Many suttas of the P?li Canon report on how Buddha conversed with Brahams, ascetics and housekeepers about religious matters. In this volume Caroline Widmer studies the extant literary traces concerning religious differences. Perhaps the oldest complete transmission concerning Buddhism is found in the P?li Canon, which contains literary-narrative disputes with other religions from an emic perspective. The suttas describe, for example, how Buddha met with representatives of other religious groups and discussed with them. Caroline Widmer looks at the extent to which religious differentiation was present during these encounters and how the religious other was depicted. She is primarily interested in presenting a narrative analysis of such suttas and in solving the question of their function within the Buddhist tradition.

Autorentext
Caroline Widmer ist Postdoc-Forscherin am Religionswissenschaftlichen Seminar der Universität Zürich, Lehrbeauftragte am Religionspädagogischen Institut der Universität Luzern und freie Mitarbeiterin am Museum Rietberg Zürich.

Leseprobe
As probably the oldest complete literary tradition of Buddhism the P li Canon reflects the encounters between different religious traditions from an emic perspective. The Suttas tell us about the Buddha not only teaching his disciples but also discussing with religious others as Brahmins, ascetics, and householders. Caroline Widmer describes how religious boundaries are set and how the other is depicted in the Suttas of the P li Canon. Central to the study are the analysis of such texts as narratives and reflections about their function within the Buddhist literary tradition.