticism of the text, two lines of tradition, a western and an eastern one, can be worked out. The eastern branch is split into a Litang and a Peking branch. Due to the large number of different manuscripts and block prints, a final assessment cannot yet be given. The Kanjur accepted today comprises 1055 works in 92 volumes, Tanjur 224 volumes with 3626 works.

The following canon editions are said to have existed (incomplete list):

  1. Manuscripts:
    • Them-spans-ma -Ms. ( Gyantse )
    • Litang , Cone , Derge, Urga, Wara and Ra-skya editions (Western tradition)
    • 2 Kanjur ( bZad-pa-rtsal- and Sans-rgyas-rygya-mtsho ) and a Tanjur edition from the time of Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso , 5th Dalai Lama (1617–1682)
    • Nu-ma -Kanjur
    • Tshal-gun-than -Kanjur (80 volumes)
    • rJes-rku-'bum -Kanjur ( Amdo , 102 volumes)
    • 'Phyon-rgyas -Tanjur (234 volumes, 15th century)
    • a Buryat (uncertain: print 17th century) and a Bhutanese
  2. Block prints:
    • First from Narthang Monastery (from 1320) and Lhasa
    • Peking prints, around 1410, first recorded in Tibet in 1416, reprinted in 1606 and several times in the 17th or 18th century

Mongolian Canon

During the Yüan Dynasty , Tibetan monks gained influence at court. First translations were performed under Kaiser Wuzong (ruled 1307-1311), larger parts followed by the "second conversion" by the yellow-caps sect under arbor Khan (1507 to 1582). A complete translation of the entire Kanjur (1628–1629), 113 volumes written in gold and silver ( badam altan ganjur ), was made in five copies.

Beijing editions:

  • K'ang-hsi. 1717-1720; 108 volumes [Kanjur]
  • Ch'ien-lung. 1742-1749: 226 volumes [Tanjur]; 1759, 1790: Kanjur
  • Lokesh Chandra: Mongolian Kanjur. Delhi 1973; 108 volumes reprinted from K'ang-hsi
  • FA Bischoff: The Kanjur and his colophons ... Bloomington 1968

See also

literature

bibliography

  • Edward Conze : Buddhist Scriptures: A Bibliography. Edited and revised by Lewis Lancaster. Garland, New York 1982.
  • Günter Grönbold: The Buddhist Canon - A Bibliography. Harrassowitz, Wiesbaden 1984, ISBN 3-447-02472-0 . (Basic, especially for prints in Asian scripts)
  • Peter Pfandt: Māhāyana Texts Translated into Western Languages ​​- A Bibliographical Guide. Brill iK, Cologne 1986, ISBN 3-923956-13-4 .

Pali canon

  • Hellmuth Hecker: The Pali Canon. A guide through the structure and German translations of the holy scriptures of Buddhism. Self-published, Hamburg 1965.
  • Karl Eugen Neumann. The speeches of Gotamo Buddha: Complete edition in three volumes. Artemis, Zurich; Zsolnay, Vienna, 1956/57.
    • Volume I: From the middle Majjhimanikāyo collection . translated for the first time; 1956. Original: Munich 1896–1902
    • Volume II: From the longer Dighanikāyo collection . of the Pāli canon translated; 1957. Original: Munich, 1907–1912
    • Volume III: The Collection of Fragments. The songs of the monks and nuns. The Truth Path. Attachment. 1957. (Excerpt from the Khuddaka-Nikaya ) Original: Munich, 1907–1912

(Various new editions of Digha and Majjhimanikāyo: Beyerlein & Steinschulte, Herrnschrot 1995/96, ISBN 3-931095-15-0 ; Lempertz, Bonn 2006, ISBN 3-933070-86-4 ; digital edition: Directmedia, Berlin 2004, ISBN 3-89853-186-4 . (The Digital Library 86))

  • Karl Eugen Neumann (translator). The speeches of Gotamo Buddha; from the middle Majjhimanikayo collection of the Pali Canon, Munich R. Piper, 3 volumes, 1922. Vol.1 / digitized volume 2 / digitized volume 3 / digitized
  • Karl Eugen Neumann (translator). Gotamo Budho's speeches, from the collection of the Suttanipato fragments of the Pali Canon, Munich R. Piper 1911. Digitized
  • The Buddha's speeches. Grouped collection of Samyutta-Nikaya. Preface by Hecker, translation by Geiger, Nyanaponika and Hecker, Beyerlein & Steinschulte, Herrnschrot 1997.
  • The Discourses of the Buddha from the Sequenced Collection [ Anguttara-Nikaya ]. From the Pali. by Nyanatiloka. Revised and published by Nyanaponika, Aurum, Braunschweig 1993. (= Munich 1922 or 1923)
  • Publishers:
    • Pali Text Society. London.
    • Buddhist Publication Society. Kandy - Pali text editions and English translation

Sanskrit

  • Raghu Vira, Chandra Lokesh: Gilgit Buddhist manuscripts. Delhi 1996, 1995.
  • AS Altekar (Ed.): Tibetan Sanskrit works series. Patna 1959.
  • Bibliotheca Buddhaica. St. Petersburg 1897. (Reprint: Osnabrück 1970)
  • Sanskrit texts from the Turfan finds. Berlin 1955 - in Latin transcription.
  • Moriz Winternitz : History of Indian Literature . Leipzig, 1920, Vol. 2: The Buddhist literature and the sacred texts of the Jainas. Digitized

Sino-Japanese canon

  • Akanuma Chizen: The comparative Catalog of Chinese Āganas and Pāli Nikāyas - Kampa shibu shiagon goshōroku. Nagoya 1929, Tōkyō 1958.
  • Fukuda Gyōkai, Shimada Bankon, Shikikawa Seiichi: Dai Nihon kōtei shukusatsu dai zōkyō. Kōkyō Shoin, Tokyo, 1880–1885, 418 volumes, is considered the most accurate modern edition
  • Hu-from over, Haiyan; History of translation and transmission of the Chinese Tripitaka ; 1984
  • Kenneth Ch'en, Notes on The Sung and Yuan Tripitaka. In: Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies. Vol. 14, No. 1/2 (Jun., 1951), pp. 208-214 Harvard-Yenching Institute; Notes on The Sung and Yuan Tripitaka
  • Maeda Eun, Nakano Tatsue: Dai Nihon kōtei zōkyō. Kyoto 1902–1905, 347 volumes, also known as Manjiban
  • Maeda Eun, Nakano Tatsue: Dainippon zoku zōkyō. Kyoto 1905-1912; 750 volumes, the main source of Chinese Buddhist literature after the T'ang period
  • Nakano T. (Ed.): Shōwa shinsan kokuyaku dai zōkyō. Tōkyō 1919–1921, 50 volumes
  • Nakano T. (Ed.): Shōwa shinsan kokuyaku dai zōkyō zoku no bu. Tōkyō 1936–1948, 59 volumes
  • Nanjio Bunyiu : A catalog of the Chinese Translation of the Buddhist Tripitaka… . Oxford 1883 Internet Archive (PDF; 15.7 MB)
  • Shanghai yingyin Songban zangjinghui: Songzang yizhen. Yingyin Songban zangjinghui, Shanghai 1935, based on the Ch'in edition, completed around 1173
  • Shanghai yingyin Songban zangjinghui: Song Jishaban Da zangjing. Yingyin Songban zangjinghui, Shanghai 1935–1936, 591 volumes, based on the Sung edition from around 1322
  • Takakusu Junjirō; Watanabe Kaigyoku 大 正 新 修 大 蔵 経: Taishō shinshū daizōkyō. Taishō issaikyō kankokai, Tōkyō 1922–1932, 100 Vol. - Contents: Vol. 1-55 Indian and Chinese works; Vol. 56-84 Japanese works; Vol. 85 varia; 12 volumes of the picture section, including: Repertoire du Canon Bouddhique Sino-Japonaise . Paris 1978; Index; Taishō shinshū daizōkyō…; Tōkyō 1926–1985, 50 vol.

Korean canon

  • Koryŏ taejanggyŏng. (Koryŏ canon), Tongguk University Press, Seoul, 1976. Facsimile of xylography around 1251
  • Lewis R. Lancaster, Sung-bae Park: The Korean Buddhist Canon: A Descriptive Catalog. University of California Press, Berkeley, Los Angeles 1979.
  • Tongguk taehakkyo pulgyo munhwa yŏn'guso: Han'guk pulgyo ch'ansul munhŏn ch'ongnok . Tongguk Taehakkyo Ch'ulp'anbu, Seoul 1976.

Tibetan Canon

  • Bo-doṅ Paṇ-chen Phyogs-las-rnam-rgyal (1375–1450): Encyclopedia tibetica. Tibet House, New Delhi, 1969–1981, Photoreprint, Tanjur
  • Helmut Eimer: The early Mustang Kanjur catalog: a structured edition of the mDo snags bka '-' gyur dkar-chag and of Nor chen Kun dga 'bza' po's bKa '' gyur ro-cog-gi dkar-chag bstan-pa gsal -ba'i sgron-me. Vienna 1999
  • Helmut Eimer: Location list for the texts in the microfiche edition of the Phug brag Kanjur: compiled from the microfiche edition and Jampa Samten's descriptive catalog. Tokyo 1993, ISBN 4-906267-32-7 .
  • Günter Grönbold: The words of the Buddha in the languages ​​of the world: Tipiṭaka - Tripiṭaka - Dazangjing - Kanjur; an exhibition from the holdings of the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek. Munich 2005, ISBN 3-9807702-4-9 .
  • Louis Ligeti: Catalog du Kanjur Mongol imprimé. In: Bibliotheca orientalis Hungarica. 3.1. Budapest 1942.
  • The Tog Palace manuscript of the Tibetan Kanjur. Smanrtsis Shesrig Dpemzod, Leh 1975–1981, 109 volumes
  • Sde-dge Mtshal-par Bka '-' gyur . New Delhi 1976–1979 109 vol. - Facsimile of Si-tu Paṇ-chen Chos-kyi-ʼbyuṅ-gnas. 1700-1774; also on 10 CD-ROMS
  • Daisetz T. Suzuki (Ed.): Eiin Pekin-ban Chibetto Daizzōkyō. Tibetan Tripitaka Research Institute, Kyoto, 1955–1961 - Beijing edition
  • MibuTaishun: Chibetto Daizokyō Narutan-ban Ronshobu mokuroku. Tokyo 1967, comparative list of the Tibetan Tripitaka of the Narthang edition ( Bstan-hgyur ) with the Sde-dge edition
  • Tarthang Tulku: The Nyingma edition of the sDe-dge bKa '-' gyur / bsTan-'gyur . Dharma Publ., Oakland 1980.

Web links

Translations into western languages

concordance

Concordances between the individual catalogs of the Canon can be found on the Internet:

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Hans Wolfgang Schumann: Buddhism. Donors, schools, systems. Diederichs, Munich 1993, p. 57.
  2. ↑ Klaus Josef Notz: Lexicon of Buddhism. Freiburg 1998, Vol II, p. 354.
  3. ↑ Eric D. Grinstead (Ed.): The Tangut Tripiṭaka. New Delhi 1971; 9 volumes