[Buddha-l] The Śūraṅgama Sūtra: A New Translation

[Jason Tseng]

Hi, list members, Sorry to briefly interrupt your discussion.  I like to
inform you about the publication of:


The Śūraṅgama Sūtra: A New Translation

With Excerpts from the Commentary

by the Venerable Master Hsüan Hua.

Ukiah, CA: Buddhist Text Translation Society, 2009.



The complete text of the Sūtra is now available in this entirely new
single-volume English translation.



“A must for anyone interested in gaining a deeper understanding of the
Buddhist teaching.”

Huston Smith, author of The World’s Religions and Why Religion Matters.



The Śūraṅgama Sūtra (T. 945) has been held in great esteem in the Mahayana
Buddhist countries of East Asia for over a thousand years. Its appeal lies
in the broad scope of its teachings and in the depth and clarity of its
prescriptions for contemplative practice. Its wealth of theoretical and
practical instruction in the spiritual life often made it the first major
text to be studied by newly ordained monks, particularly in the Chan School.
The new translation, prepared by members of the Buddhist Text Translation
Society, is enhanced by excerpts from the commentary by the Venerable Master
Hsüan Hua (Xuanhua).



More advance praise for the new translation:



“The Śūraṅgama Sūtra is one of the seminal scriptures of Chinese Buddhism,
particularly influential among followers of the Chan (Zen) school. This new
translation by long-term Buddhist practitioners combines scholarly rigor
with the flavor of personal commitment. The translation is further enhanced
by inclusion of the lucid commentary on the sutra by the Tripitaka Master
Hsüan Hua, one of the pioneers in bringing Chinese Buddhism to the West.”

Ven. Bhikkhu Bodhi, translator of the Middle Length Discourses (Majjhima
Nikaya) and the Connected Discourses (Samyutta Nikaya)



“When people ask about the Buddha’s teachings on meditation, in addition to
the core texts on the subject in the Pali Canon (the scriptures of the
Southern School), I frequently cite the Śūraṅgama Sūtra as being of
inestimable value. It spells out certain aspects of the meditative process
in uniquely clear and helpful ways. ...In particular I have employed the
Sutra’s teachings concerning the     meditation on hearing as a central
element of my spiritual training for more than twenty-five years.... This
lucid, accessible and reliable translation of the Śūraṅgama Sūtra, with its
commentarial notes by the highly esteemed Master Hsüan Hua, will be a
distinctive and precious addition to the bookshelves of not only those
interested in Buddhist philosophy as an academic discipline but, more
importantly, to those who wish to liberate their own hearts and minds for
the benefit of themselves and all other living beings.”

Ajahn Amaro Bhikkhu, co-abbot of Abhayagiri Buddhist Monastery.



“The Buddhist Text Translation Society has given us a greatly improved
rendering of one of the most important and profound Mahayana texts in the
entire Buddhist Canon. During the past thousand years, the Śūraṅgama Sūtra
has been used perhaps more than any other single text in the transmission of
the Dharma by Chinese and other East Asian masters. This eminently readable
and clearly annotated English translation constitutes a significant
contribution not only to the study but also to the practice of Buddhism in
the West.”

Bill Porter (“Red Pine”), translator of the works of Chinese poets

and Buddhist masters, including The Collected Poems of Cold Mountain

and The Zen Teachings of Bodhidharma.



554 pages, with a foreword by Rev. Heng Sure, an extensive introduction,
explanatory footnotes, and index.

Publication date: August 15, 2009.

ISBN-13: 978-0-88139-962-2

Price: Hardcover edition $30; with slipcover $50.



Available directly from the Buddhist Text Translation Society
http://bttsonline.org/product.aspx?pid=393, Amazon.com, and independent
bookstores.



More information about this new translation is available on the Internet at
http://surangama.drba.org/.



It is available for class use at a special discounted price of $15 for
full-time students when purchased directly through the Buddhist Text
Translation Society’s website (bttsonline.org).

Please forward to this to anyone who you think would be interested.  Thanks!