Gleanings in Buddha Fields

Gleanings In Buddha-Fields by Lafcadio Hearn Lafcadio Hearn’s books have charmed and captivated readers, just as the exotic subjects about which he has written have captivated him. GLEANINGS IN BUDDHA-FIELDS presents more Hearn magic as he enters into the spirit of Buddhism as though he were born into it. This collection of stories, subtitled "Studies of Hand and Soul in the Far East," takes the reader on a journey into the soul of Hearn’s adopted land as no other writer—especially a non-Japanese native—could. He writes of Kyoto in "Notes on a Trip to Kyoto" with such passion and realism he transports you to that place and time; "Dust" juxtaposes a children’s playground and death, but shows death as it is to a Buddhist: "The real sorrow and fear of death arise in us only after the slow accumulation of experience with doubt and pain; and these little boys and girls being Japanese and Buddhists will never, in any event, feel about death as you and I do...they have died a million times already, and have forgotten the trouble of it, much as one forgets the pain of successive toothaches." Table of Contents : A Living God Out Of The Street Notes Of A Trip To Kyôto Dust About Faces In Japanese Art Ningyô-No-Haka In Ôsaka Buddhist Allusions In Japanese Folk-Song Nirvana The Rebirth Of Katsugorô Within The Circle

First published in 2006. The third book of Lafcadio Hearn’s Japanese period, Gleanings in Buddha-Fields is a volume of philosophical essays and sketches inspired by the teachings of Buddha. Through a series of loosely connected essays, the author offers readers a wealth of insights into Japanese life, art and religion. When the book was first published in 1897, it attracted the attention of the New York Times: ...it is only Mr. Hearn who has made us understand something of the Japanese way of looking at life and things, something of that religion which is the very soul and substance of Japanese existence, thought, and action. Today’s readers are sure to recognize the elegance and depth of thought which have made the work a classic.