scorecardresearch
Wednesday, April 24, 2024
TopicBuddhism

Topic: Buddhism

India’s Buddhist diplomacy has policy gains. It strengthened our position in ASEAN region

India must be prepared for challenges in relic diplomacy as more countries such as Pakistan are also engaging in Buddhism-led cross-cultural communication.

Buddha’s relics influenced Indian politics & Constitution. Sarnath sermons to gold caskets

Monks and nuns traveled with relics and set up stupas wherever they halted. The 'Travelling Relics' exhibition at IIC by Himanshu Prabha Ray depicted their distribution all over India.

Medieval Bengali Buddhism wasn’t purely ‘Indian’. Javanese gods, Hindu rivalry

Sudhanakumara—a minor hero from an older Buddhist text—was quite popular in Java, where he was depicted on the colossal Borobudur temple in the 9th century.

Who brought Sanskrit to Baghdad? This is how Iranian Buddhists, Zoroastrians changed Arabs

Sanskrit scholars were patronised by the Caliphate. This reshapes how we should think about conquest today.

Buddha used to be Vishnu in India. In Sri Lanka, Vishnu is a future Buddha

In the 15th–17th centuries, the politics and ethnic diversity of Sri Lanka led to the subordination of Vishnu into the Buddhist pantheon.

How Gujarat spread Buddhism—Devnimori dig gives us a mahastupa, inscribed casket, coins

Organic remains wrapped in silk cloth were discovered during the dig at Devnimori. Archaeologists agreed that these are probably the sacred remains of Gautama Buddha.

Java to Iceland, ancient India’s Panchatantra stories had 200 versions in over 50 languages

In 'The Indian Cat', BN Goswamy explores how the cat was represented in stories, paintings, poetry, and proverbs in India.

Overdressed, deluded—how Brahmins viewed Buddhists in medieval India

In ‘Dust on the Throne: The Search for Buddhism in Modern India’, Douglas Ober provides a new perspective on India’s modern Buddhist revival.

Central Railways sent special train, museum gave statue for Ambedkar’s Buddhism conversion

In 'A Part Apart: The Life and Thought of B.R. Ambedkar', Ashok Gopal uncovers the unrelenting toil and struggle that went into the making of Ambedkar legend.

Buddhism has just been reduced to anti-Brahmin thought. But it shaped Hindu reforms too

Buddhism's colonial rediscovery was revolutionary, influencing generations of political and intellectual leaders in the lead-up to India’s Independence and thereafter.

On Camera

Deepening insecurity has led the world into a mindless arms race. Don’t forget past wars

Where arms races begin, wars often follow. Leaders of the US, Russia, and China could do worse than read the story of the tragic fall of Athens.

Economists vs statisticians — the battle being fought over the soul of India’s GDP data

Economists say there are weaknesses in India’s GDP data. But statisticians claim the accusations are based on flawed understanding, saying while GDP has problems, the economists are looking in the wrong places.

India, Oman hold 5th annual high-level meeting to boost maritime security

Both the governments expressed their commitment to strengthening their maritime cooperation to strengthen the maritime safety and security framework in the region.

These 6 states are key for Modi’s ‘400 paar’ target. They’re also where Opposition can stop him

While this contest looks so predictable in large swathes of our political landscape, it is also more keenly contested than 2019 in some states.