Professor Seishi Karashima, director of the International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology at Soka University, passed away at the age of 61 on Tuesday, July 23, 2019. We pray for the soul of the deceased and offer our deepest condolences.
The farewell ceremonies will be private events, for relatives only.

Please address telegrams and messages of condolence to the International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology, Soka University.
1-236, Tangi-machi, Hachioji-shi, Tokyo, 192-8577
Tel: 042-691-2695
Email: iriab@soka.ac.jp

Professor Seishi Karashima was appointed assistant professor at Soka University’s International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology in April 1997 upon the establishment of the institute, becoming a full professor two years later. After taking on the role of director in April 2011, he continued to make significant contributions to the development of the institute.

Specializing in Buddhist philosophy, Professor Karashima applied his vast knowledge of Sanskrit, Tibetan, Pāḷi, Middle Indo-Aryan, and ancient Chinese to conduct detailed analyses of early Chinese Buddhist Translations. Among his many publications, he compiled A glossary of Dharmaraksa's translation of the Lotus Sutra, A Glossary of Kumārajīva's translation of the Lotus Sutra, and A glossary of Lokakṣema's translation of the Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā. He studied the formation of early Mahayana Buddhism and was a leading light of the Buddhist academic community in Japan and abroad. Professor Karashima was invited to work at various institutions in Japan and abroad, including the University of California, Berkeley; the School of Literary Studies at Renmin University of China; and Institut de France. During his time at these institutions, he did not limit himself to simply giving lectures on Buddhist studies. He also set up initiatives to support research, such as creating a worldwide network of Buddhist researchers.

Numerous published papers and books bear the hand of Professor Karashima, either as author or editor. These include Vessantara-jātaka Yakuchū (included in The Jātaka, Vol. 10 by Hajime Nakamura, Shunjūsha, 1988); A Textual Study of the Chinese Versions of the Saddharmapuṇḍarīkasūtra (Sankibo Busshorin, 1992); A Study of the Underlying Language of the Chinese Translation of the Dīrgha-āgama (Hirakawa Shuppan Inc., 1994); Buddhist Manuscripts from Central Asia: The British Library Sanskrit Fragments, (author and editor of three volumes in five books; International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology, Soka University, 2006, 2009, 2015); Abhisamācārika- Dharma (three volumes, German language publication, International Research Institute for Advanced Buddhology, 2012); Languages and Transmission of Buddhist Scriptures (Chinese language publication, Nakanishi Shokyoku, 2016).