Buddhism

World History of Life 5Indian thought, culture and history

Noboru KARASHIMA and Yasuaki NARA, "The World History of Life 5: The Face of India" - Indian people's true intentions and preconceptions. A recommended book that provides a broad overview of the spirituality of the level of life!

In real life, there are "real intentions and preconceived notions. The author's point that if you ignore this and focus only on one or the other, you will end up with something completely different was certainly something I could nod my head to and say, "I see.

In addition to these religious aspects, the book covers a wide range of aspects of "Indian life," including caste, art, curry and other foods, politics, language, urban and rural areas, sexuality, and so on. I found this book very interesting in terms of the birth of Buddhism and its absorption into the Hindu world.
Ethics of Life in Primitive BuddhismBuddhism in India

Nakamura Gen's Selected Works, Volume 17, "The Ethics of Life in Primitive Buddhism" - A masterpiece that provides insight into Indian society of the time, the lives of lay believers, and funeral rites.

This book is a reference book about the lay people and Buddhist teachings that existed with the primitive Buddhist cult. Needless to say, the Primitive Buddhist Order is an ordained order. The true meaning of Buddhism is a life of ascetic practice, totally detached from the secular life.

However, the mission does not consist only of ordained believers. It is also an ordained order that depends on ordinary people who live as lay believers. In this book, you will learn how these ordinary people lived with Buddhism.

また、原始仏教は葬式をしたのかどうかという問題もこの本では詳しく説かれます。葬式仏教批判に対する答えとしてもこの本は大きな意味があると思います。
Indian artIndian thought, culture and history

V. Dehesia, "Iwanami Sekai no Bijutsu: Indian Art" - All color, full of great photos! Recommended Indian Art Guidebook

This book is an amazing overview of art history from the Indus civilization to modern India in one volume. The book is unique in that it is richly illustrated with photographs, all in color. It is also arranged by period, so it is gratifying to know how Indian art has changed over the years.

I was particularly interested in Buddhist art, and I appreciated the beautiful photographs of early Buddhist statues and sculptures. The explanations were easy to understand and I immediately felt that this was a work I would highly recommend.
Modern Indian ThoughtIndian thought, culture and history

Gen Nakamura Selected Works, Volume 31, "Ideas of Modern India" - Recommended for learning about the religious reforms in India and Hinduism after the Islamic invasion.

Medieval India may be a minor genre compared to ancient India, where Buddhism and Hinduism flourished, but it offers great insights into Buddhism and Hinduism itself. I too read with great interest the history of Indian Islam as told in this book. This is interesting.

It is a story of medieval India, which is not often talked about, but I dare you to pick it up. It is interesting.
In Japan, I thought about it too.Indian thought, culture and history

P. Aiyar, "In Japan I Thought Too" - What is Japan from an Indian's point of view? A poignant work that candidly describes both the good and the bad of Japan.

This book will give you a clear understanding of what Japan is and how we Japanese are viewed from overseas.

What I particularly felt while reading this book was that "we Japanese are also being watched.

I have been learning about India for the past few months. I have been reading incessantly books that talk about India and after this I plan to actually visit India.

That is how I try to read, see and know India.

However, I realized once again that India is also looking at me, as Nietzsche said, "When you look into the abyss, the abyss is also looking at you.
Nakamura Gen Selected Works 23Buddhism in India

Gen Nakamura's Selected Works, Volume 23, "The Ideal of Living in Buddhist Art" - A recommended book to listen to the great commentary on Indian art by a leading authority on Buddhist studies!

This book is a commentary on Buddhist art by Buddhist scholar Gen Nakamura.

Gen Nakamura is famous for his easy-to-understand commentary on Buddhist thought in relation to the historical background of the time, and he is still going strong in his commentary on Buddhist art, which is the theme of this work.

Comparisons are also made between the earliest Buddha images, such as the Gandhara and Mathura Buddha images, and the Sarnath Buddha image from the 5th century, and the characteristics of each are very easy to understand.

Also excellent is the commentary on the stupas, which have had an extremely significant impact on the development of Buddhist art.

The book also includes a very detailed description of the Ajanta Grottoes, India's pride and joy of Buddhist monuments. It is very interesting to read the comments of Dr. Hajime Nakamura, who has visited the site.
History of Indian ThoughtBuddhism in India

Gen Nakamura, "History of Indian Thought" - A famous book that is very useful for the study of Buddhism! Recommended reference book for an overview of the flow of Indian thought

This work, "History of Indian Thought," is a classic among classics in Buddhist studies.

Gen Nakamura's books are characterized by the fact that they do not simply discuss ideologies and philosophical theories, but also intertwine them with the historical background and actual life in the region. The present work, "History of Indian Thought," is another masterpiece that allows the reader to enjoy such Nakamura's style.

This book provides an overview of the history of Indian thought, which is so full of events, beginning with the Indus civilization, the Aryan invasion, the beginning of Brahmanism, the rise of Buddhism, the establishment of Hinduism, and the invasion of Islam to the present day.
Life of Sakyamuni BuddhaBuddhism in India

Takashi Hizuka and Mikihiro Tieda, "The Life of Buddha as Seen in Art" - Recommended by Gen Nakamura! A groundbreaking work that looks at the Buddha's biography through the visuals of Indian art!

この本はブッダの生涯をインドにある仏教美術を通して見ていく作品です。ブッダの生涯を説く本は数多くあれど、本家本元のインド美術を中心にそれを解説していく作品は実はかなり貴重です。

私がこの本を手に取ったのは中村元著『ゴータマ・ブッダ』でこの本が絶賛されていたからでした。

この本を読んでいると実際に現地でこれらのインド美術を見てみたくなります。どこで出土してどこに展示されているのかも掲載されていますのでインド旅行の際の参考になることも間違いなしです。
Empire of PlunderIndian thought, culture and history

W. Dalrymple, "Empire of Plunder: The Rise and Fall of the East India Company" - A Warning for Our Times! Why did the great nation of India become a British colony?

This book is a work that takes a closer look at the process by which colossal India was ruled by the British East India Company.

This book is so shocking. I even felt fear when I read it. How did the Mughal Empire, which boasted of overwhelming prosperity, so easily succumb to the British trading company? What is discussed in this book is not completely irrelevant to those of us living in Japan today. This book is truly a warning to us modern people.
Reading this book, I am truly afraid of Japan today.
Multi-city DelhiIndian thought, culture and history

Ara Matsuo "Multiple Cities of Delhi" - Recommended to learn about Delhi as an Islamic city and the pastoral atmosphere it once had!

The book gives an insight into the former Delhi and the changes in India circa 1990. I was impressed when the author said, "It is not easy to recall even the changes in the Shinjuku station area where I used to pass by every day. That is true. Even Hakodate, where I live, looks completely different from what it did 40 years ago. And then there is Delhi, a major city in India. The changes must be tremendous.

In this book, you can see such changes in Delhi with pictures. The author's real-life experiences and the way he describes Delhi are very inspiring. This book is a travelogue as well as a life experience book. This is an interesting book.