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The Sugata Saurabha is an epic poem that retells the story of the Buddha's life. It was published in 1947 in the Nepalese language, Newari, by Chittadhar Hridaya, one of the greatest literary figures of 20th-century Nepal. The text is remarkable for its comprehensiveness, artistry, and nuance. It covers the Buddha's life from birth to death and conveys his basic teachings with simple clarity. It is also of interest because, where the classical sources are
silent, Hridaya inserts details of personal life and cultural context that are Nepalese. The effect is to humanize the founder and add the texture of real life. A third point of interest is the modernist
perspective that underlies the author's manner of retelling this great spiritual narrative. This rendering, in a long line of accounts of the Buddha's life dating back almost 2,000 years, may be the last ever to be produced that conforms to the traditions of Indic classic poetry. It will not only appeal to scholars of Buddhism but will find use in courses that introduce students to the life of the Buddha.
The Sugata Saurabha is an epic poem that retells the story of the Buddha's life. It was published in 1947 in the Nepalese language, Newari, by Chittadhar Hridaya, one of the greatest literary figures of 20th-century Nepal. The text is remarkable for its comprehensiveness, artistry, and nuance. It covers the Buddha's life from birth to death and conveys his basic teachings with simple clarity. It is also of interest because, where the classical sources are
silent, Hridaya inserts details of personal life and cultural context that are Nepalese. The effect is to humanize the founder and add the texture of real life. A third point of interest is the modernist
perspective that underlies the author's manner of retelling this great spiritual narrative. This rendering, in a long line of accounts of the Buddha's life dating back almost 2,000 years, may be the last ever to be produced that conforms to the traditions of Indic classic poetry. It will not only appeal to scholars of Buddhism but will find use in courses that introduce students to the life of the Buddha.
PREFACE
INTRODUCTION
I: ENGLISH TRANSLATION
1 Lumbin?
2 Family Tree
3 Nativity
4 Mother
5 A Pleasant Childhood
6 Education
7 Marriage
8 The Great Renunciation
9 Yashodharâ
10 Attaining Enlightenment
11 Basic Teachings
12 The Blessed One in Kapilavastu
13 Handsome Nanda
14 The Great Lay Disciple
15 Twelve Years of Itinerant Preaching
16 A Dispute over Water
17 The Monastery Built by Visakha
18 Devadatta's Sacrilege
19 Entry into Nirvana
II: PERSPECTIVES FOR UNDERSTANDING THE TEXT
1 The Life of the Buddha: Previous Accounts of the Buddhist Textual
Tradition
2 The K?vya Sanskrit Poetry Tradition in Sugata Saurabha and the
Indic Aesthetic Tradition
3 The Nepalese Context and Newar Cultural Traditions: Influences on
Sugata Saurabha
4 Chittadhar Hridaya: A Literary Biography of his Formative
Years
5 The Domestication of Newar Traditions in Sugata Saurabha as those
of the Ancient Sh?kyas
6 The Modern Confluence of Buddhism-s Kathmandu Valley: Reformist
Therav?din and Traditional Mah?y?na
7 Buddhist Doctrinal Emphases and Exposition in Sugata Saurabha
8 The Spell of Idealizations and the Revitalization of Newar
Civilization
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Todd Lewis is Professor of Religious Studies, College of the Holy Cross
"A superb contribution to Buddhist Studies, Lewis and Tuladhar have
not only translated from the Newari poetic vernacular an
extraordinarily profound text by an outstanding figure in
20th-century Nepali history, but in the process they have also
managed to introduce many of the rich textures of lay Newari
Buddhist culture. This is a perfect selection for a course on
biographies of the Buddha or for Himalayan religious studies."
--John Clifford Holt, William R. Kenan, Jr. Professor of Humanities
in Religion and Asian Studies, Bowdoin College
"[A] skillful translation." --Buddhadharma
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