Biography:Vimalakirti
Vimalakīrti (Sanskrit: विमल vimala "stainless, undefiled" + कीर्ति kīrti "fame, glory, reputation") is the central figure in the Vimalakirti Sutra,[1] which presents him as the ideal Mahayana Buddhist upāsaka ("lay practitioner")[2] and a contemporary of Gautama Buddha (6th to 5th century BCE).[1] There is no mention of him in Buddhist texts until after Nāgārjuna (1st century BCE to 2nd century CE) revived Mahayana Buddhism in India .[3] The Mahayana Vimalakirti Sutra also spoke of the city of Vaisali[4] as where the lay Licchavi bodhisattva Vimalakirti was residing.[5]
As a Zen Patriarch
The Vimalakīrti Nirdeśa Sūtra characterizes Vimalakīrti as a wealthy patron of Gautama Buddha.[6] Unlike many other figures of the Mahayana literature, such as Avalokiteśvara, he is generally taken to be a historical figure like Gautama Buddha, rather than mythic or legendary, and as such Vimalakīrti is not commonly venerated on altars or in tantric rituals,[7] but as a prehistoric zen, i.e., chan preacher. [citation needed]
See also
- Wang Wei
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "The Vimalakirti Sutra: The Dharma-Door of Nonduality". About.com. http://buddhism.about.com/od/mahayanasutras/a/The-Vimalakirti-Sutra.htm.
- ↑ "Vimalakirti and the Doctrine of Nonduality". Metropolitan Museum of Art. http://www.metmuseum.org/collections/search-the-collections/60007750.
- ↑ Thurman, Robert (2000). The Holy Teaching of Vimalakirti: A Mahayana Scripture. Pennsylvania State University Press. p. ix. ISBN 0271012099. https://archive.org/details/holyteachingofvi00vima.
- ↑ The Holy Teaching of Vimalakīrti: A Mahāyāna Scripture. Motilal Banarsidass Publ.. 1991. p. 20. ISBN 978-81-208-0874-4. https://books.google.com/books?id=n4K7p6XSpSYC&pg=PA146-IA2.
- ↑ Thurman, Robert. "VIMALAKIRTI NIRDESA SUTRA". http://www2.kenyon.edu/Depts/Religion/Fac/Adler/Reln260/Vimalakirti.htm.
- ↑ Baroni, Helen Josephine (2002). The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Zen Buddhism. The Rosen Publishing Group. p. 369. ISBN 9780823922406.
- ↑ Leighton, Taigen Dan. "Boddhisattvas of Compassion Lesson 8: Vimalakirti". DharmaNet International. http://dharmanet.org/coursesM/31/bodhisattva8.htm.
External links
- Vimalakīrti portrait at Tricycle: The Buddhist Review
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