2014/01/01 by Vincent Tournier · 1 citation
Arts and Humanities · Social Sciences · #Indian and Buddhist Studies #Asian Geopolitics and Ethnography #Southeast Asian Sociopolitical Studies #Lineage (genetic) #Reading (process) #Wish #Representation (politics) #Pilgrim #History #Genealogy #Literature #Philosophy #Art #Linguistics #Archaeology #Law #Biology #Political science #Politics
paper · pdf · doi:10.1163/15728536-05701001
openalex publication_date 2014/01/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/22
This article investigates the religious message of a set of inscriptions from Bodhgayā issued by Sinhalese monks in the 5th and 6th centuries ce . The long inscription of the hierarch Mahānāman, in particular, allows an in-depth understanding of this monk’s self-representation as the heir of a virtuous lineage descending from the Elder Mahākāśyapa, committed to the transmission of the Saṃyukta-Āgama, and related to the ruling dynasty of Laṅkā. Moreover, it provides the rationale behind Mahānāman’s aspiration to Buddhahood, as the donor dedicates to this aim the merits of the erection of a temple on the Bodhimaṇḍa itself, hosting a representation of Śākyamuni’s Awakening. I argue that Mahānāman is part of a milieu sharing common origins, monastic background, and aspirations, a milieu that was later labelled as *Mahāyāna-Sthavira by the Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang.