The Heart Attack Sutra

by Karl Brunnhölzl

The radical message of the Heart Sū tra, one of Buddhism's most famous texts, is a sweeping attack on everything we hold most dear: our troubles, the world as we know it, even the teachings of the Buddha himself. Several of the Buddha's followers are said to have suffered heart attacks and died when they first heard its assertion of the basic groundlessness of our existence—hence the title of this book. Overcoming fear, the Buddha teaches, is not to be accomplished by shutting down or building walls around oneself, but instead by opening up to understand the illusory nature of everything we fear—including ourselves. In this book of teachings, Karl Brunnhölzl guides practitioners through this 'crazy' sutra to the wisdom and compassion that lie at its core.

Genres: Buddhism, Nonfiction, Spirituality, Zen, Religion

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Dr. Karl Brunnhölzl, M.D., Ph.D. (Tibetology, Buddhology, and Sanskrit, Hamburg University, 2005; Buddhist philosophy, Kamalashila Institute, Germany, 1998), is one of the main translators and teachers at Nitartha Institute under Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche. In 2005, he was appointed as one of five Western Nalandabodhi teachers and given the title "mitra." In 2006, he moved to Seattle and works as a full-time Tibetan translator for Tsadra Foundation.

Reviews

[Leanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Isn't this the best title?

Both this book and The Heart Sutra by Red Pine are original translations and excellent expert commentary by life-long scholars of Buddhism--and more importantly translators. Both books have fantastic introductions and then proceed to explain and unpack the short sutra line-by-line. Both are well written and very helpful references to the sutra.

My own thought is that everyone should start with Kazuaki Tanahashi's very comprehensive guide to the Heart Sutra and then, depending on geography and language should read Red Pine for East Asia or Brunnholzl for Tibetan.

[Bish Denham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a book to study, to ponder, to contemplate. It is an in depth commentary on the Buddhist sacred text, The Heart Sutra and not always easy to understand. What I enjoyed was how the author didn't just comment on each line of this short sutra, but also explained the origins and etymology of individual words and names which also put the meaning of the sutra into historical perspective.

[Jampa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommended. Very accessible. Will be very helpful when scholarly text overload our senses, which have their purpose, and bring us back to the essence of practice.

[Matthew Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this to be on the surface an easily readable comment on the heart sutra and on previous commentaries , but at its heart a deep and complex book. It includes a healthy dose of Tibetan Buddhist language and approaches to the text. Of course this mirrors aspects of the sutra itself. I will read it again.

[Ginna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m reading this book with a group & thank goodness. The author is brilliant, funny, and ultimately enlightening in this work exploring the Heart Sutra. It has been helpful to discuss and tease out ideas as we read together. I have appreciated the gift of already processing groundlessness and emptiness this year. I will doubtless come back to this one.

[dp · Rating 5 out of 5]

My goodness! I would say this book was phenomenal, but it's quite literally intended to lead the reader to go beyond phenomena!

[Patricia Boksa · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent and highly readable commentary on the Heart Sutra.

[Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very readable book (though careful attention must still be paid) on a complex subject that can be rather impenetrable and confusing. I strongly recommend starting here instead of with one of the same author's longer and more scholarly works on the subject. One of the best all-round dharma books I've read. Lacks an index, which is bothersome, as indexing helps one to look up and verify references to unfamiliar terms. I'll still give 5 stars, based on smoothness and clarity of exposition.

[Paul Hoff · Rating 5 out of 5]

This commentary on the Heart Sutra aided me by pointing me to the Abhidharma. Suddenly I could identify the separate elements of the Buddhist literature that were being referenced and the author kindly explained each connection. The result for me is an appreciation for the Tripitaka I had not had before.

[Walter Burton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found it was not quick read. Very in depth interpretation of the Heat Sutra from the Mahayana perspective. In many places I needed my trusty Wikipedia for a glossary of terms. Will definitely read again to better grasp concepts.

[Judith Cartisano]

I haven't chosen any stars because this is a book and a topic to which stars don't apply. The text is excellent and helped me make more sense of a complex Buddhist Sutra.

[K.S.C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intense. Heavy going in bits, profoundly clear in others. Definitely one to re-read later.
Took me seven months to read.