Readings of Dōgen's "Treasury of the True Dharma Eye" - (Columbia Readings of Buddhist Literature) by Steven Heine (Paperback)

About the Book

The Treasury of the True Dharma Eye (Shōbōgenzō) is the masterwork of Dōgen (1200-1253), founder of the Sōtō Zen Buddhist sect in Kamakura-era Japan. Steven Heine provides a comprehensive introduction to this essential Zen text, offering a textual, historical, literary, and philosophical examination of Dōgen's treatise.

Book Synopsis

The Treasury of the True Dharma Eye (Shōbōgenzō) is the masterwork of Dōgen (1200-1253), founder of the Sōtō Zen Buddhist sect in Kamakura-era Japan. It is one of the most important Zen Buddhist collections, composed during a period of remarkable religious diversity and experimentation. The text is complex and compelling, famed for its eloquent yet perplexing manner of expressing the core precepts of Zen teachings and practice.

This book is a comprehensive introduction to this essential Zen text, offering a textual, historical, literary, and philosophical examination of Dōgen's treatise. Steven Heine explores the religious and cultural context in which the Treasury was composed and provides a detailed study of the various versions of the medieval text that have been compiled over the centuries. He includes nuanced readings of Dōgen's use of inventive rhetorical flourishes and the range of East Asian Buddhist textual and cultural influences that shaped the work. Heine explicates the philosophical implications of Dōgen's views on contemplative experience and attaining and sustaining enlightenment, showing the depth of his distinctive understanding of spiritual awakening. Readings of Dōgen's Treasury of the True Dharma Eye will give students and other readers a full understanding of this fundamental work of world religious literature.

Review Quotes

Readings of Dōgen's Treasury of the True Dharma Eye is a wise book.--Zuzana Kubovčáková "Journal of Buddhist Ethics"

[This] volume is warmly recommended to all students of Buddhism.--Lehel Balogh, Hokkaido University "Religious Studies Review"

This book, quite simply, may be the single best detailed survey and explanation of what Dogen was on about that I have ever read by an academic.-- "Treeleaf"

Heine illuminates Dōgen's innovative re-readings of Zen tradition, highlighting his insights into 'being-time' and the 'oneness of practice realization.' Grounded in recent scholarship and embracing historical, literary, and practice perspectives, this comprehensive treatment of the Treasury will be welcomed by Dōgen enthusiasts and others interested in Japanese Buddhism.--Jacqueline Stone, author of Original Enlightenment and the Transformation of Medieval Japanese Buddhism

Shōbōgenzō, Dōgen's brilliant guidebook for the practice of Zen, is now widely recognized as one of Buddhism's greatest masterworks. The importance of the text and its complex difficulties cannot be overemphasized. Steven Heine's Readings provides excellent guidance through the text's crucial issues. Truly, a monumental achievement--now the best book on Dōgen.--Dale S. Wright, author of Buddhism: What Everyone Needs to Know

A foremost Dōgen expert's long-awaited, thorough, and comprehensive examination of the sublime thinker whose monumental elucidation of dharma is beginning to inspire meditators and beyond worldwide.--Kazuaki Tanahashi, author of Moon in a Dewdrop: Writings of Zen Master Dōgen

Heine has written a comprehensive, detailed, and accessible analysis of the textual, religious, and philosophical intricacies of Dōgen's master work, Shōbōgenzō. This careful work of synthesis builds on his own original scholarship on Zen and the Shōbōgenzō itself, and is one of the most thorough overviews of Dōgen's thought to date.--Richard Jaffe, author of Seeking Sakyamuni: South Asia in the Formation of Japanese Buddhism

Vigorous and insightful, Readings of Dōgen's Treasury of the True Dharma Eye provides a deep inspection of central themes in Dōgen's vast literal legacy. In a clear and inspiring manner, Heine's analysis sheds crucial light that clarifies both the beauty and complexity of this giant Zen Master.--Eitan Bolokan, Tel Aviv University

With clarifying beams of insight, Heine deftly evinces how Dōgen's teachings are a creative response to a range of Buddhist sutras, kōans, and Chinese and Japanese teachers. Illuminating with philosophical virtuosity the dynamic nature of Dōgen's written teachings and erudite explication of entangled versions of Dōgen's writings, Heine animates Dōgen's teachings and practices as he offers nuggets of sagacity throughout.--Paula Arai, author of Painting Enlightenment: Healing Visions of the Heart Sutra

About the Author

Steven Heine is professor of religious studies and history and director of Asian studies at Florida International University. His many books include Did Dōgen Go to China: What He Wrote and When He Wrote It (2006) and Dōgen: Textual and Historical Studies (2013).