The Textualization of a Monastic Tradition: Forest Monks, Lineage, and the Biographical Process in Thailand

Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter i
2. Contents v
3. Preface ix
4. Trajectories in Buddhist Sacred Biography 1
5. Buddha Biography in Textual and Visual Narratives
6. Rebirth Traditions and the Lineages of Gotama: A Study in Theravāda Buddhology 19
7. The Biographical Imperative in Theravāda Buddhism 40
8. Narrative as Icon: The Jātaka Stories in Ancient Indian and Southeast Asian Architecture 64
9. Extensions of the Buddha Biography in Texts
10. A Family Quest: The Buddha, Yaśodharā, and Rāhula in the Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya 113
11. Nāgārjuna’s Longevity 129
12. Stūpa, Story, and Empire: Constructions of the Buddha Biography in Early Post-Aśokan India 160
13. The Jātakas and Biographies of Kings
14. Painting the “Great Life” 195
15. From Prose to Poetry: The Literary Development of Samuttakote 218
16. “Rationality” in the Biography of a Buddhist King: Mongkut, King of Siam (r.1851–1868) 232
17. The Biographical Genre in Local Buddhist Cults and Practice
18. In the Presence of the Buddha: Ritual Veneration of the Burmese Mahāmuni Image 259
19. The Textualization of a Monastic Tradition: Forest Monks, Lineage, and the Biographical Process in Thailand 289
20. The Biography of Modern Burmese Buddhist Meditation Master U Ba Khin: Life before the Cradle and past the Grave 310
21. Index 345
22. About the Contributors 365