Ekayana Philosophy of the Saddharmapundarika Sutra

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This book "Ekayana Philosophy of the Saddharmapundarika Sūtra" starts from a thesis. Owing to the suggestion of a well-known professor and aspiration of the author on the Saddharmapundarika sutra, a very interesting and popular Mahayana text in the countries of East Asia, the Ph.d thesis on topic "Philosophy of the Saddharmapundarika-sutra - A Conceptual and Doctrinal Analysis" was presented and completed successfully by the author, a Vietnamese Buddhist monk, at University of Delhi, India in 2003 under the guidance of Prof. S. R. Bhatt, a former Head of the Department of Philosophy.

Since then the thesis has been kept there in the library of the University of Delhi and the author has also been busy with the university education in his country.

Until recently Prof. S. R. Bhatt suggested to publish the thesis into a book. This is good idea. In fact, the content of the thesis reveals a number of important concepts and doctrines of Mahayana Buddhism which hide behind the highly symbolic expressions of the sutra. Meanwhile, most Buddhists just know the stories, parables, scenes of the sutra, i.e, by words and even they learn the sutra by heart but very few can understand the full meaning of it. This concerns the author for a long time!

It is also fortunately, Low Price Publications in Delhi, India agrees to publish the book. Now, all conditions are good. So, the book "Ekayana Philosophy of the Saddharmapundarika Sütra" will be helpful not only for the Buddhists but also for those who want to study Buddhism as a philosophy system.

The author has religious name Thich Tam Duc and family name Nguyen xuan Kinh, born on June 07, 1953 in Thua Thien, Vietnam.

He was a student of University of Van Hanh in Sai Gon before 1975 and ordained as novice in 1981 and monk in 1985 under the guidance of Master Thich Minh Chau, the former Rector of Van Hanh and Vietnam Buddhist University in Hochiminh City, Vietnam.

After completing his B.A. in Buddhist Studies in 1988 and M.A. in History in 1991 in Vietnam, he, in University of Delhi, continued to complete his M.A. in Buddhist Studies in 1993, Ph. D. in Buddhist Studies in 1997 with the thesis "Thien of Vietnamese Buddhism under the Tran Dynasty," Diploma in Pali language in 1998, Diploma in Chinese Language in 1998, and Ph.D. in Philosophy in 2003 with the thesis "Philosophy of the Saddharmapundarika- sutra."

He returned back to Vietnam in 2003 and has become a member of The Dharma Executive Council, Vietnam Buddhist Sangha; Vice Rector of Vietnam Buddhist Research Institute and Vice Rector & Lecturer of Vietnam Buddhist University in Hochiminh City.

He has had a number of writings in magazines, electronic newspapers and in workshops and conferences.

He has also attended International conferences since 2004 in India, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, New Zealand, Australia, Philippines and did give a speech "Conflict and Illusions" at the UN Headquarters in New York, U.S.A. on the occasion of Vesak 2011 on May 16, 2011.

The book "Buddhist Solutions" was written by him and published in Hanoi, Vietnam in 2008.

This book originates from the two main motivations: a) Professor S.R. Bhatt's suggestion and b) the writer's aspiration to study the Saddharmapundarika-sutra, or in short the Lotus in English, in a new way. It was very happy for the writer when he met one day Prof. Bhatt in the office of the Department of Philosophy, University of Delhi, in September, 1997. The writer was longing and searching for the knowledge of Buddhist philosophy when he met the professor, a good advisor in this sphere. The professor said that an exposition of the philosophy of the Lotus, a very popular sutra in the countries of East Asia, was a good thing. This suggestion corresponded to the writer's aspiration. The Lotus has been popularly recited by the Buddhists in the countries of East Asia including Vietnam and most scholars have dwelt on the major points of each chapter of the sutra. But very few have discussed and arranged the concepts and doctrines underlying the highly symbolic expressions of the sutra in a philosophical system, which are Ekayana, Upaya-kausalya, Bodhisattva, Buddhahood and Dharani. So the method used in this book is an analysis of those concepts and doctrines. Here some accounts are repeated for the connection and understanding of the discussing questions.

I have great pleasure and privilege to write Foreword to this erudite work on Saddharmapuṇḍarīkā Sūtra based on deep thinking, wide reading and subtle research by a learned scholar from Vietnam.

It takes into account different versions of the text and analyses its contents with a remarkable philosophical acumen.

Out the nine well known Mahayana Buddhist sacred texts known as "Vaipulya Sutras", the Saddharmapundarikā Sūtra is the most important, the most representative and extraordinarily popular work. It is considered to be the last and the supreme teaching of the Buddha. It is at once the foundation and the culmination of the Buddhist thought and practices. It declares itself as the "King of all Sutras." It is regarded as the quintessence and the most comprehensive of the teachings of the Buddha. It glorifies and divinizes the Buddha and extols the life of a bodhisattva. It promises that following the Buddhist way of life enables one to get enlightenment and to reach the final goal, the summum bonum, of life. It presents Buddhism as emancipatory or liberating religion and that is why it has provided solace and succor to millions of people throughout Asia. This also accounts for its prominence. Its language is highly symbolic, suggestive and evocative. Ideas are expressed, doctrines are propounded and messages are communicated through parables and analogies the implications of which need to be drawn out.