A compact summary like Probing the Sutras has been sorely needed for some time, as more and more Westerners have dipped into meditation without any understanding of its predominantly Buddhist scriptural underpinning.

This concise, well-informed introduction to the history and contents of eleven seminal Buddhist sutras also provides suggestions for reflection, meditation, and practical applications related to the key teachings of each scripture.

Readers of Probing the Sutras will be able to develop a framework for understanding Buddhist doctrines--and see the unique pearls of wisdom contained within each sutra.

Probing the Sutras: A Guide to Studying and Understanding Buddhism's Most Essential Texts, Guy Gibbon, Wipf and Stock, Paperback, 142 pages, $19.00

Guy Gibbon was a professor at the University of Minnesota and the University of Illinois, a longtime Zen priest, and the author of many books on history, archeology, and spirituality. He died in 2020, shortly after completing Probing the Sutras.

CONTENTS: Probing the Sutras
Foreword by Roger R. Jackson		vii
Preface by Tim Burkett		xi
INTRODUCTION: UNTANGLING THE THREADS		xiii
1	THE DHAMMACAKKAPAVATTANA SUTTA	1
2	THE SATIPATTHANA SUTTA	9
3	THE HEART SUTRA	17
4	THE DIAMOND SUTRA	25
5	THE TEACHING OF VIMALAKIRTI	34
6	THE LOTUS SUTRA	45
7	THE NIRVANA SUTRA	53
8	THE AVATAMSAKA SUTRA	64
9	THE LANKAVATARA SUTRA	72
10	THE SHURANGAMA SUTRA	82
11	THE PLATFORM SUTRA	92
12	WORDS OF WISDOM FROM EARLY BUDDHISM	100
Bibliography		111
About Guy Gibbon		121
About Tim Burkett		122
About Roger R. Jackson		123