The Interpretation of the Buddha Land (BDK English Tripitaka) - Hardcover

Translation & Research, Numata Center For Buddhist

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0962561827 ISBN 13: 9780962561825

Publisher: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, 2006

Synopsis

This fourth-century commentary on the Buddhabhûmi-sûtra is one of the earliest texts of the Yogâcâra tradition. It includes an introductory description of the setting in which it was preached by the Buddha; the main body of the text, which treats the five factors that constitute a Buddha land, i.e., the Pure Dharma Realm and the four wisdoms: mirror wisdom, equality wisdom, discernment wisdom, and duty-fulfillment wisdom; and a concluding section of two illustrative similes and four summary verses.

The overall theme of these texts is that the Pure Land is not a physical location, but a symbol of the mind of wisdom - constituted by the five factors of the Pure Dharma Realm and the four wisdoms. These four wisdoms, grounded in the Pure Dharma Realm, present the varied structure of wisdom as conceived by Yogacara thinkers. Mirror wisdom and equality wisdom are nondiscriminative, while discernment wisdom and duty-fulfillment wisdom distinguish the nature of bodhisattva tasks and carry them out in the world. Thus the overarching context for these texts is the tension created between the critical awareness and "deliteralization" tendency of Yogacara, and the Pure Land cultus, with its veneration of many Pure Land Buddhas and its hopes of being born in the Pure Land.

About this title

About the Author:

The BDK English Tripitaka Series was started by the late Rev. Dr. Yehan Numata, founder of the Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai (BDK) [Society for the Promotion of Buddhism]. The goal of this series is to make available in the English language the Buddhist scriptures and commentaries of the Sino-Japanese edition of the "Taisho Tripitaka." Scholars and specialists from throughout the world have been enlisted to translate the selected texts into English. When completed, the one-hundred eight volumes will comprise the First Series of the BDK English Tripitaka.

About this edition

• Publisher: Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0962561827
• ISBN 13: 9780962561825
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 244