Shantideva was one of the greatest ancient Indian Acharyas of Mahayana philosophy who lived in India in the 7th century CE. Shantideva studied in Nalanda and practiced many important skills there. Nalanda was the place where Shantideva has recited his 'Bodhi-caryavatara'. He was a great scholar and a poet. We can get few details of Shantideva's life through some Tibetan sources. No Sanskrit work on Shantideva's life is available. His fame has reached to all directions due to his scholarly works Shiksha-samuccaya and Bodhicaryavatara. Both works of Shantideva are summaries of Mahayana Buddhism. Even now people study these scriptures with enormous interest in the lands where Buddhist thought has prevailed. The most serious and celebrated work out of these two is his 'Bodhicaryavatara' which reflects the philosophic, poetic and spiritual eminence of Shantideva. His Holiness Dalai Lama frequently quotes verses from the 'Bodhi-caryavatara' in his teachings.
This book contains the research papers by Dr. Akita Saito, from Tokyo, Prof. C. Upender Rao from India, Venerable Khenpo Kalsang Gyaltsen, and Dr. Chodrung-ma Kunga Chodron, from USA, Prof. Andreas Kretschmar from Germany, Khuslen Soningbar from Bloomfield, Alexandria, VA., Ms. Michelle Dexter and Ms. Jacqueline Abdalla, from USA. We hope that this book will provide fresh information about the Shantideva and his writings. |
