gSung-rtenA Glossary of Technical Terms of Tibetan and Himalayan Buddhist Textual and Book Cultures

15 January 2016

Photo: gSung-rten

“gSung-rten” is a collaborative research project of the Khyentse Center and is devoted to the collection, documentation, investigation, and explanation of mostly traditional Tibetan technical terms dealing with Tibetan paleography, codicology, and philology or textual scholarship. The project thus focuses on various aspects of what Tibetan Buddhists refer to as the “receptacle of Speech” (gsung rten), a term that includes not only texts as intangible entities but also books as tangible realities, both of which are the main objects of research for all of us interested in gaining a nuanced and reliable understanding of the Tibetan intellectual world (Geisteswelt). Its database is planned to include (a) technical terms relevant to Tibetan paleography, codicology, and philology, (b) relevant textual passages, (c) bibliography of primary and secondary sources, and (d) images of physical objects, when applicable and feasible.