André Bareau


André Bareau was a prominent French Buddhologist and a leader in the establishment of the field of Buddhist Studies in the 20th century. He was a professor at the Collège de France from 1971 to 1991 and Director of the Study of Buddhist Philosophy at L'École Pratique des Hautes Études.
Between 1955 and 1985, he carried out eight missions in Asia, in countries where Buddhism had been practiced for 2,500 years.
He wrote numerous books, 307 articles and reviews between 1951 and 1994, some of which were published posthumously.

Biography

André Bareau was born on 31 December 1921 in Saint-Mandé into a modest family. At the age of seventeen, in 1938, he was admitted to the École normale d'instituteurs de Paris.
In 1941, he began his career as a teacher in La Varenne-Saint-Hilaire. That same year, he began Postgraduate education at the Sorbonne University, which he completed in 1946
Then, while preparing a degree in philosophy at this institution, he discovered languages Sanskrit and Pāli. In 1947, he defended a mémoire under the supervision of Jean Filliozat, on the Pali Buddhist notion of "asaṅkhata", and joined the French National Centre for Scientific Research. He went on to study Chinese and Tibetan, and in 1951 defended his thesis entitled « L'Absolu en philosophie bouddhique. Évolution de la notion d'asaṃskṛta . Doctor of Letters, he was professor at the Collège de France from 1971 to 1991 and director of studies in Buddhist philology at the École pratique des hautes études.
A few years before his death, he fell seriously ill. Deprived of speech, he never complained and continued his work as long as he could. He died on 2 March 1993.
At the end of a life dedicated to the study of Buddhism, his funeral was celebrated according to the rite of the Protestant church, under the aegis of a verse from the Gospel of Luke : In his posthumous tribute to Alain Bareau, his friend and colleague Gérard Fussman, professor at the Collège de France wrote on 15 January 1994:

Works

André Bareau's work was aimed at understanding the essential notions of Buddhism, for in his view, multiple interpretations, too often far removed from one another, had led to great divisions within the Buddhist community.
His works, which focused mainly on the biography of the Buddha, has become an essential reference. His research was not limited to texts alone. He was also interested in the archaeological aspect, paying particular attention to the stupas and also to the epigraphics texts. Between 1955 and 1985, he made eight trips, as part of the missions organised by the Collège de France, to the various countries where Buddhism has been practised for 2,500 years: India, Ceylon, Cambodia, Thailand
His research led him to the conclusion that the birthplace of the Buddha was not Lumbini, as is generally accepted, but Kapilavastu

Books and articles

André Bareau wrote numerous books, 307 articles and reviews between 1951 and 1994. It is impossible to mention them all in the context of this article, but the full list can be consulted online.
Here are just a few of them.

Books

  • L'absolu en philosophie bouddhique : évolution de la notion d'Asmskrta, Paris, Centre de documentation Universitaire, 1951, 307p.
  • Les premiers conciles bouddhiques, Paris, Annales du Musée Guimet, 1955, XII, 188 p., read online : .
  • Les Sectes bouddhiques du petit véhicule et leurs Abhidharmapiṭaka, PEFEO, 1955, 297p.PDF.
  • Bouddha. Présentation, choix de textes, bibliographie, Seghers, coll. "Philosophes de tous les temps", 1962, 222 p.
  • Recherches sur la biographie du Buddha dans les Sutrapitaka et les Vinayapitaka anciensl :
  • * volume I : De la quête de l'Éveil à la conversion de Sâriputra et Maudgalyâyana, EFEO Publications, vol. 53, Paris, 1963, 405 p.
  • * volume II, tome 1 : Les derniers mois, le parinirvâna et les funérailles, PEFEO, vol. 77, 1970, 319 p.
  • * volume II, tome 2 : Les derniers mois, le parinirvâna et les funérailles 1971, 342 p. .
  • * vol. III : Articles complémentaires, PEFEO, 1995, X-540 p. Articles 1962-1963.
  • En suivant Bouddha. Textes choisis et présentés, Éditions Philippe Lebaud, 1985, 307 p., republished in 2000 by, 301 p.,.
  • Les religions de l'Inde, with Walter Schubring, Christoph von Fürer-Halmendorff,, Lausanne, Payot Éditions:
  • * volume 3 : Bouddhisme, jaïnisme, religions archaïques, 1966, 334 p.

Articles

La date du Nirvana, Journal Asiatique, vol. 241, p. 27-52, Librairie Orientaliste Paul Geuthner, 1953, 150 pLes sectes bouddhiques du Petit Véhicule et leur Abhidharmapitaka, tome 44 n°1, p. 1-11, PEFEO, 1951

Awards

Ordre des Palmes académiques, Officer, as Professor at the Collège de France in Paris, awarded on 8 August 1972