Buddhist Monastic Discipline

Abstract

Two significant Buddhist monastic disciplinary texts are, for the first time, translated into English. They are printed on facing pages for ease of comparison. One of the texts is that of a very early Buddhist school first appearing in the 4th century BC, and the other is one not mentioned in the records until the 7th century AD The contrasting texts thus highlight the development of Buddhist sectarian practices. Two introductory chapters precede the translated Sutras. The first gives an overview of the rise of Buddhist monasticism; analyzes Vinaya, that portion of the Buddhist canon regulating the life of monks and nuns; and provisionally identifies the problematics inherent in Pratimoksa study, pointing, the way to needed research. The second chapter describes how the two translated Sutras were found and edited.