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An Illustrated

Outline of Buddhism

The Essentials of

Buddhist Spirituality

William Stoddart

Foreword by

Joseph A. Fitzgerald

World Wisdom

An Illustrated Outline of Buddhism:

The Essentials of Buddhist Spirituality

© 2013 World Wisdom, Inc.

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be used or reproduced

in any manner without written permission,

except in critical articles and reviews.

Book design by Clinton Minnaar and Stephen Williams

Cover and title page:

Bronze statue of the Great Buddha (
Daibutsu
)

of Kamakura, Japan, 1252

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Stoddart, William.

An il ustrated outline of Buddhism : the essentials of Buddhist spiritu-

ality / William Stoddart ; foreword by Joseph A. Fitzgerald.

pages cm. -- (The perennial philosophy series)

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-936597-26-0 (pbk. : alk. paper) 1. Buddhism. I. Title.

BQ4022.S76 2013

294.3--dc23

2013006532

Printed on acid-free paper in South Korea

For information address World Wisdom, Inc.

P.O. Box 2682, Bloomington, Indiana 47402-2682

www.worldwisdom.com

CONTENTS

Acknowledgments

vii

Foreword by Joseph A. Fitzgerald

ix

Preface
xi
(1)

Special Characteristics of Buddhism 1

(2)

What is Religion? 5

(3)

What is Orthodoxy? 7

(4)

Buddhism amongst the World Religions 9

(Classification of the Religions)

(5)

Life of the Buddha, Origin of Buddhism 13

(6)

Some Early Buddhist Figures 19

(7)

Buddhist Art 23

(8)

The Nature and the Teachings of Buddhism 31

(9)

The Two Schools and the Two Cultural Forms 53

(10)

The Twenty-eight Indian Patriarchs of
Dhyāna
, 61

Ch’an
, or
Zen
Buddhism

(11)

The Six Chinese Patriarchs of
Dhyāna
,
Ch’an
, 63

or
Zen
Buddhism

(12)

The Seven Patriarchs of the Pure Land School 65

of
Mahāyāna
Buddhism

(13)

Buddhas and Bodhisattvas 67

(14)

The Six
Pāramitā
s (“Virtues of the Bodhisattva”) 77

(15)

The Original Vow and the Pure Land School 79

(16)

The Introduction of Buddhism into the
Theravāda
83

Countries

i.

Ceylon (Sri Lanka) 83

ii.

Burma 83

iii.

Siam (Thailand) 83

iv.

Cambodia 84

v.

Laos 84

(17)

Tibet 89

i.

The Introduction of Buddhism into Tibet 89

ii.

The Four Main Schools 90

iii.

Tantra
93

iv.

The Panchen Lama and the Dalai Lama 99

(18)

China 101

i.

The Introduction of Buddhism into China 101

ii.

The Chinese Dynasties 104

iii.

Chinese Calligraphy 107

(19)

Korea 109

i.

The Introduction of Buddhism into Korea 109

ii.

The Korean Dynasties 110

(20)

Japan 113

i.

The Introduction of Buddhism into Japan 113

ii.

The Japanese Periods 114

iii.

A Selection of
Haiku
115

iv.

The Sects of Japanese Buddhism 116

v.

Summary of Some Buddhist Schools or Sects 121

(21)

The Question of Reincarnation 123

(22)

The Question of Pantheism 127

(23)

Shinto: Buddhism’s Partner in Japan 129

Select Bibliography 135

Index 137

Biographical Notes 147

vii

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

For much helpful counsel and discussion, thanks are due to the late

Ranjit Fernando, Alberto Martin, the late Richard Nicholson, Peter

Oldmeadow, the late Marco Pallis, John Paraskevopoulos, and Gregory

Phillips.

The author is indebted to Paulo Cesar Honorio for designing the

four maps of the Buddhist areas of the world on pp. 52, 87, 108, and

111, and to Shrī Keshavram Iengar of Mysore for permission to repro-

duce his Sanskrit calligraphy on pp. 22 and 106.

Sitting Buddha, Sri Lanka, 8th-9th century

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