Saturday, July 30, 2016

Online course: Japanese Culture Through Rare Books from Keio University

I am taking a free online course on Japanese Rare Books offered by Keio University. This is the third week. It is a great course with careful designs of lectures and discussions. The instructors are Takahiro Sasaki and Wataru Ichinohe. Register at https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/japanese-rare-books-culture



Here is a short description.
ABOUT THE COURSE
A book is a tool for preserving words and images. Through books, an abundance of information, including the knowledge and experiences of the people of the past, has been handed down to the present. But books are more than records of words and images. Their form, appearance, and even the scripts and styles used tell us about the fashions and technologies of the times that produced them. By studying old books, we can learn a great deal about the geographical areas in which they were made, the historical background, and the individuals and groups involved in their making.

While displaying remarkable similarities with books produced in other areas of the Sinitic cultural sphere, Japanese books also possess some unique features, starting with their sheer diversity of form and appearance. Using a wealth of multimedia content, we will take a journey through the wonderful world of traditional Japanese books.

Thursday, July 28, 2016

New Release: 2016 CBETA Buddhist Tripitaka Collection


Glad to receive the 2016 new edition of CBETA Buddhist Tripitaka from the Dharma Drum people. It is a great achievement. In this new edition, the monastic gazetteers 山志、寺志, though not complete, are very valuable. The new version can be also downloaded and installed in your own computer from http://www.cbeta.org/.



Sunday, July 17, 2016

Unknown Block on the Book of Change

Among the blocks I bought, there is one on Eki gaku 易学. Unfortunately, I can not identify any detailed information about it.




Monday, July 11, 2016

Printing block of Shakuson hassō no zu miyo no hikari 釋尊八相之圖三世の光 (1885)

Printing block of a 1885 Japanese book, owned by Jiang Wu


Reverse side
Among the blocks I purchased, there is one from the following book:
釋尊八相之圖三世の光 : 8卷 /
Shakuson hassō no zu miyo no hikari : 8-kan

Author: 宗顗. [宗顗著]. ; Shūgi.
Publisher: 淨土扶宗會, Tōkyō : Jōdo Fusōkai, Meiji 18 [1885]
Edition/Format:   Print book : Japanese
Database: WorldCat