Comprehensive Commentary on the Heart Sutra <br> By: Heng-ching Shih

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Comprehensive Commentary on the Heart Sutra
By: Heng-ching Shih

Our Price: $35.00
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Author: Heng-ching Shih
Format: Hardcover

Product Code: 12085

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The Pan-jo po-lo-mi-to hsin-ching yu-tsan is a comprehensive commentary on the Heart Sutra (Prajnaparamita-hrdaya-sutra) by K'uei-chi (632-682). The Heart Sutra, a Buddhist classic and the most popular sutra in China, comprises only two hundred and sixty-two words in the Chinese translation. However, it is said that the essence of the Prajnaparamita Sutra, and even the entire Mahayana teaching, is contained within it.
The Heart Sutra concisely elucidates the philosophy of sunyata (emptiness), which teaches that not only the self (atman) but also all dharmas -- the elements that make up our world -- are empty and ultimately nonexistent. The fact that all things in the phenomenal world are constantly changing indicates that they are devoid of inherent self-nature (svabhava). The reason that they are without selfhood is because they arise in dependence on causes and conditions (pratityasamutpada). Insight into the empty nature of everything leads to the perfection of wisdom (prajnaparamita).
[...] The Pan-jo po-lo-mi-to hsin-ching yu-tsan is especially significant and unique in that K'uei-chi commented on the Heart Sutra from both Madhyamikan and Yogacarin perspectives. Thus, it became the only source of the Fa-hsiang school's view of Prajnaparamita thought.
The commentary can be roughly divided into two main parts. The first part expounds the meaning of the title, Prajnaparamita-hrdaya-sutra and goes on to describe the teachings and practice of the six perfections (paramitas) of the bodhisattva. The second part begins with an explanation of the bodhisattva stages (bhumis) and then gives a detailed elucidation of the text of the Heart Sutra, sentence by sentence. It first explains The meaning of practice by citing the five stages of practice as taught by the Yogacara schools, the ten perfections (paramitas), the thirteen adobes, etc. It goes on to explain the meaning and negate the reality of the characteristics of dharmas (dharma-laksanas), such as the five skandhas, the twelve sense fields, the eighteen realms, and the Four Noble Truths. Finally, it expounds the religious significance of the perfection of wisdom.

A Comprehensive Commentary on the Heart Sutra, Heng-ching Shih, Numata Center for Buddhist Translation and Research, Hardcover, 149 pages, $35.00

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