{"id":1118,"date":"2012-06-24T14:35:17","date_gmt":"2012-06-24T14:35:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/shindharmanet.com\/?p=1118"},"modified":"2023-12-02T07:59:13","modified_gmt":"2023-12-02T07:59:13","slug":"readingmodern","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bschawaii.org\/shindharmanet\/2012\/06\/24\/readingmodern\/","title":{"rendered":"Reading for a modern Shin"},"content":{"rendered":"

While there are many excellent and helpful publications listed in the \u201cBooks\u201d section of Shin Dharma Net (see index at right), unfortunately, Shin literature isn’t easy to come by in general bookstores. Still, there are two consistently dependable sources: Buddhist Churches of America Bookstore<\/a> (BCABS) in Berkeley, and the Honpa Hongwanji Mission of Hawaii Book Store<\/a> (HHBS) in Honolulu. As good books become increasingly accessible, a more reliable understanding of the teaching will reach a wider audience, and its meaning for modern people become clearer.<\/p>\n

Here are a few recent and forthcoming books to illumine our understanding of Shinran and Shin Buddhism:<\/p>\n

>><\/strong> \u201cCultivating Spirituality: A Modern Shin Buddhist Anthology,\u201d by Mark L. Blum and Robert F. Rhodes (2011) SUNY Press (NY). This book contains essays by modern leading Japanese teachers of the Otani-Higashi Hongwanji tradition. The introduction provides an orientation to the modern development of Shin (Hardcover & Kindle eds. at Amazon<\/a>).<\/p>\n

>><\/strong> Two by Jitsuen Kakehashi:<\/p>\n

\u201cBearer of the Light: The Life and Thought of Rennyo,\u201d Pure Land Publications (from BCAB<\/a>). This text focuses on Shin Buddhism\u2019s eighth monshu \u2013 successor to Shinran \u2013 who was active in the 15th <\/sup>century. He established Hongwanji organizationally and socially, making it a large and powerful religious community. Additionally, he was an eloquent propagator. Hongwanji still benefits from the impetus he gave it in early modern times.<\/p>\n

\u2013 and \u2013 <\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cHearing the Buddha\u2019s Call,\u201d translated by Toshi Arai, and published recently by the Buddhist Study Center in Honolulu (contact the BSC<\/a> for information). This book focuses on Shinran\u2019s life and teachings, offering a modern interpretation based on important passages in his writings.<\/p>\n

>><\/strong> By Koshin Ohtani:<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Buddha\u2019s Wish for the World,\u201d (1st ed., 2009), published by (and available through) the American Buddhist Study Center<\/a>; and \u201cThe Buddha\u2019s Call to Awaken\u201d (available now at HHBS<\/a>). They are translations of the present Monshu\u2019s thought as he seeks to establish Shin Buddhism as both a socially relevant and a personal faith.<\/p>\n

>><\/strong> Finally, available August 15th (pre-order from Amazon<\/a>) … \u201cShinran\u2019s Kyogyoshinsho: The Collection of Passages Expounding the True Teaching, Living, Faith, and Realizing of the Pure Land,\u201d by Daisetz Teitaro (D.T.) Suzuki. Here we have a re-publication of Dr. Suzuki\u2019s translation of Shinran\u2019s major work. Regrettably, Suzuki Sensei passed away before completing the final volume of the work.<\/p>\n

I hope some of these books will fit into your reading schedule, and that by encountering their message you\u2019ll gain new insights to deepen and enrich your 21st-century experience with Shin Buddhism.<\/p>\n

Thanks for visiting.<\/p>\n

Gassho _\/_ Al Bloom<\/p>\n

———————————<\/p>\n

p.s. As always, feel free to leave comments and let me know what you think.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While there are many excellent and helpful publications listed in the \u201cBooks\u201d section of Shin Dharma Net (see index at right), unfortunately, Shin literature isn’t easy to come by in general bookstores. Still, there are two consistently dependable sources: Buddhist …<\/span> Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1118","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bschawaii.org\/shindharmanet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1118","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bschawaii.org\/shindharmanet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bschawaii.org\/shindharmanet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bschawaii.org\/shindharmanet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bschawaii.org\/shindharmanet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1118"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bschawaii.org\/shindharmanet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1118\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bschawaii.org\/shindharmanet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1118"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bschawaii.org\/shindharmanet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1118"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bschawaii.org\/shindharmanet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1118"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}