BUDHA - Diamond Sutra - the oldest Book in the world

 
In 1900 a monk made a phenomenal discovery at a border post placed near the ancient Silk Road in Dunhuang, China, on the shores of the Gobi Desert. A series of caves dug along a cliff and sealed since the year 1,000, which would be called "the cave of the thousand Buddhas", guarded 40 thousand books, scrolls and manuscripts. In this way, wrapped in paper and silk, they were perfectly protected in times of war and could be preserved for the future.  In 1907, the Hungarian-British archaeologist Marc Aurel Stein was in the middle of an expedition in the region; After hearing some rumors about the hidden library, he decided to try his luck and discover the place for himself. After bribing the abbot of the monastic group in charge of protecting the site, he stole thousands of documents, including the "Diamond Sutra".  

A May 11 (according to our calendar) of the year 868 a. C., a man named Wang Jie commissioned the printing of a Sanskrit translation into Chinese of a sacred Buddhist text along a parchment. The roll is printed in seven sections with one nozzle for each, then they were joined to a length of 5m.  In one of the corners of the document is read: "Made reverentially for universal free distribution by Wang Jie on behalf of his two parents."

 According to Buddhist tradition, it is known that copying and disseminating the Buddha's word was an unbeatable way of gaining consideration within Chinese culture. This is one of the reasons why printing evolved rapidly in China.  Sutra is the name in Sanskrit for "teaching or religious wisdom" and is usually the word used to refer to a teaching of the Buddha. It is said that he himself gave the name to this teaching because "it would cut like a diamond through the illusions made of words and illuminate what is real and permanent".  The book belongs to the tradition of Mahayana Buddhism that, unlike other schools, believes that anyone can achieve enlightenment, whether or not they live a monastic life. This current was spread from India to China through the silk route.  This text, of only 6 thousand words is the oldest printed book of which one has knowledge. Today this old writing is sheltered in the British Library and is part of the impressive Dunhuang Project. 

 fragment

OH sariputra, the form is empty and the emptiness is form, the form does not differ from the emptiness or the emptiness of the form ..

show and  beautiful book   here