Buddhism : The Awakening of Compassion and Wisdom

by Chin Kung

While scheduled to give a talk on another topic some years ago in Miami, Florida, Venerable Master Chin Kung, the eminent Pure Land master, looked out on the audience and perceived that to truly help the western guests in the audience, he would need to deliver a different lecture series than the one he had planned. This impromptu decision, based on the needs of the audience rather than the plans of the lecturer, resulted in a vibrant, spontaneous teaching. A teaching that many familiar with the master’s numerous lecture series felt excelled at introducing Buddhism as well as the principles and practices of the Pure Land Dharma door.

After a general introduction in Part One, Part Two leads the reader through the Five Pure Land Guidelines of the Three Conditions, the Six Principles of Harmony, the Three Learnings, the Six Paramitas, and the Ten Great Vows of Samantabhadra Bodhisattva. Next, Part Three provides the overall progression for learning Buddhism. With his usual enthusiasm and clarity, Venerable Master Chin Kung helps readers better understand the teachings and how to successfully incorporate them into their daily lives.

Genres: Spirituality, Buddhism

145 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2000

Reviews

[Max · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ven. Master Chin Kung writes from a chiefly Pure Land perspective but is non-sectarian and respectful of other practices in this freely available account of the Buddhist path based on transcripts of talks he has given.

In this book Ven. Master Chin Kung offers a special and refreshing perspective in his adamant belief that teachings should be free and an overall “copyleft” attitude. This attitude is embodied in the freely available printing and PDF of this book along with the overall mission of The Corporate Body of The Buddha Educational Foundation.

This may be a challenging book for those utterly naive to Buddhism and in particular Chinese Buddhism but whether you’re naive or a bit more seasoned there’s almost certainly something worthwhile you can take from this text, so make sure to read it if you get a copy!

[Robert Day]

Buddhism from a Chinese perspective written and printed in Taiwan and given away in Hawaii.