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Master of Zen
Master of Zen: Extraordinary Teachings from Hui Neng’s Altar Sutra — Book Details
Master of Zen: Extraordinary Teachings from Hui Neng’s Altar Sutra
Master of Zen: Extraordinary Teachings from Hui Neng’s Altar Sutra
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Author(s): 
Subjects(s): 
Buddhism

Price:  $24.95

ISBN:  978-1-936597-18-5
Book Size:  8" x 9"
# of Pages:  180
Language:  English



Description

One day in the 7th century A.D., an illiterate woodcutter named Hui Neng (638-713) walked into a Chinese marketplace. He heard someone reciting The Diamond Sutra, and was instantly enlightened. Later, he became the Sixth Patriarch of Chan (Zen) Buddhism, and, some would say, the true father of Zen as we know it today. The collection of his discourses is known as the Platform or Altar Sutra; it contains the inspiring autobiography and extraordinary teachings of this “Master of Zen.” This edition is adapted by Tze-si Huang and has 90 black-and-white illustrations by award-winning illustrator and author Demi.

AWARDS

  • Winner in the “Religion: Buddhism” category of The USA “Best Books 2012” Awards, sponsored by USA Book News
  • Silver Midwest Book Award for “Religion/Philosophy”

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Details on “Master of Zen”

One day in the 7th century A.D., an illiterate woodcutter named Hui Neng (638-713) walked into a Chinese marketplace. He heard someone reciting The Diamond Sutra, and was instantly enlightened. Later, he became the Sixth Patriarch of Chan (Zen) Buddhism, and, some would say, the true father of Zen as we know it today. The collection of his discourses is known as the Platform or Altar Sutra; it contains the inspiring autobiography and extraordinary teachings of this “Master of Zen.” This edition is adapted by Tze-si Huang and has 90 black-and-white illustrations by award-winning illustrator and author Demi.

AWARDS

  • Winner in the “Religion: Buddhism” category of The USA “Best Books 2012” Awards, sponsored by USA Book News
  • Silver Midwest Book Award for “Religion/Philosophy”



About the translator/adaptor and the illustrator of “Master of Zen”

Tze-si Huang

Tze-si “Jesse” Huang (1938-2022) was a professional writer and translator. He was born in Chungking, China, the youngest of ten children. At a young age, Jesse stowed away on a freighter going to Hong Kong and Taiwan, where he stayed and prayed with the monks at various Buddhist temples. He eventually immigrated to the US, attending New York University and Columbia University for postgraduate studies. In 1975, he met his wife, the children's book author and illustrator, Demi. In the United States he worked as a financial analyst and manager in several US companies while continuing to pursue his love of translating from his native Chinese into English.

The World Wisdom book Master of Zen: Extraordinary Teachings from Hui Neng’s Altar Sutra (taken from the discourses known as the Platform or Altar Sutra by Hui Neng, the Sixth Patriarch of Chan or Zen Buddhism), was translated and adapted by Tze-si Huang and illustrated by his wife, Demi.

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Demi

Demi is an award-winning children's book author and illustrator. She has published over 130 books during her career. Born in Cambridge, MA, she studied art at the Instituto Allende, Mexico; with Sister Corita at the Immaculate Heart College in Los Angeles; and was a Fulbright scholar at the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, India where she received her Master’s degree. Well known for her biographies of pivotal historical and spiritual figures such as Buddha, Krishna, Lao Tzu, Jesus, Mary, Muhammad, Rumi, Saint Francis, Gandhi, and the Dalai Lama, her book The Empty Pot was selected by former First Lady Barbara Bush in 1990 as one of the books to be read on the ABC Radio Network Program Mrs. Bush’s Story Time, sponsored by the Children's Literacy Initiative.

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Reviews of “Master of Zen”

“From instant enlightenment to conscious departure, the Sixth (and last) Patriarch of Ch’an (Zen) Buddhism, Hui Neng, is the subject of Master of Zen. From the seventh Century AD, these stories, illuminating the Buddhist ‘middle way,’ come to life with fresh translations by Tze-si Huang, a native of China and long-time Buddhist; black-and-white line drawings accompany the text on facing pages, illustrated by Huang’s wife, noted children’s book illustrator, Demi.

“The deceptively simple, though not necessarily easy, text and drawings trace the wisdom journey of Hui Neng in the ‘Altar Sutra.’ As the story begins, monks appear after his birth and offer a name: ‘Hui,’ meaning ‘to apply the great dharma (universal law) in order to help all beings,’ and ‘Neng,’ meaning ‘the ability to spread Buddha’s teaching to the world.’

“Although poor and untutored, Hui Neng came into enlightenment in a marketplace when he overheard a monk chanting the Diamond Sutra. He inquired into the text and ended up traveling to a distant monastery. There, uneducated though enlightened, his presence caused problems. Although recognized and acknowledged by the Fifth Patriarch (of the Zen lineage that started with Bodhidharma, who is considered the First Patriarch), it was at night, and in secret, and Hui Neng was then sent away.

“The stories of his travels and meetings with those seeking enlightenment are laced with Hui Neng’s wisdom, aphorisms, lessons, and gathas, or verses. Readers can stand in the shoes of seekers who don’t fully comprehend the teachings. The question is, will clarity eventually dawn for present-day readers, as it seemed to for seekers back in seventh-century China?

“Falling into duality seems to be the problem, which Hui Neng addresses: ‘If they ask you about non-being, answer with being; if they ask you about the ordinary, answer with the holy. These two ways mutually depend upon each other, creating the principle of the middle way. Follow the same way with all questions, then you won’t lose the principle.’ He continues, ‘My teaching is non-dual, so is the mind. The way is pure without any forms…Your mind is Buddha.’

“This volume offers bare bones context for those not already familiar with the Zen Buddhist tradition, and so will hold greatest appeal to those who have some background. Still, it’s an inviting introduction for all spiritual seekers to drop deeply into the lessons of an enlightened master, considered the ‘father’ of Zen.”
Bobbeye Middendorf, from a review in ForeWord Reviews (online)



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