Authorized Buddhist Books

[enjitsu]

Amito Fo,

The following is a list of authorized Buddhist books written by monks that will be updated as necessary.

English Works

Three Contemplations Toward Buddha Nature ISBN 957-9373-13-2
The Sweet Dews of Chan ISBN 957-9373-15-9
The Sutra of Forty-two Chapters Divulged by the Buddha ISBN 957-9373-19-1
The Dharmic Treasure Altar Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch ISBN957-9373-18-3
The Diamond Sutra (The Diamond Prajna-Paramita Sutra) ISBN 957-9373-20-5
The Sutra of Consumate Enlightenement ISBN 978-957-9373-28-9
The Sutra of Terra-Treasure ISBN 978-957-9373-29-6
Tapping The Inconceivable ISBN 957-9373-16-7

Chinese Works

A Commentary on The Surangama Sutra ISBN 957-9373-21-3
A Commentary on Lankavatara Sutra ISBN 978-957-9373-24-1
A Series of Commentaries on Heart Sutra ISBN 957-9373-08-6
Logicism in Buddhism - A Commentary on The Tractate on the Right Truth through the Comprehension of Causality Logicism ISBN 957-9373-14-0
The Metamorphic Vestiges in America: A Collection of Speeches on Buddhism Vol 2 ISBN 957-9373-11-6
The Metamorphic Vestiges in America: A Collection of Speeches on Buddhism Vol 1 ISBN 957-9373-10-8
The Treatise on the Portal of Mahayanic Centi-dharmic Apprehension: A New Commentary ISBN 957-9373-12-4
A Commentary on The Thirty-Gatha Tractate on Sole-Cognizancism ISBN 978-957-9373-25-8
A Commentary on The Tractate upon the Contemplation on the Factors Adhered to ISBN 978-957-9373-26-5
A Commentary on The Gatha for the Operating Patterns of the Eight Cognizances ISBN 978-957-9373-27-2

Amito Fo,
Enjitsu

[Huifeng]

Amito Fo,

The following is a list of authorized Buddhist books written by monks that will be updated as necessary.

...

Amito Fo,
Enjitsu

"Authorized" by whom, exactly?

I note that in your profile you have written: "I'm the Westerner Representative of Buddhism."

Wow! That's quite a claim. May I ask how you came to this position?

[Huifeng]

May I ask, are you a student of Ven. Cheng Kuan? (Or are you Ven. Cheng Kuan himself?)

[Mr. G]

Hi enjitsu,

I don't see how these lists of books are mainly associated with Shingon. I will move this thread to the general forum for the time being.

[Mr. G]

Amito Fo,

The following is a list of authorized Buddhist books written by monks that will be updated as necessary.

...

Amito Fo,
Enjitsu

"Authorized" by whom, exactly?

+ 1

[enjitsu]

Amito Fo,

The following is a list of authorized Buddhist books written by monks that will be updated as necessary.

...

Amito Fo,
Enjitsu

"Authorized" by whom, exactly?

+ 1

Venerable Cheng Kuan is the 53rd Generation Acharya of Shingon Shu. Acharya is the rank of the monk. Shingon is the specific denomination. It is Orthodox Esoteric Buddhism. Chan is the chinese name for Zen, another denomination.

If you want to read some good books on Buddhism, my reccomendation is to focus on reading the Buddhism books written by Monks. So there is some legitimacy to the information, otherwise, if you read books by non monks regarding Buddhism, you can just regard that as that persons personal opinion. Make sure not to mistake someones personal opinion as being the offical doctrine of Buddhism. Only monks are allowed to teach the offical positions of Buddhism.

[plwk]

And I thought only Lord Brahma had issues...

[Indrajala]

Venerable Cheng Kuan is the 53rd Generation Acharya of Shingon Shu. Acharya is the rank of the monk. Shingon is the specific denomination. It is Orthodox Esoteric Buddhism. Chan is the chinese name for Zen, another denomination.

Where'd he get his vinaya ordination from? Is he a full Bhiksu?

[plwk]

Huseng ... http://www.abtemple.org/cgi-bin/abtempl ... 1065790136

[catmoon]

Venerable Cheng Kuan is the 53rd Generation Acharya of Shingon Shu. Acharya is the rank of the monk. Shingon is the specific denomination. It is Orthodox Esoteric Buddhism. Chan is the chinese name for Zen, another denomination.

If you want to read some good books on Buddhism, my reccomendation is to focus on reading the Buddhism books written by Monks. So there is some legitimacy to the information, otherwise, if you read books by non monks regarding Buddhism, you can just regard that as that persons personal opinion. Make sure not to mistake someones personal opinion as being the offical doctrine of Buddhism. Only monks are allowed to teach the offical positions of Buddhism.

I'm sure the Ven. Huifeng will be deeply grateful for your explanation of the term Chan. No doubt he has been wondering about this for many years. I guess they never told him what it meant in grad school, or at his ordination. I bet he never thought of reading books written by monks either, surely this will be a greatly enriching experience for him. How great the blessings he will reap from your post!

[ronnewmexico]

Well that pretty much goes without saying

[Astus]

"Only monks are allowed to teach the offical positions of Buddhism."

I wonder what would Vimalakirti say about that. Or Sakya Trizin.

[Will]

Amito Fo,

The following is a list of authorized Buddhist books written by monks that will be updated as necessary.

English Works

Three Contemplations Toward Buddha Nature ISBN 957-9373-13-2
The Sweet Dews of Chan ISBN 957-9373-15-9
The Sutra of Forty-two Chapters Divulged by the Buddha ISBN 957-9373-19-1
The Dharmic Treasure Altar Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch ISBN957-9373-18-3
The Diamond Sutra (The Diamond Prajna-Paramita Sutra) ISBN 957-9373-20-5
The Sutra of Consumate Enlightenement ISBN 978-957-9373-28-9
The Sutra of Terra-Treasure ISBN 978-957-9373-29-6
Tapping The Inconceivable ISBN 957-9373-16-7

Amito Fo,
Enjitsu

I would like to order these English works in paperback form, but did not find an email address at the Americana Buddhist Temple website. Do you have an email for them Enjitsu?

By the way, has anyone read these sutras & commentaries? Looking at the English used at the website, I hope such a florid vocabulary is not used in the translations.

[Indrajala]

"Only monks are allowed to teach the offical positions of Buddhism."

I wonder what would Vimalakirti say about that. Or Sakya Trizin.

What would Astus say about it who teaches Buddhist courses IRL?

[Huifeng]

"Authorized" by whom, exactly?

+ 1

Thank you, Enjitsu, for your reply.

Venerable Cheng Kuan is the 53rd Generation Acharya of Shingon Shu. Acharya is the rank of the monk. Shingon is the specific denomination. It is Orthodox Esoteric Buddhism. Chan is the chinese name for Zen, another denomination.

I thought as much. I also asked in another thread whether or not you were a student of Ven Cheng Kuan, or if in fact you are Ven Cheng Kuan himself?

The term "acarya" is actually not "the rank of monk", the two terms are not synonymous. A newly ordained bhiksu/ni is not an acarya, though many acaryas may be bhiksu/nis. And, given that this is regards the Shingon school, I am wondering about what definition of "monk" you use, as it can't be "bhiksu/ni", because that is not used in Japan.

However, this does not answer the question of "authorization". You seem to be saying that whoever is an acarya is authorized, right? But are you also saying that being a bhiksu/ni is authorization?

If you want to read some good books on Buddhism, my reccomendation is to focus on reading the Buddhism books written by Monks. So there is some legitimacy to the information, otherwise, if you read books by non monks regarding Buddhism, you can just regard that as that persons personal opinion. Make sure not to mistake someones personal opinion as being the offical doctrine of Buddhism. Only monks are allowed to teach the offical positions of Buddhism.

Although I also recommend teachings by those who practice the path, I think that a rigid distinction between non-monastic and monastic teachers as "legitimate" and "personal opinion" respectively is not that helpful at all.

Moreover, simply being a bhiksu/ni does not guarantee that the teaching is particularly accurate or correct (unfortunately).

[Heruka]

It is Orthodox Esoteric Buddhism.

one cannot maintain orthodox prohibitions, in modern day, lay lifestyle.

[Will]

While visiting the website of Americana I did not read the online translations. Thankfully though, someone who had, sent me a sample of the translation:

Your World-Veneratedship, the Three Thousand Megathousand Worlds that the Thus-Adventist enunciates are Non-worlds; hence they are denominated as Worlds. Why is it so? For if the World be of Real Substantiality, it would be of Uni-amalgamated Holism. The Uni-amalgamated Holism that the Thus-Adventist enunciates is Non-uni-amalgamated Holism; hence it is denominated as Uni-amalgamated Holism.”

“Subhuti,” quoth the Buddha, “actually the socalled Uni-amalgamated Holism is unutterable; yet the Common Plebeians are avaricious and strongly attached to that matter.”

Perhaps this is from the Diamond Sutra.

In any case the teacher must be informed that he is only driving away potential English-speaking people from the buddhadharma. Some will be laughing, some sad, some angry, that such indifference to understandable English for the Dharma, not to mention accurate English, is being allowed. Making use of existing sutra translations would be a great help in the revision process also.

[Luke]

*observes the patience and compassion which Ven. Huifeng displays above with great admiration*

[Astus]

"Only monks are allowed to teach the offical positions of Buddhism."

I wonder what would Vimalakirti say about that. Or Sakya Trizin.

What would Astus say about it who teaches Buddhist courses IRL?

I think it was Ajahn Brahm who said that fortunately Buddhism is not owned by anyone. There is no such thing as "orthodox Buddhism" as there is no single person or a group to tell what is official and what is heretic. That's why there are different schools.

[ronnewmexico]

While it's certainly true anyone can be any type of buddhist in a personal context, it is also true that all schools attest and mutually agree to lineage as being paramount to a derermination of authenticity of their respective schools. Buddhism does not have a equilivency to the theist notion of anyone who may care to start a school can do so. IN Buddhism without lineage....it is gerenally not accepted as buddhism. A recent invention about ten years or so ago on the internet of a self made zen school attests to that. Such is simply not accepted.

It is certainly true that not just monastics may express view, as in many forms of buddhism, within the schools exist a nonmonastic form of transmission of lineage such as is present in tibetan buddhism in the tulku system. And monastics can be in error as well.

But to state or imply blanket authority on stateing what is or is not buddhism without any qualifier of lineage....is not normally buddhism. Except as mentioned in a personal context. Lineage in whatever form is the qualifier. This was in response to the early developement of buddhism and its context.

Personally believe whatever you want. Formally it is lineage.