Abstract
This paper examines two poetic fragments from two Buddhist texts: one – from Lalitavistara and another – from Rāṣṭrapālaparipṛcchā-sūtra. As the study reveals, both passages demonstrate certain genre characteristics that allow considering them as samples of jātakastava (lit. “jātaka-praise”). This genre is represented by only two extant separate poems. However, one can also find poetic passages with similar characteristics in several voluminous Buddhist monuments. Jātakastava is a type of poem consisting of the frame and the main part. The frame has much in common with standard frames of ancient and medieval Indian religious hymns – in it, the author of the poem tells us that he is not talented enough to describe the deeds of the Buddha himself, and informs us about the benefits that one can get by reading and distributing the work. The main part of the poem describes the deeds of the Buddha performed by him in his previous births. Both of the passages under consideration demonstrate a number of similarities in the content as well as in the form. This allows us to make an assumption about a common source of origin for them. Having determined the genetic relationship of the two texts, we proceed to analyze the composition of large poetic fragments, which include the verses in question. It appears that individual stanzas of the poems, getting inside a large Buddhist text, could scatter, find a new place for themselves, obeying the structure that underlies the corresponding passages of newly created or expanded monuments.
Published Version
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