Mori Ogai(森鴎外)is one of the most famous Authors in mode rn Japan. He not only created many works of fiction, dramas, and critical essays, but also translated many examples of Western and the Eastern thought. He was a humanist and an enlightenmentalist (Aufklarer). In this essay, I attempt to study his curiosity about Indology and Buddhism, of course, he had knowledge of chinese classical literature, confucianism and Taoism. However, his study of Buddhism in paruicular started when he was a medical student. Later, while studying in Germany (1884〜1888), he confuted the opinion of Dr. E. Nauman, a geologist who was then living in Japan, with regard to Buddhism. Mori Ogai also made a study of the Sanskrit language, of Indology as well as of Buddhism, and he collected Chinese Tri-pitaka Sutras as published by Tokyo Shoin. Especially, together with, Mr. Omura Seigai(大村西崖)he translated Edmund Hardy's "Konig Asoka", with reference to Christian Lassen's Indische Altertumskunde. This book was a pioneer guide-book about King Asoka. Mori Ogai's Indological and Buddhistic knowledge gives rich evidence of his creative talent.
