This dissertation is written in order to research for the prayer song Buddhist Gasa style in two aspects. The first aspect is about the contexts of prayer song Buddhist Gasa style, the second aspect is about the characteristics of prayer song Buddhist Gasa style.
Firstly, in the aspect of the contexts of prayer song Buddhist Gasa style, there are two kinds of contexts, which are the historical site and Gasa style site. In the historical site of prayer in Buddhism, there are two directions, which are the prose and the poetry. The prayer song Buddhist Gasa style was developed by receiving the good points of the prose and the poetry lately.
Secondly, in the site of Gasa style, prayer song Buddhist Gasa style received the sentence of other Buddhist Gasa style works. For example, the sentence of Hymn song Buddhist Gasa style works(讚佛歌類佛敎歌辭), Nirvana song Buddhist Gasa style works(往生歌類佛敎歌辭), Buddhist meditation song Buddhist Gasa style works(參禪曲類佛敎歌辭), empty dream song Buddhist Gasa style works(夢幻歌類佛敎歌辭) were adapted to prayer song Buddhist Gasa style, which means that the prayer song Buddhist Gasa style is related with those Buddhist Gasa styles briefly. And except those Buddhist Gasa styles, there are expressed general Buddhist teaching in the prayer song Buddhist Gasa style for the most part. Then the relationships between the prayer song Buddhist Gasa style and the other of Buddhist Gasa style are being brief and being indirect, being inclusive.
Thirdly, in the aspect of the characteristics of prayer song Buddhist Gasa style, I discussed four points which are the prayer subject and the prayer object, the contents and expression skills in it. At first the writers used one prayer subject and one prayer object for expressing their private petitions, and they used multi prayer subject and multi prayer object for expressing their private petitions and Buddhist community petitions at one time. Fourthly, in the contents and expression skills, the writers of prayer song Buddhist Gasa style expressed their private petitions and Buddhist community petitions in the process of Buddhist activities at temple, for example, in paying homage to Buddha, and Buddhist meditation, in prayer to Buddha, in starting some kinds of work and so on. And the writers of prayer song Buddhist Gasa style used the skill of enumerating many facts mainly for teaching much more people Buddhism, in some times used the skill of emphasizing conclusions of some paragraphs or whole works.
Even though I studied the prayer song Buddhist Gasa style in this research paper, there could be the other Buddhist Gasa style to study. I might continue researching the other Buddhist Gasa style being related with this style next time in the near future, for example, the Hymn song Buddhist Gasa style.