This volume includes three texts.

The Larger Sutra on Amitayus relates how a certain mendicant monk by the name of Dharmakara, when practicing under the tutelage of the Tathagata Lokesvararaja, made 48 vows to save all suffering people; to fulfill these vows he created a paradise in the west called Sukhavati, and he himself thus became the Buddha Amitayus. The sutra states, furthermore, that if anyone believing in these 48 vows should chant the name of Amitayus, he will be born in the paradise of Sukhavati and there become a buddha. This sutra being the longest of the three basic...

Buddhism has permeated Japanese life and thought so deeply that knowledge of it is essential for a true understanding of any aspect of Japanese culture. This dictionary, with nearly five thousand entries on Buddhist terms, personal names, ceremonies, texts, and sects, will be of special interest to scholars and students of literature. Most entries have been drawn from such classics as Shasekishu Kokon chomonju, Hojoki, Makura no soshi, Tsurezure-gusa, Heike monogatari, and Taiheiki.

Hisao Inagaki received a PhD from the School of Oriental and African Studies,...

Over the course of Zen's development in China and Japan, the sayings and episodes of the masters have formed a huge collection of literature. Designed to put these writings within easy reach of serious students for inspiration and understanding, this glossary provides 5,500 entries on Zen terms, names of persons, texts, idiomatic expressions, references to Chinese classics, general Buddhist terms, and even particles and other parts of speech considered important in grasping the original intent and meaning.

Hisao Inagaki received a PhD from the School of Oriental and African...