How did the Mahāyāna emerge from the earliest Buddhist teachings? In a thoughtful new interview published in Tricycle: The Buddhist Review, Bhikkhu Anālayo reflects on the historical development of early Mahāyāna literature and what it reveals about the unfolding of Buddhist traditions.
Read the full interview, “The Birth of a Tradition,” on the Tricycle website.
In this wide-ranging conversation with writer Randy Rosenthal, Anālayo examines the origins of early Mahāyāna scriptures, especially the Perfection of Wisdom texts, and considers how their teachings relate to the earliest strata of Buddhist literature. Drawing on his recent research, he suggests that what is often perceived as a sharp break between early Buddhism and the Mahāyāna may be better understood as a gradual development of ideas over time.
The interview explores how teachings on emptiness, the bodhisattva ideal, and the critique of intrinsic nature developed within the ongoing conversation of Buddhist traditions. Rather than seeing these developments as a rupture, Anālayo points to a deeper continuity grounded in early Buddhist teachings on conditionality and not-self.
Bhikkhu Anālayo is a scholar-monk at the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies. He is the author of numerous books on meditation and early Buddhism and is known internationally for his careful scholarship and deep commitment to contemplative practice. Anālayo is also the co-founder of the Āgama Research Group in Taiwan and a retired professor at the Numata Center for Buddhist Studies at the University of Hamburg. Much of his life is devoted to solitary meditation practice and research, which continues to inform his teaching and writing.
We are grateful to James Shaheen, editor-in-chief of Tricycle, and the Tricycle team for generously providing a link that allows our community to access the article.
We hope you enjoy reading this fascinating conversation and the insight it offers into the historical unfolding of Buddhist traditions.
