An illuminating in-depth study of one of the most well-known and recited Buddhist texts, by a renowned modern translator The Prajna Paramita Hridaya Sutra is among the best known of all the Buddhist scriptures. Chanted daily by many Zen practitioners, it is also studied extensively in the Tibetan tradition, and it has been regarded with interest more recently in the West in various fields of study—from philosophy to quantum physics. In just a few lines, it expresses the truth of impermanence and the release of suffering that results from the understanding of that truth with a breathtaking economy of language. Kazuaki Tanahashi’s guide to the Heart Sutra is the result of a life spent working with it and living it. He outlines the history and meaning of the text and then analyzes it line by line in its various forms (Sanskrit, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Tibetan, Mongolian, and various key English translations), providing a deeper understanding of the history and etymology of the elusive words than is generally available to the non-specialist—yet with a clear emphasis on the relevance of the text to practice. This book includes a fresh and meticulous new translation of the text by the author and Roshi Joan Halifax.

Winner of the Thornton Wilder Prize for Translation The most influential Buddhist sutra in the Mahayana tradition, from one of the world’s preeminent translators of religious texts The Heart Sutra is Buddhism in a nutshell. It has had the most profound and wide–reaching influence of any text in Buddhism. This short text covers more of the Buddha’s teachings than any other scripture, and it does so without being superficial or hurried. Although the original author is unknown, he was clearly someone with a deep realization of the Dharma. For this new English translation, Red Pine, award–winning translator of Chinese poetry and religious texts, has utilized various Sanskrit and Chinese versions, refining the teachings of dozens of ancient teachers together with his own commentary to offer a profound word–for–word explication. Divided into four parts and broken into thirty–five lines to make it easier to study or chant, and containing a glossary of names, terms, and texts, The Heart Sutra is a wise book of deep teaching destined to become the standard edition of this timeless statement of Mahayana truth.

Renowned for its terse declaration of the perfection of wisdom, the Heart Sutra is the most famous of Buddhist scriptures. The author draws on previously unexamined commentaries, preserved only in Tibetan, to investigate the meanings derived from and invested into the sutra during the later period of Indian Buddhism. The Heart Sutra Explained offers new insights on "form is emptiness, emptiness is form," on the mantra "gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha," and on the synthesis of Madhyamika, Yogacara, and tantric thought that characterized the final period of Buddhism in India. It also includes complete translations of two nineteenth century Tibetan commentaries demonstrating the selective appropriation of Indian sources.

Exploring the Heart Sutra offers readers an interdisciplinary philosophical approach to this much-loved Buddhist classic, with a new translation and commentary. Situating the Heart Sutra within a Chinese context, Sarah A. Mattice brings together voices past and present, Asian and Western, on topics from Buddhology, translation theory, feminism, religious studies, ethnography, Chinese philosophy, and more, in order to inspire readers to understand the sutra in a new light. Mattice’s argument for the importance of appreciating the Heart Sutra from a Chinese philosophical context includes a new hermeneutic paradigm for approaching composite texts; an argument for translating the text from the Chinese, rather than the Sanskrit; an extended discussion of the figure of Guanyin, bodhisattva of compassion and main speaker of the Heart Sutra, as a distinctively Chinese figure; an inquiry in to the history of women’s practice, with a special focus on China; and a commentary on the text that draws on philosophical resources from Chinese Buddhist, Ruist, and Daoist traditions. Mattice presents the Heart Sutra in its depth and complexity, inviting readers to return to this classic text with fresh perspectives and new insights into its relevance for living well in the contemporary world.

'An erudite and charming book . . . both a primer and a paean to one of the central texts of Buddhism, known as the Heart Sutra. . . Alex Kerr delves into the Japanese soul' Literary Review The material world is itself emptiness. Emptiness is itself the material world. Powerful, mystical and concise, the Heart Sutra is believed to contain the condensed essence of all Buddhist wisdom. This brief poem on emptiness has exerted immense influence throughout Asia since the seventh century and is woven into the fabric of daily life. Yet even though it rivals the teachings of Laozi and Confucius in importance, this ancient Buddhist scripture remains barely known in the West. During the many years he has spent living in Japan, Alex Kerr has been on a quest after the secrets of the Heart Sutra. Travelling from Japan, Korea, and China, to India, Mongolia, Tibet and Vietnam, this book brings together Buddhist teaching, talks with friends and mentors, and acute cultural insights to probe the universe of thought contained within this short but intense philosophical work. 'Marvellous ... a life's work ... a brilliant literary form, weaving reflections of the sutra with those on Alex's own magical mystery tour' Alexandra Munroe, Asian Art scholar and curator

The Heart Sutra and Beyond includes The Heart Sutra in Chinese by Xuánzàng and a refreshing translation into English by Dr. Kwan-yuk Claire Sit. The main theme and purpose of the book is to show how one may practice the perfection of wisdom. Dr. Sit analyzes The Heart Sutra with metaphors, stories, illustrations, Buddhist scriptures, relevant Taoist texts, and anthroposophic teachings. She delves into Anthroposophy to explore the mystical connection between form and emptiness; between Buddhism and esoteric Christianity; between Buddha Gautama and the young Jesus; and between the future Buddha Maitreya and Jesus Christ. She applies her deep understanding of the two Chinese names for Avalokitesvara (Guan-zì-zài) and Sariputra (Shè-lì-zi) to reveal the essence of the sutra. Finally, she notes that anyone can gain great blessing by meditating on a short mantra presented in the sutra. Her commentary on this timeless text brings profound insights to those who are new to The Heart Sutra, as well as to those who may have studied and practiced Buddhism for many years.

Lopez reveals unexpected points of instability and contradiction in the Heart Sutra, which, in the end, turns out to be the most malleable of texts, where the logic of commentary serves as a tool of both tradition and transgression.

The purpose of a reclusive monk such as myself audaciously presenting a volume like this is to transmit the True Dharma and the Great Compassion of Buddha. In doing this, I wish to highlight the fact that the Heart Sutra is an outstanding guidebook for the path to liberation and for the practice of the Buddha Way. This sutra describes the Ultimate Path in a most straightforward manner. I would like you to know that by exerting yourself daily in the way it describes the time will come without a doubt when the results of your effort will manifest. Master Kido Inoue To fully understand the meaning of the Heart Sutra, one cannot simply follow, or have faith in what it is says, without detailed analysis. The Heart Sutra cannot be fully grasped with pure intellect alone. Practicing the True Way requires you to throw away all things and to forget the ego. When the words are approached with both the mind and the heart, its full understanding will naturally be revealed through practice. Because of this, the guidance of a real Dharma Master (or Roshi)such as Master Kido Inoueis required. Here, he shares his teachings in a straightforward and honest fashion.

For more than two thousand years, the Heart Sutra has been part of the daily life of millions of Buddhists. This concise text, so rich and laden with meaning, concentrates the very heart of Buddhism into a powerful and evocative teaching on the interdependence of all reality. In Essence of the Heart Sutra, the Dalai Lama masterfully unpacks the Heart Sutra so that any reader can benefit from its teachings - teachings meant to help us release ourselves from suffering and live with true compassion. Comprised of his ""Heart of Wisdom"" talks, originally delivered to thousands of listeners in 2001, the book offers the Dalai Lama's commentary as well as his easy-to-follow overview of Buddhist philosophy that places the sutra within its historical and philosophical context. With additional contributions by scholar and translator Thupten Jinpa, Essence of the Heart Sutra is the authoritative presentation of a text seminal to the world's religious heritage.

A guide to the famous Heart Sūtra that reveals the tenderness and compassion underlying the striking rhetoric of this popular Buddhist text The radical message of the Heart Sūtra, one of Buddhism’s most famous texts, is a sweeping attack on everything we hold most dear: our troubles, the world as we know it, even the teachings of the Buddha himself. Several of the Buddha’s followers are said to have suffered heart attacks and died when they first heard its assertion of the basic groundlessness of our existence—hence the title of this book. Overcoming fear, the Buddha teaches, is not to be accomplished by shutting down or building walls around oneself, but instead by opening up to understand the illusory nature of everything we fear—including ourselves. In this book of teachings, Karl Brunnhölzl guides practitioners through this ‘crazy’ sutra to the wisdom and compassion that lie at its core.