DESCRIPTION
This Session explores Buddhism as a 'Royal' tradition in several ways. First, there is the mythological structure in which the Buddha is most often presented as a ‘prince’ or royal who renounces that status to pursue enlightenment. But there is also the historical record that, beginning with Emperor Ashoka in India and then Kanishka I of the Kushan Empire, to the Chinese and Japanese Emperors throughout medieval history, Buddhism has always been a religious tradition practiced and/or supported by royalty. Then there is the Huayan 華嚴 (Jpn. Kegon) ‘Flower Adornment’ School, founded in China c. 6th Century AD, based primarily on the voluminous Avatamsaka Sutra, which is a particular historical school of Buddhism that represents this use of royal metaphors and symbols.
Primary Text
Avataṃsaka Sūtra (Flower Ornament Scripture, trans. Thomas Cleary)
Q: “How many different types of Avataṃsaka sutra are there?”
A: “Speaking of the most essential ones, we would say there are only three texts. First is the most expanded form of the Avatamsaka Sutra. This work is made up of lines of verse equal in number to the number of dust particles found in ten universes, and of chapters equal to the number of dust particles found in all four continents. Second is the Avatamsaka Sutra of medium length. This work is made up of four hundred ninety-eight thousand lines of verse and is in one thousand two hundred chapters. These two texts are kept in the palace of nāgas and have not been transmitted to this world. Third is the shortest form of the Avatamsaka Sutra. This work is made up of one hundred thousand lines of verse and is in thirty-eight chapters. It has been transmitted to this world and has been widely propagated throughout all of India.”
- from The Essentials of the Eight Traditions, by Gyōnen (See Suggested Reading).
Suggested Reading
Paul Williams, Mahayana Buddhist, The Doctrinal Foundations, Chapter Six
Thomas Cleary, Entry Into the Inconceivable: An introduction to Hua-Yen Buddhism