Buddhist Nonduality, Paschal Paradox: A Christian Commentary on !e Teaching of Vimalakīrti (Vimalakīrtinirdeśa). By Joseph O'Leary. Leeuven: Peeters Publishers, 2018. 313 pages. Paperback: ISBN-10: 90-429-3421-2.
摘要
In its elegant prose, its command of multiple texts, and the author's expertise in both Christian and Buddhist traditions, this is a commentary that reflects the maturity of the dialogue among Christians and Buddhists. Although it is a Christian commentary on a decidedly Buddhist text, O'Leary's interest cannot be described as an exercise in comparative religion. Instead, he is asking a Christian theological question: “How can Indian nonduality correct and enrich Christian theology, and are there insurmountable tensions between the two?” (p. 26). This should not suggest, however, that O'Leary's commentary will be of little interest to Buddhists. “My task is to draw on the theologi- cal imagination so as to bring out the religious themes of the [Vimalakīrti Sutra] and to encounter the sutra as a living scripture that can still speak to us under the changed conditions of the contemporary world” (p. 3). Buddhists interested in returning to a familiar text in the hope of discovering it anew will not be disappointed.
