The Heart of Understanding, Twentieth Anniversary Edition: Commentaries on the Prajñaparamita Heart Sutra
About this audiobook
In this modern classic, world-renowned Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh presents a clear, concise translation and commentary of the Heart Sutra—the world’s most popular piece of Buddhist scripture.
Comprising only 632 Chinese characters, the Heart Sutra is Buddhism in a nutshell. Despite its brevity, this powerful work covers more of the Buddha’s teachings than any other scripture, and its influence is more profound and wide-reaching than any other text in Buddhism. Thich Nhat Hanh’s translation and commentary is regarded as the most simple, clear, concise, and understandable available. He describes the sutra as “a precious gift to us, the gift of fearlessness,” offering subtle and profound teachings on nonduality and the letting go of all preconceived notions, opinions, and attachments, thereby becoming open to all the wonders of our life.
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About the author
Thich Nhat Hanh was a world-renowned Buddhist Zen master, poet, author, scholar, and activist for social change, who was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He was the author of many bestselling books, including the classics Peace Is Every Step and The Art of Living. Through his books and retreats at the monasteries he has founded in the U.S., Europe, Asia, and Australia, he became a pre-eminent figure in contemporary Buddhism, offering teachings that are both deeply rooted in ancient wisdom and accessible to all. Sister Chan Khong is Thich Nhat Hanh’s most senior monastic disciple and lifelong collaborator. A leading force in his engaged Buddhism programs and humanitarian projects, her books include Learning True Love and Beginning Anew.Sister True Dedication is a former journalist and monastic Dharma Teacher ordained by Thich Nhat Hanh.
Peter Levitt is a poet, translator, and Zen teacher. He is the founder of the Salt Spring Zen Circle and has taught poetry and writing workshops around the world, including at the C. G. Jung Institute of Los Angeles, the Naropa Institute, and the MFA Writers Program at Antioch University. He is currently an instructor at the University of British Columbia and lives with his wife and son on one of the nearby Gulf Islands.
Edoardo Ballerini is an American writer, director, film producer and actor. He has won many awards for his audiobook narration; within only a few years after beginning his narrating career, he won several AudioFile Earphones Awards for his work, including Stephen Greenblatt’s The Swerve: How The World Became Modern, Jodi Picoult’s The Storyteller and Jess Walter’s Beautiful Ruins. He narrated Kenzaburo Oe’s Nobel Prize Winning Nip the Buds, Shoot the Kids, Joseph Finder’s The Moscow Club as well as works by John Edward and Daniel Stashower. In television and film, he is best known for his role in The Sopranos, 24, I Shot Andy Warhol, Dinner Rush and Romeo Must Die. The silky-voiced Ballerini is trained in theater and continues to do much work on stage.
