Srihar a is recognised as one of the greatest exponents of what is generally known as the Sarpkara school of Advaita Vedanta. The Advaita Vedanta of Sarpkara has been commented upon, explained, expounded and developed in its various ramifications by several generations of scholars, commentators and original thinkers for over a thousand years. Even today it is claimed to be one of the two traditional schools of Indian Philosophy which have survived and have modern adherents while most other schools have died of old age on Indian soil. The only other school that has survived is the Nyaya-Vaise...

The two essays in this volume explore how monks in medieval India and China wrote about themselves and their fellow monks. Phyllis Granoff translates and discusses biographies and auto-biographies of two Jain monks who lived in the 11th and 14th centure C.E. Dr. Koichi Shinohara tells us how a community of Chinese Buddhists viewed the life of the founder of their group, and how his biography reflected the changes that the community underwent. The essays are a result of a joint research project on religious biographies.