"A Sutra that reveals the maxim that 'To know thyself before the arisal and cessation of all things' is the key to unlocking the mystery of the nirvanic entrance into the eternal kingdom of your own True Nature: the Dharmakaya; a breakthrough that inspires a deeper realization of the Buddhadharma."--Back cover.

Two classic Zen Buddhist texts that present the foundational teachings of the tradition—now collected in one volume for the modern practitioner The Diamond Sutra, composed in India in the fourth century CE, is one of the most treasured works of Buddhist literature and is the oldest existing printed book in the world. It is known as the Diamond Sutra because its teachings are said to be like diamonds that cut away all dualistic thought, releasing one from the attachment to objects and bringing one to the further shore of enlightenment. The format of this important sutra is presented as a conversation between the Buddha and one of his disciples. The Sutra of Hui-neng, also known as the Platform Sutra, contains the autobiography of a pivotal figure in Zen history and some of the most profound passages of Zen literature. Hui-neng (638–713) was the sixth patriarch of Zen in China but is often regarded as the true father of the Zen tradition. He was a poor, illiterate woodcutter who is said to have attained enlightenment upon hearing a recitation of the Diamond Sutra. Together, these two scriptures present the central teaching of the Zen Buddhist tradition and are essential reading for all students of Buddhism.

The teachings of the groundbreaking Buddhist Zen Master: “Should remain for years to come the standard source book for the Western student of Zen” (Douglas Harding, The Middle Way). The eccentric Bankei (1622–1693) has long been an underground hero in the world of Zen. At a time when Zen was becoming overly formalized in Japan, he stressed its relevance to everyday life, insisting on the importance of naturalness and spontaneity. This volume presents his teachings—as refreshing and iconoclastic today as they were three hundred years ago—in a fluent translation by Peter Haskel, accompanied by a vivid account of Bankei’s life and times, illustrations, and extensive notes for the scholar. “Mr. Haskel has furnished us with an accurate and polished translation that fully captures the lively colloquial style of the original. The late Professor Hakeda has rendered invaluable assistance in resolving many linguistic problems and in furnishing important insights into the text itself.” —Philip Yampolsky “A splendid record of a dramatically different Zen master.” —Huston Smith “Bankei Zen has given us the essence of Bankei’s unique teaching . . . one which seems particularly appropriate to our time.” —Nancy Wilson Ross

The fourteenth-century Zen master Bassui was recognized as one of the most important Zen teachers of his time. Accessible and eloquent, these teachings cut to the heart of the great matter of Zen, pointing directly to the importance of seeing our own original nature and recognizing it as Buddhahood itself. Bassui is taking familiar concepts in Buddhism and recasting them in an essential Zen light. Though he lived centuries ago in a culture vastly different from our own, Zen Master Bassui speaks with a voice that spans time and space to address our own modern challenges - in our lives and spiritual practice. Like the revered Master Dogen several generations before him, Bassui was dissatisfied with what passed for Zen training, and taught a radically reenergized form of Zen, emphasizing deep and direct penetration into one's own true nature. And also like Dogen, Bassui uses powerful and often poetic language to take familiar Buddhist concepts recast them in a radically non-dual Zen light, making ancient doctrines vividly relevant. This edition of Mud and Water contains several teachings never before translated.

Hui-neng (638–713) is perhaps the most beloved and respected figure in Zen Buddhism. An illiterate woodcutter who attained enlightenment in a flash, he became the Sixth Patriarch of Chinese Zen, and is regarded as the founder of the "Sudden Enlightenment" school. He is the supreme exemplar of the fact that neither education nor social background has any bearing on the attainment of enlightenment. This collection of his talks, also known as the Platform or Altar Sutra, is the only Zen record of its kind to be generally honored with the appellation sutra, or scripture. The Sutra of Hui-neng is here accompanied by Hui-neng's verse-by-verse commentary on the Diamond Sutra—in its very first published English translation ever.

A masterful translation of one of the most influential Buddhist sutras—the Avatamsaka Sutra—by one of the greatest translators of Buddhist texts of our time Known in Chinese as Hua-yen and in Japanese as Kegon-kyo, the Avatamsaka Sutra, or Flower Ornament Scripture, is held in the highest regard and studied by Buddhists of all traditions. Through its structure and symbolism, as well as through its concisely stated principles, it conveys a vast range of Buddhist teachings. This one-volume edition contains Thomas Cleary’s definitive translation of all thirty-nine books of the sutra, along with an introduction, a glossary, and Cleary’s translation of Li Tongxuan’s seventh-century guide to the final book, the Gandavyuha, “Entry into the Realm of Reality.”

The title Lankavatara might mean entering Lanka (Perhaps referring to the temporary Mahayana period of Ceylon), suggesting that the doctrine of this scripture are possibly consistent with earlier Buddhism preserved in the Pali language. Suzuki has greatly helped the reader of the basic scripture by discussing the main ideas. He tells how to study this scripture, compares it with the popular Zen Buddhism discusses such typical and important doctrines as Mind-only the Triple body of the Buddha and many minor topics. Suzuki is both an exacting scholar and an understanding exponent of these difficult concepts. He adds a Sanskrit-Chinese-English Glossary, and also an Index. This work is essential for grasping the main ideas of the scripture.

Provides many new translations of original texts formative of Mahayana concepts of Enlightenment and resolves the 1200-year-old controversy between Indian and Tibetan views of the meaning of buddhahood.

This sutra is the study of what can be called "Nirvana Sutra Buddhism" or "Tathagatagarbha Buddhism". It is a very positive, balanced, faith-promoting and spiritually affirmative manifestation of Buddhism, which recognises the hidden reality of the unconditioned, egoless Buddha-Self in all beings. That Self of the Buddha is a mystery, beyond the reach and grasp of the samsaric intellect: while the Buddha-Self is real, it is certainly not comparable to our worldly, selfish self (ego) and cannot truly be captured within the net of words or concepts. Yet it is the only enduring Truth that can ever be found. This sutra leads us to the Ultimate Truth and indicate the Path to tread for an Awakening into Reality's presence, which is all-pervading and eternal. That eternally present Truth is the sole genuine Reality."You, monks, should not thus cultivate the notion of impermanence, suffering and non-Self, the notion of impurity and so forth, deeming them to be the true meaning of the Dharma, as those people searching in a pool for a radiant gem did, each thinking that bits of brick, stones, grass and gravel were the jewel. You should train yourselves well in efficacious means. In every situation, constantly meditate upon the idea of the Self, the idea of the Eternal, the Bliss, and the Pure ... Those who, desirous of attaining Reality, meditatatively cultivate these ideas, namely, the ideas of the Self, the Eternal, the Bliss, and the Pure, will skilfully bring forth the jewel, just like that wise person who obtained the genuine, priceless gem, rather than worthless detritus misperceived as the real thing."- The Buddha, Chapter Three, The Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra