Yixiu Jiang

 Yixiu Jiang studies Indian Mahāyāna scriptures with a focus on the early development of the notion of the bodhisattva path.

 Yixiu’s first book project, developed from her dissertation, explores the early formation of the notion of bodhisattva developmental stages on the basis of a unique text on this topic—a Mahāyāna sūtra titled “The Teaching on Dreams” (*Svapnanirdeśa). Through examining the correlation between dreams and bodhisattva progress taught in the Svapnanirdeśa, her research reconsiders the development of the notion of bodhisattva progress from the perspective of the underlying motivation behind the doctrinal innovations. That is, it explores the attempts to resolve Mahāyāna followers’ uncertainties over the prospect of the bodhisattva career.

Continuing her work on the concept of bodhisattva developmental stages, Yixiu’s second project explores the relationship between the central scripture of this topic, the Daśabhūmikasūtra, and one of its earliest surviving “commentaries,” the Shizhu piposha lun. By studying this relationship, her study not only intends to look into the long-debated question of the authenticity of the Shizhu piposha lun, but also to examine the dynamics between Indian and Chinese Buddhism, authors and translators, scriptures and exegeses, and their roles in shaping the narrative of the bodhisattva progress on the Mahāyāna path in their historical context.

In addition, Yixiu works on Niya Gāndhārī and plans to publish her study of several previously unpublished Niya documents.