Sutra Writing Workshop
While the scriptures of other religions are contained in closed canons, meaning that no new texts can be added, the Buddhist scriptures are collected in open canons to which new sutras can be added. This is why the Buddhist canon has thousands of sutras written by anonymous people centuries after the historical Buddha passed away. This is possible because of the Mahayana belief that every person is a Buddha. In this workshop, we will explore how we can enter into a dialogue with the Buddha within us and write sutras that address our own personal concerns.
Professor George Tanabe
George Tanabe was born and raised in Waialua, Hawaii. He graduated from University High School, Willamette University (B.A.), Union Theological Seminary (M.Div.), and Columbia University (M.A. and Ph.D.). From 1977 to 2006, he taught in the Department of Religion at the University of Hawaii and is currently Professor Emeritus. He is President of BDK Hawaii and Chairman of BDK America, which publishes Buddhist books, including translations from the Chinese Buddhist Canon. He is a specialist on the religions of Japan and has published with university presses at Harvard, Hawaii, Columbia and Princeton. The Japanese government honored him with Foreign Minister's Award (2007) and the Imperial Order of the Rising Sun (2012). George and his wife Willa (Professor Emerita of Japanese Art History) published Japanese Buddhist Temples of Hawai'i: An Illustrated Guide (UH Press). His first novel, Miki’s Mad, was published in March, 2024 by Deuxmers Publishing. He still lives in Waialua.