How the Buddha Learned his ABCs

23rd Gonda Lecture by Richard Salomon, specialist in Sanskrit. Organised by the Gonda Foundation and the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences

The lecture

Richard Salomon’s lecture will trace the teaching of the art of writing in the ancient scripts of India (Brāhmī, Kharoṣṭhī, and Siddhamātṛkā), beginning with their origins in the pre-Christian era, through their developments and adaptations in Buddhist Central Asia, and finally to their calligraphic and ritual elaborations in the ‘Siddham’ traditions of East Asia. The methods of teaching literacy used in India and Central Asia will be illustrated with archaeological and textual artefacts, and compared with corresponding materials from other parts of the ancient world.

The speaker

At the University of Washington (Seattle, USA), Richard Salomon, is William P. and Ruth Gerberding University Professor and also director of the Early Buddhist Manuscripts Project. 

More information & registration: http://knaw.nl/gonda-lecture-richard-salomon