This dissertation is a study in comparative hagiology. In particular, it focuses on a comparative analysis of the early sources on the medieval Christian St. Francis of Assisi (1182-1226) and the Tibetan Buddhist Mi la ras pa (circa 1052-1135), up to and including the so called 'standard versions' of their life stories written by Bonaventure of Bagnoregio (1221-1274) and gTsang smyon Heruka (1452-1507) respectively. The textual and contextual investigation of these sources moves from the underlying assumption that medieval Christian life writings of saints and Tibetan Buddhist mam thar(s) - as narratives of the complete liberation of an enlightened master - are both forms of hagiographic writing. On the one hand, therefore, this dissertation attempts to verify the legitimacy of this position - by testing the taxonomical classification of Tibetan mam thar(s) as hagiography through a systematic analysis of the structure, content and historical context of the early sources on Mi la ras pa compared and contrasted with those on St. Francis (here taken as a perfect case study for an investigation into the underlying dynamics of the hagiographical process). On the other hand, the dissertation attempts to verify the possibility of studying hagiographic sources as a universal human religious phenomenon - particularly in light of the possibility of confirming the applicability of hagiography as a valid and valuable analytical category also outside of its original Christian context.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:633500 |
| Date | January 2013 |
| Creators | Rondolino, Massino A. |
| Publisher | University of Bristol |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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