Reviews Of Diffeent Books

Author(s): J W De Jong
Publisher: J W De Jong

Page 27

REVIEWS
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material that can be firmly classed as tantric earlier than the ninth century" (p. 316). Snellgrove makes no reference to inscriptions but it is interesting to note that the oldest mention of the term Mahāyāna is found in an inscription dated A.D. 507-8. Although the oldest Mahāyāna texts were probably written already in the first century B.C., it seems that the sentiment of belonging to a specific and different school of Buddhism was felt only after a lapse of several centuries.
Snellgrove does not attach much importance to the influence of layfolk on the development of Mahāyāna: "It is sometimes suggested that the Mahāyāna represents a more popular form of Buddhism in which the attitudes and aspirations of the layfolk are accorded greater scope, but such a suggestion, while partly true, can also be quite misleading. There would seem to be no doubt that the real protagonists of the Mahāyāna were monks, and the new scriptures were compiled by monks, some of whom were renowned as masters of philosophy. Also the career of the Bodhisattva, as described in the texts, assumes that the life of a monk and at least a life of celibacy are essential conditions for his progress” (pp. 62-63).
It is a pity that Snellgrove does not discuss in greater detail the role of the layfolk in the development of Mahāyāna. Since the publication of Hirakawa's article on "The Rise of Mahāyāna Buddhism and Its Relation to the Worship of Stupas' in 1963, the influence of lay-followers especially with regard to the worship of stūpas has been a lively subject of discussion in Japan. Probably some scholars have overrated the importance of layfollowers, but one must not forget the fact that the Mahāyāna sūtras are inspired by a very different spirit. It is perhaps not inappropriate to quote the following words by Étienne Lamotte: “Le Mahāyāna est traversé de part en part par un esprit laïc et démocratique. Les Mahāyānasūtra ne s'adressent plus avant tout aux moines qui ont quitté leur maison pour mener une vie errante, mais aux nobles fils et filles de famille demeurés dans le siècle."
On p. 7 Snellgrove remarks that the story of Sakyamuni's life was regarded as representing the set course that any Buddha should follow in his last life in this world and that it was defined as the Twelve Acts of a Buddha. To my knowledge the Twelve Acts of the Buddha (mdzad-pa bcugnis) are not mentioned in Indian Buddhist texts but have been formulated for the first time in Tibet. In an article published in 1839 Csoma de Kőrös gave a list of the twelve acts which is different from the one published by Snellgrove. It would have been very welcome if such an excellent specialist in Tibetan Buddhism as Snellgrove would have given us some more information on the origin and history of the different lists of the Twelve Acts.
Whereas chapters one, two and four suffer somewhat from the fact that