Nirvana and Other Buddhist Felicities

Nirvana and Other Buddhist Felicities

by Steven Collins
ISBN-10:
0521578426
ISBN-13:
9780521578424
Pub. Date:
11/02/2006
Publisher:
Cambridge University Press
ISBN-10:
0521578426
ISBN-13:
9780521578424
Pub. Date:
11/02/2006
Publisher:
Cambridge University Press
Nirvana and Other Buddhist Felicities

Nirvana and Other Buddhist Felicities

by Steven Collins
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Overview

This book presents a new answer to the question: what is nirvana? Part One distinguishes between systematic and narrative thought in the Pali texts of Theravada Buddhism, looking at the place of nirvana in both. Part Two explores other Buddhist utopias and relates Buddhist utopianism to studies of European and American utopian writing. Steven Collins discusses these issues in relation to textuality, world history, and ideology in premodern civilizations, aiming to contribute to a new vision of Buddhist history that integrates the inside and the outside of texts.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780521578424
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Publication date: 11/02/2006
Series: Cambridge Studies in Religious Traditions , #12
Edition description: New Edition
Pages: 712
Product dimensions: 5.98(w) x 9.02(h) x 1.57(d)

Table of Contents

Preface and Acknowledgements; List of abbreviations; Textual chronology; General introduction: Buddhism and civilisation history I - structures and processes: Part I. Nirvana In and Out of Time: Introduction to part I: systematic and narrative thought - eternity and closure in structure and story; 1. The concept of nirvana; 2. The imagery of nirvana; 3. Nirvana, time and narrative; Conclusion to part I: modes of thought, modes of tradition; Part II. Paradise in Heaven and on Earth: Introduction to part II: utopia and the ideal society; 4. Heaven, the land of Cockaygne and Arcadia; 5. Millennialism; Critical discussion: what is 'millennialism'? Premodern ideas and modern movements; 6. The perfect moral commonwealth? Kingship and its discontents; 7. The Vessantara Jåtaka; Conclusion to part II: in what sense can one speak of Buddhist utopianism?; General conclusion: Buddhism and civilisation history II - reprise: Appendices; Bibliography; Glossary; Indexes.
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