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Abstract
The following essay deals with the specificity of aesthetic experience and apprehension of beauty in the frame of Theravāda Buddhism. This essay is aimed, above all, to Western readers, since aesthetics and beauty, as an inherent quality of nature and works of art, are constitutive parts of the Western philosophical and cultural tradition. I consider texts written in Western languages and available in the Western debate. On the one hand, so far as aesthetics is concerned, as a philosophical reflection on beauty and art, Theravāda Buddhism may seem to be critical towards any kind of aesthetical experience. On the other hand, Theravāda Buddhism can offer a different and peculiar perspective on art and beauty. The aim is to demonstrate that there is a specific aesthetic experience in Theravāda Buddhism and this experience allows a different perception and use of the work of art and a different experience of beauty.
Acknowledgements
The following essay has been written with the support of the Research Section, Faculty of Arts, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok. A special thanks to Claudio Cicuzza for discussing the topic and for giving me the opportunity to know the beautiful story of Muktikā.