Relics and relic worship in early Buddhism : India, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka and Burma / edited by Janice Stargardt and Michael Willis.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Stargardt, Janice, editor.

Willis, Michael D., 1951- editor.

Series:

Research publication (British Museum) ; 218.

British Museum Research Publications ; 218

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Buddhist relics--South Asia--History.

Buddhist relics.

Buddhist antiquities--South Asia.

Buddhist antiquities.

History.

South Asia.

Physical Description:

123 pages : illustrations (chiefly colour) ; 30 cm.

Place of Publication:

London : British Museum Press 2018.

Summary:

Among world religions, only Buddhism and Christianity attach a central significance to the role of relics. These two traditions, however, are different in both conceptual and material terms. In Buddhism, the most sacred relics are those considered parts of the cremated remains of the Buddha - a hair, a tooth, a small fragment of bone - or the tiny bead-like relics generated by the Buddha before entering nirvana. In contrast, Christianity venerates objects associated with Christ such as the thorns, the cross or his robe. This first generation of relics were later joined by both the bodily relics and items used by the saints. The papers in this volume, the culmination of a research project focusing on relic worship and Buddhism, cover a rich variety of themes. Subjects include a discussion of what constitutes a relic according to primary and secondary sources, as well as an analysis of the special terminology related to relic worship. Other chapters focus on the placement and treatment of relics in situ, in addition to the wider archaeological contexts for relics, relic chambers and reliquaries. New perspectives are also offered on the relics and reliquaries themselves, for example, the golden Bimaran casket from Afghanistan, an exceptional example of metalwork from the 1st century AD. The final chapter explores the spread of Buddhism to Burma and the evidence of the vibrant relic culture that has been found there, including some of the oldest surviving Pali inscriptions in the world, a text on gold leaves deposited in a relic chamber.

Contents:

Relics: the heart of Buddhist veneration / Peter Skilling

Cetiya and Thūpa: the textual sources / Lance Cousins

The Buddhist remains of Passani and Bimaran and related relic deposits from South-eastern Afghanistan in the Masson Collection of the British Museum / Elizabeth Errington

The Bimaran Casket: the problem of its date and significance / Joe Cribb

Offerings to the triple gem: texts, inscriptions and ritual practice / Michael Willis

Relics exposed: rules and practices from art-historical, epigraphic and literary sources/ Karel van Kooij

The great silver reliquary from Sri Ksetra: early Buddhist art meets early Pali inscriptions in the Pyu cultura of Burma (Myanmar) / Janice Stargardt.

Notes:

"Published with the support of ERC Project no. 609823"--Title page verso.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780861592180

0861592182

OCLC:

1012506592

Publisher Number:

99977558176