Studies of the form and textual history of various Buddhist texts show that they tend to undergo three types of developmental processes. First, some texts, especially verse compilations, are expanded by the insertion of pattern variants, sometimes at great length. Second, shorter texts such as sūtras are prone to be absorbed into larger compilations and thus lose their status as independent texts. Third, voluminous texts sometimes come to be represented in manuscripts in abbreviated forms, for example containing only the first text unit, which are evidently considered to sufficiently represent the entirety of the text. These patterns are discussed with reference to texts such as the Udānavarga, Anavatapta-gāthā, and Mahāvastu, and on the basis of evidence from Sanskrit and Gāndhārī manuscripts.
目次
Abstract 501 General Observations on the Nature of “text” and buddhavacana 501 Expansion 503 Example a: The Rhinoceros (Horn) Sūtra 503 Example b: The Udānavarga and Cognate Texts. More on Pattern Variation and Expansion 505 A Closer Look Inside the Udānavarga 508 Compilation 514 Abbreviation: A Part for the Whole 517 Concluding Remark 519 References 520
