"Once upon a Time"—So What? The Importance of Place in Buddhist Narratives.

This paper deals with the aspect of place (space) in Buddhist narratives. Starting from the observation that narrated time is often vaguely indicated in Buddhist narratives, but places and sites of the narrated events are quite specific—although frequently introduced in a stereotypical way ("Once the Buddha dwelled in Śrāvastī ..." "Once when Brahmadatta was king in Vārāṇasī ...")—the question is asked why a place is so important for and in Buddhist narratives. Based on selected examples, the argument is made that it is the "blueprint" of "early" Buddhist biographical sources, with the Buddha acting/preaching at specific places, which made these places accessible spaces where merit could be gained through "contact" with soteriologically important events in the past. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]