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Readings of the Vessantara Jātaka
The Vessantara Jataka tells the story of Prince Vessantara, who attained the Perfection of Generosity by giving away his fortune, his children, and his wife. Vessantara was the penultimate rebirth as a human of the future Gotama Buddha, and his extreme charity has been represented and reinterpreted in texts, sermons, rituals, and art throughout South and Southeast Asia and beyond. This anthology features well-respected anthropologists, textual scholars in religious and Buddhist studies, and art historians, who engage in sophisticated readings of the text and its ethics of giving, understanding of attachment and nonattachment, depiction of the trickster, and unique performative qualities. They reveal the story to be as brilliantly layered as a Homeric epic or Shakespearean play, with aspects of tragedy, comedy, melodrama, and utopian fantasy intertwined to problematize and scrutinize Theravada Buddhism's cherished virtues.
Devotion
Prés. de l'éd.: The Vessantara Jātaka is the story of the historical Buddha's penultimate life. In that existence, as Prince Vessantara, he was required to demonstrate the highest perfection that allows a human to become a Buddha: sacrifice. He had to show the ultimate form of generosity, by parting with everything and everyone he cared about. At the story's dramatic climax, the prince even gave away his own wife and children. The Vessantara story is commemorated every year in the Bun Phra Wet festival in Northeast Thailand. Long painted scrolls (`Vessantara cloths') provide a visual frame for this event. Devotion explores this contemporary multimedia celebration of an ancient buddhist text.
Vajra and Bell
Enter the rich world of Buddhist symbolism.The vajra and the vajra-bell are important sacred objects used in Tantric ritual, and this colourful book lays before us an unexpected array of associations and images to enrich our understanding of these powerful and fascinating symbols. We discover that they embody all masculine and feminine qualities, transcendental compassion and wisdom, bliss and emptiness. By reflecting deeply on this perfect pair, we too can become sources of wisdom and compassion for the world.
Meeting the Buddhas
Meeting the Buddhas is a modern classic, giving a vivid and accessible introduction to all the main figures meditated on in the Indo-Tibetan Buddhist tradition. First published in 1993, this new edition incorporates a section on Vajrakīla, as well as new images, and hundreds of small changes that nuance and deepen earlier editions. It is a mine of information for those who want to learn about buddhas, bodhisattvas and tantric deities, and of inspiration for those who are already doing the practices. Vessantara powerfully evokes the figures, giving the reader a real feeling for what it’s like to meditate on them, and how they can transform us on a deep level. It gives detailed descriptions of the figures, including their mudras and symbolic emblems, so it can be used as a handy reference to identify and learn about particular images.
Female Deities in Buddhism
Queens and old crones, Buddhas and goddesses, mothers and wild women. Female deities in Buddhism take many forms to inspire, beguile, rouse and protect us. Enter the magical realm of gently compassionate Kuan Yin from China, meet the elusive golden goddess from India representing Perfect Wisdom, and tangle with the energetic embodiments of freedom, the fearless sky-dancing dakinis of Tibet. Respected Western Buddhist teacher Vessantara invites us to learn more about ourselves as women and men by reflecting on these figures.
Of Beggars and Buddhas
The 547 Buddhist jatakas, or verse parables, recount the Buddha's lives in previous incarnations. In his penultimate and most famous incarnation, he appears as the Prince Vessantara, perfecting the virtue of generosity by giving away all his possessions, his wife, and his children to the beggar Jujaka. Taking an anthropological approach to this two-thousand-year-old morality tale, Katherine A. Bowie highlights significant local variations in its interpretations and public performances across three regions of Thailand over 150 years. The Vessantara Jataka has served both monastic and royal interests, encouraging parents to give their sons to religious orders and intimating that kings are futu...
The Tale of Prince Vessantara
Discover the Timeless Tale of Prince Vessantara Immerse yourself in "The Tale of Prince Vessantara," a Jataka story that has captivated generations across Southeast Asia. This vivid novelization, enriched with 13 stunning illustrations, brings to life the world's oldest and most celebrated Jataka tale. Follow the remarkable journey of Prince Vessantara, whose unwavering generosity and selflessness will inspire you to reflect on the true meaning of compassion and love. Born into a life of luxury and abundance in the royal family of the Kingdom of Sivi, Prince Vessantara's world is turned upside down when he gifts his prized white elephant to a neighboring kingdom suffering from drought, leadi...
Buddhist Storytelling in Thailand and Laos
This richly illustrated, full-colour volume offers an innovative study of the long, painted scrolls of Northeast Thailand and Laos that depictthe Prince Vessantara Buddhist birth story. A 31-metre scroll in the Asian Civilisations Museum provides the focus for this popular narrative. The scroll is reproduced in its entirety, with comparative illustrations from other scrolls. The authors analyze these scrolls in the context of the Bun Phra Wet - the Thai-Lao and Lao ceremony in which they are used - and consider the complex interplay of text, art, ritual, and belief which occur in these performances.
