Save oneself or everyone else?

(Buddha's Wisdom) Save yourself or save everyone else? Buddhism's most dangerous question

• Ven. Śāriputra, Maha Thera (Śrāvaka)
• Vimalakirti Sutra
• Mahayana exalts itself and condemns a scarecrow stick figure of its own creation, the Hinayana, no school of which remains, the last being the Sarvastivada
• Theravada, back-to-basics non-Hinayana tradition of the historical Buddha
• The Bodhisattva Ideal (Buddhist Publication Society, Kandy, Sri Lanka)

Save oneself or save everyone else? Buddhism's most dangerous question

(Buddha's Wisdom) May 6, 2026: ⚡ FOR 2,000 YEARS BUDDHISM HAS BEEN FIGHTING ITSELF...AND NO SIDE HAS WON YET. Is personal enlightenment (arahantship) selfish?

The Bodhisattva Ideal (BPS)

Buddhism's two greatest paths ideals, that of the Arhat and that of the Bodhisattva, have been locked in the most consequential debate in Buddhist history since the first century CE.

What began as a philosophical disagreement between Mahāyāna and [Hinayana schools until they were all destroyed and] Theravāda Buddhism [arose]. It became something far more dangerous: a 2,000-year argument about what "liberation" (vimutti, moksha) actually means, who it's for, and whether saving oneself first is an act of wisdom or an act of cowardice.

TIMESTAMPS

• 00:00 The [apocryphal] trial of Śāriputra [where Ven. Sariputra, male disciple "foremost in wisdom," comparable to Ven. Khema, female disciple "foremost in wisdom" used as a stick figure to represent first the Hinayana ("Lesser Vehicle"), a pejorative epithet, and later the Theravada ("Teaching of the Elder Enlightened Disciples of the Historical Buddha") to attack them with Brahminical and Hindu residues on what the Buddha Taught]
• 02:01 The debate we've been building to
• 04:19 The prosecution — Mahāyāna's real case
• 08:10 The defense — the sentence that stops everything
• 13:19 The trap — who is taking this infinite vow?
• 18:26 The real wound — self-view in spiritual clothing
• 24:01 The dissolution — each path guards the other
• 29:19 The same mountain

🔍 DISCOVER

• Why the [apocryphal Mahayana invented discourse] Vimalakīrti Sūtra placed the arhat (Pali arahant) ideal on trial
• How the Lotus Sūtra reframed personal liberation through the One Vehicle (Ekayana) teaching
• Why Theravāda’s strongest defense begins with one simple fact: the Buddha called himself an was called an arahant
• How the Diamond Sūtra complicates the bodhisattva vow through no-self (anatta) and emptiness (shunyata)
• Why Vajrayāna Buddhism refuses to take sides in this debate...and what that refusal reveals about both paths simultaneously

📚 SOURCES AND FURTHER READING: (with affiliate links)

• Primary [Mahayana] Buddhist texts: Vimalakīrti Sūtra (Vimalakīrtinirdeśa Sūtra) — Robert Thurman translation recommended https://amzn.to/3QTtGSD
• Diamond Sūtra (Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra) — Red Pine translation recommended https://amzn.to/3OP9Mro
• Lotus Sūtra (Saddharmapuṇḍarīka Sūtra) — Burton Watson translation recommended https://amzn.to/4d2JFqh
• Primary [Theravada] texts: Majjhima Nikāya (Collection of "Middle Length Discourses" from the Pali canon) — Ariyapariyesanā Sutta (MN 26) — Bhikkhu Bodhi translation https://amzn.to/4dcS2y9
• Pāli canon — Nikāya (collection of) discourses on the brahma-vihārās ("Four Divine Abidings" of loving-kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity or dispassionate looking on) 

Scholarly and Modern Resources

• Paul Williams — Mahāyāna Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations https://amzn.to/4evxKCq
• Bhikkhu Bodhi (translator) — The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha https://amzn.to/3OMwqkd
• Étienne Lamotte — The Teaching of Vimalakīrti
• Peter Harvey — An Introduction to Buddhist Ethics https://amzn.to/42e1RH9
• Nāgārjuna — Mūlamadhyamakakārikā (Jay Garfield translation recommended) https://amzn.to/4w8J0Lr
• Rupert Gethin, The Foundations of Buddhism https://amzn.to/4d5IG7h

🙏 Exploring Buddhism, Theravāda, Mahāyāna, the arhat path, the bodhisattva vow, Buddhist enlightenment (bodhi), no-self (anatta), and Buddhist philosophy for the first time? Maybe subscribing to Buddha’s Wisdom would be helpful. The Buddhist Schools Series goes deeper every video. 📱 Join community on Instagram (buddhaswizdom), Facebook (buddhaswizdom), X (x.com/BuddhasWizdom), Spotify (open.spotify.com/show/5ndnBU5...), TikTok (buddhas.wisdom). ☕ Support the channel: buymeacoffee.com/buddhaswisdom, paypal.me/buddhaswisdom. #Buddhism #Arhat #Bodhisattva #Theravada #Mahayana #BuddhistPhilosophy #Enlightenment #BuddhistDebate #Vajrayana #DiamondSutra #VimalakiriSutra #BuddhistSchools #Dharma #BuddhasWisdom #nirvana #BuddhistSchools #NoSelf #LotusSutra. How this was made auto-dubbed audio tracks for some languages were automatically generated. More

Why does our fat U.S. king keep lying?

 

(The Narrative Brief) Pres. D. John Trump lied when he said he graduated first at Wharton Business School, but his roommate kept the records to PROVE he has been lying all along.

Rabbi: The West will go down on its knees! - Iran's song about Israeli-ruled America

Hundreds of Indians claim descent from 'Israel'

(Jimmy Kimmel) King Charles ROASTS Donald Trump

Trump serves Bibi to build Third Temple

(The Jimmy Dore Show)

Israel invades Lebanon for new Nakba

(The CJ Werleman Show) New Hezbollah weapons [with aid from

Iran?] destroy genocidal Israeli forces (IDF) in Southern Lebanon

• (Saturday Night Live) Petey Hegseth and Kashy Patel Iran Briefing (Cold Open - SNL)
• MAGA members say Trump is the ANTICHRIST — Even his own base is turning
• Joe Rogan reacts to faltering Jewish Zionist kingpin Ben Shapiro attacking Theo Von on criminal Israel
• Putin said the Elites are eating WHAT?
• This Yasser Arafat statement still fuels debate today
• Jim Carrey tried to tell us something, but most missed it
• "The king has no clothes!" The Emperor's New Clothes

Man sets self on fire at Trump trial (Bible?)

Can Trump get any grosser - SMELLS worse, more orange! (w/Adam Kinzinger) | Bulwark Podcast Clip

(The Bulwark) April 9, 2024: Republicans Adam Kinzinger and Tim Miller discuss Trump's very foul odor. [Could it be his rotten denture breath the hot feces 💩 in his adult diaper and dripping down his pant leg?] What about his cowardice of whining, complaining, and constantly playing the victim like fellow narcissists Taylor Swift and Israel's leaders? Are these signs of weakness or the way to get to the top of popularity but with a backlash?

📣 Watch the whole episode of The Bulwark Podcast: • Adam Kinzinger: GOP's Embrace of Russia... 🔥 Listen to the Bulwark Podcast with Tim Miller on your podcast player of choice: thebulwark.com/podcast...

'Man lights himself on fire' outside Donald Trump's 'hush money payments' trial in NYC

Was it this man? His self-applied makeup has gone from mango to bronze to tar. Ooh, that smell!

.

(The Sun) Started streaming Friday to a British audience of gawkers. A man [being called a "conspiracy theorist" threw pamphlets into the air revealing shocking truths and then to punctuate their importance] has reportedly lit himself on fire near the courthouse where [ex-Pres. Trump's criminal trial is taking place, charging him with serious felonies that could lead to a sentence of four years in prison for each conviction]. The horrifying scene unfolded on Friday afternoon moments after jury selection wrapped up in Trump's hush money trial in downtown Manhattan. More: the-sun.com/news/11135909... #thesun #donaldtrump #usanews

\

The Great Bible Scam

$69 + tax/shipping for fake leather bound KJV Trump made in China Bible

Donald Trump and Melania: Couples Therapy Ep. 1 (FUN with AI)

(scaredketchup) Feb. 2024 and May 4, 2023: As many know, SK is 90% fan-funded and very grateful for all support. Paypal is the best way to drop him a lil' cheddar:  paypal.me/scaredketchup... OR buy him a Covfefe: buymeacoffee.com/scaredke... Get Scared Ketchup Merch here: etsy.com/shop/ScaredKetch... Actors Ben Campbell and Whitney Rice as Trump and Melania. Their look was enhanced using AI technology not a deepfake video.

The Dark Brandon (cartoon); TheSun.co-uk, April 19, 2024; The Bulwark, April 9, 2024; Pfc. Sandoval, Ashley Wells, Seth Auberon (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Holy Week Good Friday: Jesus goes to hell

Jesus had a harrowing time in hell, was happy to get out, yet many disbelieve in the abyss

Jesus as a Buddhist monk during his missing years in India (Nicolas Notovitch/Holger Kersten)

.

Mahayana Savior Ksitigarbha

Rumor has it, with textual support, that Jesus went to hell. What was He doing there, as the GO TO ("God of the Omniverse)? Was He by any chance engaged in the sort of good works bodhisattvas (buddhas-to-be) engage in in hell?

One of the most famous Buddhists in all of Mahayana is a bodhisattva ("savior") figure named Ksitigarbha, who has vowed to empty all the hells (and there are many more than one divided into 9 planes, eight terrible worlds including Avici, the lowest and most torturous of the infernos, plus one that may be even worse, the interstitial hell not everyone is aware of).

All hail the Bodhisattva in hell

Was good Saint Issa engaged in this important spiritual work of acting as the "guardian of souls"? Or is it just that Christianity borrowed and stole so much of its message from the many religions and spiritual traditions of the world it tried and continues to try to conquer?

The historical Buddha, after all, is a Catholic saint. If that's not cultural appropriation, what is?

Jesus is Caesar's Messiah before he's the good rabbi of Nazareth or the traveler who ventured to India during his "lost years" to study as a Buddhist monk in Hemis Gompa, Tibet (now Ladakh, India).

How would Jesus slaughter an animal? Tell his dad to do it? He
wouldn't; he was a vegetarian. He threw killers out of the temple.

Kshitigarbha has been saving sentient beings — including beings suffering in the “hell realms” — for countless years. Upon hearing the voice of the Buddha, the elder’s son made a great vow: “I vow to rescue all suffering sentient beings across uncountable eons and the six paths [places of rebirth] of samsara [wandering and cycling through the Wheel of Death and Rebirth] by establishing convenient methods [expedient means]. When all have been saved, only then will I attain Buddhahood [when they are freed, then I will take my leave from this otherwise Endless Round]” (Buddha Weekly).

To help those in hell(s), there is a mantra

Sid had a white pony, so why did Jess ride a donkey?

Can we truth the Bible on the Historical Jesus?

Holy Week (Greek Agia ké Megale Evdomas, lit. "Holy and Great Week") is the most sacred week of the for Christians [1, 2]. So it's not Xmas? For all Christian traditions, Holy Week is a moveable observance.

In the older tradition called Eastern Orthodox Christianity, which also calls it Great Week, it is the week following Great Lent and Lazarus Saturday, starting on the evening of Palm Sunday and concluding on the evening of Great Saturday [3].

In Western Christianity [Note A], Holy Week is the sixth and last week of Lent, beginning with Palm Sunday and concluding on Holy Saturday [1, 2, 5, 6].

Holy Week begins with the commemoration of Jesus Christ's triumphalist entry into Jerusalem on a white donkey on Palm Sunday, marks the betrayal of Jesus by a Jewish guy named Judas on Spy Wednesday (Holy Wednesday), climaxing with the commemoration of the Mystical or Last Dinner on Holy Thursday, and the Passion Suffering of Jesus on Good Friday. That would be today.

Holy Week concludes with Christ's pseudo-death and literal descent into hell on Holy Saturday [5, 6].

• 

  Roman psyops made this myth

  [So Jesus, who made hell and cast millions or billions of beings into it (as part of the Trinity), had never visited? Wait, he is the creator of the all and everything, but he didn't create hell, such a big place in the universe? Oh, he did create it, and he does throw countless living beings into it when they seem to die but still move around without this body and have thoughts and memories of a past life or lives? But he's simultaneously all-good, all-knowing, and all-powerful only not powerful or knowledgeable enough to know what to tell his creations so they can avoid unimaginable suffering? Right. Good story, very consistent.]

Christians believe that Jesus died, was resting as a corpse from the ninth hour (3:00 pm) on Good Friday until just before dawn on Sunday morning, the day of his rebirth or resurrection from death, commonly known as Easter Sunday.

However, in 1 Peter 3:19, there may be a clue as to a task Jesus performed during this period between death and rebirth or resurrection: "By which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison."

This marks the beginning of the season of Eastertide, with its first week being known as Easter Week (Bright Week) now that all the holiness is set aside until next year. More

Forged: Writing in the Name of God - Why the Bible's Authors Are Not Who We Think They Are

.

Forgery (Joseph Wheless)

There are a lot of curious things about Holy Week its themes that are relevant to Buddhist themes. Could it be a coincidence? That's doubtful. Christianity, particular its Universalism branch (called catholic that gave its name to Catholicism), is an aggregate tradition, collecting points of dogma from the world's smorgasbord of religion and spirituality. It took a great deal from Buddhism and Hinduism, just as Judaism took as much as it could get from Sumerian culture. Christianity is syncretism, which is why it may not always make sense. The rationalizations of the Church Fathers found a way to make sense of everything, but often this was hammered out by mere reasoning as if they did not know the origins of the doctrines. Moreover, there's a weird kind of Universalism already existing. Who knows if it's a recent development or a remnant from the time when the world had a single enforced religion. That time is coming again when we'll all be bullied to believe in just ONE thing, one teaching, one savior to come, one set of rules for everyone, one explanation. That will probably not be a good day because it will not likely be the true and correct thing. That religion will not be called, although it should, Syncretianity.

• Dhr. Seven, Seth Auberon, Sheldon S., Pat Macpherson (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly COMMENTARY, Wiki edit; Asking, What does Bible scholar Bart D. Ehrman have to teach us?

"Dune," Islam, Zen, and Religion (video)

Dune, Islam, Zen, and Religion

(Let's Talk Religion) March 23, 202: This episode explores the fascinating world of Dune and the religious themes that can be found in the books and movies.

Linktree for socials, music, and more: linktr.ee/filipholm. Support Let's Talk Religion on Patreon: letstalkreligion or through a one-time donation: paypal.com/paypalme/letst... Also check out the Let's Talk Religion Podcast: open.spotify.com/show... Music by: Filip Holm.

Sources/Recommended Reading

• Amir-Moezzi, Mohammad Ali (1994). The Divine Guide in Early Shi'ism: The Sources of Esotericism in Islam. Translated by David Streight. State University of New York Press.
• Amir-Moezzi, Mohammad Ali (2011). The Spirituality of Shi'i Islam: Beliefs and Practices. I.B. Tauris. Chittick, William (1989).
• The Sufi Path of Knowledge: Ibn 'Arabi's Metaphysics of Imagination. Chittick, William (1998).
• The Self-Disclosure of God: Principles of Ibn al-'Arabi's Cosmology. State University of New York Press. Corbin, Henry (1998).
• Alone with the Alone: Creative Imagination in the Sūfism of Ibn 'Arabī. Princeton University Press; Revised edition. McNelly, Willis E. (1987).
• The Dune Encyclopedia. Berkley.
• #dune #islam #religion

Let's Talk Religion, March 23, 2024; Seth Auberon, Sheldon S. (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Jew invented "genocide," Seinfeld complicit?

(Not the crime itself but the term for the crime)

Sheldon S., Ashley Wells, Pfc. Sandoval, Shauna Schwartz (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Loser? No. Complicit in genocide? Yes: Jerry Seinfeld visits Israel (United with Israel)

Is Israel GUILTY of genocide?

(AJ+) Dec. 20, 2023: Since October 7, Israel has launched a total war on Gaza, indiscriminately bombing the [concentration camp, open air prison, or] strip and killing over 19,600 Palestinians.

This has led some experts to say Israel is guilty of committing genocide in the illegally occupied territory [Israel places "settlers" in and otherwise completely controls].

Like Western cowards, Israel only picks on weak and divided M.E. states,

bullying them. When the US (CIA) invades a place, it picks the weakest,

poorest countries that can only put up a protracted guerilla defense.

Israel is committing literal textbook genocide.

But what constitutes "genocide"? It was defined as a legal concept by a Polish Jewish lawyer escaping from the Nazis named Raphael Lemkin, Esq.

Dr. Penny Green and Astha Sharma Pokharel break down the United Nations' definition of genocide, and the stages leading up to it, to explore if it applies to what’s happening in Gaza. 

Subscribe for more videos: ajplus.co/subscribe. Al Jazeera is funded in whole or in part by the Qatari government. #israel #gaza #palestine

I stand with [genocide], says Seinfeld

Let's bomb the hospital. This one's for Cenk Uyghur with love from Bibi

• Jerry Seinfeld protested outside NY theater by pro-Palestinian group over Israel: 'Complicit in genocide'
• Father of Israeli hostage mistakenly killed by IDF speaks out: ‘You murdered my son TWICE’

• PR gold: Israel 'attacked' by neighbor amid Pres. Joe Biden's 'warning' to his fellow Zionist friend PM Bibi Netanyahu
• People who try to oppose Israel are so ignorant. Defend genocide before the wrong people are genocided! The ignorance of the anti-Israel 'mob' beggars belief
• Angry commuters confront pro-Palestinian protesters blocking LA freeway during rush hour (msn.com)
• UN General Assembly votes overwhelmingly to demand a Gaza cease-fire
• Scientists discover a subtle difference in how monkeys perceive the world, Netanyahu
• Physicist discovers 'paradox-free' time travel is theoretically possible, to a time before Israel began abusing an entire region backed by the West

(Sky News) Right wing take on left daring to protest pro-IDF Jerry Seinfeld

Scott Ritter: Israel will LOSE its war on Gaza and the US is powerless to stop it

Jerry Seinfeld travels to Israel to support war under pretext of hostages (vnexplorer.net)

I wouldn't want to be in Jerry's shoes, He's a genocidal racist. - Strong words, Kramer.

.

(Danny Haiphong) Dec. 19, 2023: Former UN Weapons Inspector and US Marine Corps Intelligence Officer Scott Ritter reacts to Israel's cruel and desperate [genocidal] military operation and how it has backfired in a huge way.

Support this channel by becoming an annual member (or monthly at any amount) on Patreon: dannyhaiphong.

• This program is being CENSORED

Be sure to get updates on LIVE programs by subscribing to free newsletter on Substack: chroniclesofhaiphong.substack...

Support the channel in other ways: chroniclesofhaiphong.substack... for paid annual memberships. One-time donations: BUY ME A COFFEE: buymeacoffee.com/dannyhai... Cashapp: $Dhaiphong Venmo: @dannyH2020 Paypal: paypal.me/spiritofho. Follow on Telegram and find all work here: linktr.ee/haiphongpress #Israel #Gaza #scottritter

What is Jewish Zionism, Dan Cohen? (TJDS)

Guest Dan Cohen (jimmydore.com); Sheldon S., Pfc. Sandoval (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

So what is Zionism exactly? with Dan Cohen

(The Jimmy Dore Show) Oct. 31, 2023: There’s much debate about whether Zionism and Judaism are synonymous. They are not. Does opposition to Zionism (creating a Jewish state no matter who lives there now) automatically identifies a person as an "antisemite." #TheJimmyDoreShow

But what, precisely, does “Zionism” refer to? Guest host Craig Jardula and Americans’ Comedian Kurt Metzger talk to independent journalist and filmmaker Dan Cohen about the nature of Zionism and what most people mean when they discuss the subject.

Follow Dan Cohen’s Substack here: uncaptured.substack.com. Follow Dan Cohen on Twitter: twitter.com/dancohen3000. Follow Craig “Pasta” Jardula on Twitter: twitter.com/yopasta. The Convo Couch’s YouTube channel: youtube.com/c/TheConvoCouch. Kurt Metzger on Twitter: twitter.com/kurtmetzger. Kurt Metzger’s website: KurtMetzgerComedy.com

Dolores Cannon: Truth about Jesus, Matrix

Dolores Cannon, Wired Mind, 9/11/023; Pat Macpherson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

It's been hidden for centuries: The truth about Jesus Christ ✨Dolores Cannon

(Wired Mind) Ever wondered about the mysteries surrounding Jesus the "Anointed One" (Kristos or Christ)? Y'know, the enigmatic, possibly make-believe figure who has inspired billions of people across the globe for centuries? Dolores Cannon, a pioneer in the field of hypnosis and past-life regression, embarked on a journey that not only delved into the depths of the human psyche (mind/soul) but also unveiled profound insights about Jesus himself.

Not everyone will break free of the matrix of illusions: Dolores Cannon

✨❤️  #dolorescannon #newearth #kingdomofgod

The Western Paradise (as Afghanistan)

Dhr. Seven, Ven. Chandananda Thero, Amber Larson, Wisdom Quarterly

The Buddha and Shakyans were from the "Middle Country," skirting borders East and West

The "West," the rich Silk Route crossroads of the ancient Shakyan territory (janapada headed by Kapilavastu), now Bamiyan, Afghanistan (Afghanistan Matters, Netherlands)

  

Chinese Mahayana Buddhists often speak of the "Great Western Paradise," a Pure Land (suddhavasa, "Pure Abode"), a mythical Atzlan or faraway Afghan land. They are likely referring to rebirth in the space-deva-worlds of the Four Great Sky Kings. But why the Western World? Was King Virūpakkha, Regent of the Dragons (nagas), who sits facing east, particularly inviting? Or was it the historical fact that the Dharma had come from the West -- from India, considered the "holy land" by Chinese Buddhists, who were cloistered in their great walled empire? Did it refer to a future when everyone would want to "go west" for economic advantage? We suggest that because the Buddha came from the West (Northwest India, Gandhara, Afghanistan), as seen from the East and Far East, it was to the West that one would naturally want to go.

The Buddha (SDhammika/Barakat)

The Buddha came from the West.

What is the meaning of this shocking statement? Surely, the Buddha came from the East! That is, indeed, true. But at that time the "West" was the lands and cultures west of India, which is what we now call the Sacred East.

The river that divided the once great empire of India (Maha Bharat) was not the Ganges, which runs southeast down from the Himalayas to the Bay of Bengal (now "Bangladesh" as a result of Partition in 1947).

The Sindhu of the Indus and Hindus (W)

The Indus/Sindhu river (fed by the now defunct Saraswati river, whose historical existence has now been confirmed by satellite data) came down from the Himalayas to the Arabian Sea to create a natural boundary between "West" and "East" in the Indian imagination. Siddhartha came from West to East and began teaching near the holy Indian city of Varanasi (Benares) on the Ganges.

MAP: Indus Valley Civilization

His extended family, however, got the message and began an almost simultaneous practice of the Dharma. His former wife (called Yasodhara, Bimba-devi, Rahula-mata) was already following as best she could eventually to become the fiercest enlightened disputant Bhadda kaccānā; his son (Rahula) would be the youngest to ordain; his cousins became great disciples; his father (Suddhodana) the king became enlightened; his mothers (Maya and Pajapati) were both helped, one in space, one on Earth, the latter becoming the world's first Buddhist nun; his half-sister (Sundari Nanda) and half-brother (Nanda) becoming enlightened disciples; his close cousin (Ananda) becoming his longtime attendant memorizing the sutras for all posterity; and other Shakyan princes and princesses also ordaining, creating a great need for massive Buddhist temple monastic complexes exactly like those found in Afghan archeological sites like Bamiyan, massive Mes Aynak ("Copper Well"), Tepe Narenj (near Kabul). 

The very first Buddhist temple complexes were likely built in Afghanistan and Indo-Pakistan (previously called Gandhara on the northwestern frontier of anything still called "India" at the time).

Moving over the western expanse beyond the remains of India (Afghanistan Matters/flickr)

 

The lands influenced by Vedic India extend back in time to the Indus Valley Civilization. They were to become India, Persia (particularly Seistan-Baluchistan), ancient Greek/Hellenized Bactria (the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom), and other empires (Shakyan, Sogdiana, Seleucid, etc.), what is now Central Asia and, by our American reckoning, parts of the geopolitical Middle East (Kurdistan, Iran, Afghanistan, a future-Pashtun'istan, and Hazar-istan in Buddhist Bamiyan, etc.), and lands formerly within the Soviet sphere of influence -- Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and China (Uygur Xinjiang), and Pakistan/Baltistan (a country which didn't exist except as a state in India until 1947's Partition of India by the British). 

Gandhara-style Buddha

Imagining Kapilavastu or the Shakyan janapada (territory) in Nepal or India, as we customarily do, obscures the real and more amazing history of Buddhism. It conceals facts brought to light by ancient textual (e.g., the oldest Buddhist texts being from Gandhara/Afghanistan) and modern archeological evidence (e.g., the oldest Buddhist monasteries and art being from Gandhara/Afghanistan) and by critically reviewing haphazard and politically-influenced history concocted by early British and German Orientalists. 

(See Ranajit Pal, who makes the stronger claim that evidence for Nepal was intentionally falsified).

• Map of Greco-Bactria, fusion of ancient Greece in India
• The oldest Buddhist art: Greco-Buddhist Gandharan style
• What is the "Middle Country" from which buddhas come?

Chronicle-To-Be

The Sinhalese recension of the Anagatavamsa, translated into English for the first time, is one of several texts forming a genre of Buddhist apocalyptic literature.

It was generated by the [messianic] cult of Maitreya in South and Southeast Asia.

 

The marvels of Mes Aynak to be lost

It is a prophetic text revealing a rich religious imagination focused on the advent of the next-Buddha (not a "second coming" but a new person to fill the post) in a time when those who have long persevered in the religious quest will gain an opportunity to realize the highest spiritual attainment. More

Looking "West" from Mes Aynak ("Copper Well") stupa, a Buddhist burial mound encased in stone, Afghanistan, west of India (ranajitpal.com)

Looking farther "West" to the beyond to Eurasia, the Caucasus, and Europe after the vast expanses of Central Asia, ruins of Mes Aynak or "Copper Well" mine and Buddhist monastic complex archeological site (livescience.com).