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Encyclopedia > Walpola Rahula

The venerable Prof Walpola Sri Rahula Maha Thera (1907-1997) was a Buddhist monk, scholar and writer. He is considered to be one of the top Sri Lankan intellectuals in the 20th century. In 1964, he became the Professor of History and Religions at Northwestern University, thus becoming the first bhikkhu to hold a professorial chair in the western world. He also once held the Vice-Chancellor position of the then Vidyodaya University (currently known as Sri Jayawardenapura University). He has written extensively about Buddhism in English, French and Sinhalese. Venerable Thera's book, What The Buddha Taught is considered by many as one of the best books written about Theravada Buddhism. Year 1907 (MCMVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Year 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1997 Gregorian calendar). ... A replica of an ancient statue found among the ruins of a temple at Sarnath Buddhism is a philosophy based on the teachings of the Buddha, Siddhārtha Gautama, a prince of the Shakyas, whose lifetime is traditionally given as 566 to 486 BCE. It had subsequently been accepted by... A scholar is either a student or someone who has achieved a mastery of some academic discipline, perhaps receiving financial support through a scholarship. ... A writer is anyone who creates a written work, although the word more usually designates those who write creatively or professionally, or those who have written in many different forms. ... Northwestern University is a private, coeducational, non-sectarian research university located in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois. ... A Buddhist Monk in Sri Lanka In Pāli, a bhikkhu (male) or bhikkhuni (female) is a fully ordained Buddhist monk. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ... Theravada (Pali; Sanskrit: Sthaviravada) is one of the eighteen (or twenty) Nikāya schools that formed early in the history of Buddhism. ...

Contents

Biography

Early life

He was born in 1907 at Walpola, a tiny southern village in Sri Lanka. At thirteen he entered the Order of the Sangha. He had his education in Sinhala, Pali, Sanskrit, Buddhist religion, history and philosophy. Year 1907 (MCMVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Monday of the 13-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Sangha is a word in Pali or Sanskrit that can be translated roughly as association or assembly. It is commonly used in several senses to refer to Buddhist or Jain groups. ... Sinhala language Sinhala alphabet Sinhala people Sinhala place-names Sinhala Place Names, see Sinhala place-names Category: ... Pali (IAST: ) is a Middle Indo-Aryan dialect or prakrit. ... The Sanskrit language ( , for short ) is a classical language of India, a liturgical language of Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Jainism, and one of the 23 official languages of India. ...


Academic career

Dr Rahula attended Ceylon university (now known as University of Colombo). He obtained a BA Honours degree (London), and then earned a Doctorate of Philosophy having written a thesis on the History of Buddhism in Sri Lanka (Ceylon). Then he went on to study Indian Philosophy at Calcutta University and later studied Mahayana at Sorbonne University. It was during his time at the Sorbonne in the late-1950s that he produced What the Buddha Taught, a highly regarded introductory text on Buddhism for which Dr Rahula is best known. The University of Colombo (also known as UoC), Sri Lankas oldest university, is located in the urban centre of Colombo. ... Established in January 24, 1857, the University of Calcutta (also known as Calcutta University) is the first modern university in the Indian sub_continent. ... Relief image of the bodhisattva Kuan Yin from Mt. ... ...


Venarable Dr Rahula is the first Buddhist monk to become a professor in a Western University. When he became the Professor of History and Literature of Religions there were no Theravada Temples in the United States. He later became a professor Emeritus at the same University. Dr Rahula also held positions in several other American Universities. He was a visiting lecturer at the Swarthmore College and Regents Lecturer at the UCLA. Dr Rahula became the Vice-Chancellor of the Vidyoda University (now Sri Jayawardhanapura University) in 1964. He was later instrumental in encouraging the formation of the first Theravada temple in the United States, the Washington Vihara. Swarthmore College is a private, independent, liberal arts college in the United States with an enrollment of about 1,450 students. ... Binomial name Ucla xenogrammus Holleman, 1993 The largemouth triplefin, Ucla xenogrammus, is a fish of the family Tripterygiidae and only member of the genus Ucla, found in the Pacific Ocean from Viet Nam, the Philippines, Palau and the Caroline Islands to Papua New Guinea, Australia (including Christmas Island), and the...


Titles

Dr Rahula has been awarded several titles during his life time. The highest honoury title "Tripitaka-vagisvaracaraya" was given to him by Chapter of the Sangha in Sri Lanka in 1965. Sangha is a word in Pali or Sanskrit that can be translated roughly as association or assembly. It is commonly used in several senses to refer to Buddhist or Jain groups. ...


Publications

Dr Rahula has written extensively about Theravada Buddhism. Apart from his world-renowned book What the Buddha Taught, he had published enormous number of papers on Buddhism. Notable books written by him includes, History of Buddhism in Ceylon, Heritage of the Bhikkhu, Zen and the taming of the Bull and Le Compendium de la Super Doctrine (French).


Bibliography

  • What The Buddha Taught (1959, ISBN 0-8021-3031-3)
  • History of Buddhism in Ceylon: The Anuradhapura period, 3rd Century BC–10th Century AD (1966)
  • Humour in Pali Literature and Other Essays (1997, ISBN 955-650-000-6)
  • The Heritage of the Bhikkhu: A Short History of the Bhikkhu in Educational, Cultural, Social, and Political Life (1974, ISBN 0-394-49260-9)
  • Heritage of Bhikkhu (1974, ISBN 0-394-17823-8)
  • Zen and the Taming of the Bull: Towards the Definition of Buddhist Thought: Essays (1978, ISBN 0-900406-69-0)
  • The Heritage of the Bhikkhu: The Buddhist Tradition of Service (2003, ISBN 0-8021-4023-8)

External links

  • Remembering Dr. Walpola Rahula
  • Walpola Rahula, (1996). What the Buddha Taught, ISBN 955-9219-19-7
  • What Buddha Taught
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Modern Dharmic Writers (1875 to present)

  Results from FactBites:
 
WHAT THE BUDDHA TAUGHT: Remembering Dr. Walpola Rahula (897 words)
Walpola Rahula, world renowned scholar and pioneer in the expansion of Buddhism beyond its traditional homelands in Southern and Eastern Asia.
Rahula was later instrumental in encouraging the formation of the first Theravada temple in the United States, the Washington Vihara, against fierce opposition from traditionalists in Sri Lanka.
Rahula, whose initial support and constant encouragement were fundamental to the establishment and growth of the teachings of the Buddha in this country.
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