Shakyamuni, the founder of Buddhism, realized enlightenment and attained the state of Buddhahood at the age of thirty-five. . Before entering into Nirvana at the age of eighty, he shared his insights gained over a period of forty-five years through various teachings that could be understood by anyone. After he passed away, his disciples assembled and examined the compilation of his teachings to be passed down to succeeding generations. Many sutras written in ancient India were translated into various languages during the propagation of Buddhism and thereby spread to many countries. In China, many sutras were translated into Chinese during the Later Han dynasty up to the Northern Song dynasty. The “Tripitaka” is the canon comprised of these sutras and includes the writings of eminent Chinese monks.
What is needed in this present materialistic society, which has no foundation in empathy, is the realization of a peaceful society in which everyone can entrust themselves to wisdom. Attainment of a peaceful society will be completed only upon the perfection of the human mind, and the teaching of Buddha exists for this purpose. “The Teaching of Buddha” is a collection of Shakyamuni Buddha’s teachings. We have compiled this easy-to-understand book so that everyone can receive these teachings. Today, this volume is available in more than 46 different languages. We are working on the distribution of “The Teaching of Buddha” to hotels, schools, and hospitals in order to contribute to the realization of a peaceful society by spreading Buddhism through this book in the world.
For the purpose of transmitting Buddhist teachings to the English-speaking world, we felt it necessary to translate the entire Taishō Buddhist canon. The Taishō Buddhist canon was compiled by Japanese Buddhist scholars working together from the Taisho to the Showa eras, and was published in Japan. Today, the standard version of the Sino Japanese canon is the Taishō Canon in 100 volumes, which also includes the works of Japanese Buddhists. The Taishō Canon is comprised of 3,360 works, totaling 11,970 chapters. In this project, the Committee selected 139 works the first stage of this project, which amounts to one-tenth of the entire canon.
In order to help people nurture their lives within the Buddhist spirit and culture, we are publishing and distributing various Buddhist books, picture books, manga, calendars, and other materials to be used as educational texts in temples and schools.