About this item
Among Buddhist traditions, Zen has been remarkably successful in garnering and sustaining interest outside the Buddhist homelands of Asia, and “zen” is now part of the global cultural lexicon. This deeply informed book explores the history of this enduring Japanese tradition—from its beginnings as a form of Buddhist thought and practice imported from China to its reinvention in medieval Japan as a force for religious, political, and cultural change to its role in Japan’s embrace of modernity. Going deeper, it also explores Zen through the experiences and teachings of key individuals who shaped Zen as a tradition committed to the embodiment of enlightenment by all. By bringing together Zen’s institutional and personal dimensions, Peter D.
About the Author
PETER D. HERSHOCK is Director of the Asian Studies Development Program and Coordinator of the Humane AI Initiative at the East-West Center in Honolulu. His philosophical work makes use of Buddhist conceptual resources to address contemporary issues of global concern. He has authored or edited more than a dozen books on Buddhism, Asian philosophy and contemporary issues, including: Liberating Intimacy: Enlightenment and Social Virtuosity in Ch'an Buddhism (1996) ; Reinventing the Wheel: A Buddhist Response to the Information Age (1999) ; Buddhism in the Public Sphere: Reorienting Global Interdependence (2006) ; Valuing Diversity: Buddhist Reflection on Realizing a More Equitable Global Future (2012) ; Public Zen, Personal Zen: A Buddhist Introduction (2014) ; Philosophies of Place: An Intercultural Conversation (edited, 2020) ; Human Beings or Human Becomings? A Conversation with Confucianism on the Concept of Person (edited, 2021) ; and Buddhism and Intelligent Technology: Toward a More Humane Future (2021) . A daily meditator and surfer, he is also an improvising guitarist and an avid cook who loves spicy "vegemarian" food from around the world.
