Zen Time
Dogen's Uji in Context
Published on 1. September 2025
Book
Hardback
334 pages
979-8-8558-0360-0 (ISBN)
Description
Offers a groundbreaking approach to a key text in Zen Buddhism.
In Zen Time, Raji C. Steineck provides a robust contextualization of Dogen's Uji, the most renowned text on time in Zen Buddhism. Situating the text within the historical context of the medieval Zen master's writing, Steineck illustrates how Dogen shaped the rhythm of life in the Zen monastery to actualize his idea that time in itself is salvific. Dogen was meticulous in his observation of the particulars of each temporal moment, regarding them as an opportunity to bring together interrelated tenets of Buddhist doctrine and practice. In contrast to readings that equate the Zen approach to time with "living the moment" and that pit qualitative understandings of time against quantitative understandings, Steineck shows how Dogen was able to connect time's qualitative and quantitative aspects in a way that, despite its mystical elements, remains instructive in relation to contemporary secular and philosophical discussions. The book includes a translation of Uji in an appendix.
An open access version of this book was published with the support of the Swiss National Science Foundation.
In Zen Time, Raji C. Steineck provides a robust contextualization of Dogen's Uji, the most renowned text on time in Zen Buddhism. Situating the text within the historical context of the medieval Zen master's writing, Steineck illustrates how Dogen shaped the rhythm of life in the Zen monastery to actualize his idea that time in itself is salvific. Dogen was meticulous in his observation of the particulars of each temporal moment, regarding them as an opportunity to bring together interrelated tenets of Buddhist doctrine and practice. In contrast to readings that equate the Zen approach to time with "living the moment" and that pit qualitative understandings of time against quantitative understandings, Steineck shows how Dogen was able to connect time's qualitative and quantitative aspects in a way that, despite its mystical elements, remains instructive in relation to contemporary secular and philosophical discussions. The book includes a translation of Uji in an appendix.
An open access version of this book was published with the support of the Swiss National Science Foundation.
Reviews / Votes
"This groundbreaking work offers a historically rich analysis of Dogen and his writings. It uncovers the intricate workings of medieval monastic religious practices, explains in detail their doctrinal developments, and reconstructs Dogen's ideas on existence and time in a coherent and original fashion. It is a must-read for established scholars and scholars-in-training in the fields of East Asian religions in general and Buddhism in particular, as well as philosophers interested in what has been termed 'classical Japanese philosophy.'" - Steffen Doell, Hamburg University"This is one of the finest and most comprehensive works of Dogen scholarship that I have read in recent years, ranking with the best work of eminent scholars like Steven Heine. The author is steeped in the English, German, and Japanese scholarship to a prodigious, even astounding, level." - Jason M. Wirth, Seattle University, author of Mountains, Rivers, and the Great Earth: Reading Gary Snyder and Dogen in an Age of Ecological Crisis
More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Albany, NY
United States
Target group
College/higher education
US School Grade: From College Freshman to College Graduate Student
Illustrations
4 Tables, black and white
Dimensions
Height: 235 mm
Width: 157 mm
Thickness: 24 mm
Weight
694 gr
ISBN-13
979-8-8558-0360-0 (9798855803600)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Raji C. Steineck is Professor of Japanology at the University of Zurich. He has published widely on Japanese intellectual history and philosophy.
Content
Acknowledgments
Conventions and Abbreviations
Introduction
Part I: Grounding the Conceptual Analysis
1. From uji to Philosophy and Back: Thoughts on Methodology
Philosophical Transpositions
Restating uji: A New Translation
Time and Symbolic Form
The Question of Cultural Appropriation
Zen with Distinctions
2. Placing Dogen in Time: Cultural Constellation, Chronology, Agenda
Social and Cultural Conditions
Religious Writing in Early Medieval Japan
The Religious Field
Dogen's Life and Works
Dogen in Time
3. Time Expressed: Chronography in Dogen's Works
A Matrix for Chronographical Analysis
Chronothesis
Chronometrics and Chronotypology
Numerical Chronometry and Its Uses
Conclusion
4. Chronopolitics: Time Regimes and the Social Language of Time
The Diurnal Rhythm in Monastic Life
The Monthly Cycle
The Annual Cycle
The Social Meaning of Time
Control and Commitment
Conclusion
Part II: Chrononoetics: Understanding Time
5. Building Blocks and Early Approaches
Conceptual Heritage: Dogen and the Tradition of Buddhist Thought on Time
Setting the Stage: Trans-Temporal Unity in a Transient World
6. Time in "What Is:Time"
"What Is:Time": Structure and Argument
Central Concepts and Propositions
Conclusion
7. Karma and the "Consummate Now"
Synchrony and Sequence
Karma and the "Final Dharma Age"
Conclusion
Part III: Conclusions and After-Thoughts
8. Dogen's Concept of Time in Context
What is:Time: A Brief Reconstruction and Conceptual Analysis
Integrating Distinctions
Dogen and Time in Medieval Japan
Dogen and the History of Time
9. After-Thoughts: Dimensions of Contemporary Significance
Theoretical: Dogen and the Concept of Time
Time's Measure and Attributes
Practical: Time- and Task-Orientation Combined
Spiritual: Trans-Temporal Synchrony, Holistic Connectedness
Appendix 1: Translation of Uji ("What Is:Time")
Appendix 2: Titles of Dogen's Writings and Other Original Sources
Notes
Bibliography
Index of Names
Index of Terms
Conventions and Abbreviations
Introduction
Part I: Grounding the Conceptual Analysis
1. From uji to Philosophy and Back: Thoughts on Methodology
Philosophical Transpositions
Restating uji: A New Translation
Time and Symbolic Form
The Question of Cultural Appropriation
Zen with Distinctions
2. Placing Dogen in Time: Cultural Constellation, Chronology, Agenda
Social and Cultural Conditions
Religious Writing in Early Medieval Japan
The Religious Field
Dogen's Life and Works
Dogen in Time
3. Time Expressed: Chronography in Dogen's Works
A Matrix for Chronographical Analysis
Chronothesis
Chronometrics and Chronotypology
Numerical Chronometry and Its Uses
Conclusion
4. Chronopolitics: Time Regimes and the Social Language of Time
The Diurnal Rhythm in Monastic Life
The Monthly Cycle
The Annual Cycle
The Social Meaning of Time
Control and Commitment
Conclusion
Part II: Chrononoetics: Understanding Time
5. Building Blocks and Early Approaches
Conceptual Heritage: Dogen and the Tradition of Buddhist Thought on Time
Setting the Stage: Trans-Temporal Unity in a Transient World
6. Time in "What Is:Time"
"What Is:Time": Structure and Argument
Central Concepts and Propositions
Conclusion
7. Karma and the "Consummate Now"
Synchrony and Sequence
Karma and the "Final Dharma Age"
Conclusion
Part III: Conclusions and After-Thoughts
8. Dogen's Concept of Time in Context
What is:Time: A Brief Reconstruction and Conceptual Analysis
Integrating Distinctions
Dogen and Time in Medieval Japan
Dogen and the History of Time
9. After-Thoughts: Dimensions of Contemporary Significance
Theoretical: Dogen and the Concept of Time
Time's Measure and Attributes
Practical: Time- and Task-Orientation Combined
Spiritual: Trans-Temporal Synchrony, Holistic Connectedness
Appendix 1: Translation of Uji ("What Is:Time")
Appendix 2: Titles of Dogen's Writings and Other Original Sources
Notes
Bibliography
Index of Names
Index of Terms