The Oxford Centre for Buddhist Studies

06 February

Mr Alastair Gornall: "How is the Pali Canon a Sacred Text? Exploring Answers from 12th Century Sri Lanka and 18th  Century  Burma."

Alastair Gornall's talk explores the ways in which the language of the Pali Canon is considered by the Theravada Buddhist tradition to transmit the Buddha's teachings. He focuses on a crucial debate on the nature of the Pali Canon in 12th century Sri Lanka and argues that the results of this debate influenced the way the Pali Canon was perceived in South India and Burma.

Alastair Gornall is currently finishing his PhD thesis entitled 'Buddhism and Grammar in Twelfth Century Sri Lanka' at the University of Cambridge. His thesis attempts to reassess and illuminate the history of the Buddhist sangha in Sri Lanka through a close study of Buddhist grammarians and their grammars.

All lectures take place at 5.30pm at Balliol College lecture room 23.

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