A STUDY OF THE MAHAVASTU

The author reveals that the Mah?vastu or an encyclopaedia of Buddhist legends and doctrines is one of the important books of Mah?y?na Buddhist literature. Its literally means a great thing. The prose portions of the text are written in mixed Sanskrit while the poems are written more in Pr?krit than in mixed Sanskrit. No doubt the language is ?an arbitrary and unstable mixture of Sanskrit, P?li and Pr?krits. In many places it is difficult to arrive at the correct interpretation. The arrangement of the topics discussed in the book is most disorderly and the text is full of repetitions. It contains an account of Buddha?s life and teachings together with the stories of his previous births. Besides, several knotty points of Buddhism and Buddhist philosophy are treated in it. It claims to be a book of the Vinaya Pitaka according to the Lokottarav?dins, a branch of the Mah?sa?ghikas. It contains very little of the rules of the Vinaya. It undoubtedly requires care and patience to go through the entire text and give a substance of it ? a task which he has attempted in this book. Dr. A. Berriedale Keith has laid him under a debt of obligation by specially writing a valuable note containing many points of importance connected with a study of the Mah?vastu. For seven illustrations and for kind permission to reproduce them, he is grateful to the DirectorGeneral of Archaeology, India.