Paramārtha’s Ultimate Truth and the Development of Chinese Buddhism’s Ultimate Truth

This paper discusses the development of ideas of the ultimate in the thought of Chinese Buddhism in the Northern and Southern Dynasties. The concept of ultimate truth is, along with that of conventional truth, a core concept in Mahāyāna Buddhism. During the Sui Dynasty, Chinese Buddhism developed the unique perspective of the Three Truths, the foundation for which was formed during the Southern and Northern Dynasties. This begins with Jie jie Jing 解節經 (in full, Foshuo Jiejie Jing 佛說解節經) by Paramārtha (499–569), which is a partial translation of Saṃdhinirmocanasūtra and presents the theory of ultimate truth (paramārtha) to Chinese Buddhists. Through a comparison of Jiejie Jing with other Chinese and Tibetan translations of Saṃdhinirmocana-sūtra, we establish Paramārtha’s thoughts on the ultimate. The relationship between Paramārtha’s thought on the ultimate and the development of the Three Truths is evaluated in a comparison of Paramārtha’s thoughts on ultimate truth with the thinking of nearly contemporary Chinese monks.

Indigenization and authentization of epistemology in China’s social work: Moving beyond Confucianism, Taoism, and Chinese Buddhism

How China’s social work can establish its own epistemology has remained largely unexplored. This article focuses on Confucianism, Taoism, and Chinese Buddhism to start this epistemological exploration, as they represent Chinese culture and can provide valuable epistemological elements for China’s social work. Moving beyond epistemological elements from these philosophies, how social workers in China can further develop social work research and practice based on the unique Chinese context is also discussed, specifically through the processes of indigenization and authentization of epistemology in China’s social work. Limitations and future research directions are also presented to guide future discussion.

Epidemics and Plague in Premodern Chinese Buddhism

Buddhist scriptures describe the rise of epidemics as a cosmological inevitability and prescribe a variety of methods for preventing and treating epidemic diseases, which focus mainly on purifying negative karma and exorcizing the supernatural beings responsible for their spread. As these ideas were transmitted to China, Chinese Buddhists assimilated them to indigenous beliefs that also portrayed epidemics as retribution for nonvirtuous behavior, enacted by ghostly agents.