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Subject of "The Many Canons of Tibetan Buddhism are both the mainstream Tibetan canons of translated Buddhist classics (known as the Bka' 'gyur & Bstan 'gyur), and the alternative canons of literature of the Nyingma sectarian traditions (known as the Rnying ma rgyud 'bum).
The first section discusses the formation and transmission of Tibetan "canonical" texts, but also includes important works of reference, such as a Bka' gdams pa handbook and several unique catalogues. It also features a first report on Tibetan textual transmission in Mongolia.
The second section not only presents interpretative analysis of one of the most important alternative canons in Tibet, the Rnying ma rgyud 'bum, but also discusses essential issues of legitimacy, authority and lineage during the "gray" period of the tenth to twelfth centuries which laid the foundation for the formation of all ensuing Tibetan canons.
The volume thus develops fresh perspectives on the nature, plurality and contents of canons in Tibetan Buddhism.
About the author
Helmut Eimer, Ph.D. (1974) in Indology, Tibetan and Oriental Art History, University of Bonn, is a senior researcher (emeritus) at that same university. He has published extensively on, e.g. the life of Atisha (Dipankarashrijnana), Kanjur transmission, collections of Tibetan manuscripts and blockprints. His most recent work is
The Early Mustang Kanjur Catalogue (dkar chag) (Vienna, 1999).
David Germano received a Ph.D. in Tibetan and Buddhist Studies from the University of Wisconsin. He is currently an Associate Professor of Tibetan Studies at the University of Virginia. He is the author of a number of articles on Buddhism and Tibetan studies.
