In "Korean Buddhism: History—Condition—Art" by Frederick Starr, readers embark on a journey through the rich cultural and spiritual heritage of Korea. Starr's expertise shines as he explores the history, conditions, and art associated with Korean Buddhism. The book provides valuable insights into the profound impact of Buddhism on Korean society and its artistic expressions. It's an enlightening read for those interested in Asian culture, spirituality, and art.

Encounters, networks, identities and diversity are at the core of the history of Buddhism. They are also the focus of Buddhist Encounters and Identities across East Asia, edited by Ann Heirman, Carmen Meinert and Christoph Anderl. While long-distance networks allowed Buddhist ideas to travel to all parts of East Asia, it was through local and trans-local networks and encounters, and a diversity of people and societies, that identities were made and negotiated. This book undertakes a detailed examination of discrete Buddhist identities rooted in unique cultural practices, beliefs and indigenous socio-political conditions. Moreover, it presents a fascinating picture of the intricacies of the regional and cross-regional networks that connected South and East Asia.

This book is a translation and study of the Vajrasamadhi-Sutra and an examination of its broad implications for the development of East Asian Buddhism. The Vajrasamadhi-Sutra was traditionally assumed to have been translated from Sanskrit, but some modern scholars, principally in Japan, have proposed that it is instead an indigenous Chinese composition. In contrast to both of these views, Robert Buswell maintains it was written in Korea around A.D. 685 by a Korean adept affiliated with the East Mountain school of the nascent Chinese Ch'an tradition. He thus considers it to be the oldest work of Korean Ch'an (or Son, which in Japan became known as the Zen school), and the second-oldest work of the sinitic Ch'an tradition as a whole. Buswell makes his case for the scripture's dating, authorship, and provenance by placing the sutra in the context of Buddhist doctrinal writings and early Ch'an literature in China and Korea. This approach leads him to an extensive analysis of the origins of Ch'an ideology in both countries and of the principal trends in the sinicization of Buddhism. Buddhism has typically been studied in terms of independent national traditions, but Buswell maintains that the history of religion in China, Korea, and Japan should be treated as a whole. Originally published in 1989. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions. The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

This is a translation of the Han’guk ui Bulgyo sasang, the magnum opus of Koh Ikjin 高翊晉(1934–1988), a renowned scholar of Korean Buddhism that surveys the Korean Buddhist thought and serves as a guide for its development. As a professor in the Department of Buddhist Studies at Dongguk University, Koh researched the Buddhist thought from India to Korea. In addition to the Han’guk ui Bulgyo sasang, he left several works, including the Aham beopsang ui chegyeseong yeon’gu (Research on the Systems of Āgama’s Dharma Teaching), the Han’guk godae Bulgyo sasangsa (History of Ancient Korean Buddhist Thought), and the Hyeondae Han’guk Bulgyo ui banghyang (Direction of Contemporary Korean Buddhism), which show his extensive scholarship. This book consists of four chapters: (1) “An Interpretation of Korean Buddhism from the Perspective of History as the Mind’s Manifestation”; (2) “Iryeon’s Perception of History and the Dan’gun Myth”; (3) “Origins and Development of Korean Buddhist Philosophy”; (4) “Buddhist Ethics and Korean Society.” Chapter 1 explains the perspective of history as the mind’s manifestation and the emergence and transmission of the Taego lineage. Chapter 2 deals with the Dongmyeong wang-pyeon, Iryeon’s view of the Dan’gun myth through the Samguk yusa, and the rationalist moralist view of history. Chapter 3 examines main concepts in the history of Korean Buddhist philosophy, such as the concept of emptiness as seen in the Perfection of Wisdom Sutras of the Mahayana tradition, Seungnang’s Madhyamaka view of emptiness, Woncheuk’s Yogācāra view of emptiness, Wonhyo’s Hwaeom view of emptiness, and Jinul’s Seon view of emptiness. Chapter 4 explores ethical doctrines of Buddhism, Buddhist ethics established in Korean society, and contemporary significance of Buddhist ethics.

Centered on the practice of seeking rebirth in the Pure Land paradise Sukhāvatī, the Amitābha cult has been the dominant form of Buddhism in Korea since the middle of the Silla period (ca. 300–935). In Aspiring to Enlightenment, Richard McBride combines analyses of scriptural, exegetical, hagiographical, epigraphical, art historical, and literary materials to provide an episodic account of the cult in Silla times and its rise in an East Asian context through the mutually interconnected perspectives of doctrine and practice. McBride demonstrates that the Pure Land tradition emerging in Korea in the seventh and eighth centuries was vibrant and collaborative and that Silla monk-scholars actively participated in a shared, international Buddhist discourse. Monks such as the exegete par excellence Wŏnhyo and the Yogācāra proponent Kyŏnghŭng did not belong to a specific sect or school, but like their colleagues in China, they participated in a broadly inclusive doctrinal tradition. He examines scholarly debates surrounding the cults of Maitreya and Amitābha, the practice of buddhānusmṛti, the recollection of Amitābha, the “ten recollections” within the larger Mahāyāna context of the bodhisattva’s path of practice, the emerging Huayan intellectual tradition, and the influential interpretations of medieval Chinese Pure Land proponents Tanluan and Shandao. Finally, his work illuminates the legacy of the Silla Pure Land tradition, revealing how the writings of Silla monks continued to be of great value to Japanese monks for several centuries. With its fresh and comprehensive approach to the study of Pure Land Buddhism, Aspiring to Enlightenment is important for not only students and scholars of Korean history and religion and East Asian Buddhism, but also those interested in the complex relationship between doctrinal writings and devotional practice “on the ground.”