Indian Mahayana Buddhism
- Course Code:
- 15PSRH005
- Status:
- Course Not Running 2012/13
- Unit value:
- 0.5
- Year of study:
- Any
The core elements of this course include the following major topics:
- the origins of Mahayana Buddhism in India;
- the doctrines of the Mahayana Sutras;
- the Bodhisattva ideal;
- Buddhological developments;
- and the doctrinal and philosophical systematisations produced by the Madhyamaka and Yogacara schools.
The course is largely based on the principal Mahayana sutras and the major doctrinal treatises (Sastra) composed by Mahayana masters as listed below.
This course is taught jointly with the BA Mahayana Buddhism. The MA students receive 10 hours of separate sessions in the form of seminars covering complimentary and related topics to the main themes of the course.
Objectives and learning outcomes of the course
Upon successful completion of this course, students should gain a sound overview of Mahayana Buddhism in India, and a comprehensive grasp of the key concepts. In terms of the overview, students should become well acquainted with the Mahayana origins and internal development, with its scriptural heritage, and with the main protagonists and exponents of Mahayana doctrines. In terms of the key concepts, students should acquire good knowledge of the Mahayana interpretation of the Bodhisattva concept and career, the theory of the three Buddha-Bodies, the Madhyamika dialectics and interpretation of emptiness, the Yogacara interpretation of consciousness, and the meditational techniques relevant to gaining a mystical experience of the ultimate nature of phenomenal existence.
