The Creation of Avalokiteśvara: Exploring His Origin in the Northern Āgamas
Through intertextual analyses between the northern Āgamas, Ava-lokiteśvara’s (A.) iconography-quality, and the early A.-related texts, this research argues that A. is a composite character representing the Buddha’s entire bodhisattva aspect. His iconography is based on Sumedha in the Dīpaṃkara Buddh...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
|
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
2017
|
| In: |
Canadian Journal of Buddhist Studies
Year: 2017, Volume: 12, Pages: 1-62 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | Through intertextual analyses between the northern Āgamas, Ava-lokiteśvara’s (A.) iconography-quality, and the early A.-related texts, this research argues that A. is a composite character representing the Buddha’s entire bodhisattva aspect. His iconography is based on Sumedha in the Dīpaṃkara Buddha story; his title is based on the narrative through which the Buddha recounted how he surveyed the world upon awakening. They are respectively the starting point and the ending point of the Bodhisattva Path. The research also demonstrates that the eleven-headed A. is based on the eleven benefits of and the eleven directions in practicing the brahmavihāras (divine abidings). The research proposes that A.’s identity first became dissociated with the Buddha-to-be likely due to the Amitābha cult., |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 1710-825X |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Canadian Journal of Buddhist Studies
|