Published online by Cambridge University Press: 15 May 2014
This article is one of a series that reassesses the dhāraṇī texts of Mahāyāna Buddhism. The article seeks to examine dhāraṇī texts by using the linguistic tools of pragmatics, especially historical pragmatics, to assist the understanding of their statements. Rather than the meaning of the term dhāraṇī as a subject term, the domain of truth-conditional semantics, this paper examines statements in texts labelled dhāraṇī. Pragmatics examines meaning in context, and the categories of speech acts developed by Searle has been especially helpful in mapping out differences within such texts and the formalization of statements across texts. The grammaticalization of specific speech elements, especially interjections, in the context of mantra-dhāraṇīs is also discussed.
I thank George Thompson for glancing at the Vedic-related sections of the paper, a branch of Indology about which I have much uncertainty. I also thank Sean Gleason for suggestions on the pragmatics, especially grammaticalization. An anonymous reviewer also provided several useful suggestions. Needless to say, I remain responsible for all errors, great and small.
Taishō Shinshū Daizōkyō. Takakusu Junjirō and Watanabe Kaikyoku (eds). 1924–35. Tokyo.
Ui, Hakuju et al. (eds). 1934. A Complete Catalogue of the Tibetan Buddhist Canons (BKaḥ-ḥgyur and Bstan-ḥgyur). Sendai.
Taishō Shinshū Daizōkyō. Takakusu Junjirō and Watanabe Kaikyoku (eds). 1924–35. Tokyo.
Ui, Hakuju et al. (eds). 1934. A Complete Catalogue of the Tibetan Buddhist Canons (BKaḥ-ḥgyur and Bstan-ḥgyur). Sendai.