Rewriting Buddhism
Pali Literature and Monastic Reform in Sri Lanka, 1157–1270
Alastair Gornall
Alastair Gornall argues that the long century’s literary productivity was not born of political stability, as is often thought, but rather of the social, economic and political chaos brought about by invasions and civil wars. Faced with unprecedented uncertainty, the monastic community sought greater political autonomy, styled itself as royal court, and undertook a series of reforms, most notably, a purification and unification in 1165 during the reign of Parakramabahu I. He describes how central to the process of reform was the production of new forms of Pali literature, which helped create a new conceptual and social coherence within the reformed community; one that served to preserve and protect their religious tradition while also expanding its reach among the new, more fragmented and localised elites of the period.
Alastair Gornall gained his Ph.D. in South Asian Studies from the University of Cambridge in 2013. He is currently Assistant Professor in the Humanities at the Singapore University of Technology and Design, Research Associate in the Department of the Languages and Cultures of South Asia at SOAS, University of London, and was 2018 Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Research Fellow in Buddhist Studies. His research focuses on the intellectual and cultural history of Buddhism in South and Southeast Asia.
Format: Hardback
Size: 234 × 156 mm
308 Pages
8 colour illustrations Illustrations
8 colour illustrations
Copyright: © 2020
ISBN: 9781787355170
Publication: March 01, 2020