Monastics and the Medieval Chinese Buddhist Mythos: A Study of Narrative Elements in Daoxuan’s Ji Shenzhou Sanbao Gantong Lu (Collected Record of Miracles Relating to the Three Jewels in China)
miracle tales; Daoxuan 道宣 (596–667 CE); Ji shenzhou sanbao gantong lu 集神州三寶感通錄 (T2106); medieval Chinese Buddhism; miracles
摘要
Miracle tales are didactic stories related to Buddhist figures, objects, and places that describe supernormal occurrences brought about by acts of great piety and fervent devotion. They present the audience with concrete examples of the workings of karma, while simultaneously setting verifiable historical precedents in a bid to prove the religious efficacy of Buddhism in China. These were also historiographical works, providing a wealth of detail regarding not only religious life and belief in China, but also local lore, politics, architectural trends, and much more. This paper will focus on a text called the Ji shenzhou sanbao gantong lu 集神州三寶感通錄 (T2106), a collection of miracle tales compiled by the seventh-century scholar-monk, Daoxuan 道宣 (596–667 CE). This text is a collection of narratives drawn from literary and epigraphy sources, as well as orally transmitted stories. As a Buddhist figurehead and as the author of many seminal historiographical works, Daoxuan played a central role in the overall localization of this tradition in China. Bearing this in mind, this paper seeks to interpret the “collective images” presented in Daoxuan’s collection of miracle tales, those representations of the miraculous and the supernormal.
目次
Abstract 1 Keywords 1 1. Introduction 1 2. Cultural and Historical Background 3 2.1. The Record of Miracles’ Place within the Chinese Literary Tradition 3 2.2. Collections and Collectors 5 3. Structure and Content of the Text 6 Thematic Breakdown of the Record of Miracles 7 4. Sources, Composition, and Motivation 9 4.1. Daoxuan’s Own Works and Experiences 9 4.2. Other Works 11 4.3. Motivations 12 5. The Record of Miracles in the Buddhist Tradition 16 5.1. Canon and Canonicity 16 5.2. History and Historicity 17 6. Concluding Remarks 18 Abbreviations 19 Notes 19 References 24 Primary Sources 24 Secondary Sources 24
