Xuedou's 100 Odes to Old Cases is recognized as the seminal discourse in Chan Buddhism, one that has exerted significant influence on the way stories of former teachers (guze) have been appreciated and appropriated for the past thousand years. In this volume, Steven Heine offers a much-needed translation of this pivotal work along with extensive background and commentary. Heine brings important perspective to a 1000-year old text that became the basis for the Blue Cliff Record, which continues to have a profound impact on the overall legacy of East Asian Buddhist intellectual history and religious literature. Xuedou's verses reflect the author's unique capacity for taming through elegance the undisciplined and deluded minds of followers struggling with self-imposed obstacles to discern reality and thereby discover inner peace. Xuedou cites multiple Chan sources, uses irregular meter to disrupt the reader's expectations, and evokes unusual allusions to Chinese lore while often interjecting personal comments or lyrical imagery that goes beyond a reliance on doctrine. Xuedou's work is timeless, informative, and extremely influential. Heine offers us a glimpse into his mind and work, as we are taken back in time to the birth of the most essential aesthetic qualities of Chan and Zen Buddhist discourse.

About the Author
Steven Heine is Professor of Religious Studies and History and founding director of the Asian Studies Program at Florida International University. He has published three dozen monographs and edited volumes on the history and thought of Zen Buddhism in East Asia, with a special emphasis on the role of poetry in expressing Zen philosophy. Heine is the recipient of Japan's Order of the Rising Sun Award in recognition of a lifetime of service to promoting Japanese culture in the west.

Reviews
This is an excellent book on a topic otherwise not covered elsewhere in English language scholarship. Heine is one of-if not-the most prolific writer in English over the past two decades or more on the topic of so-called Japanese Zen (Chinese Chan and Korean Son) and especially literature, which makes this a welcome addition to his oeuvre. Here, by translating Xuedou's 100 Odes, readers gain access to-as Heine points out-one of the most important collections of Chinese Chan texts, which fills a considerable gap in scholarship on the topic of Chan/Son/Zen literature in translation. * George A. Keyworth, Associate Professor of History, University of Saskatchewan *
Heine's book is a major contribution to our understanding of Chan and of Chinese literary achievements...This important book is abundantly endowed with what Chinese poetry critics call shenyun -marvelous resonance! * Dale Wright, Journal of Buddhist Ethics *
Xuedou's 100 Odes to Old Cases: A Translation with Commentary, it is an autonomous text that deserves careful study. * Lion's Roar *
With a full translation and an insightful commentary, Steven Heine's Xuedou's 100 Odes to Old Cases provides superb access to a seminal Chan Buddhist text that gave rise to a literary and religious tradition unparalleled anywhere in the world...This important book is abundantly endowed with what Chinese poetry critics call shenyun-marvelous resonance! * Dale Wright, Journal of Buddhist Ethics *



Book Information
ISBN 9780197676998
Author Steven Heine
Format Paperback
Page Count 288
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 408g
Dimensions(mm) 160mm * 226mm * 31mm