The Authenticity of the Early Buddhist Texts
Our next seminar will be held on Wednesday 13th at 5.30 pm at University of Sydney in the Woolley Common Room, John Woolley Building. Our presenter is Bhante Sujato.
We do hope you can attend
Kind regards
AABS Executive
The Authenticity of the Early Buddhist Texts
One of the primary aims of modern Buddhist scholarship has been to differentiate between early and later periods, in order to discover what the Buddha himself taught. Subsequent scholars have corrected, qualified, questioned, or even denied outright these findings.
However, I believe that some current strands of skeptical thought veer from reason towards denialism, undermining the possibility of a rational approach to the early texts. In response to this, Bhante Brahmali and myself have initiated a research project on the authenticity of the Early Buddhist texts. Our aim is to gather in one convenient place a list of all the evidence and arguments that have been adduced for (and against) the proposition that the Early Buddhist Texts were spoken by the Buddha. By doing so we hope to create a more informed understanding of the evidence. The purpose of this presentation is to introduce this project, survey some of our methods, and get feedback on our ides and further development.
About Bhante Sujato
Bhante Sujato is an Australian Buddhist monk. Ordained in the Thai forest tradition, he has lived for the past twenty years in forest monasteries in Thailand, Malaysia, and Australia, and was formerly the abbot of Santi Forest Monastery. He is the author of several books examining various aspects of early Buddhism, including A Swift Pair of Messengers, A History of Mindfulness, Bhikkuni Vinaya Studies, Sects & Sectarianism, and White Bones Red Rot Black Snakes, which are available at santipada.org. His current projects include a comprehensive database of early Buddhist texts called suttacentral.net.
