The Awakening of Faith: Attributed to Asvaghosha (Translations from the Asian Classics) [Hardcover]

Yoshito S. Hakeda (Author), Ryuichi Abe (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 30, 2005 | ISBN-10: 0231131569 | ISBN-13: 978-0231131568

'Whenever I have questions on Mahayana Buddhist doctrine, I return to this text and Professor Hakeda's interpretation of it. I wonder if I will ever encounter a work that is at once more profound, attractive, and mysterious than the "Awakening of Faith"' - Ryuichi Abe, from the introduction First published in 1967, Yoshito S. Hakeda's critical interpretation of the "Awakening of Faith" has become a classic. This edition, which includes a new introduction by Ryuichi Abe, presents a beautiful and accessible translation of one of the most influential works in Mahayana Buddhism."The Awakening of Faith" explores the path leading to enlightenment and teaches the principles and methods of meditation. However, the text does not advocate a passive retreat into the quietude of meditation; instead it calls for dynamic social engagement based on compassion and wisdom. Philosophical and religious in its approach, the "Awakening of Faith" provides a comprehensive summary of the essentials of Mahayana Buddhism."The Awakening of Faith", commonly attributed to Asvaghosha, has been read and studied for more than a thousand years. Hakeda's interpretive comments, which have influenced a generation of scholars and readers, illuminate and explain the work and its more esoteric elements. Ryuichi Abe's introduction examines the importance of Hakeda's translation as well as the place of the Awakening of Faith within Buddhism. In this reprint edition, Chinese terms are rendered in Pinyin romanization. Also new to this edition are a Chinese character glossary and a vastly expanded index, which identify and cross-reference both major and minor theoretical terms and concepts throughout the work.

Editorial Reviews

Review

At last, a critical English translation of one of the most influential documents of Mahayana Buddhism faithful to the earliest extant Chinese text.

(Choice )

The most reliable version of the text available to English-speaking readers.

(Andrew May Journal of The Buddhist Society )

About the Author

Yoshito S. Hakeda was professor of Buddhist studies in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures and the Department of Religion at Columbia University.

Ryuichi Abe is Edwin O. Reischauer Institute Professor of Japanese Religions in the Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations at Harvard University.

(11/1/2006)

Hakeda was Associate Professor of Japanese in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures and Associate Professor of Religion at Columbia University. Ryuichi Abe is the Reischauer Institute Professor of Japanese Religions in the Department of Eas Aisan Languages and Cultures at Harvard University.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 136 pages
• Publisher: Columbia University Press (November 30, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0231131569
• ISBN-13: 978-0231131568
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,236,681 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An indispensable Mahayana text, December 2, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: The Awakening of Faith (Paperback)

This is an indispensable text in the Mahayana and, within the Mahayana, Zen traditions. The translation is interspersed with extensive notes and commentaries from classic ancient Chinese and Korean commentators, and includes honest discussions of possible variant translations of difficult phrases. Highly recommended to anyone with a serious interest in the root texts of the Mahayana tradition.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An important portrayal of the meaning of "Faith", November 26, 2006

By 

James M. Corrigan "James" (Stony Brook, NY USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Awakening of Faith (Translations from the Asian Classics) (Paperback)

For me, the highlight of this text is its depiction of faith, not as a blind grasping towards the truth, but as trust with conviction. The difference is important in today's world where the meaning of faith has been eviscerated of its positive affirmation of a path - conviction arising from a sure understanding, rather than just an adopted belief - to become more a label of anti-experiential assertion. Thus in today's world to have faith is to believe in the absence of evidence, while in this context to have faith is to have become permeated with the enlightened aspect of Suchness. The value of a text such as this is not the programmatic ideas that it presents, but the underlying understanding that these ideas point to. If one merely forms an attachment to the conceptual ideas, one is not developing faith.

The translator's introduction and commentary, much of which is taken from a few Chinese and Korean scholars, but especially that of Fazang, is generally excellent. One caveat is that there are a few places within the text where the typographic style of setting off the commentary from the base text is not adhered to (ex. top of pg 65 of reprint edition), potentially confusing the reader.

The introduction to the reprint edition by Abé is suspect. He starts with a whopper of a misunderstanding when he states: "... the Awakening of Faith boldly posits as the ultimate reality the minds of sentient beings in their everyday existence." The "minds" (plural and individuated) are presented as the permeation of ignorance and not the "ultimate reality". So I recommend caution in reading these remarks.

James Corrigan
An Introduction to Awareness

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is the corner stone to true cultivation, September 29, 2006

By 

David Farmer - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Awakening of Faith (Paperback)

A must read for all cultivators. Down to earth reading about having faith in the path and getting onto the path. When you awaken some day to feel that something is missing in your life and question what is it all for. This book, read with an open mind and heart will push you into the right direction.