Book review: There have been many translations of this short text over the years, but this is a completely fresh look and the translator comes up with some rather unique conclusions.
History
Eight Great Events from the Life of the Buddha
Most significant is the central Buddha touching the earth at the moment of his enlightenment under the Bodhi tree at Bodhgaya, indicated by the branches above his head…
Part 2 Toward Nirvana and From Nirvana, by Professor Masahiro Shimoda
In order that you may gain a clear understanding of the idea of the bodhisattva, I would like to turn your attention to a long-standing discussion in the scholarly world regarding an erroneous belief widely maintained by contemporary scholars. According to their understanding, the bodhisattvas of Buddhist scriptures belong to two almost mutually exclusive categories…
Wisdom Embodied: Chinese Buddhist and Daoist Sculpture
As illuminating for new enthusiasts of Chinese Buddhist art as for scholars and connoisseurs, Wisdom Embodied is a glorious tour of the Metropolitan’s unparalleled collection, certain to ear its place as a classic in the field…
Toward Nirvana and From Nirvana, by Professor Masahiro Shimoda
The process whereby Buddhism—which first began as the deeply internal experience of just one ascetic practitioner—has over time borne fruit within vastly different races, climates, cultures and histories, might be likened to the way volcanic magma breaks through the earth’s crust and gushes heavenwards then flows down in every direction…
The Qingzhou Discoveries
In 1996 around 400 Chinese stone sculptures of the Buddha were discovered in Qingzhou, China…
The Sound of One Hand: Paintings and Calligraphy by Zen Master Hakuin
Short film about 5 minutes. Hakuin’s self-taught, spontaneous, yet masterly and inspired painting and calligraphy, just like his teachings and writings, expressed the mind and heart of Zen for monks and lay followers alike.
Ten Verses on Oxherding, Zen master Guoan Shiyuan
In Zen, a herdboy’s search for his lost oxen has served as a parable for a practitioner’s pursuit of enlightenment since this Buddhist sect’s early history in China. In the eleventh century, the Song-dynasty Zen master Guoan Shiyuan (active ca. 1150) codified the parable into ten verses (gāthā), recorded and illustrated in this handscroll…
