The Platform Sutra comprises a wide range of important Chan/Zen Buddhist teachings. Purported to contain the autobiography and sermons of Huineng (638–713), the legendary Sixth Patriarch of Chan,... Read More
Description
The Platform Sutra comprises a wide range of important Chan/Zen Buddhist teachings. Purported to contain the autobiography and sermons of Huineng (638–713), the legendary Sixth Patriarch of Chan, the sutra has been popular among monastics and the educated elite for centuries. The first study of its kind in English, this volume offers essays that introduce the history and ideas of the sutra to a general audience and interpret its practices. Leading specialists on Buddhism discuss the text's historical background and its vaunted legacy in Chinese culture.
Incorporating recent scholarship and theory, chapters include an overview of Chinese Buddhism, the crucial role of the Platform Sutra in the Chan tradition, and the dynamics of Huineng's biography. They probe the sutra's key philosophical arguments, its paradoxical teachings about transmission, and its position on ordination and other institutions. The book includes a character glossary and extensive bibliography, with helpful references for students, general readers, and specialists throughout. The editors and contributors are among the most respected scholars in the study of Buddhism, and they assess the place of the Platform Sutra in the broader context of Chinese thought, opening the text to all readers interested in Asian culture, literature, spirituality, and religion.
Details
- Price: $32.00
- Pages: 232
- Carton Quantity: 30
- Publisher: Columbia University Press
- Imprint: Columbia University Press
- Series: Columbia Readings of Buddhist Literature
- Publication Date: 7th February 2012
- Trim Size: 5.5 x 8.25 in
- ISBN: 9780231158213
- Format: Paperback
- BISACs:
LITERARY CRITICISM / Asian / Chinese
PHILOSOPHY / Eastern
RELIGION / General
Reviews
The Platform Sutra is a (if not the) seminal scripture of Chan/Zen/Seon Buddhism. Its influence in East Asia is enormous and its impact extends far beyond China, Japan, and Korea. Readings of the Platform Sutra is a judicious and generous presentation of the best scholarship on this unique and vital text. It is certain to prove a reliable guide for anyone with a serious interest in the history, meaning, and practice of early Zen.- Victor Mair
This impeccably edited volume offers an ideal introduction to the most important of the early Chinese Chan texts and features contributions by leading scholars covering such topics as the biography of Huineng, meditation, sudden enlightenment, transmission, the precepts, and human nature. All of the chapters are extremely useful for understanding the role the Platform Sutra has played in the broader context of Chinese Buddhist religious thought and practice.- Steven Heine, Florida International University
this volume delivers highly readable essays particularly suited for undergraduate courses.- Natasha Heller, Journal of the American Oriental Society
[Readings of the Platform Sutra] offers much of value to Buddhist Studies scholars, undergraduate students, and general readers interested in Chan/Zen Buddhism.- Stuart H. Young, Religious Studies Review
Reading through these essays, one gains both a sense of how Bodhidharma's lineage took root in East Asia as well as the dynamics at play between the early Chinese Buddhist masters.- Buddhadharma
Author Bio
Table of Contents
Preface
1. Introduction: The Platform S?tra, Buddhism, and Chinese Religion
2. The Figure of Huineng
3. The History and Practice of Early Chan
4. The Sudden Teaching
5. Transmitting Notions of Transmission
6. Ordination and Precepts in the Platform S?tra
7. The Platform S?tra and Chinese Thought
Character Glossary
Bibliography
Contributors
Index
The Platform Sutra comprises a wide range of important Chan/Zen Buddhist teachings. Purported to contain the autobiography and sermons of Huineng (638–713), the legendary Sixth Patriarch of Chan, the sutra has been popular among monastics and the educated elite for centuries. The first study of its kind in English, this volume offers essays that introduce the history and ideas of the sutra to a general audience and interpret its practices. Leading specialists on Buddhism discuss the text's historical background and its vaunted legacy in Chinese culture.
Incorporating recent scholarship and theory, chapters include an overview of Chinese Buddhism, the crucial role of the Platform Sutra in the Chan tradition, and the dynamics of Huineng's biography. They probe the sutra's key philosophical arguments, its paradoxical teachings about transmission, and its position on ordination and other institutions. The book includes a character glossary and extensive bibliography, with helpful references for students, general readers, and specialists throughout. The editors and contributors are among the most respected scholars in the study of Buddhism, and they assess the place of the Platform Sutra in the broader context of Chinese thought, opening the text to all readers interested in Asian culture, literature, spirituality, and religion.
- Price: $32.00
- Pages: 232
- Carton Quantity: 30
- Publisher: Columbia University Press
- Imprint: Columbia University Press
- Series: Columbia Readings of Buddhist Literature
- Publication Date: 7th February 2012
- Trim Size: 5.5 x 8.25 in
- ISBN: 9780231158213
- Format: Paperback
- BISACs:
LITERARY CRITICISM / Asian / Chinese
PHILOSOPHY / Eastern
RELIGION / General
The Platform Sutra is a (if not the) seminal scripture of Chan/Zen/Seon Buddhism. Its influence in East Asia is enormous and its impact extends far beyond China, Japan, and Korea. Readings of the Platform Sutra is a judicious and generous presentation of the best scholarship on this unique and vital text. It is certain to prove a reliable guide for anyone with a serious interest in the history, meaning, and practice of early Zen.– Victor Mair
This impeccably edited volume offers an ideal introduction to the most important of the early Chinese Chan texts and features contributions by leading scholars covering such topics as the biography of Huineng, meditation, sudden enlightenment, transmission, the precepts, and human nature. All of the chapters are extremely useful for understanding the role the Platform Sutra has played in the broader context of Chinese Buddhist religious thought and practice.– Steven Heine, Florida International University
this volume delivers highly readable essays particularly suited for undergraduate courses.– Natasha Heller, Journal of the American Oriental Society
[Readings of the Platform Sutra] offers much of value to Buddhist Studies scholars, undergraduate students, and general readers interested in Chan/Zen Buddhism.– Stuart H. Young, Religious Studies Review
Reading through these essays, one gains both a sense of how Bodhidharma's lineage took root in East Asia as well as the dynamics at play between the early Chinese Buddhist masters.– Buddhadharma
Preface
1. Introduction: The Platform S?tra, Buddhism, and Chinese Religion
2. The Figure of Huineng
3. The History and Practice of Early Chan
4. The Sudden Teaching
5. Transmitting Notions of Transmission
6. Ordination and Precepts in the Platform S?tra
7. The Platform S?tra and Chinese Thought
Character Glossary
Bibliography
Contributors
Index