Chapter 6 The Khotanese and Tibetan Transmission of the Narrative of the Destruction of the Dharma in the Kingdom of Kauśāmbī II: Discussion
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Abstract
The story of “Annihilation of the Dharma at the Kingdom of Kauśāmbī” refers to a prophecy repeatedly mentioned in the Buddhist scriptures of India: after the Buddha’s parinirvāṇa, Buddhism would eventually die in the Kingdom of Kauśāmbī because of internal struggles. This chapter focuses on the story of this prophecy and its transmission to Khotan and Tibet. This resulted in the localization of beliefs regarding the decline of the dharma that were unknown in Indian Buddhism. Chinese Buddhists adapted the Indian tradition in an innovative way and impacted Khotanese Buddhist prophecies. Subsequently, Tibetan Buddhists mainly used concepts from Khotanese Buddhism to understand the decline of the dharma.