Relics, Statues and Predictions - Interpreting an apocryphal sermon of Lord Buddha in Arakan

Abstract

This article presents an apocryphal Buddhist text that contains a speech of the Buddha listing the relics linked to his former existences in Arakan, as well as prophecies regarding the historical succession of kings. Looking at various aspects such as the geographical distribution of the relics and the typically Buddhist representation of kingship, the author argues that the text can best be understood in the eighteenth-century context of the political decline of the Arakanese kingdom. As this article shows, apocryphal texts have authority because they build on traditional concepts and beliefs and are still a poorly-exploited source of historical enquiry.

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