A Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism Klaus K Klostermaie

45 Burnouf, Eugéne
an enlightened one, he first approached
his former companions in a grove near
Väräæasï to announce to them the good
news of the finding of deathlessness and
freedom from suffering. It was only in
the course of time that Buddha’s teaching,
which de-emphasized caste and ritual,
and taught liberation through an ethical
life and meditation only, was considered
heterodox and his followers were
deemed outside the Hindu community.
In later centuries, when Buddhism
became the predominant religion in
India, Hindus considered it (together
with JAINISM) the paradigm of a nästika
(heterodox) system, a DARŸANA (2) that
did not recognize the Veda as supreme
authority and precluded membership in
SANÄTANA DHAØMA. From the eighth century
CE onwards, beginning with
Kumärila Bhaflfla’s Ÿlokavärttika, a major
Hindu polemic against Buddhism developed,
which found expression in hundreds
of literary works as well as
in the occasional persecution of
Buddhists. In modern India there is a tendency
to consider Buddhism as one of the
forms of Indian religiosity that in course
of time was reabsorbed by Hinduism.
budha (‘wise, intelligent’)
The planet Mercury; son of Soma (moon),
by TÄRÄ (star), wife of BØHASPATI.
Bühler, Georg (1837–98)
A gifted linguist (he studied Latin, Greek,
Arabic, Persian, Zend, Armenian and
Sanskrit), he spent many years in India as
professor of oriental languages at
Elphinstone College, Bombay, and was
officially entrusted with the collection of
Sanskrit manuscripts in the Bombay
Presidency. He produced valuable catalogues
of manuscripts, edited texts and
produced translations of Sanskrit and
Prakrit texts. He specialized in Indian
law and contributed a translation of the
MANU-SMØTI with an extensive introduction
of his own to the Sacred Books
of the East series. He later occupied the
chair of Sanskrit at Vienna and became
co-founder of the Oriental Institute of
Vienna and its journal.
Burnouf, Eugéne (1801–52)
He studied Sanskrit with his father,
Jean-Louis Burnouf, and with L. de
Chézy, the first occupant of a chair in
Sanskrit at a European university.
While his main interest was in Buddhist
texts, he contributed to the study of
Hinduism through his translation of the
entire Bhägavatam into French (1840–8).
He persuaded Max MÜLLER to undertake
the first critical edition of the
ØGVEDA (1849–73).