This is a beautiful book about a single teaching of the Buddha. The author takes a very humble approach, making it clear that he is not a teacher of the meaning of the sutra but he wishes to describe his personal experience living with its wisdom for many years. He also gives a broad history of how the various versions/translations of the Heart Sutra spread to various countries especially China, Japan, and the US. It is like reading the lifetime of a spiritual teaching which cannot really be understood cognitively but can be experienced through chanting, keeping the mind open, and becoming familiar with the writings of great Buddhist teachers on the Heart Sutra.

This is an amazing treatise on an ancient, esoteric Buddhist teaching, the Heart Sutra (also known as the “Heart of the Perfection of Wisdom Sutra”). The author takes us on a dual journey – the first one of his personal relationship and experience with it and the second of his extensive research into its origin and use over thousands of years in multiple cultures. It has been said by many teachers and scholars that it is best not to try to understand the Sutra, but rather to chant it, copy it, or contemplate it as a regular practice and allow it to work in consciousness.

Having lived in Japan and being fluent in Japanese, the author seems most comfortable with this version/translation of the Sutra. He has been engaged with the Heart Sutra since his early twenties and has had a scroll with the Sutra posted over his bed for over forty years. As a personal practice, it has ushered him into a self-described “world of faith.”

Furthermore, he makes the disclaimer that, unlike most authors on the Sutra, he is not affiliated with any specific religion, nor is he an academic. Yet much of the content reads as a thesis on the topic and, unfortunately, this was not what I was expecting when I requested the book. In fact, I am among a group that the author highlights; he points out that the word “heart” is often interpreted in English as a “Christianized or romantic” version. He notes that it is more accurate to think of the “essence” or “core” of the perfection of wisdom.

I greatly appreciate the depth of the commitment the author exhibits in both his (almost life-long) study of the Sutra and his exploration of its history and meaning. The book just didn’t meet my personal need.

My thanks to the author, Stone Bridge Press, and NetGalley for the privilege of reviewing a digital ARC in exchange for an independent, honest review.

This review is being posted immediately to my GoodReads account and will be posted on Amazon upon publication.

This book is a memoir about the author’s relationship with the most frequently read and recited texts, the Buddhist Heart Sutra. Author Frederik L. Schodt explores its history, popularity and place in the modern world. He explains how “sutra” is an ancient Sanskrit word meaning thread or rule, but today we might think of it as a mnemonic device that helps us remember a text. Here, the heart or core of the text helps us remember the Buddha’s teachings. This book concentrates mainly on China and Japan, despite the sutras popularity in other Asian countries. The justification is that the author has considerable language skills in Chinese and Japanese and that it is the Heart Sutra translation by the Chinese monk Xuanzang that is typically the source material for others, including those in English.

He examines the calming, cleansing effects chanting the Heart Sutra has for those who have taken the trouble to memorise it. Memorising it and comprehending the meaning has layers of difficulties, depending on what translation you are using. Comparisons of texts and rhymes may come close to what was originally written in India in Sanskrit, but today nobody can be certain of how the original text was pronounced. Despite these challenges, the Heart Sutra “remains a sonic bridge among diverse languages and cultures, one that has survived nearly intact for 1,400 years.” Those who study language or work in translation today will appreciate the struggle between attempting to capture the original sound while also maintaining the sutra’s profound meaning. Futurists might enjoy how these aims have found new life in Japan’s robotics industry.

As an expert Japanese translator with extensive experience living in Japan, he describes how the sutra is woven into local daily life. Travellers to China or Japan would benefit from being able to recognise the sutra, as he points out how all manner of Heart Sutra merchandise is often available and how often one might hear it. Drawing on his knowledge of pop culture, he brings this ancient mantra into the present by describing how many anime series have been inspired by the sutra, the life of the translator Xuanzang and the epic classic Journey to the West. The book also includes many photos of calligraphy, sculptures and locations in the United States, China and Japan. I especially enjoyed the photo of the printed Japanese tea towel which helps you memorise the sutra through a series of images of daily objects.

He dives in deep into academic feuds over whether the Heart Sutra really came from a Sanskrit original or if the Chinese version is the original. Many translators would refer on the Chinese translation by Xuanzang, but add a dash of ‘authenticity’ by referring to the Sanskrit version. The debate over whether Xuanzang’s version had been translated from a Sanskrit original in India and the backlash scholar Jan Nattier experienced for suggesting this might not be the case was fascinating. The controversy in Japan also revolved around Western researchers from putting “too much emphasis on the study of Central Asian languages” and a belief that Chinese sources are superior. Many of these academic squabbles also occurred due to mistranslations between Japanese and English contemporary academic articles. It’s interesting as that many academics / practitioners strongly desire the Heart Sutra to have a ‘authentic South Asian pedigree’ while at the same time they seem to deride a deep study of Sanskrit. As one source explained “there are far more important and accurate documents in Chinese.’ Do the practitioners want some India, but not too much India?

This book, like the Heart Sutra itself, offers solace to the reader. Completed during the start of the 2020 global pandemic, he describes how familiarity with the sutra cleanses his brain and serves as a north star during troubled times. As the author points out, an entire forest of trees has likely been lost to printing guides to the Heart Sutra. This book offers the perspective of an individual who does not identify as ‘religious’ or as an academic and therefore brings an original and relatable voice to the field. The reader may find solace and stability in learning about the sonic bridge that has connected so many hearts.

This book was provided for a review by Stone Bridge Press.