Thursday, March 6, 2014

Genshin's Ojoyoshu (free English edition)


last updated January 20, 2020 - better quality pdf!

last update April 2nd 2014
I revised this English edition with the help of Richard St Clair (Shaku Egen) and added some footnotes marked with "editor's note". 


Master Genshin (942-1017)
Dear friends in the Nembutsu,

I am glad to present to you this incomplete English edition of Ojoyoshu, composed in 985 by Master Genshin (Eishin/Eshin), the sixth Patriarh of our Jodo Shinshu school. It contains only two chapters from the entire work, but still I am sure you will find it useful.

The importance of this text upon Shinran Shonin and Honen Shonin was great, the first even wrote a commentary on it, Notes on Essentials of Rebirth, while the latter wrote four such commentaries. In 986, a copy was sent to China, where the monks where so impressed that they called Genshin the "Little Shakyamuni".

I have been looking for a translation of this text but I could hardly find a recent one. So after long search I came by a magazine called  The Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan, second series, volume VII, 1930In it there was this translation from Japanese made by A.K. Reischauer ( M.A., D.D., L.L.D.) which I decided to share with you here.

Please enjoy it and accept it as it is, as all canonical and sacred texts in the Pure Land tradition should be accepted. Use it or leave it, but don’t judge it. I am sure that it is not by accident that an English edition of this text is so hard to find nowadays, as some scholars have not found it acceptable or politically correct for their vision of the world. But you, dear friends, who are sincere in your study of Amida Dharma, I am sure you will enjoy it and take what you need from it.

This version also includes the translator's introduction which you may read it or just scroll down a few pages to the actual text of Ojoyoshu.



Links for free download:

My google drive






8 comentarii:

Anonymous said...

Dear Priest Josho,

could you please informe me if we can buy this book by internet?
Thank you, very much!
Namo Amida Butsu,
Rodrigo Tunes.

Josho Adrian Cirlea said...

Dear Rodrigo,

I do not know of any printed version you can buy on internet. Just download it and read it.

Anonymous said...

Dear Priest Josho,

Thank you for all your kindness.
Namo Amida Butsu,
Rodrigo Tunes

Jeremiah Mullica said...

Thank you Josho Adrian for putting up Master Genshin's Ojoyoshu. It is so wonderful and helpful to me. Namo Amida Butsu! Thank you Thank you Amida Buddha!

Josho Adrian Cirlea said...

You are welcomed, Jeremiah! Namo Amida Butsu!

Anonymous said...

I hadn't read this before, I found it last night on the Academia website, it is amazing thank you for your work in uploading it.

Josho Adrian Cirlea said...

You are welcomed. However, this is not the complete text of Ojoyoshu, just a part. I hope somebody will one day make a full translation.

Anonymous said...

Hopefully that will happen, I think it's my favourite spiritual text right behind Kyo Gyo Shin Sho. Gives the mind so much clarity and goes into great detail. A real blessing to read it.

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