Buddhist
Centres, Monks and Writings in the Tamil Country in Ancient Times.
.Prof. V.
Balambal
Professor(Retd) Of
History, University of Madras,, Chennai.
Introduction:
India has mothered Hinduism, Jainism,
Buddhism and Sikhism ; received Islam, Christianity and Zorashtrianism with
open arms. In the 6th century
BC., Mahavira and Buddha preached tolerance and ahimsa, opposing some ritualistic practices of Hinduism. They did not pronounce new
religion but wanted some reforms in the existing religion of the land. But
after their death, their devotees accepted their preaching as new faiths. That
was the birth of Jainism and Buddhism in India.
Jainism
continues to be an accepted religion in India though not like Hinduism.
Buddhism received royal support to some extent, especially during the reign of
King Asoka and the Kalabhras (4-6
century AD) in South India. Due to the
revival of Hinduism in India , these two
religions lost their importance in land of their birth. Though Jainism
continues to survive in India, Buddhism migrated to East, South and South East
Asian countries and flourishes well.
Scope:
The
early Buddhism is Hinayana or Terravada
Buddhism. Till the First Century AD, it was popular in India. Buddha preached in Pali and most of
the Teravada
literature are in Pali. Buddhism
flourished in the Tamil country and there were great centres of Buddhism and
many monks lived in Buddhist viharas and spent their time in writing and
translating Buddhist works. This study deals with the places, monasteries,
monks and their writing related to Buddhism, giving importance to Pali language
in the ancient Tamil country ..
Sources:
Archaeological
sources like inscriptions and monuments connected to the study period, Buddhist
works written in the Tamil country and some published works form the main
sources.
Royal Patronage:
After
the Kalinga war, Emperor Asoka gave
up warfare, meat eating, hunting etc and started following Buddha’s doctrines and spread Buddhism in nook and corner of the country and even sent missionaries to Sri Lanka .His royal
edicts state not only Buddha’s teaching but Asoka’s contribution too.(Rock Edict 3-Dhamma Vijaya) .In this task, he was helped by Maha Aritta, a nephew of the
Sri Lankan king Devanampiyatissa.He sent his son Mahendra and daughter
Sangamitra to Sri Lanka. Mahendra is said to have erected seven
viharas at Puhar(Kaveripoompattinum) , the capital of the Cholas,
while he was on his way to Sri Lanka. (Lakshman
Jayavardane, Ancient Buddhist links
between Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka, Chennai ).
Maṇimekhalai , a Tamil epic, mentions that there was a small Buddhist
shrine in a park called Upavana and a replica of the Buddha’s footprint was
worshipped there. In the same poem it is said that King Killivalavan, who reigned in the 2nd century, became a Buddhist
and converted the prison to a preaching hall at the request of the nun Maṇimekhalai.
He gifted it
to Buddhists who utilised the building for a palli and a charity house .(T.N.Ramachandran,
The History of Buddhism
in the Tamil Kingdoms of South India)
The first
Pallava king, Skandavarman ( 3rd
century AD) also helped the cause of
Buddhism. His two sons were Buddhavarman, who is mentioned as Yuvaraj in a
grant issued by his queen, Charudevi
and Buddhyankara. (Buddha’s
Light International Association.—Chennai Chapter).
The
Kalabhra rulers who defeated the Tamil kings and ruled the Tamil
country for three centuries patronized
Jainism and Buddhism. The great Kalabhra conqueror Achutavikranta (5th---6th century) favoured
Buddhism and patronized Buddhist scholars and their writings. He was
responsible for the well establishment of Buddhism in the Tamil country and
translation of many Pali Buddhist literature in the Tamil country. In Yapparungalam, a Tamil work of eleventh century AD,
written by Amitasagaranar, the poet "prays to the Buddha to grant Achuta
with the long arms like the clouds in charity and with the fighting spear so
that he might wield his scepter of authority over the whole world". When
the Kalabhras were routed by the Pallavas and Pandyas, Buddhism and Jainism lost their glory. (South Indian Inscriptions, Vol.II, No.73, Kasakudi Copper Plates of Nandivarman Pallavamalla).
Though
most of the Chera, Chola, Pandya and Palla rulers were Saivites and Vaishnavites,
they were very tolerant towards Buddhists. Many Buddhist viharas were built;
monks were patronized; donations were made to maintain the Buddhist
institutions.
Rajaraja I
(985-1014 AD), permitted Srivijaya ruler Choodamanivarman to
construct a Buddhist vihara at Nagapattanam and it was completed by his son Sri Mara Vijayottungavarman of Srivijaya For
the maintenance of the Choodamani Vihara,
Rajaraja I donated the whole village of Anaimangalam.It was also called Rajaraja Perumpalli after him . The Larger Leiden Copper Plates of Rajaraja
I give a detailed account of the Vihara
and donation (Epigraphia Indica , Vol.
XXII, No.34) . Later the grant was renewed by Kulottunga Chola I (1070-1122) in 1090 AD. (Epigraphia Indica
, Vol.XXII,No.35, Smaller Leiden Copper Plates).
The
Pandya, Chera and Pallava rulers also contributed to Buddhist learning and Viharas.
Buddhist Centres :
Though
Buddhism had its birth and growth in
north India, during the rule of Emperor Asoka, it reached
South India and Sri Lanka.The first missionary was sent by Asoka. He sent his
son Mahendra and daughter Sangamitra to Sri Lanka to spread the new faith. On
their way, they spread Buddhism . It reached its pinnacle during the Kalabhra
period till the Pallavas and Pandyas reestablished the rule
of the Tamil kings defeating the Kalabhras.
Some
of the important Buddhist centres in the Tamil country are Kanchipuram, Nagapattinam, Kaveripoompattinam (Puhar),
Buthamangalam, Uragapuram, Saṅghamangalam,
Kumbakonam, Madurai, Tiruppadiripuliyur ,
Mayūrapaṭṭanam, Alamkuḍipaṭṭi , Kūvam
and Saṅghamangai,
Buddhadatta, a well-known Pali commentator who flourished in the
fifth century says in the Vinaya-viniccaya
that he wrote that work for the sake of Buddhasiha while he was residing in the
lovely monastery of Venhudas (Vishnudas)
in a city on the banks of the Kaveri, by name Butamangalam and it was begun and completed at the time when Achuta Vikranta of
Kalabhra Kula was ruling over the earth.
Kanchipuram
was a great centre of Buddhist learning during the 300 year rule of the
Kalabhras. There were many monasteries where Buddhist monks and students lived. Nagaguttanar, author of Kundalakesi, (4th
century), Buddhadatta, the Pali commentator, (5th Century), Dinnaga, the great
logician, (5th century), Dhammapala, another Pali commentator, (6th century),
and Bodhidharma, the great Dhyana teacher, (6th century), Buddhaghosha, the
greatest Pali scholar and commentator, who was contempoary of Buddhadatta lived
in Kanchi.
Silappadikaram speaks
about Puhar, Madurai and Vanchi, the
capitals of the Cholas, Pandyas and Cheras respectively. Buddhism was seen in
these regions too.
At Nagapattinam, Buthamangalam and
Anuradhapura Buddhadatta stayed in viharas
arranged by his devotees and wrote commentaries. During the reign of Pallava king, Narasimhavarman II (8th
century AD) ), a Buddhist Vihara was constructed in Nagapattinam for the use of Chinese mariners
who came there for trade purposes. This
monastery was known as the Chinese monastery by Marco Polo in 1292 AD.
Choodamani
Vihara was built at Nagapattanam by the Sailendra King with the assistance of
Rajaraja I as stated earlier. Some scenes from Buddha's life are represented
in the great temple at Tanjore (Thanjavur)
built by him. In 1090 AD, the Srivijaya ruler sent an embassy to
Kulottunga Chola I to enquire about the Nagapattanam Buddha Vihara which his
predecessor had built and about the Chola endowments to it. Kulottunga I reconfirmed the grant by issuing a copperplate grant (Smaller Leiden Copper
Plates.E.I.Vol XXII, No.35).
Rajaraja
I‘s sister Kundavai also donated lands for the maintenance of Buddha viharas in
the Chola country.
Sittalai
Sattanar, author of Manilekalai lived
in Madurai, the Pandya capital
around 2nd century AD.
Buddhagosha
stayed in the monasteries at Kanchi, Nagapattinam and Mayurapattinam and wrote many works.
Puhar (Kaveripoompattanam) was the Chola capital and a port city in the Sangam age.Internal and external trade
flourished there. There was a big monastery at Puhar, where Aravana Adigal
lived. Many other Buddhist monks also
stayed in the Vihara.
Buddhist Monks, Scholars and Writings:
Many
Buddhist monks and scholars contributed to Buddhist literature in Pali,
Tamil, Sanskrit, Sinhalese and other
languages. Tamil Buddhists excelled in
writing not only in Tamil but in translating the
Pali works into Sinhalese and
Sanskrit. As Buddha preached in Pali ,initially the Buddhist doctrines were
written in Pali only. After Mahayana form came into existence, the Pali works
were translated into Sanskrit.. The rulers requested the monks and scholars to
reside in Buddhist monasteries and write new works or commentaries or translations of Pali and other texts. The great centres
accommodated them and many works were written by scholars and monks. Some
important ones are dealt with below:
Ilambodhiyar
The earliest Tamil Buddhist poet was IIambodhiyar who
flourished during the last Sangam period of Tamil literature (1st-2nd century
AD). Iambodhiyar's very name indicates that he was a Buddhist. Since the
Buddhists worshipped the Bodhi Tree, the Saiva and Jaina Tamil works often
refer to Buddhists as "bodhiyar" or worshippers of Bodhi tree.
Several of Iambodhiyar are found in a work called Narrinai composed during the last Sangam
period
Sittalai Sattanar
The most famous Buddhist
poet in the Tamil land was Sittalai Sattanar, the author of the celebrated
Tamil epic Manimekalai. Sattanar was
a grain merchant of Madurai and lived in the second century AD. The Manimekalai deals with the life of Buddhist Nun(Bhikkhuni) Manimekalai, daughter of Kovalan and Madhavi
and Buddha Dhamma. .
This epic gives much information on the history of Tamil Nadu, Buddhism and
its place during that period, contemporary arts and culture, and the customs of
the times. The exposition of the Buddhist doctrine in the poem deals elegantly
with the Four Noble Truths (ārya-satyāni), Dependent Origination (pratītyasamutpāda),
mind (citta) and Buddhist practices like virtue (Śīla) and non-violence (ahimsa)..
Madhavi became a Buddhist after the end of Kovalan and Kannagi. Her daughter
Manimekalai was also focused towards
Buddhism. While narrating the story of Manimekalai, Sattanar shows the
superiority of Buddhist doctrine. Manimekalai
is one of the five Tamil epics. Many
other verses of Sattanar are found in Narrinai,
Kuruntokai, Purananuru and Ahananuru.
Aravana Adigal (2nd Century A.D)
Aravana Adigal ,a Tamil
Buddhist monk propagated the Dhamma . He
was the head of a flourishing Buddhist monastery at Puhar, He was the preceptor of Manimekalai. When Kaveripattanam was ravaged by sea, Aravana
Adigal went to Vanchi , where he stayed
for a short while and moved to Madurai
and Kanchi. Manimekalai joined the Sangha,
the Order of the Buddhist nuns and
followed the footsteps of her preceptor, and came to live at Kanchi. What
was the righteous path of the Dhamma expounded by Aravana Adigal has been
summed up by the poet in Book XXX of Manimekalai.
Manimekalai
Manimekalai the daughter of Madhavi and Kovalan is the heroine of the famous Tamil epic, named
after her, written by Sittalai Sattanar.
When Kovalan was executed on a false accusation by the king of Madurai, Madhavi
became disgusted with the life, and sought solace in her-grief from Aravana
Adigal, who was head of a Buddhist
monastery at Kaveripattanam. On hearing the excellent Dhamma, she joined the
Buddhist order. Her daughter Manimekalai, lost interest in worldly life and
became a nun and propagated Buddhism. She
went on pilgrimage to SriLanka and worshipped at the Buddha's footprint at the
Nagadipa shrine on an island off the northern coast of Sri Lanka. There a deity
gave her a miraculous bowl (Amudhasurabhi)
from which she could feed any number of people without the supply of food
becoming exhausted . On return to Kaveripattinam, Manimekalai gave alms daily
to the poor in a public hall. Later, Manimekalai was implicated in a murder
case on a false charge and imprisoned. When, however, true facts came to light,
she was freed, and the Chola queen, who had manipulated her imprisonment begged
her pardon.
.Manimekalai went on a
pilgrimage to Java. On return from this pilgrimage, she went to Vanchi, the
Chera capital, and further studied the Dhamma. Finally, she came to Kanchi
where Aravana Adigal had permanently settled. She also lived the holy life of a Buddhist nun in
a vihara specifically built for her at
Kanchi. She spent her time in meditation
and service to humanity. (The present
day Darupadiamman koyil is said to be on the site of the Manimekalai Vihara).
Nagaguttanar
(4th century A.D)
Nagaguttanar was the author of another Tamil epic Kundalakesi. The story is based on the biography of the Bhikkuni
Kundalakesi found in the commentary on the Therigatha
as well as in the Dhammapada commentary. Kundalakesi was originally a
Jain nun, who was fond of challenging anybody to refute her views. Duriputta,
the chief disciple of the Buddha, took up the challenge and defeated her in a debate. Consequently,
Kundalakesi, left Jainism and embraced
Buddhism. The author of the Tamil poem depicts the Buddhist nun Kundalakesi
championing the cause of Buddhism, Kundalakesi
is now lost, But the Jaina Nilakesi,
written in response to Kundalakesi,
is still extant. The Jain work contains references to Kundalakesi. A commentary on the Nilakesi also refers to the story of Kundalakesi.
Buddhadatta (5th century AD.)
The first Pali scholar
of Tamil country was Buddhadatta. He belonged to Uragapuram (Uraiyur). He learnt and taught Pali language and Buddhism at the Mahavihara at Anuradhapura
in Sri Lanka. He was contemporary of the great Pali commentator,
Buddhaghosha and exchanged views on Pali and Buddhism. Another work attributed
to Buddhadatta is the Ultara Vinicchya
which he is said to have written while he was residing at Anuradhapura. His disciple, Buddha Sikha, followed him everywhere. Buddhadatta
Thera held charge of Buddhist monasteries at Anuradhapura, Kaveripattanam, Uragapuram, Butamangalam
and Kancipuram. He has written about these monasteries.
On return from Sri Lanka, Buddhadatta resided in
a Vihara at the request of a Buddhist minister named Krishnadasa at Nagapattanam. While staying there, he wrote Madhurattha Vilasini (Commentary on the Buddhavamsa). He wrote another
famous work Abhidhammavatara (Summary
of Buddhaghosha's commentaries on the Abhidhammapitaka)
at the request of a bhikkhu named Sumati. His another important work is Vinaya Vinicchaya (Summary of the
Buddhaghosha's commentaries on the Vinaya-Pitaka).
Sanghamitra (4th
century A.D):
He was a Tamil Buddhist monk of the Chola country .He went to Sri Lanka, converted the king to Mahayana.He was patronised by his second son Mahasena. He destroyed the Mahavihara which was a seat of
Hinayana and renewed and enlarged the Abhayagiri Vihara, which became
thereafter the stronghold of Mahayana.(T.N.Ramachandran,
The History of Buddhism in the Tamil Kingdoms of South India )
Buddhaghosha(5th century
AD)
He was the greatest Pali
scholar and commentator , born near Bodh Gaya.But K.R. Srinivasan. believes that the monk was
born in Kanchi.. According to Mahavamsa
, Buddhaghosha accomplished his literary pursuits in SriLanka and became a
great Buddhist writer.
By 5th
century AD, Pali Buddhism was waning. Mahayana was well accepted. More and more
scholars were turning to Sanskrit. But the Bodh Gaya monks stood firm in their
allegiance, to Pali. Under their guidance, Buddhaghosha studied Buddhist
Philosophy. He also compiled a treatise on Buddhism , 'Nanodaya'. He also
planned to compose commentaries on Abhidhamma
and the Suttas. On knowing his
intention, his teacher, Mana Thera Revata advised Buddhaghosha to go to Sri
Lanka.
Thus encouraged and
inspired, Buddhaghosha went to Sri Lanka during the reign of King Mahanama
(410-432) AD and reached the Mahavihara at Anuradhapura. While staying in the
Mahavihara, Buddhaghosha made a thorough study of the Sinhalese commentaries.
He also heard the tradition of the elders like Thera Sanghapala. Convinced of their
usefulness, he then sought permission of the bhikkhu-Sanghapala of the Mahavihara
to translate the commentaries from Sinhalese to Pali. In order to test his
knowledge and capabilities, the learned
Theras asked Buddhaghosha to comment on a Pali stanza. In response to this, Buddhaghosha
compiled a compendium of the whole of the Tripitaka,
and named it Visuddhimagga or
"The Path of purification.". Highly pleased with his performance, the
bhikkhus of the Mahavihara gave all the facilities to Buddhaghosha and placed
all the Sinhalese commentaries at his disposal. According to Mahavamsa, it is a summary of the three Pitakas
together with the commentary. When Buddhaghosha had been staying at Granthakara
Pirivena at Anuradhapura, he completed his task of rendering Sinhalese
commentaries of Tripitakas into Pali.
Besides the Visuddhimagga, Buddhaghosha wrote
commentaries on the Vinaya-Pitaka, Patimokha, Digha-Nikaya, hima-Nikaya,
Anguttara-Nikaya, Khuddaka-Patha. The commentaries on the Dhammapada and the
Jataka are done by Buddhaghosha. The voluminous literature
produced by Buddhaghosha exists to this day. The commentaries and the Visuddhimagga of Buddhaghosha are not
only a great achievement in post-Tripitaka
literature but they are a key to the Tripitaka.
Buddhaghosha resided for some time at Kanchi and wrote some
of the commentaries. ln the colophon to the commentary on the Anguttara Nikaya, Manorathapurani, Buddhaghosha says that at
the time of completing the work he lived at Kanchipura with his
friend Bikkhu Jotipala, Again in the commentary on the Majjhima, Papancasudani,
he says that when he was at
Mayurapattanam ( Mayavaram), with Buddhamitta, he was invited to write this.
Buddhaghosha stayed at Nagapattanam, from where he had worked for Sri Lanka too..
Dhammapala (6th century AD):
Dhammapala
was a great Pali
scholar of Tamil Nadu. He was a native
of Tanjavur. According to Hiuen Tsang, Dhammapala was born at Kanchipuram.
Dhammapala also stayed for some time at Nagapattanam in the Dharmasoka Vihara.
In the Nettipakarna commentary, Dhammapala
says that "he wrote this
commentary while he was residing at the monastery built by King Asoka at
Nagapattanam which is like unto a port for embarking on the ocean of the Dhamma”.
Dhammapala studied at
Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka as he mentions in his works the Atthukatha of the Mahavihara of Anuradhapura. He
also refers to the commentaries
of Buddhaghosha . Dhammapala wrote seven
commentaries on such books of the Khuddaka-Nikaya,
which had not been covered by Buddhaghosha. His famous work the Parmattha-dipani, is an exposition of
the Khuddaka-Nikaya covering mainly Udana, Itivuttku, Vimanavatthu, Peta-Vatthu,
Thera-gatha, Theri-gatha, and Cariya-Pitaka. Dhammapala’s other
commentaries are Parmatta-manjusas (Commentary on Buddhaghosha's Visuddhimagga), and
Netti - Pakarnassa Attha Samvannana
(Commentary on Netti, a post canonical work).
Dinnaga (5th Century AD)
Dinnaga was born around
450 AD at Simhavaktra, near Kanchipuram. After completing his studies at an
early age, Dinnaga became a Buddhist monk and joined the Vatsiputriya school.
It is said that one day, Nagadatta, his preceptor, asked Dinnaga to meditate over
the principle of the Atman which from the stand point of the Vatsiputriyas was
expressible and was neither identical with the groups of dements (Skandhas),
nor differing from them. When Dinnaga expressed some skepticism about the
existence of Ego, he was expelled from the community by his teacher. He was
unable to compromise with the views of other scholars as he was convinced of
his views. Dinnaga finally came to Vasubandhu
under whom Dinnaga studied all aspects of the Buddhist philosophy and
became well-versed with all the texts of Buddhism .
Dinnaga travelled all
over India holding religious contests with scholars. At Nalanda, he defeated a
Brahmin logician named Durjaya in a religious discussion, In Orissa, Dinnaga is
said to be converted the royal treasurer, Bhadrapalita, who built a monastery
in Dinnaga's honour in the Bhorasila
mountain in Orissa . Mostly he stayed there
or in the Accra monastery in
Maharashtra. Dinnaga wrote about a hundred treatises on logic, most of which
are preserved in Chinese and Tibetan translations. His most important works are
Pramanasamuccaya , Alambana- Pariksha , Hetuchakradamru), Nyaya-mukha, Hastavala - prakarna, Arya naparmitavivarana, and
Abhidharmakosha-Marma-Pradipa, a commentary on Vasubandhu's Abhidharmokasa.
He was the founder of
the Buddhist logic, and is often referred to as the Father of the medieval
Nyaya .
Bodhidharma
(6th Century AD)
Bodhidharma, a seer of
royal family of Kanchi . On seeing his interest in the Buddhist Sangha, he was initiated into
Buddhism by a renowned teacher of the Dhyana or meditative form of Buddhism.
After his teacher’s death, he worked for few years to popularise the Dhyana
(meditation) teachings in India. Later, he left for China around A.D. 526 for propagating his school of
Buddhism..
Bodhidharma was
cordially welcomed by the emperor Wu-ti, who was a devout Buddhist, at his
capital, Nanking. Later, finding that the emperor was not able to appreciate
his mystic trend of philosophy, Bodhidharma left the capital, and went to the
Shaolin monastery, near Lo-yang, in north China.
It is said that Bodhidharma
sat meditating deeply facing the wall (pi-kuan) at the Shaolin Temple ,without interacting with others
for nine years. In Chinese, pi means
"wall" and kuan means
"observation". Thus Bodhidharma is well-known for pi-kuan or "wall meditation" in China. He lays stress on
meditation by which alone,"enlightenment should be attained". The
meditative school founded by Bodhidharma is known as Ch'an Buddhism in China. The
mystic philosophy of Bodhidharma has great spiritual influence among the
Japanese Buddhists, Ch'an Buddhism became the popular Zen Buddhism with certain modifications in Japan.
Dharmapala (7th century AD).
He was born at Kanchi .
It is said that when he was about to be married, he secretly left home and joined the Buddhist Sangha. Hiuen Tsang gives
a good account of Dharmapala's
initiation to Buddhism . He learnt the
tenets of Buddhism and propagated the faith. He travelled widely in India.
While at Kosambi, with his great knowledge, he won over the Hindu scholars. His
popularity made him the head of the Nalanda University, a great abode
of Buddhist Learning.
Scholars and students from India and
abroad came to Nalanda to learn more about Buddhism.
He died at the young age of 32. His pupil
Silabhadra, succeeded him as Vice-chancellor,
under whom Hiuen Tsang, the Chinese pilgrim , studied Buddhism at Nalanda.
Dharmakirti
(7th
century AD) Dharmakirti was the great Buddhist logician. In his boyhood,
Dharmakirti studied the Vedas. Later, he concentrated on Buddhist philosophy at Nalanda, There he joined the Buddhist Order as a disciple of Dharmapala
who was at that time the Chief of the Nalanda Mahavihara. He studied logic from
Isvarsena, a direct pupil of Dinnaga, and made a thorough study of the Pramanasamuccaya of Dinnaga. He
travelled throughout India and tried to re-establish, through philosophy, the
glory of Buddhism which was showing signs of decline.
Dharmakirti wrote seven
important works. Those are,
1. Pramanavartika,
2. Pramanavinischaya,
3. Nyayabindu,
4. Hetubindu,
5. Vadanyaya,
6. Sambandhaparikasha,
7. Santanantarasidhi.
Almost all the works of Dharmakirti were lost in India. For a long time , nothing was known of Dharmakirti's works except Nyayabindu. But the Tibetan scholars preserved his works ; some in original Sanskrit and all in Tibetan translation. In modem times, Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan made many visits to Tibet and brought back to India some of the manuscripts of Dharmakirti's works in Sanskrit and commentaries on them. He also edited Dharmakirti's monumental work Pramanavartika with three commentaries and Vadanyaya. He is considered to be a great Buddhist philosopher and logician.Great western philosopher Dr.Stcherbatksy calls Dharmakirti, the Kant of India .
1. Pramanavartika,
2. Pramanavinischaya,
3. Nyayabindu,
4. Hetubindu,
5. Vadanyaya,
6. Sambandhaparikasha,
7. Santanantarasidhi.
Almost all the works of Dharmakirti were lost in India. For a long time , nothing was known of Dharmakirti's works except Nyayabindu. But the Tibetan scholars preserved his works ; some in original Sanskrit and all in Tibetan translation. In modem times, Mahapandit Rahul Sankrityayan made many visits to Tibet and brought back to India some of the manuscripts of Dharmakirti's works in Sanskrit and commentaries on them. He also edited Dharmakirti's monumental work Pramanavartika with three commentaries and Vadanyaya. He is considered to be a great Buddhist philosopher and logician.Great western philosopher Dr.Stcherbatksy calls Dharmakirti, the Kant of India .
Bodhiruchi
(7-8th century AD)
Dharmaruchi. belonged to
Tamil Nadu and later he went to China.His name was changed to
Bodhiruchi by the orders of Empress Wu
Tso- thien in 705 . In China, he studied
Buddhism under Yasaghosa, a Mahayanist. He thoroughly learnt entire Tripitaka
in three years. Thereafter, Bodhiruchi
devoted his time in translating Sanskrit works in to Chinese..
During AD 693 - 713, he translated 53 works which ran into 111 volumes in
Chinese. He is aid to have died in AD 727 when he was in his 156th year.
Buddhapriya
Dipankara Thera alias Buddhapriya
Thera and "Coliya Dipankara," was a disciple of
Ananda Vanaradana in Sri Lanka , and later on became the head of
Baladicca- Vihara at Kanchipuram. He was
the author of the Pali works, Vajjamadu
and Rupa-Siddhi, the former on Buddhist
art, and the latter on arithmetic. He wrote also a commentary on the Rupa-Siddhi. (World of Buddhism)
Vajrabodhi (661 – 730A D.)
He was born at
Podiyakanda in the Pandiya country. Another view is that he was a native of
Kanchi. He went to Nalanda, and became a
Mahayana monk. He returned to Kanchi and
propagated Mahayana. He was contemporary
of the Pallava king Narasimhavarman II (c.700 - 728 AD). His missionary tours
took him to Sri Lanka where he stayed for six months at the Bhayagiri Vihara.
Later, along with his disciple Amoghavajra, he went to China for missionary work. He took
with him the text of Mahaprajnaparamita to China.
Dharmakirti (13th
century A.D.)
He belonged to the Pandya country . He was a famous Buddhist acharya who was invited and
patronised by SriLanka ruler Parakrama Bahu II (1236-68 A.D.). He organised in
Sri Lanka an international conference of Buddhists. The Datha-vamsa and
Culavamsa (later part of Mahavamsa recording history of Sri Lanka from Mahasena
to Parakrama Bahu II) are the works of Dharmakirti.
Gandhavamsa:
The Gandhavamsa mentions ten South Indian Buddhist scholars who
stayed in Kanchi and wrote works on Buddhism in Pali.
The
ten scholars are
( 1 ) Buddhadatta (5th century
A.D.).
(2), Ananda the author of Mulatika
on the Abhidhammattakatha.
(3) Dhammapala (5th-6th century
A.D.) a native of Tambarattha (Tirumnelveli district) who became suvccessively
the head of the Buddhist monastery called Bhataraditta - Vihara at Kancipuram
and the Mahavihara at Anuradhapura, wrote good commentaries on Buddhist basic
texts, such as Attakatha, Paramartha
Manjusa and Nettipakaranatthakatha.
He resided in the city of Tanjai in Tirunelveli district. (This may be different from Thanjavur, the Chola capital)
(4-5) Two unnamed former teachers (Purvacaryas) who wrote the Niruttimanjusa and Mahaniruttisankhepa.
(6) Mahavajirabuddhi, author of Vinayaganthi, a glossary of the five
the Vinaya books.
(7) Cullavajirabuddhi. The name of
his work is not traceable.
(8) Dipankara Thera 91100 A.D.,
alias Buddhapriya Thera and "Coliya Dipankara
. (9) Culladhammapala who wrote the Saccasankhepa and
(10) Kassapa, who wrote the Mohaviccedani and Vimativicccedana
Lost Buddhist
literature:
Virasoliyam is a grammar work by
monk Buddhamitra of 11th AD during the reign of Chola Vira Rajendra. Apart
from grammar, it says about .Buddhism
.Siddhāntattokai This too is a Buddhist
is a Tamil work which has now been lost. From the name it appears to have been a work on the
Abhidhamma.Some references to this work is made in Sivagnanaiddhiyar and Nilakesi,
a Jain work.
Tiruppadigam: Verses from
this work in praise of Buddha are mentioned in Nilakesi and Sivagnanasiddhiyar.
Bimbisāra Kadai,. In the paraphrase to the Nīlakesī four verses are
quoted and the remark is made, ‘this
quotation is from the Bimbisāra Kadai, a Buddhist work.Gnanaprakasar mentions
few verses from this work in his Sivagnanasiddhiyar.
Kassapa, in his Pali work,
Vimatti-Vinodani,
The lost Tamil Buddhist works include the
grammar Virasoliyam, Abhidhamma
Siddhantattokai, Tiruppadigam, and
the biography Bimbisara Kada.
Kundalakesi : It was written by Tamil poet Nagaguttanar (4th
century A.D). It is referred to in some other literary works.
There is mention about the presence of wandering monks of Sri
Lanka in Vanchi, which was the capital of the Chera Kings of Tamil Nadu. The
Chinese traveller, Hiuen Tsang, wrote that there were around 300 Sri Lankan
monks in the monastery at the Southern part
of Kanchipuram
Conversion?
Though there were many monks and scholars devoted to
Buddhism, there were two great religionists who had shown their interest in
other religion. They are Sakkiya Nayanar and Kurruva Nayanar.
Sakkiya Nayanar :
He was born in Tiruchangamangai (Sangaramangai), in
a Vellala agricultural land owners family.. He gave up worldly life and studied in
pursuit of truth and emancipation
(moksha). He went to Kanchipuram and
became a Buddhist monk (Bhikshu) and an expert in
Buddhist philosophy. He earned the name Sakkiya, after the clan of the Buddha. However, Buddhism did not satisfy his thirst for knowledge and enlightenment.
So, he embraced Saivism. But he did not give up the garb of a Buddhist monk and continued to dress in
saffron garments as he was convinced that external appearances did not matter
for self-realization. Sakkiya is said to have realized that Saivism was the
true path to salvation and became a devotee of god Siva,
the patron deity of Saivism. ( Swami Sivananda (1999). Sixty-three Nayanar Saints (4 ed.). Sivanandanagar: The Divine Life Society.)
Kurruva Nayanar:
The Periya
Puranam narrates that Kurruva
was the chieftain of Kalandai . He was from the Kalabhra community.
He is described a devotee of Shiva. Generally
all the Kalabhra rulers followed Jainism or Buddhism. But how and
why Kurruva followed Saivism is not
known. He was praised by Saint Sundarar.( ( Indira Viswanathan Peterson (2014). Poems to Siva: The Hymns of the Tamil Saints. Princeton University
Press. p. 334. ISBN 978-1-4008-6006-7)
Conclusion:
Buddhism,
a world religion was from India. It was patronized by great rulers like Asoka,
Acchutavikkanta, RajarajaI and others.There were mant centres of Buddhist
learning in Tamilnadu. Many rulers built Buddhist viharas, chaityas and
pillars and donated liberally for the
maintenance of the same. Many commentaries and translations have taken place by
learned monks and scholars. Though it lost its significance in India , it has
made its mark in East, South and South East Asian countries. South India continued to be the centre of Pali Buddhism as
late as the 12th century A.D.
Tamil country
has produced great monks, scholars who have contributed to Buddhist
literature. Though Buddhism is not popular in the present day in India, the literature it has given to the
world in the early period of Buddhism in ancient Tamil country is remarkable. India is proud of her early Buddhist literature and the authors
in the Tamil country.
REFERENCES
Arunachalam, M. (1979). The Kalabhras in the
Pandiya Country and Their Impact on the Life and Letters There (Original from the University of California, Digitized Jul 30,
2008 ed.). University of Madras
Buddha’s Light International Assn.—Chennai Chapter
BuddhaSasana English Section
Dhammananda Maha Thera.,K.Venerable
Sri, What
Buddhists Believe.
Elango Adigal, Silappadikaram.
Epigraphia Indica Volume XXII
Gandhavamsa
Hisselle Dhammaratana, Buddhism in South India, Buddhist Publication Society, Kandy,
1964. Available on Buddhist Publication Society Online Library [2]
Jeyaraj D.B.S., Tamil Buddhism in Ancient South
India and Sri Lanka
John Samuel ,G., Ār. Es Śivagaṇēśamūrti, M. S.
Nagaraja, Buddhism in Tamil Nadu, collected papers ,
Institute of Asian Studies (Madras, India)
.Krishnaswāmi
Aiyangar S., Maṇimekhalai
in its Historical Setting,
London, 1928
Lakshman Jayavardane, Ancient Buddhist links
between Tamil Nadu and Sri
Lanka, Chennai
Malalasekera,
G.P. (2003). Dictionary
of Pali Proper Names: Pali-English. Asian Educational Services. ISBN 81-206-1823-8
Nilakanta
Sastri,K.A., The Colas,(Reprint) University of Madras, Chennai
Peter Schalk. Buddhism
among Tamils in pre-colonial Tamilakam and Īlam: Prologue. The Pre-Pallava and
the Pallava period .
Peter Schalk, editor-in-chief, A Buddhist woman's path to enlightenment : proceedings of a
Workshop on the Tamil Narrative Manimekalai, Uppsala University, May
25–29, 1995. Uppsala, Academiae Ubsaliensis, Stockholm, 1997.Series
title: Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis. Historia religionum 13.
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region on Tamil Nadu coastJournal of Marine Archaeology, Vol. II, July 1991, pp. 6. Available online
at [3]
Ramachandran,T.N.,The History of
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Shu Hikosake, Buddhism in Tamil Nadu: a New Perspective”,1989,
Chennai
Sittalai Sattanar,, Manimekalai.
South Indian Inscriptions, Vol.II.
Upadhaya K.N. (1968) "The Impact of Early Buddhism on Hindu Thought (with
Special Reference to the Bhagavadgiitaa)", Philosophy East and West Vol.18, University
of Hawaii Press
Wikipedia
World of Buddhism
Yapperungalam.
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