The Origins of Mahayana Buddhism - Interview with Professor Charles Willemen

Prof. Charles Willemen is currently rector and teaching professor at the International Buddhist College, Thailand. He studied Latin, Greek, Chinese, Japanese and Sanskrit. He obtained his Ph.D. in the field of East-Asian Studies (University of Gent, Belgium). He was assistant, guest professor and professor at different universities in Belgium, China, Canada, Japan and Thailand.

Interview with Professor Charles Willemen, IBC, Thailand and
Raymond Lam, Editor, Buddhistdoor International

Filmed on location at HKU Buddhist Meditative Praxis Conference,
Hong Kong, August 2013

Video editing: Stanley Tung
"Resignation" & "Easy Lemon"

Produced by Buddhistdoor International (2013)

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[mael-strom]

Peaceful debate and discussion ...wonderful Buddhist ideology always shines through like a lotus growing out of the mud into a radiant sun.

[venrakkhita]

I have been waiting for a good, calm talk like this for a long time. I much prefer it to the other material i went through produced by Bhikkhu Sujato on Early Buddhist schools, with all respects to his holiness. Early schisms is a touchy topic. There is a breath and simplicity of explanation that is non-partisan and authoritative. In a complex topic.

[NewEarth]

Interesting evolution,  reaction, borrowing and exchange of ideas and mediation in various schools of Mahayana/mahasangika..why not much is heard of Sthaviravada?

[RaymondLam_Buddhistdoor]

For more from our scholar and professor guests, check out our Buddhist Studies playlist on our YouTube channel! Thanks for watching and please subscribe!

[ongong]

Avoid evil, do good & purify one's mind. This is the teachings of all Buddha. I think all Buddhist traditions agreed on this verse as is found in the Dhammapada.

[siangteh]

Good to see & hear the talk of Prof. Charles Willemen on Can we have more of this so as to learn more ?

[kashmirpandit]

The 4th Mahayana Buddhism Council was Held in Harwan, Srinagar Kashmir under the rule of Kanishka and it was Kashmiri Pundits who proclaimed Buddhism in Tibet, sri lanka, China.

[Ozric]

G Beam is where, this wording is from the subtitles. I don't think it's the right translation though?

[brindlymousten]

Moth man. Your statement is wrong. You mention here, 'Many northern east scholars found that the Buddhism is a copy of Greek philosophy' …..
Can you please mention some of the scholars you refer here ?.
You utterly mislead the you tube audience by claiming Buddhist doctrine was established after AD
4C and most of Buddhist books were written after AD 1C.
Your statements are fictional beyond any hypothesis.

[ollimekatl]

the origin of desiring to be the origin and source of a people thing or idea.

[NguyenThanh-zvli]

Why was Buddhism clean out of Afganistan and Pakistan?

[afrikan]

Buddha has its origin in KEMET (now called egypt). All the ancients statues representing Buddha in Asia have an Afrikan feature. In the book, Afrikan Origin of Civilization: Myth or Reality (Chiekh Anta Diop, pg 287) the author states this about the origin of Budha: " It would seem that Buddha was an Egyptian priest, chased from Memphis by the persecutions of Cambyses. This tradition would justify the portrayal of Buddha with wooly hair. Historical documents do not invalidate this tradition. According to Diop, William Ward, who published some years ago a vast compilation of various documents on Hindu, religion, history and literature, based on extracts from books in Sanskrit, included a biographical account of Buddha, establishing that "he could not have appeared until the sixth century B.C...Buddha is given the surname Goulama, which is that of the usurper's race". -M. de Marles Histoire generale de l'philosophical

[kashyap]

Mahayanists messed up Buddhism with their local culture. Original Buddha's teaching is Theravada.

[thomasokedoke]

Charles Willeman embraces the narrow view point buddism called hinayana. HE despises mahayana AS fake.

[int.praisingjesuschurch]

Buddihsm is a copy of Greek philosophy! Many northern east asian scholars found this fact!
Buddihsm doctrine was eastablished after AD 4C and most of the books Buddihsm were written after AD 1C!