Heart Sūtra - by Henry C H Shiu (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

A nuanced reconsideration of the Heart Sutra, one of the most celebrated and widely chanted texts in Mahayana Buddhism.

In The Heart Sutra: Revisiting Its Texts, History, and Meaning, Henry C. H. Shiu investigates the historical origins of the Heart Sutra, a significant Buddhist scripture. He compares the Sanskrit texts with their Chinese and Tibetan translations to analyse whether the Heart Sutra might be a Chinese apocryphon, through detailed linguistic examination. To achieve this goal, Shiu thoroughly examines the primary sources from which the scripture was extracted. He emphasises the necessity of reading the Heart Sutra in the larger context of the Perfection of Wisdom literature, which contains the essence of Mahayana Buddhist teaching. In this monograph, Shiu successfully transcends the boundaries between the Chinese, Indian and Tibetan Buddhist traditions and provides a revisionist interpretation of the Heart Sutra.

Review Quotes

"This book challenges academic orthodoxies by revealing previously hidden aspects of the Heart Sūtra's genesis, development and interpretation within the languages and cultures of India, China, Tibet and Central Asia. Shiu's insightful textual, historical and Dharmalogical analyses update and greatly enrich our understanding of the Heart Sūtra's complex origins, forms of cultural and political significance, contemplative and ritual functions, and profound spiritual truths."-- "John Makransky, Boston College"

About the Author

Henry C. H. Shiu is the Shi Wu De Professor in Chinese Buddhist Studies at Emmanuel College of Victoria University in the University of Toronto, Canada. His other Chinese publications include annotated studies of Nāgārjuna's hymns and the Dharmadharmatāvibhāga.