Prince Shotoku's Commentary on the Srimala Sutra
Prince Shotoku's Commentary on the Srimala Sutra

Author: Shōtoku Taishi

Publisher: BDK English Tripitaka

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781886439436

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Prince Shōtoku's Commentary on the Śrīmālā Sutra is a translation of the Shōmangyō-gisho (Commentary on the Śrīmālādevīsimhanāda-sūtra), one of three Buddhist commentaries written in classical Chinese that have been attributed to Japan's Prince Shōtoku (574-622). A master politician and shining figure in the imperial line, Prince Shōtoku played a leading role in government and with promoting diplomatic, cultural, and religious contacts with China and Korea. He is also remembered as a devout practitioner and generous patron of Buddhism who studied Buddhist doctrine under the instruction of continental tutors, and offered lectures at court on the Lotus Sutra and the Śrīmālādevī-sūtra, a key early Mahayana sutra that espouses the tathāgatagarbha, the "seed" of enlightenment said to be present in all sentient beings, and the ekayāna, or "One Vehicle." Shōtoku's lectures on the Śrīmālādevī-sūtra are believed to be the source of the Shōmangyō-gisho, a text that has had undeniable influence in both premodern and modern forms of Japanese Buddhism, and which continues to be a source of inspiration for many.

Expository Commentary on Vimalakirti Sutra
Expository Commentary on Vimalakirti Sutra

Author:

Publisher: BDK English Tripitaka

Published: 2012-06

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 9781886439443

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The Expository Commentary on the Vimalakīrti Sūtra is a translation of the Yuimagyō-gisho, a three-fascicle commentary on Kumarajīva's translation of the Vimalakīrtinirdeśa-sūtra. Together with commentaries on the Lotus Sutra and the Śrīmālādevī-sūtra, it is known as one of the "Three Commentaries" (Sangyō-gisho) attributed to Shōtoku Taishi. While questions about Shōtoku's authorship still remain, this text has played significant role in the history of Japanese Buddhism. The Vimalakīrti-sūtra's dramatic narrative of an awakened merchant prince, long popular in China as a model for the sage-ruler, had obvious appeal to Japanese rulers in the sixth-seventh centuries as well, an era that marks the beginning of the Japanese state. Adopting Buddhism as the state religion, initiating diplomatic relations with Korea and China, and integrating the superior technologies of the continent required great changes in the legitimization of rule and the structure of virtually every aspect of Japanese life. Shōtoku and his family have long been seen as central pillars of this "internationalization" of Japan, and the connection between The Commentary and Shōtoku Taishi assured its importance and influence to this day.

The Shin Buddhist Classical Tradition
The Shin Buddhist Classical Tradition

Author: Alfred Bloom

Publisher: World Wisdom, Inc

Published: 2013-10-01

Total Pages: 242

ISBN-13: 1936597276

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This book is an anthology of passages gathered from the leading monks and teachers of the Pure Land, or Shin, school of Buddhist teaching. Extending from the foundational texts and first interpreters in the 4th century, to Rennyo in the 15th century, Professor Bloom’s selections trace the development of Shin Buddhist teaching from monastic visualization practices to the widely popular path to salvation through faith in, and recitation of, the name of Amida Buddha. The collection features a foreword by Kenneth K. Tanaka and an insightful introduction by renowned scholar and editor, Alfred Bloom, whose selected passages have been arranged topically for easy reference on issues of Pure Land teaching. The key interpreters featured are the Seven Great Teachers from India, China, and Japan (Nagarjuna, Vasubandhu; T’an-luan, Tao-ch’o, Shan-tao; Genshin, Honen), selected as doctrinal authorities by Shinran (1173-1263), the founder of the Japanese Pure Land sect.

The Surangama Sutra
The Surangama Sutra

Author: Ronald Epstein, PhD

Publisher: Buddhist Text Translation Society

Published: 2012-08-06

Total Pages: 391

ISBN-13: 1601030177

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For more than a thousand years, the Śūraṅgama Sūtra has been held in high regard in the Mahāyāna Buddhist countries of East and Southeast Asia and has been as popular as the Lotus, Heart, and Diamond Sūtras. Its wealth of theoretical and practical instruction in living a spiritual life often made it the first major text studied by newly ordained monks, particularly in the Chan tradition. This Sutra is regarded as a complete and practical manual for spiritual practice that will lead to enlightenment. It provides instruction on understanding one’s own Buddha-nature, the potential within every being for becoming a Buddha. The Sutra explains how and why this nature is hidden and how we can uncover it and recognize it as our own true mind. The Sutra also explains why personal integrity and purity of conduct are prerequisites for spiritual awakening. It presents the principles of meditation, and provides guidelines for discerning correct practices from those which deviate into wrong ones. It explains how our own intentional acts, whether physical, verbal, or mental, result in karmic experiences, including rebirths into various levels of being, both human and non-human. At the heart of the Sūtra is the Śūraṅgama Mantra. The Sutra promises that the practice of reciting this mantra, in the context of the other practices taught in the Sutra, can successfully eliminate internal or external obstacles that block the path of spiritual progress

The Konjaku Tales
The Konjaku Tales

Author:

Publisher: Kanji Press

Published: 1998

Total Pages: 520

ISBN-13:

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The Konjaku Tales contains translations from the Konjaku monogatarishū, the largest Japanese story collection, which dates from the early twelfth century. The original work contains more than one thousand tales from India, China, and Japan.