Saturday, April 18, 2026 · 天火 · tianmu.org
Buddhist
Sacred texts from the Buddhist tradition, spanning sutras, commentaries, and wisdom literature.
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Texts
A Buddhist Bible — Dwight GoddardA landmark anthology of Zen Buddhist scriptures compiled by Dwight Goddard. Includes the Lankavatara Sutra, the Diamond Sutra, the Prajna Paramita Sutra, and the Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch Hui-Neng, with introductions and historical context.Buddha, the Gospel — Paul CarusA retelling of the life and teachings of the Buddha compiled from canonical sources by Paul Carus. One of the earliest and most widely-read presentations of Buddhism for Western audiences.Buddhism in Translations — Henry Clarke WarrenA comprehensive anthology of translated passages from the Pali canon and its commentaries, organized thematically to present Buddhist doctrine, practice, and philosophy. One of the foundational works of Buddhist studies in English.Buddhist Suttas — T.W. Rhys DavidsSeven key suttas from the Pali canon including the Maha-Parinibbana Suttanta (the account of the Buddha's last days and death), the Dhamma-Kakka-Ppavattana Sutta (the First Sermon), and five other fundamental discourses. Volume XI of the Sacred Books of the East.Dialogues of the Buddha — T.W. Rhys DavidsThe first thirteen suttas of the Digha Nikaya, the collection of long discourses of the Buddha, translated from the Pali by T.W. Rhys Davids. Includes the Brahma-gala Sutta on the net of views, the Samannaphala Sutta on the fruits of the ascetic life, and eleven other foundational dialogues.Diamond SutraThe Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā — the Diamond-Cutter of Transcendent Wisdom — a Mahāyāna dialogue on emptiness, perception, and the dissolution of all conceptual supports; the text that ignited East Asian Zen and entered Western consciousness through Suzuki and the Beats.Heart SutraThe Prajñāpāramitā Hṛdaya — the Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom — the most concentrated statement of Buddhist emptiness doctrine, the text that carried Buddhist thought into Western consciousness more completely than any other.Introduction to BuddhismA critical introduction to Buddhism — from the Sramana wanderers of the Ganges plain to the ten thousand Buddhisms of the present day. Genealogical, scholarly, and situated within the Tianmu dharma lineage.Lotus SutraThe Saddharma-puṇḍarīka — The Lotus of the True Law — the foundational Mahāyāna scripture of universal salvation, the teaching that all beings will attain Buddhahood, in H. Kern's 1884 translation.Mountains and Waters SutraDōgen's vision of mountains walking and waters preaching — the only fascicle of the Shōbōgenzō bearing the title 'sutra.' Good Works Translation.Psalms of the Sisters — Caroline A.F. Rhys DavidsTranslations of the Therigatha, the poems of the earliest Buddhist women—nuns who attained enlightenment and expressed their realization in verse. Translated from the Pali with extensive commentary by Caroline A.F. Rhys Davids.Tathagatagarbha SutraThe Buddha reveals, through nine similes, that all sentient beings possess the tathāgatagarbha — the embryo of awakening — hidden within them like gold in filth or a king in a lowly womb. Translated from the Chinese of Buddhabhadra (佛陀跋陀羅, 420 CE). Taishō Tripiṭaka Vol. 16, No. 666.The Creed of Buddha — Edmond HolmesA philosophical interpretation of Buddhism that argues for the Buddha as a teacher of spiritual self-realization rather than nihilistic world-denial, by the English educator and writer Edmond Holmes.The Dhammapada and the Sutta-Nipata — Max Muller and V. FausbollThe Dhammapada, a collection of 423 verses on the path of righteousness, translated from Pali by F. Max Muller, together with the Sutta-Nipata, a collection of early Buddhist discourses translated by V. Fausboll. Volume X of the Sacred Books of the East.The Life of Buddha — Andre Ferdinand HeroldA literary retelling of the life of the Buddha from birth to final nirvana, drawn from traditional Indian sources and rendered into elegant French prose by Andre Ferdinand Herold, translated into English by Paul C. Blum.The Questions of King Milinda, Part I — T.W. Rhys DavidsThe Milindapanha, a celebrated dialogue between the Greek king Menander (Milinda) and the Buddhist monk Nagasena, exploring fundamental questions of Buddhist philosophy through Socratic debate. Part I. Volume XXXV of the Sacred Books of the East.The Questions of King Milinda, Part II — T.W. Rhys DavidsThe concluding books of the Milindapanha, the celebrated dialogue between King Milinda (Menander) and the monk Nagasena on Buddhist philosophy. Part II. Volume XXXVI of the Sacred Books of the East.Vinaya Texts, Part I — Rhys Davids and OldenbergThe Patimokkha and the Mahavagga from the Vinaya Pitaka, the monastic code of the Buddhist order, translated from Pali by T.W. Rhys Davids and Hermann Oldenberg. Volume XIII of the Sacred Books of the East.Vinaya Texts, Part II — Rhys Davids and OldenbergThe Mahavagga (continued) and the Kullavagga from the Vinaya Pitaka, covering the rules of the Buddhist monastic order, translated from Pali by T.W. Rhys Davids and Hermann Oldenberg. Volume XVII of the Sacred Books of the East.Vinaya Texts, Part III — Rhys Davids and OldenbergThe Kullavagga (continued) from the Vinaya Pitaka, including the accounts of the First and Second Buddhist Councils, translated from Pali by T.W. Rhys Davids and Hermann Oldenberg. Volume XX of the Sacred Books of the East.
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