Overview
Daniel Boucher's scholarly focus is Buddhist studies, particularly the early development of the cluster of Indian Buddhist movements called the Mahayana and their transmission to China in the first few centuries of the Common Era. His related interests include translation as a religious genre, with special focus on the earliest translations of Buddhist texts into Chinese; Buddhist Middle Indo-Aryan, particularly the role of Gandhari Prakrit in the earliest transmission of Buddhism to Central Asia and China; art historical, epigraphical, and archeological materials as sources for the study of religion; and history, theory, and methods in the academic study of religion.
Research Focus
Publications
- academic article
- What Do We Mean by 'Early' in the Study of the Early Mahāyāna-And Should We Care?. Bulletin of the Asia Institute. 23:31-39. 2013
- On Hu and Fan Again: The Transmission of 'Barbarian' Manuscripts to China. Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies. 23:7-28. 2000
- Gandhari and the Early Chinese Buddhist Translations Reconsidered: The Case of the Saddharmapundarikasutra. Journal of the American Oriental Society. 118:471-506. 1998
- The Pratityasamutpadagatha and Its Role in the Medieval Cult of the Relics. Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies. 14:1-27. 1991
- book
- Bodhisattvas of the Forest and the Formation of the Mahayana: A Study and Translation of the Rastrapalapariprccha-sutra. University of Hawaii Press.
- chapter
- Sacrifice and Asceticism in Early Mahāyāna Buddhism. Religion and Identity in South Asia and Beyond: Essays in Honor of Patrick Olivelle. Ed. Lindquist, Steven. New York: Anthem Press. 197-224. 2011
- The Nagaropamasutra: An Apotropaic Text from the Samyuktagama. A Transliteration, Reconstruction, and Translation of the Central Asian Sanskrit Manuscripts. Sanskrit-Texte aus dem buddhistischen Kanon: Neuentdeckungen und Neueditionen. Gottingen: Vandenhoeck Ruprecht. 7-131. 1996
- Sutra on the Merit of Bathing the Buddha. Buddhism in Practice. Ed. Lopez, Donald S.. 59-68.1995
