Hodge, S.

Hodge, S. on the DRL

Translators

Stephen Hodge

English Phonetics	Stephen Hodge

Tibetan calendar dates

Dates of birth

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Rab Jyung

Dates of passing

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Rab Jyung

About

Current projects

Hodge is currently publishing a series of interim study papers on the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra: Paper I “The Textual Transmisssion of the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra”, Paper II “Who Compiled the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra, Where & When ?” (forthcoming), Paper III “The Development of the Conceptual Terminology of the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra” (forthcoming).

PhD University

Tōhoku University

Biographical Information

Dr. Stephen Hodge completed his undergraduate studies at SOAS, University of London (1969–72) and his post-graduate studies at Tōhoku Universty (1972–81), focussing on the formation of early tantric Buddhism and early Yogācāra. He was ordained as a Shingon monk at Mt. Koya in 1974. Since returning to the UK, apart from some teaching work, Hodge has mainly engaged in translation work and also independent research into the textual formation of early Mahāyāna, especially focussing on the Mahāparinirvāṇasūtra and related texts. He is currently working on a translation of the Tibetan and two Chinese versions of the Nirvāṇasūtra, to be accompanied by an exhaustive textual analysis demonstrating the compositional methods and stratification of this text and the relationship between the three versions. Hodge has recently embarked upon a parallel study of the development and texts of early 1st century CE Messianic Judaism and the Hebreo-Aramaic basis of the Gospels, as well as investigating possible ideological influences in Southern India. (Source accessed and lightly modified October 16, 2019)

Publications

• Hodge, Stephen. "Translation of the Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra," Nirvana Sutra, accessed September 10, 2018, http://www.nirvanasutra.net/stephenhodgetranslates.htm.

• Hodge, Stephen. "Textual History of the Mahāyāna-mahāparinirvāna-sūtra", Nirvana Sutra, accessed September 10, 2018, http://www.nirvanasutra.net/historicalbackground.htm.

• Hodge, Stephen. "On the Eschatology of the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra and Related Matters." Lecture delivered at the University of London, SOAS, 2006. https://web.archive.org/web/20130614174936/http://www.shabkar.org/download/pdf/On_the_Eschatology_of_the_Mahaparinirvana_Sutra_and_Related_Matters.pdf

• Hodge, Stephen. "The Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra, The Text & Its Transmission." Revised version of a paper presented in July 2010 at the Second International Workshop on the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra held at Munich University, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20131219063612/http://www.buddhismuskunde.uni-hamburg.de/fileadmin/pdf/publikationen/The_Textual_Transmisssion_of_the_MPNS.pdf

Links

Wiki Pages

• Hodge, S. on the DRL
• Hodge, S. on the BNW

Buddha Nature Project

Person description or short bio

Expand to see this person's philosophical positions on Buddha-nature.

Is Buddha-nature considered definitive or provisional?
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All beings have Buddha-nature
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If "Qualified", explain:
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Which Wheel Turning
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Yogācāra vs Madhyamaka
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Zhentong vs Rangtong
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Promotes how many vehicles?
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Analytic vs Meditative Tradition
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What is Buddha-nature?
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Svātantrika (རང་རྒྱུད་) vs Prāsaṅgika (ཐལ་འགྱུར་པ་)
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Causal nature of the vajrapāda
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Mahāyāna, or the Great Vehicle, refers to the system of Buddhist thought and practice which developed around the beginning of Common Era, focusing on the pursuit of the state of full enlightenment of the Buddha through the realization of the wisdom of emptiness and the cultivation of compassion.

Along with Madhyamaka, it was one of the two major philosophical schools of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Founded by Asaṅga and Vasubandhu around the fourth century CE, many of its central tenets have roots in the Saṃdhinirmocanasūtra and the so-called third turning of the dharma wheel (see tridharmacakrapravartana).

Refers to something that is taught for a specific reason, rather than because it is entirely true.

Along with Yogācāra, it is one of the two major philosophical schools of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Founded by Nāgārjuna around the second century CE, it is rooted in the Prajñāpāramitā Sūtras, though its initial exposition was presented in Nāgārjuna's Mūlamadhyamakakārikā.

The state of being devoid of that which is wholly different rather than being void of its own nature. The term is generally used to refer to the ultimate, or buddha-nature, being empty of other phenomena such as adventitious defiling emotions but not empty of its true nature.

The state of being empty of self, which references the lack of inherent existence in relative phenomena.

Tsen Khawoche's "meditative tradition" of exegesis of the Uttaratantra; it is one of two major Tibetan traditions of exegesis, both stemming from students of Sajjana.