Greater Books
Ian P McGreal, ed. - Great Literature of the Eastern World: The Major Works of Prose, Poetry and Drama From China, India, Japan, Korea and the Middle East; and Great Thinkers of the Eastern World: The Major Thinkers and the Philosophical and Religious Classics of China, India, Japan, Korea, and the World of Islam [1996; 1995]
The top portion of each entry is what, in the book, serves as a section title; it is followed by, in both the books and the transcriptions here, on the first line, by the original title or alternate titles, if any; on the second line, the authors or a note about the work's authorship; and on the third, the date of composition, if given (for some of the entries, only the author's birth and date dates are given; these are not transcribed here). The literary form is also sometimes given in the book, but it is not copied here.
Return to the Excluded Lists.
The works listed in Great Literature:
China:
The Book of Poetry
Shijing (Shih Ching) (Sometimes translated as the Book of Songs or the Book of Odes)
Unknown
Poems date from tenth to sixth centuries B C; believed to have been edited by Confucius (d. 479 B C)
The Book of Changes
Yijing (I-ching)
Unknown; Composite work
Origins unclear; probably not put together as a coherent text until the ninth century B C (The so-called 'Ten Wings' were added in the early Han Dynasty [206 B C-A D 221])
The Book of History
Shujing (Shu Ching), Shang Shu, or Shu
Unknown. Contains imperial court documents (some believed to be later forgeries) from the earliest rulers down to the Zhou dynasty
Oldest material was written between the tenth and sixth centuries B C
The Commentaries of Zuo (Tso) on The Spring and Autumn Annuals
Zuo zhuan (Tso chuan)
Zuo Qiu-ming (Tso Ch'iu-ming)
Transmitted orally for generations, written down in the late fourth century B C
The Book of the Way
Daode jing (Tao-te ching) or Laozi (Lao-zu)
Traditionally attributed to Laozi, but authorship unknown
c. 300 B C
The Art of War
Sunzi bingfa (Sun-tzu ping fa), also known simply as Sunzi (Sun-tzu, sometimes Sun Tzu)
Unknown. The traditionally recognized author is Sun Wu, usually known as Sunzi (Sun-tzu), Sun being the surname, Wu the given name, and zi (tzu) a suffix indicating aristocratic lineage
Traditional date of composition: c. 500 B C. Probable actual date of composition: c. 300 B C
The Poetry of Qu Yuan (Ch'ü Yüan)
Qu Yuan (Ch'ü Yüan), also known as Qu Ping (Ch'ü Ping)
'Encountering Sorrow', 'Nine Songs', 'Heaven Questions'
The Book of Rites
Liji (Li-chi) (Also translated as Record of Ritual)
Composite work of ancient texts
Compiled during Han dynasty (206 B C-A D 222)
The Book of Huainanzi (Huai-nan Tzu)
King Liu An, King of Huainan (and Su Fei, Li Shang, Zuo Wu [Tso Wu], Tian You [T'ien Yu], Lei Bei [Lei Pei], Mao Bei [Mao Pei], Wu Bei [Wu Pei], Jin Chan [Chin Ch'ang], and other unnamed literati)
Completed 139 B C
Records of the Grand Historian
Shiji (Shih-chi)
Sima Qian (Ssu-ma Ch'ien)
Intrigues of the Warring States
Zhanguoce (Chan-kuo ts'e)
Unknown
No later than 8 B C
The Poetry of Tao Yuanming (T'ao Yüan-ming)
Tao Yuanming (T'ao Yüan-ming), also known as Tao Qian (T'ao Ch'ien)
'Returning to My Old Home', 'At the Beginning of Spring in the Year Kuei-Mao (Guimao)', 'Returning to Live in the Country', 'Return Home!', 'Peach Blossom Font'
The Poetry of Xie Lingyuan (Hsieh Ling-yün)
Also known as Xie Kangle (Hsieh K'ang-lo), Duke of Kangle (Duke of K'ang-lo)
'Passing Through My Shining [Shih-ning] Estate', 'Leaving West Archery Hall at Dusk', 'On My Way from South Mountain to North Mountain, I Glance at the Scenery from the Lake', 'Journeying the Stream: Following the Jinzhu Torrent I Cross the Mountain'
Selections of Refined Literature
Wen xuan (Wen hsüan)
Xiao Tong (Hsiao T'ung), Crown Prince Zhaoming (Chao-ming) of the Liang
c. A D 526
The Poetry of Wang Wei
The Wang River poems, poems of Cloud Valley, 'Morning Audience', 'The Emperor Commands a Poem Be Written and Sent to My Friend, Prefect Wei Xi', 'From Puti Monastery', 'Living in the Hills', 'Hibiscus Hill', 'Bamboo Lodge', 'Deer Park', 'Goodbye to Tsu the Third at Chichou'
The Poetry of Li Bo (Li Po)
Also known as Li Bai (Li Pai)
'Quiet Night Thoughts', 'Ancient Airs' [59 poems], 'The Road to Shu Is Hard', 'Drinking Alone Beneath the Moon'
The Poetry of Du Fu (Tu Fu)
'Ballad of Pengya', 'Northward Journey', 'Expressing My Feelings on Going from the Capital to Fengxian Prefecture', 'Ballad of the Army Carts', 'The Recruiting Officer of Shihao', 'Lament for the Prince', 'The Separation of an Old Man', 'Twenty Miscellaneous Poems from Quinzhou', 'Autumn Inspirations', 'Autumn Wastes', 'Yangtze and Han Rivers'
The Poetry of Hanshan (Han Shan)
Kanzan (in Japanese); also known as Cold Mountain
The 'Cold Mountain' poems
The Prose Works of Han Yu (Han Yü)
'Tracing the Origins of the Way', 'Offering to the Crocodiles', 'Disquisition on Teachers', 'Preface Sending Off Meng Jiao [Meng Chiao]', 'Memorial on the Buddha Bone', 'Biography of Mao Ying [Tipp O'Hair]'
The Poetry of Bo Juyi (Po Chü-yi)
Boshi Changqing ji (Master Bo's Changqing Era Collection); 'Song of Everlasting Regret', 'Songs of Qin [Ch'in], 'New Ballads'
The Poetry of Li He (Li Ho)
'Divine Strings', 'Matters Sealed in Green Writings', 'Ballad of a Pained Heart', 'Thirteen Poems from My Southern Garden', 'Song of General Lü', 'Changgu'
The Prose Works of Quyang Xiu (Ou-yang Hsiu)
Various memorials submitted to the Court, expository essays on political matters, obituaries, New Tang History, New History of the Five Dynasties, Postscripts to Collected Ancient Inscriptions, 'Record of The Old Drunkard's Pavilion', 'The Autumn Sound'
The Poetry of Su Shi (Su Shih)
Also known as Su Dongpo (Su Tung-p'o)
Southern Travels Collection, 'On the Yangzi Watching the Hills', 'Written on the Wall at West Forest Temple', 'Prose Poems on the Red Cliff'
Romance of the Western Chamber
Xixiang ji (Hsi-hsiang chi)
Wang Shifu (Wang Shih-fu)
Second half of the thirteenth century
The Plays of Guan Hanqing (Kuan Han-ch'ing)
Guan Hanqing (Kuan Han-ch'ing)
Lord Guan Goes to the Feast with a Single Sword, Crying for Cunxiao (or Death of the Winged Tiger General), Rescued by a Coquette, The Riverside Pavilion, The Jade Mirror Stand, The Butterfly Dream, and Injustice to Dou E (or Snow in Midsummer)
The Water Margin
Shuihu zhuan (Shui-hu chuan); Outlaws of the Marsh, All Men Are Brothers
Shi Nai'an (Shih Nai-an) and/or Luo Guanzhong (Lo Kuan-chung)
Composed c. middle of fourteenth century, with numerous subsequent recensions
Romance of the Three Kingdoms
Sanguo zhi yangi (San-kuo chih yen-i)
Attributed to Luo Guanzhong (Lo Kuan-chung)
1522
Journey to the West
Xiyou (Hsi-yu Chi)
Wu Chengen (Wu Cheng-en)
Composed between the late 1560's and the year of the author's death; first published c. 1592
Golden Lotus
Jin Ping Mei (Chin P'ing Mei)
Unknown
Composed 1590's; first complete version printed in 1610
Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio
Liaozhai Zhiyi (Liao-chai Chih-i)
Pu Songling (P'u Sung-ling)
Composed between c. 1670-1707; published c. 1766
The Scholars
Rulin waishi (Ju-lin wai-shih) (Unofficial History of the Literati)
Wu Jingzi (Wu Ching-tzu)
1739-1750
Dream of the Red Chamber
Honglou meng (Hung-lou meng)
Cao Zueqin (Ts'ao Hsüeh-ch'in)
First printed edition, 1792
The Works of Lu Xun (Lu Hsün)
Pseudonym of Zhou Suren (Chou Shu-jen)
Calls to Arms [stories] (1923), Wandering [stories] (1926), Wild Grass [prose poems] (1927), The Grave [essays] (1927), And That's That [essays] (1928)
The Short Stories and Novels of Xiao Hong (Hsiao Hung)
Pseudonym of Zhang Nai Ying/Chuang Nai Ying
Major Short Stories: 'The Death of Wang Asao' (1932), 'Night Wind' (1933), 'Hands' (1936), 'Bridge' (1936), 'The Family Outsider' (1936), 'On the Oxcart' (1937), and 'Spring in a Small Town' (1941)
Major Novels: Field of Life and Death (1934), Market Street (1935), Tales of Hulan River (1939-1940), Ma Bole (1940-1941, unfinished)
The Fictional Works of Lao She
Pseudonym of Shu Xingchun/Shu Hsing-ch'un
Major Novels: The Two Mas (1931), Cat Country (1933), Divorce (1933), Rickshaw Boy (1936), Four Generations Under One Roof (1943), Cremation (1944)
Major Plays: The Face Issue (1941), The Dragon Beard Ditch (1950), Teahouse (1957)
Major Operas: Spring Wind (1943), Fifteen Springs of Cash (1956), Blue Clouds and White Snow (1959), Wang Baochuan (1964)
Major Short Stories: 'The Grand Opening' (1933), 'Mr. Jodhpurs' (1933), 'Black and White Li' (1934), 'The Crescent Moon' (1935), 'Tragedy in a New Age' (1935), 'A Benevolent Person' (1935), 'The Soul-slaying Spear' (1935), 'An Old and Established Name' (1935), 'This Life of Mine' (1937), and 'Going to Work' (1958)
India:
Hymns of the Rig Veda
Many anonymous authors over the centuries
1500 B C(?) to c. 800 B C
Brhmanas and Āranyakas
Many anonymous authors
Tenth to fifth centuries B C
Rāmāyana
[Vālmīki] (by tradition)
Evolved over several centuries; work took its present form somewhere between the fourth and second centuries, B C
Mahābhārata (Great Poem of the Descendants of Bharata)
Rishi Vyasa
400 B C to 400 A D
The Song of the Lord (Bhagavad-Gītā)
Unknown. Tradition assigns the work to Vyasa, the legendary author of the Mahābhārata
The exact date of composition is unknown. The Gita has been dated as early as 500 B C and as late as A D 100. Most scholars situate the work between the fifth and first centuries, B C
Dhammapada
The Path of Righteousness (or Virtue)
The Dhammapada consists of sayings attributed to the Buddha (Siddhartha Gautama); finally translated into Pali by unknown writers
Around third century B C
Vedānta Sūtras
Vedāntasūtras or Brahmasūtras or Shārīraka-mīmāmsā-sūtras
Bādārayana
Probably c. 200 B C
Panchatantra (The Five Books)
Unknown, sometimes attributed to the narrators: Vishnusharman or Vasughaga, depending on the version
Unknown, likely c. 200 B C
Deeds of the Buddha
Buddha-carita
Ashvaghosha
Late first to mid-second centuries A D
Purānas
Vyāsa (legendary author). Revised by many unknown writers
First century A D
Yoga Sūtra
Patanjali
Perhaps second to fourth centuries A D
Shakuntalā
Shakuntalā (Śakuntalā). The work is also known by its longer title: Abhijnānashakuntalā (Shakuntalā and the Ring of Recollection).
Kālidāsa
Middle of the fifth-century A D
Treasury of Well-Turned Verses
Subhāsita-ratna-kosa
Vidyākara
c. A D 1100 (revised version c. 1130)
Gītagovinda (Song of the Lord)
Jayadeva
Twelfth century
Rāmcaritmānas
Tulsīdas
c. 1574
The Works of Rammohun Roy
Raja Rammohun Roy
A Gift to Deists (1803), Translation of an Abridgment of the Vedanta (1815), The Precepts of Jesus, A Guide to Peace and Happiness (1820)
The Poetry of Ghalib
Asadullah Khan Ghalib (Mirza Ghalib)
Major Poetic Works: In Urdu: Diwan-i-Ghabli, in Persian: Kulliyat-i-Nasir-Ghalib
The Works of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee
Major Works: Rajmohan's Wife (1864), The Daughter of the Feudal Lord (Durgeshnandini) (1865), Mrinalini (1869), The Poison Tree (Bishabriksha) (1873), Indira (1873), Chandrasekhar (1875), Krishnakanta's Will (1878), Anandamath (Abbey of Bliss) (1882), Rajsinha (1882), Sitaram (1887)
The Poetry of Rabindranath Tagore
Major Works: In English: Gitanjali (1912), The Gardener (1913), The Crescent Moon (1913); in Bengali: Prabhat Sangeet (Morning Songs) 1883, Mānasi (The Lady of the Mind) 1890, Sonār Tari (The Golden Boat) 1894, Naibedya (Offerings) 1901, Gitānjali (Song Offerings) 1912, Balākā (Wild Geese) 1916, Patra-put (Plate of Leaves) 1936, Naba-jatak (The Newly Born) 1940, Ses Lekhā (Last Writing) 1941
The Poetry of Muhammad Iqbal
Shaikh Muhammad Iqbal (Allama Iqbal)
Major Works: (In Persian) Asrar-i-Khudi (Secrets of the Self) (1915); Rumuz-i-Bekhudi (Mysteries of Selflessness) (1918); Payam-i-Mashriq (Message of the East) (1923); Zabur-i-Ajam (Persian Psalms) (1927); Javidnama (The Book of Eternity) (1932), Pas Chi Bayad Kard Ay Aqwam i Sharq? (What then is to be done, O Peoples of the East?) (1936).
(In Urdu) Bang-i-Dara (The Caravan Bell) (1924); Bal-i Jibril (Gabriel's Swing) (1935); Zarb-i-Kalim (The Blow of Moses' Staff) (1936); Armaghan-i-Hijaz (The Gift From Hijaz) 1938.
Kamayani
Jaishankar Prasad
Japan:
The Collection of Ten Thousand Leaves
Man'yōshū
Ōtomo no Yakamochi and other (unidentified) compilers; Princess Nukada, or Nukata, Kakinomoto no Hitomaro, Yamanoue no Ōkura, Ōtomo no Tabito, Lady Kasa
Tales of Ise
Ise monogatari
Unknown. Possibly, among others, Ariwara no Narihira
First part of tenth century
Collections of Poems Old and New
Kokinshū
Anthologizers: Ki no Tsurayuki, Ki no Tomonori, Ōshikōchi no Mitsune, Mibu no Tadamine
Early tenth century
Tosa Diary
Tosa nikki
Ki no Tsurayuki
c. 935
Kagero Diary
Kagero nikki
Michitsuna's Mother (Michitsuna no Hacha)
c. 971
The Pillow Book
Makura no soshi
Sei Shonagon
c. 993-1010
The Tale of Geni (Genji monogatari)
Murasaki Shikibu
The bulk of The Tale of Genji was probably written and circulated chapter by chapter between the year 1003 and the author's death, as early as 1014. There is no known original holograph. Extant textual variants fall into three major categories: the Kawachi recension, the Aobyōshi recension, and a group of other dissimilar variants called Beppon.
An Account of a Ten-Foot Square Hut
Hōjōki
Kamo no Chōmei
1212
New Collection of Poems Ancient and Modern
Shinkokinshū
Fujiwara no Teika (Sadaie), Minamoto no Michitomo, Fujiwara no Ariie, Fujiwara no Ietaka, Fujiwara no Masatsune, Jakuren
First decade of thirteenth century
The Tale of the Heike
Heike monogatori
Unknown
Thirteenth century
Essays in Idleness
Tsurezuregusa
Urabe Kenkō
Composed c. 1319 to c. 1350
The Noh Plays
Kan'ami Kiyotsugu, Zeami Motokiyo, Kanze Motomasa, Komparu Zenchiku, and others
Fourteenth through sixteenth centuries
The Fictional Works of Ihara Saikaku
Major Works: The Life of an Amorous Man (Kōshoku ichidai otoko) (1682); Five Women Who Loved Loved (Kōshoku gonin onna) (1686); The Life of an Amorous Woman (Kōshoku ichidai onna) (1686); The Great Mirror of Male Love (Nanshoku ōkagami) (1687); The Japanese Family Warehouse (Nippon eitaigura) (1688); Tales of Samurai Honor (Buke giri monogatari) (1688); Some Final Words of Advice (Saikaku oridome) (1694)
The Haiku Poetry of Matsuo Bashō
Major Works: Some thousand extant haiku; The Journal of the Weatherbeaten Skeleton (Nozarashi kikō) (1684); Collected Verses (Atsume ku) (1687); The Narrow Road to the Deep North (Oku no hosomichi) (c. 1689); Saga Diary (Saga nikki) (1691)
The Plays of Chikamatsu Monzaemon
Major plays: The Soga Heirs (1683), Victorious Kagekiyo (1686), Double Suicide at Sonezaki (1703), The Battles of Coxinga (1715), The Woman Killer and the Hell of Oil (1721)
The Haiku Poetry of Kobayashi Kissa
Major Works: Journal of My Father's Last Days (Chichi no Shuen Nikki) (1801); The Year of My Life (Ora ga Haru) (1819)
The Works of Mori Ōgai
Major Works: The Dancing Girl (Mahime) (1890), Vita Sexualis (1909), Youth (Seinen) (1910), Delusions (Mōsō) (1911), The Wild Goose (Gan) (1911-13), The Abe Clan (Abe ichizoku) (1913), Incident at Sakai (Sakai jiken) (1914), Suibue Chūsai (1916)
The Novels of Natsume Soseki
Original name Natsume Kinnosuke
Major Novels: I Am a Cat (1905-06), Botchan (1906), Red Poppy (1907), Sanshiro (1908), And Then (1909), The Gate (1910), To the Spring Equinox and Beyond (1912), The Wayfarer (1913), Kokoro (1914), Grass on the Wayside (1915), Darkness and Light (1916)
The Prose and Poetry of Yosano Akiko
Major Works: Poetry: Midaregami (Tangled Hair) (1901); 'My Brother, You Must Not Die' (1904); 'Sozorogoto' ('Verses in Idle Moments') (1908)
The Novels of Nagai Kafū
Major Works: The River Sumida (Sumidagawa) (1909), Geisha in Rivalry (Udekurabe) (1916-17), A Strange Tale from East of the River (Bokutō kidan) (1937), A Daily Account of the Calamity (Risai nichiroku) (1946-48)
The Fictional Works of Shiga Naoya
Major Works of Fiction: 'The Razor' (1910), 'My Mother's Death and My New Other' (1912), Otsu Junkichi (1912), 'Seibei and His Gourds' (1912), 'An Incident', 'Han's Crime (1913), 'At Kinosaki', Reconciliation (1917), A Dark Night's Passing (1937), 'Gray Moon' (1945)
The Novels of Tanizaki Jun'ichiro
Major Novels: Naomi (1925), Some Prefer Nettles (1929), The Secret History of Lord Musashi (1932), The Makioka sisters (1948), The Key (1956), Diary of a Mad Old Man (1962)
The Short Stories of Akutagawa Ryūnosuke
Major Works: 'The Rashō Gate' (1915), 'The Noise' (1916), 'Yam Gruel' (1916), 'The Bandits' (1917), 'A Life Spent at Frivolous Writing' (1917), 'Withered Fields' (1918), 'The Spider's Thread' (1918), 'Death of a Martyr' (1918), 'The Hell Screen' (1918), 'The Ball' (1919), 'Christ in Nanking' (1920), 'The Chastity of O-Tomi' (1922), 'In the Grove' (1922), 'Cogwheels' (1927), 'A Fool's Life' (1927)
The Fictional Works of Ibuse Masuji
Major Works: 'Salamander' (1922), 'Carp' (1926), 'Savan on the Roof' (1929), Waves: A War Diary (1938), John Majirō: A Castaway's Chronicle (1938), 'Tajinko Village' (1939), 'Isle-on-the-Billows' (1946), 'A Geisha Remembers' (1950), 'Station Inn' (1957), Lieutenant Lookeast (1961), Black Rain (1964)
The Fictional Works of Kawabata Yasunari
Major Works of Fiction: The Izu Dancer (Izu no odoriko) (1926), Palm of the Hand Stories (Tenohira no shōsetsu) (1926), Evening Sun (Yūhi) (1943), Snow Country (Yukiguni) (1948), Thousand Cranes (Senbazuru) (1949), Palm of the Hand Stories (Tanagokoro no shōsetsu) (1950), Dancing Girl (Maihime) (1951), The Sound of the Moutain (Yana no oto) (1954), The Lake (Mizuumi) (1955), House of the Sleeping Beauties (Nemureru bijo) (1961), Beauty and Sadness (Utsukushisa to kanashimi to) (1965), One Arm (Kataude) (1965)
The Fictional Works of Enchi Fumiko
Major Works Translated: The Waiting Years (Onnazaka) (1957); Masks (Onnamen) (1958); Love in Two Lives: The Remnant (Nisei no en-shūi) (1958)
Untranslated: Banshun Sōya (1928); Himojii Tsukihi (1954); Ake o ubau mono (1969); Yūkon (1972); Namamiko monogatari (1965); Shokutoku no nai ie (1979)
The Novels of Mishima Yukio
Original name Hiraoka Kimitake
Major Works of Fiction: Confessions of the Mask (Kamen no kokuhaku) (1949); Thirst for Love (Ai no kawaki) (1950); The Sound of the Waves (Shiosai) (1954); The Temple of the Golden Pavilion (Kin Kajuji) (1956); After the Banquet (Utage no ato) (1960); Patriotism (Yukoku) (1960); The Sea of Fertility (Hojo no umi) (1970)
The Novels of Ariyoshi Sawako
Major Novels: The River Ki (1959), The Doctor's Wife (1967), The Twilight Years (1972), Kabuki Dancer (1972)
Korea:
Koryŏ Songs
Major Poems (among others): 'Ode on the Seasons', 'Song of Green Mountain', 'Song of P'yongyang', 'Song of the Gong and Chimes', 'Will You Go?', 'Spring Overfows the Pavilion'
Various anonymous authors; a few poets identified by name
Twelfth to fourteenth centuries
Songs of Flying Dragons
Yongbi ŏch 'ŏn ka
Scholars in the Hall of Worthies
1445-47
The Poetry of Hŏ Nansŏrhŏn
Nansŏrhŏn is her pen name; her given name was Ch'o-hi
Major Poems: 'A Woman's Sorrow', 'For My Brother Hagok', 'Mourning My Children', 'A Poor Woman'
The Poetry of Yun Sŏndo
Major Poems: 'Dispelling Gloom' (1618), 'New Songs in the Mountains' (and their sequel) (1614-1645), The Angler's Calendar (1651), 'The Disappointing Journey' (1652)
The Cloud Dream of the Nine
Kuun mong
Kim Man-jung (Kim Man-Choong)
Most critics believe that Kim in 1687 wrote Kuun mong in classical Chinese. Oldest extant version in woodblock print written in classical Chinese dated 1725. Versions in Korean published after 1725.
The Song of a Faithful Wife
Ch'unhyang ka (Ch'unghyang chŏn)
Original author unknown
Date of origin unknown. Oldest extant version in 1754. The singing version written down by Shin Chae-hyo (1812-1884). Modern rewritings from 1911 on
A Record of Sorrowful Days
Hanjung nok
Lady Hong of Hyegyŏng Palace
1795-1806
The Works of Pak Chiwŏn
Major Works: Yorha ilgi (Jehol Diary) (1780); 'Hŏsaeng chŏn' ('The Story of Master Hŏ'), 'Yangban chŏn' ('The Story of a Yangban'), 'Hojil' ('A Tiger's Reprimand'), 'Kwangmuncha chŏn' ('The Story of Kwangmum'), and 'Yedok Sonsaeng chŏn' ('The Story of Master Yedok')
Your Silence
Nim-ŭi ch'imuk (Your Silence or The Silence of Love)
Han Yong-un
Major Works: Chosŏn pulgyo yusillon (The Revitalization of Korean Buddhism) (1913), Pulgyo taejŏn (Encyclopedic Dictionary of Buddhism) (1915), Chosŏn tongnip-ŭi so (Basis for Korean Independence) (1919-1920), Hŭkp'ung (Black Wind--novel) (1926), Nim-ŭi ch'imuk (Your Silence--poetry) (1926), Huhŭi (Regret--novel], Pangmyŏng (The Ill-starred--novel) (1938)
Middle East:
The Seven Golden Odes
Imr'u al-Qays, Tarafa, Labid, 'Antara, Zuhayr, 'Amr ibn Kulthum, Harith
Sixth century to early seventh century A D
Qur'an
Qur'ān (Koran is a common but less accurate transliteration)
According to Muslim belief, the Qur'ān is the Word of God as revealed to Muhammad (Abu al-Qasim Muhammad ibn 'Abd Allah 'Abd al-Muttalib ibn Hashim) over a 23-year period.
C. A D 650-655, the 'Uthmanic text', named for Uthman, the Third Caliph (A D 644-655). This official published text is based upon various collections of the verses. The first such collection goes back as early as the reign of the First Caliph (A D 632-634), Abu Bakr.
The Thousand and One Nights (The Arabian Nights)
Alf Layla wa-Layla
Unknown. Product of a long oral tradition.
A collection of tales, realistic or fantastic, of ancient Indian, Greek, Mesopotamian and Persian, and more recent Arabic origins that have been told and retold for thousands of years, especially in the Arabic-speaking Middle East.
These tales belonged to a primarily oral tradition, the core of which was probably written down in the tenth century. Other tales were added to the corpus over the centuries.
Shahnameh
Shāhnāma (The Book of Fings)
Abo'l-Qāsem Ferdowsi (Firdawsi or Ferdausi: 'The Paradisal')
Completed in 1010
The Ring of the Dove
Tawq al-ḥamāmah (The Neck-ring of the Dove)
Abu Muhammad 'Ali ibn Ahmad ibn Ḥazm
c. 1030
Maqāmāt al-Hammadhānī
Abū al-Faḍl Aḥmad b. al-Husayn (nicknamed Badi' al-Zamān al-Hamadhānī: Marvel or Wonder of the Age from Hamadhān)
Maqāmāt al-Ḥarīrī
Abū Muḥammad al-Qāsim b. 'Alī b. Muhammad b. Uthmān (usually known as al-Ḥarīrī, an attribute derived from his or family profession, either the making or trading of silk [ḥarīr means silk in Arabic])
The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam
The Conference of the Birds
Manteq at-Tair
Farīd ud-Dīn 'Aṭṭar
1177
The Poetry of Nezami
Elyas ebn Yusuf Nezami
Major Works: Khamzeh ('Quintet'); Makhzan al-Asrar ('The Treasure of Secrets'); Khosrow and Shirin; Leili and Majnun; Haft Paykar ('The Seven Portraits'); The Book of Alexander (consisting of two parts; Sharafnameh and Eqbalnameh)
The Poetry of Jalāl al-Dīn Rūmī
Jalāl al-Dīn Mohammad Balkhi
Major Works: Masnavi (Mathnavi), Divan-e Shams-e Tabrizi, Fihi ma Fihi (Prose Discourses)
The Poetry and Prose of Sa'di
Sheikh Nuslih-uddin Sa'di Shirazi
Major Works: Golestan (The Rose Garden), Bustan (The Orchard), Ghazaliyat (Lyric Poems)
The Divan of Ḥafez
Hafez (Ḥāfiẓ of Shiraz) (Shams al-Din Mohammad Shirazi)
Probably compiled in late fourteenth century
Muqaddimah (Introduction or Prolegomena)
Ibn Khaldūn ('Abd ar-Rahman Abu Zayd ibn Muhammad ibn Muhammad ibn Khaldūn)
Completed 1377
The Poetry and Prose of Jāmī
Nur al-Din 'Abd al-Raḥmān Jami
Major Works: The Seven Thrones (includes 'Salaman and Absal' and 'Joseph and Zuleikha'), Baharistan (The Garden in Spring)
The Works of Ṭāhā-Ḥusayn
Major Works: [Autobiography] (1927, 1932, 1955), Recalling Abū al-'Alā' [al-Ma'arrī] (1914), On Pre-Islamic Poetry (1925), The Future of Culture in Egypt (1938), The Call of the Karawān (1942)
The Works of Tawfīq al-Ḥakim
Tawfīq al-Ḥakim (also transliterated as Tewfik el-hakeem)
Major Works: The Men of the Cave (1933), Shahrazad (1934), The Maze of Justice (1937), Pygmalion (1942), The Sultan's Dilemma (1960), The Tree Climber (1962)
The Novels and Stories of Sadeq Hedayat
Major Works: Buried Alive (short stories) (1930), Three Drops of Blood (short stories) (1932), Chiaroscuro (short stories) (1933), Mrs. Alaviyyeh (novel) (1933), Mr. Bow Wow (satirical sketches), The Blind Owl (novel) (1937), The Stray Dog (short stories) (1942), Haji Aqa (novel) (1945), Parvin, Daughter of Satan (drama) (1930), Maziyar (drama) (1933)
The Novels of Ghassan Kanafani
Major Novels: Men in the Sun (1962), All That's Left to You (1966), Return to Haifa (1969), Umm Sa'ad (1969)
The works listed in Great Thinkers:
China:
Confucius (Kongfuzi/K'ung Fu-tzu)
Major Works: Many classics were attributed to the editorship of Confucius, yet most scholars agree that the only work that can represent the ideas of Confucius is the Analects (Lunyu/Lun-yü), a collection of notes and quotations written down by his disciples and edited after his death.
Laozi (Lao Tzu)
Major Work: Daode jing (Tao Te Ching) (Classic of the Way and Its Power)
Mozi (Mo Tzu)
Major Work: Mozi (Mo Tzu). This work was not composed by Mozi, but rather was the product of the Mohist tradition (c. 390-221 B C). It contains numerous sayings of Mozi, along with chapters on the later tradition's teaching on defensive warfare (chapters 51-79) and discourses on logical method (chapters 40-45).
Zhuangzi (Chuang Tzu)
Major Work: Zhuangzi (Chuang Tzu)
Mencius (Mengzi/Meng Tzu)
Major Work: Mengzi (Meng Tzu) (The Book of Mencius)
Gongsun Long (Kung-sun Lung)
Major Work: Gongsun Longzi (Kung-sun Lung Tzu)
Xunzi (Hsün Tzu)
Major Work: Xunzi (Hsün Tzu), in thirty-two chapters, edited by Liu Xiang (Liu Hsiang) (77 B C)
The Spring and Autumn Annals of Master Lu (Lüshi Chunqiu/Lü-shih Ch'un-ch'iu)
Presumably compiled by Lu Buwei (Lü Pu-wei)
Third century B C
Han Fei
Major Work: Hazi Fei Zi (Han Fei Tzu) (Date of compilation unknown.)
The Great Learning (Da Xue/Ta Hsüeh)
Attributed to Zengzi (Tseng Tzu) or Zi Si (Tzu Ssu)
Between third and second centuries B C
The Doctrine of the Mean (Zhong Yong/Chung Yung)
Attributed to Zi Si (Tzu Ssu), but author unknown
Between third and second centuries B C
Yi Jing (I Ching) (Book of Changes)
Unknown. According to tradition, the book was composed in several layers over many centuries. The discovery of the eight component "trigram" (three-line) symbols is attributed to the first of the legendary Five Emperors, Fu Xi (Fu Hsi) (ruled 2852-2737 B C). The creation of the sixty-four "hexagram" (six-line) symbols and the composition of the hexagram statements is ascribed to Ji Chang (Chi Ch'ang), posthumously known as King Wen, founder of the Zhou (Chou) dynasty (c. 1027 B C). Ji Dan (Chi Tan), younger son of Ji Chang, better known as Zhou Gong (Chou Kung), or the Duke of Zhou, is credited with the formulation of the individual line statements (six per hexagram). Finally, the "Ten Wings," a body of commentaries attached to the above texts, were supposedly written by Confucius (Kongfuzi/K'ung Fu-tzu) (551-479 B C)
Historical events mentioned in the lines of the hexagrams pertain to the period just before and after the founding of the Zhou dynasty, that is, the end of the second and beginning of the first millennium B C. However, the first recorded reference to the book is much later. A passage dated 672 B C, from the work of history known as the Zuozhuan (Tso-chuan), quotes from a divination manual called the Zhouyi (Chou i), "The Changes of Zhou (Chou)." This text, with its appended commentaries, was finally canonized as the Yi jing (the Book of Change) in 136 B C. The commentaries alone date from the third and fourth centuries B C. Therefore the composition of the Yi jing as we now know it spans a period of approximately eight centuries.
Dong Zhongshu (Tung Chung-shu)
Major Work: Luxuriant Dew of the Spring and Autumn Annals (Chunqiu Fanlu/Ch'un-ch'iu fan-lu)
Wang Chong (Wang Ch'ung)
Major Works: Luheng (Lun-heng) (Discursive Equilibrium), in eighty-five chapters (A D 82-83); chapter 85, an autobiography, mentions three shorter works, none of which survives
Liezi (Lieh Tzu)
Attributed to Liezi (Lieh Tzu), but probably not written by him
c. A D 300, contains material from earlier sources
Guo Xiang (Kuo Hsiang)
Major Work: Zhuangzi zhu (Chuang Tzu Chu) (Commentary on the Zhuangzi/Chuang Tzu)
Jizang (Chi-Tsang)
Major Works: Zhongguanlun shu (Chung-kuan lun-shu) (Commentary on the Mādhyamika shastra); Erdi zhang (Erh ti chang) (Essay on the Two Levels of Discourse); Bailun shu (Pai lun shu) (Commentary on the Shata Shastra); Shi er men lun shu (Shih erh men lun shu) (Commentary on the Twelve Gate Treatise); Sanlun xuanyi (San-lun hsüan-i) (Profound Meaning of the Three Treatises); Erdi yi (Erh ti i) (Meaning of the Two Levels of Discourse); Dasheng xuanlun (Ta sheng hsüan-lun) (Treatise on the Mystery of the Mahāyāna)
Xuanzang (Hsüan-tsang)
Major Works: Xi yu li (Hsi yü chi) (Record of Western Lands) (646); Chengweishi lun (Ch'eng-wei-shih lun) (Establishment of the Consciousness-Only System) (659)
Huineng
Major Work: Liuzu Tanjing (Liu-tsu t'an-ching) (The Platform Scripture of the Sixth Patriarch)
Fazang (Fa-tsang)
Major Works: An incredibly prolific writer, Fazang produced more than sixty original works, commentaries on a wide variety of Buddhist texts, and meditation manuals, and participated in at least some of the Buddhist translation projects of his time. Much of his work centers on the exegesis of the Huayan jing (Hua-yen ching) (Flower Garland Scripture), which is sometimes referred to in Sanskrit as the Avatamsaka Sutra. A complete list of his works would be impractical, but a few of the major works are: Huayan wujiao zhang (Hua-yen wu-chiao chang) (Essay on the Five Teachings of the Huayan); Huayan yihai baimen (Hua-yen i-hai po-men) (The Hundred Gates to the Unfathomable Meaning of the Huayan); Huayan fa putixin zhang (Hua-yen fa p'u-t'i-hsin chang) (Essay on the Arousal of the Bodhi Mind in the Huayan); Qixinlun yiji (Ch'i-hsin-lun i-chi) (Commentary on the Mahāyāna Awakening of the Faith)
Zhou Dunyi (Chou Tun-i)
Major Works: Taijitu shuo (T'ai-chi-t'u shuo) (An Explanation of the Diagram of the Great Ultimate); Tongshu (T'ung-shu) (Penetrating the Book of Changes)
Zhang Zai (Chang Tsai)
Major Works: Zhengmeng (Cheng-meng) (Correcting Youthful Ignorance. Also translated as: Correct Discipline of Beginners); Ximing (Hsi-ming) (The Western Inscription. Part of chapter 17 of the Zhengmeng); Jingxue liku (Ching-hsüeh li-k'u) (Assembled Principles of Classical Learning); Yishou (I-shou) (Commentaries on the Book of Changes)
Cheng Hao (Ch'eng Hao) and Cheng Yi (Ch'eng I)
Major Works: Er-Cheng quanshu (Erh-Ch'eng Ch'uan-shu) (The Complete Works of the Two Chengs). This collection, which has not been translated into English except for brief selections, includes miscellaneous surviving works of the two brothers (commentaries, poems and letters), including the Yi chuan (I ch'uan) (Commentary of the Yi jing/I Ching) by Cheng Yi and the Cuiyan (Ts'ui-yen) (Pure Words), which records conversations of the two brothers.
Zhu Xi (Chu Hsi)
Major Works: Recorded Sayings, Commentary on the "Four Books", Commentary on the Book of Changes, Commentary on the Book of Odes
Wang Yangming (Wang Yang-ming)
Major Works: Chuanxi lu (Ch'uan hsi lu) (Instructions for Practical Living), Part I composed in 1514, Part II in 1521-1527; Daxue wen (Ta-hsüeh wen) (Questions on the Great Learning), (1527)
Dai Zhen (Tai Chen)
Major Works: Yuanshan (Yüan-shan) (Inquiry into Goodness) (1754-66); (Mengzi ziyi shuzheng) (Meng Tzu tzu-i shu-cheng) (An Evidential Study of the Meaning of Terms in the Mencius) (1772-77).
Kang Youwei (K'ang Yu-wei)
Major Works: Xinxue Weijing Kao (Hsin Hsüeh Wei Ching K'ao) (Study of the Classics Forged During the Hsin Period) (1891); Kungzi Gaizhi Kao (K'ung Tzu Kai-chih K'ao) (Study of Confucius as Reformer) (1896; published in 1913); Zhongyong Zhu (Chung-yung Chu) (Commentary on the Doctrine of the Mean) (1900); Lunyu Zhu (Lun-yü Chu) (Commentary on the Analects) (1902); Liyun Zhu (Li-yün Chu) (Commentary on the Evolution of Rites) (1913); Da Tong Shu (Ta-t'ung Shu) (Book of the Great Unity) (1935)
Tan Sitong (T'an Ssu-t'ung)
Major Work: Ren xue (Jen-hsüeh) (An Exposition of Benevolence, or A Study of Humanity) (1896-97)
Sun Yat-sen (Sun Yixian/Sun I-hsien)
Major Works: Sun Wen Xue Shuo (Sun Wen Hsüeh Shuo) (Memoirs of a Chinese Revolutionary: A Program of National Reconstruction for China) (1918); Sanmin Zhuyi (San Min Chu I) (The Three Principles of the People) (1924); Jian Guo Dagang (Chien Kuo Ta-kang) (Fundamentals of National Reconstruction) (1924)
Mao Zedong (Mao Tse-tung)
Major Works: 'On Practice' (1937), 'On Contradiction' (1937), 'On New Democracy' (1940), 'On Literature and Art' (1942), 'On the Correct Handling of the Contradictions Among the People' (1957)
Fung Yu-lan
Major Works: History of Chinese Philosophy (1930, 1934); New Rationalism (Xin lixue/Hsin Li-hsüeh) (1939); China's Road to Freedom (Xin shilun/Hsin shih-lun) (1939); A New Treatise on the Way of Life (Xin shixun/Hsin shih hsün) (1940); A New Treatise on the Nature of Man (Xin yuanren/Hsin yüan-jen) (1943); The Spirit of Chinese Philosophy (Xin yuanduo/Hsin yüan-tao) (1944); A New Treatise on the Methodology of Metaphysics (Xin zhiyan/Hsin chih-yen) (1946)
India:
Upanishads
Unknown. The work of many Indian philosophers and teachers.
c. 600-c. 400 B C
Philosophical and religious reflections expressed in prose and poetry. The prose Upanishads are: Brihad-Āranyaka, Chāndogya, Taittirīya, Aitareya, Kaushītaki, Kena, Prashna, Maitri, and Māndūkya. The poetic Upanishads are: Katha, Shvetāshvatara, Īsha, and Mundaka.
Buddha (Siddhārtha Gautama)
Major Works: The Buddha's sayings were recollected and written down many years after his death. The sūtras (dialogues), which form a part of the Pali Tripitaka, are generally conceded to be the closest approximation to what the Buddha actually taught.
Mahāvīra
Bādarāyana
Major Work: Brahmasūtras (Aphorisms on The Brahman)
Bhagavad Gītā
Attributed to Vyāsa
Between fifth and first centuries B C
Patanjali
Major Work: Yoga Sūtras
Nāgārjuna
Major Works: Mūla-madhyamaka-kārikā (Verses on the Fundamental Middle Way), Vigrāha-vyāvartani (Refutation of Objections)
Vasubandhu
Major Works: Abhidharma-kosha, Twenty Verses, Thirty Verses (Trimshikā), One Hundred Dharmas Treatise
Īshvarakrishna
Major Work: Sānkhya Kārikās (Verses on the Sānkhya)
Kumārila Bhatta
Major Works: Shlokavārtika (Exposition on the Verses) [Commentary on Shabara's Commentary on Jaimini's Mīmāmsa Sūtras, Books 1, Chapter 1]; Tantravārtika (Exposition on the Sacred Science) [Commentary on Shabara's Commentary on Jaimini's Mīmāmsa Sūtras, Book 1, Chapters 2-4; Books 2 and 3]; Tuptika (Full Exposition) [Commentary on Shabara's Commentary on Jaimini's Mīmāmsa Sūtras, Books 4-9]
Jayarāsi Bhatta
Major Work: Tattvopaplavasimha (The Lion That Devours All Categories or The Upsetting of All Principles) (seventh century A D)
Guadapāda
Major Work: Kārikā (Exposition) on Māndūkya Upanishad
Haribhadra
Major Works: Anekāntajayapatākā (The Victory Banner of Relativism), Ashtakaprakarana (The Eightfold Explanation), Dhūrtākhyāna (The Rogue's Stories), Samarāiccakahā (The Story of Samarāicca), Sāstravārtāsamuccaya (The Array of Explanatory Teachings), Yogabindu (The Seeds of Yoga), Yogadrishtisamuccaya (The Array of Views on Yoga)
Shankara
Major Works: Aitareyopanishadbhāshya (Commentary on the Aitareya Upanishad), Ātmabodha (Self-knowledge), Bhagavadagītābhāshya (Commentary on the Bhagavad Gītā), Brahmasūtrabhāshya (Commentary on the Brahma Sūtra), Brihadāranyakopanishadbhāshya (Commentary on the Brihadāranyaka Upanishad), Chāndogyopanishadbhāshya (Commentary on the Chāndogya Upanishad), Īshopanishadbhāshya (Commentary on the Īsha Upanishad), Kathopanishadbhāshya (Commentary on the Katha Upanishad), Kenopanishadbhāshya (Commentary on the Kena Upanishad), Upadeshasāhashrī (The Thousand Teachings)
Vācaspati Mishra
Major Works: Bhāmatī ("The Lustrous:" [Commentary of Shankara's Brahmasūtrabhāshya]), Brahmatattvasamīksha (Examination of the Brahman as Truth), Nyāyakanikā (Brief Outline of the Nyāya School), Tattvabindu (Quintessence of the Truth)
Sureshvara
Major Works: Brihadāranyakopanishadbhāshya Vārtikā (Explanation of the Commentary on the Brihadāranyaka Upanishad), Naishkarmyasiddhi (Establishment of Non-action), Sambandha Vārtikā (Explanation of Relations), Taittirīyopanishadbhāshya Vārtikā (Explanation of the Commentary on the Taittirīya Upanishad)
Rāmānuja
Major Works: Shrībhāshya (Commentary on the Brahma Sūtra), Gītābhāshya (Commentary on the Gītā), Vedāntasāra (The Essence of Vedanta), Vedārthasamgraha (Compendium of the Vedic Topics)
Madhva
Major Works: Madhva-bhāshya (Comentary on Brahma-sūtra), Gītābhāshya (Commentary on the Gītā), Mahābhārata-tātparya-nirnaya (Determination of the Meaning of the Māhābhārata), Anubhāshya (Short Commentary [on the Brahma Sūtra]), Anuvyākhyāna (Supplemental Explanation [of the Brahma Sūtra])
Jayatīrtha
Major Works: Nyāyasudha (Nectar of Logic) [Commentary on Madhva's Anuvyākhyāna Commentary on the Brahma Sūtras]; Tattvaprakāshikā (Light on the Truth) [Commentary on Madhva's Comentary on the Brahma Sūtras]; Vādāvali (Lineage of Controversies)
Nānak
Major Works: Asa Di Var [Hymns], Japji [Poetry]
Jīva Gosvāmin
Major Works: Bhāgavatasandarbha (The Collection of the Bhāgavata Purāna) [This work as six parts: 'Tattvasandarbha' ('Collection on Reality'), Bhāgavatsandarbha' ('Collection on the Lord'), 'Paramātmasandarbha' ('Collection on the Great Soul'), 'Krishnasandarbha' ('Collection on Krishna'), 'Bhaktisandarbha' ('Collection on Devotion'), and the 'Prītisamdarbha' ('Collection on Love')]; Sarvasamvādini (The Harmonization of All); Kramasandarbha (Commentary on the Bhāgavata Purāna)
Vijnānabhikshu
Major Works: Vijnānāmritabhāshya (The Nectar of Knowledge Commentary) [Commentary on the Brahma Sūtras of Bādarāyana], Īshvaragītābhāshya (Commentary on the Bhagavad Gītā), Sānkhyasāra (Quintessence of Sānkhya), Sānkhysūtrabhāshya (Commentary on the Sānkhyasūtras [of Kapila]), Yogasārasamgraha (Compendium on the Quintessence of Yoga), Yogabhāshyavārttika (Explanation of the Commentary [of Vyāsa] on the Yoga Sūtras)
Madhusūdana Sarasvatī
Major Works: Advaitasiddhi, Siddhāntatattvabindu, Vedāntakalpalatikā
Dharmarāja Adhvarin
Major Work: Vedānta Paribhāshā
Rabindranath Tagore
Major Works: Gitānjali (1912), Sādhnā (1913), Personality (1917), Gorā (1924), The Religion of Man (1931)
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
Major Works: The Story of My Experiments With Truth (1927), Satyāgraha in South Africa (1938), Selections From Gandhi (edited by N K Bose) (1948)
Aurobindo
Major Works: The Life Divine (1949), Letters on Yoga (1971), The Supramental Manifestation (1972)
K C Bhattacharyya
Major Works: Studies in Vendāntism (1907), The Subject as Freedom (1930), 'The Concept of Philosophy', 'The Absolute and Its Alternative Forms', 'The Concept of Value' (1939)
Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
Major Works: Indian Philosophy (1923, 1927), The Hindu Way of Life (1927), An Idealist View of Life (1932), Eastern Religions and Western Thought (1939), The Brahma Sūtras (1959)
Jawaharlal Nehru
Major Works: Soviet Russia (1928), Statements, Speeches and Writings (1929), Letters from a Father to His Daughter (1930), Glimpses of World History (1934), An Autobiography (1936), The Discovery of India (1946)
Japan:
Shōtoku Taishi
Major Works: Jūshichijō kempō (Seventeen-Article Constitution) (604), Sangyō gisho (Commentaries on Three Sūtras), Shōmangyō gisho (Commentary on the Sūtra of Queen Shrīmālā) (c. 609-611), Yukimakyō gisho (Commentary on the Vimalakirtī Sūtra) (c. 612-613), Hokkekyō gisho (Commentary on the Lotus Sūtra) (c. 614-615)
Kūkai
Major Works: Indications of the Goals of the Three Teachings (797), The Difference Between Exoteric and Esoteric Buddhism (814), Attaining Enlightenment in This Every Existence (817), The Meanings of Sound, Word, and Reality (817), The Precious Key to the Secret Treasury (830)
Genshin (Eshin Sōzu)
Major Works: Ōjōyōshū (The Essentials for Birth in Amida's Paradise) (985), Kanjin ryaku yōshū (Essentials of Self-Insight) (997), Hongakusan shaku (Essay on [Ryōgen's] Hymn to Original Enlightenment), Shinyo kan (Seeing Thusness), The Yokawa hōgo (Yokawa Tract)
Hōnen
Major Works: Senchakushū (Selected Passages on the Original View) (1198), One Page Testament (1212)
Jien (Jichin)
Major Works: Gukanshō (Miscellany of Ignorant Views) (1219), Jichin kashō [or oshō] jikaawase (The Personal Poetry Contest of the Venerable Jichin) (c. 1199), Shūgyokushū (Collection of Gleaned Jewels) (compiled in 1346; expanded in 1594)
Note: Kankyo no tomo (Companion for a Solitary Retreat) (1222), a setsuwa collection by the monk Keisei was until recently attributed to Jien.
Myōe
Major Works: Smashing the Heretical Chariot (1212), Illustrated Account of the Origins of Kegon (early thirteenth century), Entering the Kegon Gate of Liberation Through the Practice of Zen Illumination (1220), The Meaning of the Divine Influences Received Through the Mantra of Radiance (1228), Dream Diary (1230)
Shinran
Major Works: The True Teaching, Practice and Realization of the Pure Land Way (popularly known as Kyōgyōshinshō; draft written in 1224; completed c. 1247)
Dōgen
Major Works: Shōbōgenzō (Treasury of the True Dharma-Eye) (1231-53), Shōbōgenzō Zuimonki (Miscellaneous Talks) (1233), Eithei Kōroku (Recorded Sayings at Eiheiji Temple) (1243-53), Fukanzazengi (Universal Recommendation for Zazen Practice) (1227)
Nichiren
Major Works: Risshō ankoku ron (Treatise on the Establishment of the Orthodox Teaching and the Peace of the Nation) (1260), Hokke daimoku shō (Treatise on the Recitation of the Title of the Lotus Sūtra) (1264), Kaimoku shō (Opening of the Eyes) (1272)
Ippen
Major Works: 'Sacred Poem on the Unity of the Ten and One' (1271), 'Sacred Poem on the Six Hundred Thousand People' (1274), 'Hymn on the Specific Vow [of Amida]' (1287)
Kitabatake Chikafusa
Major Work: Jinnō Shōtōki (Chronicle of the Direct Descents of Gods and Sovereigns)
Fujiwara Seika
Major Works: Bunshō tattoku kōryō, Chiyo motogusa (1591), Kana Seiri (Plainly Written Truths and Principles), Seika mondō (Seika's Dialogues), Suntetsu roku (A Record of Pithy Sayings) (1606), Daigaku yōryaku (Epitome of the Great Learning) (1619)
Suzuki Shōsan
Major Works: Banmin tokuyō (Right Action for All) (1661), Ninin bikuni (Two Nuns) (1664), Roankyō (Donkey Saddle Bridge) (1648), Mōanjō (A Safe Staff for the Blind) (1619)
Hayashi Razan
Major Works: Hai Yaso (The Anti-Jesuit) (1606), Santokushō (Notes on the Three Virtues) (c. 1629), Honchō jinja kō (Study of Our Shinto Shrines), Honchō tsugan (Comprehensive Mirror of Our Nation), Shintō denju (Shintō Initiation), Shunkanshō (Spring Mirror Notes) (1629)
Nakae Tōju
Major Works: Okina mondō (Dialogues with an Old Man), Jikei Ausetsu (The Diagram of Holding Fast to Reverence, Explained), Genjin (Inquiry into Man)
Yamazaki Ansai
Major Works: Hekii (Refutation of Heresies) (1647), Bunkai hitsuroku (Reading Notes), Hakurokudō gakukishūchū (Collected Commentaries on Zhu Xi's [Chu Hsi's] Regulations for the White Deer Grotto School) (1650), Yamato shōgaku (Japanese Elementary Learning) (1658)
Yamaga Sokō
Major Works: Bukyō shogaku (Little Learning of the Warrior's Creed) (1656), Seikyō yōroku (Essential Teachings of the Sages) (1665), Gorui (Classified Discourses) (1665), Chūchō jijitsu (True Facts of the Central Kingdom) (1669), Haisho zampitsu (Autobiography in Exile) (1675)
Itō Jinsai
Major Works: Dōjimon (Boys' Questions) (1707), Go-Mō jigi (The Meaning of Terms in the Analects and Mencius) (1683)
Kaibara Ekken
Major Works: Yamato zokkun (Precepts for Daily Life in Japan) (1708), Yamato honzō (Plants of Japan) (1709), Yōjōkun (Precepts for Health Care) (1713), Taigiroku (Record of Grave Doubts) (1714)
Ogyū Sorai
Major Works: Bendō (Distinguishing the Way) (1717), Seidan (Discourses on Government) (1725?)
Motoori Norinaga
Major Works: Ashiwake obune (A Small Boat Punting Through the Reed Brake) (1756), Shibun yōryō (The Essence of the Tale of Genji) (1763), Isnokami Sasamegoto (My Personal View of Poetry) (1763), Kuzubana (Arrowroot Blossoms) (1780), Uiyamabumi (The First Step on the Mountain of Learning) (1799), Naobi no mitama (The Rectifying Spirit) (1771), Tamakushige (The Jeweled Comb-Box) (1786), Kojikiden (A Commentary on the Kojiki) (1798), Genji monogatari tama no ogushi (The Small Jeweled Comb: A Study of the Tale of Genji) (1796)
Hirata Atsutane
Major Works: Kōdo taii (Summary of the Ancient Way) (1811), Koshichō (1811), Shitsunoiwaya (1811), Tama no mihashira (Pillar of the Soul) (1812), Tamadasuki (1829), Koshiden (Commentaries on Ancient History) (1825), Shutsujō shogo (A Laughing Discourse on the Everyday World) (1811), Hongyō gaihen (Supplementary Compilation of Shinto) (1806)
Nishida Kitarō
Major Works: A Study of Good (1911), Intuition and Reflection in Self-Awakening (1917), From the Acting to the Seeing (1927), The Self-Conscious Determination of Nothingness (1932), Logic and Life (1936), The Logic of Basho and the Religious World View (1945)
Tanabe Hajime
Major Works: Collected Essays on the Logic of Species (1932-41), Philosophy as Metanoetics (1946), The Dialectics of the Logic of Species (1946), A Dialectical Demonstration of the Truth of Christianity (1948)
Uehara Senroku
Major Works: Shishin-shō (The Heart of History: Selections) (1940), Gakumon he no Gendaiteki Danso (Contemporary Reflections on Scholarship) (1946-55), Heiwa no Sōzō: Jinrui to Kokumin no Rekishiteki Kadai (Building Peace: Historical Tasks of the Human Race and of the Japanese People) (1950), Sekaishi-Ninshiki no Shin-Kadai (New Tasks Toward a Global Historical Consciousness) (1963-68), Shisha Seisha: Nichiren Ninshiki no Hassō to Shiten (The Dead and the Living: The Notion and Standpoint of Nichiren Consciousness) (1970), Kureta no Tsubo: Sekaishi-zō Keisei no tame no Shidoku (The Cretan Jar: Readings Toward the Formation of Global Historical Consciousness) (1975)
Nishitani Keiji
Major Works: Kongenteiki Shutaisei no Tetsugaku (The Philosophy of Fundamental Subjectivity) (1940), Nihirizumu (The Self-Overcoming of Nihilism) (1946; English translation, 1990), Shūkyō to wa Nanika (What Is Religion? Translated as Religion and Nothingness) (1961; English translation, 1982), Nishida Kitarō (1985; English translation, 1991); Zen no Tachiba (The Standpoint of Zen) (1986)
Korea:
Wŏnhyo
Major Works: Commentary and Supplementary Notes on the Awakening of Faith in Mahāyāna (c. 622-676), Treatise on Ten Approaches to the Reconciliation of Doctrinal Controversy (date unknown), Arouse Your Mind and Practice! (date unknown), Exposition of the Adamantine Absorption Scipture (c. 685)
Chinul
Major Works: Encouragement to Practice: The Compact of the Concentration and Wisdom Community (1190), Secrets on Cultivating the Mind (1203-05), Admonitions to Beginning Students (1205), Straight Talks on the True Mind (c. 1205), Abridgement of the Commentary of the Flower Garden Sūtra (1207), Excerpts from the Dharma Collection and Separate Circulation Record with Personal Notes (1209)
Yi T'oegye
Major Works: Chyonmyongdo (Revision of Chong Chi-Un's Old Diagram of the Mandate of Heaven) (1553), Chujasojolyo (Essentials of Master Chu's Letters) (1556), Jasongnok (Self-Reflections) (1558), T'oegye Kobong Wangbokso (The T'oegye-Kobong Correspondence) (1559-67), Songhakshipdo (Ten Diagrams of Confucianist Learning) (1567)
Hyujŏng
Major Works: The Mirror of the Three Teachings, The Mirror of the Meditation School (1564)
Yi Yulgok (Yi I)
Major Works: Donghomundap (Conversations on Politics Between Host and Guest) (1569), Hyangyak (On the Community Pact) (1571), Dap Songhowon (The Yulgok-Ugye Correspondence) (1572), Songhakjibjo (Essentials of Confucianist Learning) (1575), Kyokmongyokyol (A Primer of Neo-Confucianism) (1577), Sohakjipchu (Collected Annotations on the Small Learning) (1579), Kyongyonilki (A Diary of Royal Lectures) (1581)
Han Yongun
Major Works: Treatise on the Reform of Korean Buddhism (1913), 'A Discourse on the Independence of Korea' (1919), The Silence of Love (1926)
World of Islam:
Rābi'a al-Adawiyya
Major Works: Sayings compiled by later biographers, especially Fariduddin 'Attar (d. c. 1230) in his Memorial of the Friends of God
Al-Kindī
Major Works: Fī al-Falsafat al-Ūlā (On First Philosophy), Risāla fī Kammiyyat Kutub Arisṭūṭālīs wa mā yuḥtāj ilaih fī Taḥṣīl al-Falsafa (Treatise on the Number of Aristotle's Books and What Is Needed to Attain Philosophy), Risāla fī al-Ḥīla li-Daf' al-Aḥzan (Treatise on the Device for Driving Away Sorrows), Risāla fī Alfāẓ Suqrāṭ (Treatise on the Utterances of Socrates)
Abū Bakr al-Rāzī
Major Works: Book of the Philosophic Life, Book of Spiritual Medicine
Al-Fārābī
Major Works: al-Madīna al-fāḍilah (The Opinion of the People of the Virtuous City), Short Commentary on Aristotle's Prior Analytics, About the Scope of Aristotle's Metaphysics, On the Intellect, The Harmony Between the Views of the Divine Plato and Aristotle, The Attainment of Happiness, Aphorisms of the Statesman
Avicenna (Ibn Sīnā)
Major Works: Kitāb al-Shifā (The Book of Healing), Kitāb al-Najāt (The Book of Deliverance), Risālah fi'l-'ishq (Treatise on Love), Ḥayy in Yaqzān (The Son of the Awake), Risālah al-ṭa'īr (Treatise on Birds), Fountains of Wisdom, al-Ishārāt wa'l tanbīhāt (The Book of Directives and Remarks), Manṭiq al-mashriqiyīn (Logic of the Orientals)
Qushayri
Major Works: Risālah (The Treatise on Sufism), Lat'aif al-Ishārāt (Subtlest Indications)
Al-Ghazālī
Major Works: Intentions of the Philosophers, The Deliverer from Error, Incoherence of the Philosophers, The Just Mean in Belief, Revival of Religious Sciences, The Elixir of Happiness
Shahrastānī
Major Works: Kitab al-Milal wa'l-Nihal (The Book of Religions and Philosophical Communities) (1127); Nihayat al-'Iqdam (The Culmination of Demonstration in Scholastic Theology)
Averroes (Ibn Rushd)
Major Works: The Decisive Treatise, The Incoherence of the Incoherence, Commentary on Plato's Republic, Middle Commentary on Aristotle's Rhetoric
Suhrawardī
Major Works: Philosophy of Illuminations (Ḥikmat al-ishrāq), The Book of Intimations, The Book of Oppositions, The Book of Conversations, The Flashes of Light, The Knowledge of God, Treatise on Illumination
Ibn 'Arabī
Major Works: Interpreter of Desires (1214-15), The Ringsettings of Wisdom (begun in 1229), Meccan Openings (1201-38)
Sirhindī
Major Works: Maktūbāt (Letters), Mabda'-ō-Ma'ād (Origin and Return), Ithbāt al-Nubuwwa (The Affirmation of Prophecy)
Mullā Ṣadrā (Ṣadr al-Dīn Shīrāzī)
Major Works: al-Asfār al-arba'ah (The Four Journeys of the Soul), al-Mabda' wa'l-ma'ād (The Book of Origin and Return), al-Shawāhid al-rubūbiyyah (Divine Witnessess), al-Hikmat al-'arshiyyah (Descending from the Divine Throne), Commenary on Avicenna's Shifa', Commentary on Suhrawardī's Hikmat al-Ishrāq
Shāh Walĩ Allāh
Major Works: Ḥujjat Allāh al-Bāligha (The Conclusive Argument From God), al-Budūr al-Bāzigha (Full Moons Rising)
Muhammad Iqbal
Major Works: Asrar-i Khudi (Secrets of the Self) (1915), Rumuz-i Bikhudi (Mysteries of Selflessness) (1918), Payam-i Mashriq (Message of the East) (1923), Zubur-i 'Ajam (Persian Hymns) (1927), Six Lectures on the Lectures on the Reconstruction of Islamic Thought (1930), Javid Namah (Book of Eternity) (1932), Bal-i Jibril (Gabriel's Swing) (1936), Armaghan-i Hijaz (Gift of Hijaz) (1938)
Sayyid Muḥammad Ḥusain Tabāṭabā'ī
Major Works: Al-Mizan fi Tafsir al-Qur'an (Balance in Qur'anic Commentary) (n.d.), Qu'ran dar Islam (Qur'an in Islam), Rawabit-i Ijtima'i dar Islam (Social Relations in Islam) (n.d.), Usul Falsafah wa Rawish-i Realism (Foundations of Philosophy and Method of Realism) (1953-85), Tafsir a-Mizan (Qur'anic Commentary) (1965), Shi'ah dar Islam (Shi'ism in Islam) (1969), Shi'ah: Majmu'ah-i Muzakrat ba Professor Henry Corbin (Shi'ism: Collection of Discussions with Professor Henry Corbin) (1976), Usul-i Falsafah-i Realism (Foundations of Realist Philosophy) (1976), Falsah-i Iqtisad-i Islam (Philosophy of Islam's Economics) (1982), Nahayah al-Hikmah (Ultimates of Knowledge) (1984)