Writings related to Buddhism
The school of the Nepalese Swābhāvikas described in Brian Hodgson’s pioneering essays on Buddhism in Nepal is of some significance in the thought-world of the… Read More »Dharmodayā: The Identity and Esoteric Tradition of the Nepalese Svābhāvikas
Dolpopa, the major writer of the Jonang order of Tibetan Buddhism, taught that ultimate reality, referred to by him under various names, is “empty of… Read More »Dolpopa on svabhāva
Tsongkhapa is an extremely significant figure in Tibetan Buddhism. His impact has been compared to that of Thomas Aquinas in the west (Dargyay 55) and… Read More »The Theosophy of Tsongkhapa
HPB gives them as: 1. DANA, the key of charity and love immortal. 2. SHILA, the key of Harmony in word and act, the key… Read More »The Six Paramitas (Perfections)
Over the centuries there have been numerous biographies of Gautama the Buddha in various formats, from the ancient traditional biographies, to epic poems like Sir Edwin Arnold’s Light of Asia, to articles, modern biographies and documentaries. Throughout all of these we find certain keynotes, certain events and ideas that form a basis for the life of Buddha, but we also find more fantastical aspects to the stories. Modern scholars tend to dismiss the latter as merely “mythological” or exaggerated, and they seek (and fail) to find the “real Buddha” by stripping these away. In the present biography, we will attempt to trace not only the historical basis for the life of the Buddha, but to unveil, as much as is possible, some of the symbolism involved in the traditional accounts. How far we are successful in so doing is left to the reader to decide.
In the story of the Buddha’s final journey and Paranirvana, recorded beautifully in the Maha-parinibbana Sutta,1 we are confronted with a peculiarly interesting story: the… Read More »Buddha and Ambapali
Often viewed as the greatest or most important philosopher of the Buddhists, 1 Nāgārjuna plays a central role in the transmission of Buddhist thought. H.P.… Read More »Nagarjuna
Composing a biography on Aryasanga is not an easy task. Reliable records are scant and partial at best. Thus what we will offer here is… Read More »Aryasanga
Part 1 As already discussed here, the alleged Svābhāvika school of Buddhism in Nepal that is spoken of in many books on Buddhism, and also… Read More »A Svābhāvika School of Buddhism?
Part 1 Svabhāvavāda, the doctrine of svabhāva or inherent nature, as the cause of the world, is old. It is referred to, for example, in… Read More »Prehistoric Svabhāvavāda
Does Christianity believe in reincarnation? Of course it does not. Yet, students of the Wisdom Tradition may seek to find evidence that early Christians did… Read More »Ātman/Anātman in Buddhism and Its Implication for the Wisdom Tradition
Tsongkhapa (1357-1419) was the founder of the Gelugpa or “Yellow Hat” order of Tibetan Buddhism. This soon became the dominant order in Tibet, making Tsongkhapa… Read More »Tsongkhapa and the Teachings of the Wisdom Tradition
It has now become possible to identify the specific school or tradition of Buddhism in Tibet that represents the doctrinal position of the Wisdom Tradition… Read More »The Doctrinal Position of the Wisdom Tradition: Great Madhyamaka
Theosophy is the modern name given by H. P. Blavatsky towhat is described by her as the once universal but now hiddenWisdom-Religion, the parent source… Read More »Theosophy and Buddhism
Understanding “emptiness” is presented in Buddhism as the culmination of religious training. It is attained through the systematic practice of the perfect virtues, including the… Read More »The Wisdom of Emptiness
[Introduction] This scripture has always been held in the greatest veneration in Mahayana countries. In China and Japan there are at least twenty-eight different recensions… Read More »Prajnaparamita-Hridaya-Sutra (The Heart Sutra)
Some seven centuries ago there arose in Tibet a school of teachings which has many parallels to Theosophy. This is the Jonangpa school. Like Theosophy… Read More »Book of Dzyan Research Report: Theosophy in Tibet: The Teachings of the Jonangpa School
Buddhism is known as a religion of enlightenment and emancipation or freedom. Buddha is a generic name given to one who has realized enlightenment or… Read More »Buddhism: The Path of Compassion
Contents Illustration of Palm Leaf Manuscript Foreword Introduction Acknowledgments Canto I – The Twin Verses II – On Vigilance III – The Mind IV – The… Read More »Dhammapada, Wisdom of the Buddha
In ancient cultures, such as that of the Indo-Aryans or the Druids, literacy and education were not considered of general major importance, because they were… Read More »The Vedas: Soil of Buddhism
“This is not a new translation. It is only a rendition. Over a score of translations have been consulted in its compilation and of course… Read More »Dhammapada (Theosophy Co. Rendition)
Asked, “What is Zen?”, there is only one truthful answer, “That’s it!” For Zen is beyond description. It is the life within form and only… Read More »In Search of Zen
There are men, and plenty of them, who think that when something has been classified in accordance with the prevailing system of filing, they know… Read More »The Nature of Zen Buddhism
It is said — and what is tradition but truth in the robes of poetry? — that once, when the Buddha was seated with his… Read More »The Birth of Zen Buddhism
In regard to the work Peaks and Lamas 1 we agree with Dr Coomaraswamy’s appreciation in Asia magazine that this: is one of those very… Read More »The Tibetan Buddhist Tradition
Twenty-five hundred years ago there was born to the royal family of the Sakya clan, a son, the Prince Siddartha, who, through no fault of… Read More »The Divine Discontent of Gautama the Buddha
“Buddhism teaches an evolution or development of this x-factor of consciousness and will [the Karman, the Dhyani-Buddha, or the Reincarnating Ego or Monad of Theosophy]… Read More »Gautama, The Lord Buddha, and His Teachings
Pali is the name that has been given to the language spoken in the north of India, from and before the 7th century b. c.… Read More »The Language of the Buddhist Scriptures: Pali
It has been well said that when a great Master incarnates, his whole life is a parable. Not only does he teach spiritual law; he… Read More »Some Parables of the Buddha
The passages of the Buddhist Suttas here translated contain many things which illumine different sides of the Buddha’s character. There is, first, an often repeated… Read More »A High Disciple, a Prophecy, and a Miracle
The manner in which the Buddhist scriptures came into being has set its mark on them in two ways. First, since those scriptures with which… Read More »The Sevenfold Counsels of Perfection
Among the discourses of the Buddha there is one named the Lakkhana Suttanta. The first part of the Pali name corresponds to the Sanskrit Lakshana,… Read More »The Doctrine of the Divine Man
Besides the supreme figure of the Buddha and the noble personalities of his leading disciples, a host of men and women are depicted in the… Read More »Visâkhâ: A Woman Disciple of the Buddha
The teaching of the Buddha, particularly where it is most profound and spiritual, is for all practical purposes identical with the teaching of the great… Read More »The Buddha’s Cosmology
For millenniums the Brahman community has dominated the religious and intellectual life of India. It may be added that, today, the Brahmans are working to… Read More »The Buddha’s Teaching of the Logos
It has been suggested that the principal purpose of the Buddha, in all that he did and taught, was the founding of an Order which… Read More »The Ideal Brahman
Toward the close of the nineteenth century, it was the custom among Occidental students of Buddhism to maintain that the Buddha had not laboured to… Read More »“For I Desired Mercy, and Not Sacrifice”
The understanding of Buddhism by Western scholars is in general marked by certain limitations. To begin with, they are inclined to lay too much stress… Read More »Rajput and Brahman in Buddha’s Day
I. In the first two Gospels, there is a story of gentle irony at the expense of the non-discerning disciples. The Master had entered into… Read More »Self-Glorification or Self-Conquest
While the Suttas record instances in which the Buddha spoke eloquently to groups of villagers, to large numbers of men and women assembled in the… Read More »Building on Recollection
With the single exception, perhaps, of The Light of Asia, the popular narratives of the Buddha’s life surround the great story with coloured clouds of… Read More »Wise and Foolish Disciples
In the Pali Suttas the teachings of the Buddha are conveyed, not in philosophical abstractions, but in lively narratives with a picturesque background of Indian… Read More »Kshatriya and Brahman
Many Orientalists of a by-gone day, misled, perhaps, by learned but undiscerning Southern Buddhists, held that Nirvana, the consummation of the Buddha’s path, meant annihilation… Read More »The Ladder of Consciousness
It is the custom of Orientalists to speak of Buddhism as a religion, and a very beautiful and intuitional book has been written, with the… Read More »The Chain of Causation
Something has been said of the relation of Siddhartha the Compassionate to the Masters, according to the Suttas and more modern witnesses. A living Aryan… Read More »A Visit to the Buddha
We have been told that Prince Siddhartha, son of King Suddhodana and Queen Maya, born in the ancient city of Kapila, was initiated into the… Read More »Among the Celestials
We have considered some of the rules which the Buddha laid down for his followers [see “Discipline for Disciples”]. We may here remind ourselves that… Read More »Details of Discipline
The rules of conduct which the Buddha enjoined on the members of his Order are embodied, as almost always, in a story; and again, as… Read More »Discipline for Disciples
It will be remembered [see “States of Consciousness”] that the crowd of pilgrims who, with Pilgrim Potthapada, were in residence in The Hall set about… Read More »Vestures of Consciousness
One of the Buddhist Suttas is known as the Potthapada Sutta, so called in honour of the Brahman to whom the Buddha addressed the teaching… Read More »States of Consciousness
The questions of King Ajatashatru, with the Buddha’s answers, make up the Sutta called The Fruits of Discipleship. There is a certain likeness between the… Read More »The Fruits of Discipleship
[Introduction] Among the great religions of the world, none has been so greatly misunderstood in our day as the teaching of Gotama Buddha, the sage… Read More »The Buddha’s Former Births
The Indian Mahāyāna Buddhism, as far as it is known in China and Tibet, divides itself into two great schools, the Mādhyamika and the Yogācāra.… Read More »Philosophy of the Yogācāra
We first heard of Buddhism, it may almost be said, through the works of Brian Houghton Hodgson, and his explorations in the libraries of Nepal.… Read More »The Buddha’s Life
I feel more convinced than ever that Ashva Ghosha’s Sanskrit Life of Buddha will be the Life of Buddha which will hold the attention of… Read More »The Nativity of Buddha
For this is the message we have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another; but how shall we love our brothers if… Read More »Buddhism
The Mādhyamika School is known in China as the “Three Çāstra Sect” which was first introduced by Kumāra-jīva in A.D. 401. With many other Çāstras… Read More »Notes on the Mādhyamika Philosophy
History. The introduction of the Mādhyamika philosophy into China, according to an opinion prevalent among Japanese and Chinese Buddhists, was effected by Kumārajiva (A.D. 339-382-413)… Read More »The Mādhyamika School in China
When Mr. Sinnett’s work “Esoteric Buddhism” was given to the world, some fourteen years ago. Mr. Rhys Davids achieved some celebrity by the epigram that… Read More »Buddha’s Cosmogenesis
[Introduction] It is not quite certain when the poem, from which is taken this story of The Great Renunciation, was written; but we shall go… Read More »Buddha’s Renunciation
I. There are two extremes, Brothers, that he who has renounced should shun. On the one side, the constant following after things that appeal to… Read More »The Noble Eightfold Path
“If a Bhikshu should desire, brethren, by the complete destruction of the three bonds to become purified, to be no longer liable to be reborn… Read More »Buddha’s Method
I am not a Buddhist, as you have heard, and yet I am. If China, or Japan, or Ceylon follow the teachings of the Great… Read More »Buddhism, The Fulfilment of Hinduism
Tibetan Buddhism, from which most of the technical terms in the Secret Doctrine are drawn, has been hitherto almost an “unknown land” in the study… Read More »Tibetan Buddhism
I In Japan there are twelve principal Buddhist sects, all of them having different names and with different reasons for their inception. The chief priests… Read More »Japanese Buddhist Sects
The distinguished Sanskritist Max Müller delivered last year before the University of Glasgow a series of lectures—called Gifford Lectures—upon Religions, and made the following remarks… Read More »Professor Max Müller on Buddhism
The great Buddha referred to two systems for the government of life which he said were each ignoble, and one both ignoble and evil. One… Read More »Two Systems—of Lust and Sorrow
There are twelve principal Buddhist sects in Japan. These are: Ku-Sha-Shiu, Jo-Jitsu-Shiu, Ris-Shiu, Ho-so-Shiu, San Ron-Shiu, Ke-Gon-Shiu, Ten-Dai-Shiu, Shin-Gon-Shiu, Jo-Do-Shiu, Zen-Shiu, Shin-Shiu, and Nichi-Ren-Shiu. It… Read More »A Buddhist Doctrine
The problem of the origin of evil can be philosophically approached only if the archaic Indian formula is taken as the basis of the argument.… Read More »The Origin of Evil
A France, why do you misunderstand us? European and American Journalists, why don’t you study genuine Theosophy before criticizing it? Because scientific aristocracy is full… Read More »Misconceptions: A Response to Various Criticisms
In the review of the Vedantasara on page 318 of Vol. IV of the Theosophist, I find the reviewer asserting that Sankaracharya’s Adwaita teaching is… Read More »Vedantism and Buddhism
Letter from “An Outsider” | Notes by H.P.B. [Note: for some background on what “An Outsider” is here referencing, see “Sakya Muni’s Place in History,”… Read More »Buddhism Before Buddha
7. Buddha’s birth is placed (on p. 141) in the year 643 B.C.. Is this date given by the Adepts as undoubtedly correct? Have they any… Read More »Sakya Muni’s Place in History
We acknowledge, with thanks, the receipt of Mr. Lillie’s Buddha and Early Buddhism. The subject of the work being one to which the greatest interest… Read More »[Buddhism and Esoteric Brahmanism]
The frequent publication of books on the subject in England, of recent years, has evidenced the strong interest now felt by the cultivated classes in… Read More »The Buddhist Movement in England
“A Lecture on the Peculiarities of Hindu Literature”—delivered at the Triplicane Hindu Literary Society of Madras, by C. T. Winfred, B.A—is a very thoughtful and scientific… Read More »[Buddhism as a Philosophy, not a Religion]
So little is known by Europeans of what is going on in Tibet, and even in the more accessible Bhootan, that an Anglo-Indian paper—one of… Read More »Reincarnations in Tibet
In a recent issue of the China Mail appears an account of the destruction of the “Temple of Longevity,” one of the richest and most… Read More »Buddhist Morals
Article Selections from “The Work of the Theosophical Societies” | Notes by H.P.B. Extracts from the President’s Letters to the Bombay Headquarters Thursday, May 12,… Read More »[Notes on the Theosophical Society, Christianity, Buddhism and Vedanta]
About two years ago, the question of Buddhism was greatly discussed in the American, especially the New York, papers. Many an unbeliever in Christianity had… Read More »New York Buddhists
We feel honored in being able to lay before Western thinkers, preliminary contributions from two of the most eminent priests of the religion of Buddha,… Read More »Buddhistic Exegesis
By the Rev. Mohottivatte Gunanande, Chief Priest of Dipaduttama Vihare, Colombo, Ceylon; Member of the General Council of the Theosophical Society. Understanding that even Oriental… Read More »The Law of the Lord Sakya Muni
By the Rt. Rev. H. Sumangala, High Priest of Adam’s Peak, and President of Widyodaya College; Senior Buddhist Member of the General Council of the… Read More »The Nature and Office of Buddha’s Religion
[Review of The Light of Asia, by Sir Edwin Arnold] A timely work in poetical form, and one whose subject—perfect though the outward clothing be—is sure… Read More »[Review:] “The Light of Asia”
Preface In the following Poem I have sought, by the medium of an imaginary Buddhist votary, to depict the life and character and indicate the… Read More »Light of Asia: The Great Renunciation (Mahabhinishkramana)
To the Editor, Sir,—My writing is prompted by the legitimate curiosity of a foreigner, who is studying the value of English words and their relative… Read More »Buddhist Priests and the Title “Reverend”
To the Editor of The Sun: Sir—As, in your leading article of May 6th, I am at one moment given credit for knowing something about the… Read More »Buddhism in America
The Doctrines of a Faith which in its Purity has no Dogmas. Its Practical Workings as a Religion. The Story of Jesus Christ Anticipated by… Read More »Catechizing a Buddhist