Divine knowledge: Buddhist mathematics according to Antoine Mostaert's ''Manual of Mongolian Astrology and Divination''

In 1969 Antoine Mostaert published, together with a detailed introduction, the facsimile of a manuscript from Ordos, Inner Mongolia. For the richness of its language and the fullness of its content, this manuscript is one of the best specimens of its genre known to date. The genre, described inclusively by Mostaert as "astrology and divination" for the Mongolian term togamma-a "mathematics," is anomalous, obsolete for modern English speakers, yet one of the most pervasive among the collections of Mongolian writing, and a sticking point for Western scholars, many of whom, as Cicero in De Divinatione, wonder at its reason for being. Hence, the aim of this dissertation is to elaborate on Mostaert's earlier study by offering a transcription and translation of the text, a critical introduction that sheds light on the function of this kind of literature in Mongolian Buddhist culture, and a glossary, word and subject indices