Overview

"A study of a classic list of Buddhist teachings which includes such familiar items as the four establishings of mindfulness and the noble eightfold path. The complete list, already found on the Pali Nikayas and later referred to as the ""37 dhammas that contribute to awakening"", is seen as the embodying of Buddhist path itself. This work gives a comprehensive exposition of the treatment of the list according to the Pali sources, while also making use of Buddhist Sanskrit material. Particular attention is paid to the development of the traditional interpretations of the Abhidhamma and commentaries. The study provides an account of the evolution of the Theravadin theory of meditation, exploring how the texts understand the process whereby the ""ordinary"" unawakened mind transforms itself into the ""transcendent"" awakened mind."

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9781851682850

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It should be read by everyone concerned with Buddhist thought, in whatever school or period. Steve Collins, Journal of the American Oriental Society Certain to become the definitive work on the subject. Damien Keown, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society A very thorough study of the Abhidhamma texts, the complicated knots of which he unravels with great skill... An important contribution to the study of the Buddhist path to awakening. J. W. de Jong, Indo-Iranian Journal.

It should be read by everyone concerned with Buddhist thought, in whatever school or period. Journal of the American Oriental Society Certain to become the definitive work on the subject. Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society A very thorough study of the Abhidhamma texts, the complicated knots of which he unravels with great skill... An important contribution to the study of the Buddhist path to awakening. J. W. de Jong Indo-Iranian Journal

Author Information

Rupert Gethin is a Lecturer in Indian Religions and Co-Director of the Centre for Buddhist Studies at the University of Bristol. He has published several books on the subject of Buddhist throught and literature, including The Foundations of Buddhism (Oxford University Press).

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