The ''Divyāvadāna'' or Divine narratives is a
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...
anthology of
Buddhist
Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
avadana tales, many originating in
Mūlasarvāstivādin vinaya
The Vinaya (Pali & Sanskrit: विनय) is the division of the Buddhist canon ('' Tripitaka'') containing the rules and procedures that govern the Buddhist Sangha (community of like-minded ''sramanas''). Three parallel Vinaya traditions rema ...
texts. It may be dated to 2nd century CE. The stories themselves are therefore quite ancient and may be among the first Buddhist texts ever committed to writing, but this particular collection of them is not attested prior to the seventeenth century.
Typically, the stories involve the Buddha explaining to a group of disciples how a particular individual, through actions in a previous life, came to have a particular
karmic
Karma (; sa, कर्म}, ; pi, kamma, italic=yes) in Sanskrit means an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptivel ...
result in the present.
A predominant theme is the vast
merit (') accrued from making offerings to enlightened beings or at
stupa
A stupa ( sa, स्तूप, lit=heap, ) is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as ''śarīra'' – typically the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns) that is used as a place of meditation.
In Buddhism, circum ...
s and other holy sites related to the Buddha.
Contents
The anthology contains 38 avadana stories in all, including the well-known ''
Aśokāvadāna'' "Legend of
Aśoka", which was translated into English by John Strong (Princeton, 1983). The collection has been known since the dawn of Buddhist studies in the West, when it was excerpted in
Eugène Burnouf
Eugène Burnouf (; April 8, 1801May 28, 1852) was a French scholar, an Indologist and orientalist. His notable works include a study of Sanskrit literature, translation of the Hindu text ''Bhagavata Purana'' and Buddhist text ''Lotus Sutra''. He ...
's history of Indian Buddhism (1844). The first Western edition of the Sanskrit text was published in 1886 by
Edward Byles Cowell and R.A. Neil. The Sanskrit text was again edited by P. L. Vaidya in 1959.
''Sahasodgata-avadāna'', in the opening paragraphs, describe the Buddha's instructions for creating the
bhavacakra
The bhavacakra (Sanskrit: भवचक्र; Pāli: ''bhavacakka''; Tibetan: སྲིད་པའི་འཁོར་ལོ, Wylie: ''srid pa'i 'khor lo'') is a symbolic representation of saṃsāra (or cyclic existence). It is found on the ...
(wheel of life).
''Rudrāyaṇa-avadāna'' explains how the Buddha gave the first illustration of the Buddha to King Rudrayaṇa. According to this story, at the time of the Buddha, King Rudrayana (a.k.a. King Udayana) offered a gift of a jeweled robe to King Bimbisara of Magadha. King Bimbisara was concerned that he did not have anything of equivalent value to offer as a gift in return. Bimbisara went to the Buddha for advice, and the Buddha gave instructions to have the first drawing of the Buddha himself send the drawing to Rudrayana. It is said that Rudrayana attained realization through seeing this picture.
Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama (, ; ) is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The 14th and current D ...
(1992). ''The Meaning of Life'', translated and edited by Jeffrey Hopkins. Wisdom, p. 45
List of Stories
This is the list of stories contained in the ''Divyāvadāna'':
Selected English translations
Original Sanskrit
References
External links
The Divyâvadâna: a collection of early Buddhist legendsby E. B. Cowell (English transliteration)
Divyavadana(1959) by P. L. Vaidya (Sanskrit)
* {{Cite web , title=An Annotated Translation Into English Of Ratnamālāvadāna With A Critical Introduction, url=http://dr.lib.sjp.ac.lk/handle/123456789/4078, last = Gangodawila , first = Chandima , access-date=21 February 2021
Sanskrit texts
Early Buddhist texts
Indian anthologies
Indian folklore
Indian literature
Indian legends