Dhammapada Traditions and Translations

The Dhammapada is probably the most frequently translated Buddhist text in the world today. This article looks at the history of translations of the Dhammapada since it was first translated into English in the nineteenth century. I start by comparing the little known first English translation by Daniel Gogerly from 1840 with the influential 1870 translation by Max Müller. The paper then examines the main translations which have appeared since the mid-twentieth century. I show how they represent Buddhist, Hindu and other views on the Dhammapada and that they continue to be influenced by the pioneering nineteenth-century translations. I argue that translations of the Dhammapada are conditioned not only by the viewpoints of the translators but also by the existence of a tradition of translating the Dhammapada . Both factors I conclude have contributed to the importance placed on the Dhammapada as a representative Buddhist text.     

中国史学的遗产、传统和当前发展趋势

我国是一个史学大国,我国史学的特点是:历史记载和历史撰述的连续性;传世的历史文献十分丰富;历史编纂形式的多样性;重视人事、重视经世致用的社会性。中国史学在长期的发展中,为我们留下了丰富的史学遗产,形成了一些优良传统。近年来我国史学有了很大的发展,但也存在一些问题。有造诣的史学工作者,应该关注史学发展趋势,关注有倾向性的史学现象,促进中国史学沿着正确的方向健康地发展,这是我们史学工作者的社会责任和历史使命。     

Merging Analytical Traditions

Daniel W. Bromley. Environment and Economy: Property Rights and Public Policy .
Richard E. Cohen, Washington at Work: Back Rooms and Clean Air .     

Competing Traditions and the Birth of Texts

Doctor Ingrid Hjelm's new book, Jerusalem's Rise to Sovereignty: Zion and Gerizim in Competition. Ingrid Hjelm . T&T Clark International, New York: 2004, raises a number of interesting issues concerning the relationship between the Samaritans and the inhabitants of Judea during the Hasmonean period. Though her intention is to demonstrate the conflict origins of the literature treasured by those respective communities, and the divergent paths taken by those tradents, her ideas have further reaching implications for interpretation of the Hebrew Bible and the dates to be assigned to those materials. This essay probes Hjelm's new book, enquiring after its wider implications, especially for those interested in the rise of Biblical texts.     

Botanical Bosom Serpent Traditions

Abstract

This article surveys examples of ‘botanical bosom serpents’; that is, stories where a plant, or some vegetable element, is said to enter and/or grow in the human body. These can be found in sources—for the most part European—from ancient times onwards. This is a preliminary study, as the topic is one that has been neglected by folklorists and historians of medicine.