[Buddha-l] liturgical languages

[curt]

F.K. Lehman (F.K.L. Chit Hlaing) wrote:

> Two things,if I may. (1) Let us not forget that Buddhism is from 
> India, and the Indic tradition, back to Vedic times apparently, 
> includes the idea that there is a sort of cosmic (magical?) power or, 
> if you want, ritual effectiveness to the very syllables of a Skt/Pali 
> chan, and to their correct pronunciation. This certainly is essential 
> background to the stuff being argued about here.

I would like to know much more about the practice of chanting in the 
ealiest forms of
Buddhism. I am also extremely interested in the general phenomenon of 
"magical ideas"
in early Buddhism. There is a fascinating looking book called "Haunting 
the Buddha:
Indian Popular Religion and the Formation of Buddhism" by Robert 
Decaroli, which
is precisely about this. Has anyone on this list read it?

- Curt