The Korean Buddhist Canon: A Descriptive Catalogue

The Korean Buddhist Canon: A Descriptive Catalogue serves as a comprehensive reference guide to the Koryŏ Buddhist canon, one of the most significant collections of Buddhist texts in East Asia. This catalogue contains detailed entries for over 1,500 texts, including information about their authorship, dates of composition, and contents. The work provides both Korean transliterations and Chinese characters for titles and authors, along with English translations and cross-references to other major Buddhist canonical collections. Buswell's research draws on decades of scholarship and firsthand examination of surviving copies of the canon, incorporating historical records from Korea, China, and Japan. The book includes extensive indices and finding aids to help scholars locate specific texts and track their transmission across East Asia. This catalogue represents a bridge between classical Buddhist studies and modern academic research, highlighting the distinct characteristics of Korean Buddhism while situating it within the broader context of East Asian Buddhist traditions.

This academic reference work appears to have minimal public reviews available online, with no ratings on Goodreads or Amazon's main site. Readers in academic contexts noted: Positives: - Comprehensive indexing system makes finding specific texts easier - Detailed technical information about each text's history and provenance - Clear organization of the 1,514 texts in the Koryŏ canon Negatives: - Limited accessibility for non-specialists - High price point restricts individual purchase - Some romanization inconsistencies noted by scholars The book is primarily referenced and reviewed in academic journals rather than consumer review sites. A review in The Journal of Asian Studies praised its "meticulous documentation" while noting it serves mainly as a specialized reference tool. No aggregate ratings are available on major review platforms. The book appears to be used mainly in research libraries and specialist collections rather than by general readers.

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🌸 Robert E. Buswell Jr. is widely considered the most influential Western scholar of Korean Buddhism and became the founding director of the Center for Korean Studies at UCLA. 🌸 The Korean Buddhist Canon, known as the Tripitaka Koreana, was carved onto 81,258 wooden printing blocks in the 13th century and is still preserved today at Haeinsa Temple. 🌸 The catalogue describes over 1,500 Buddhist texts and took more than a decade to compile, making it the most comprehensive English-language guide to Korean Buddhist literature. 🌸 The wooden blocks of the Tripitaka Koreana were carved on both sides with such precision that they show no signs of warping after 750 years, due to the scientific techniques used in selecting and treating the wood. 🌸 The creation of the Tripitaka Koreana was originally ordered as a way to invoke divine protection against Mongol invaders during the Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392).