Record of the Transmission of Illumination

The first book of this two-volume set consists largely of an annotated translation of the Record of the Transmission of Illumination (Denkoroku) by Zen Master Keizan Jokin (1264–1325), presented together with the original Japanese text on which the English translation is based. That text is the recension of the Denkoroku published in Shuten Hensan Iinkai, ed., Taiso Keizan Zenji senjutsu Denkoroku (Tokyo: Sotoshu Shumucho, 2005). The Shumucho edition of the Denkoroku includes some items of Front Matter from earlier published editions, which are included in the English translations. Volume 1 also contains an Introduction that addresses such matters as the life of Keizan, the contents of the Denkoroku, the provenance of that work, and the textual history of its various recensions. In addition, Volume 1 includes a Bibliography that lists many works of modern Japanese- and English-language scholarship that are relevant to the academic study of the Denkoroku.

The second volume contains a Glossary in two parts. Part One explains all of the Buddhist technical terms and Zen sayings that appear in the annotated translation of the Shumucho edition of the Denkoroku, found in Volume 1. Part Two treats all of the people, places, and texts that are named in that annotated translation. The Glossary also contains a wealth of material pertaining to the study of Chinese Chan, Japanese Zen, and East Asian Buddhist traditions at large, providing a broader historical context for understanding Keizan’s Denkoroku.

Published in association with Sotoshu Shumucho, Tokyo.