Thomas Cleary Explained
Thomas Cleary (24 April 1949 – 20 June 2021) was an American translator and author of more than 80 books related to Buddhist, Taoist, Confucian, and Muslim classics, and of The Art of War, a treatise on management, military strategy, and statecraft.[1] [2] He has translated books from Pali, Sanskrit, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, and Old Irish into English. Cleary lived in Oakland, California.[2]
Early life
Cleary became interested in Buddhism when he was a teenager; his researches into Buddhist thought began with a desire to learn during this time of his life.[3] When he began translating, he chose either untranslated works or—as in the case of Sun Tzu's The Art of War—books whose extant translations were "too limited". Cleary earned a Ph.D. in East Asian Languages and Civilizations from Harvard University, and a JD from the Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California, Berkeley.[4] After completing his doctoral studies, Cleary had little involvement with the academic world. "There is too much oppression in a university setting", he said. "I want to stay independent and reach those who want to learn directly through my books." Cleary's brother Jonathon also completed his doctoral work in EALC at Harvard.
Work
Thomas and Jonathon Cleary worked together to translate the koan collection The Blue Cliff Record; Shambhala published the translation in 1977. Thomas Cleary's most widely disseminated translation has been of Sun Tzu's The Art of War (Sunzi Bingfa). He also translated, beginning in 1984, the monumental Avatamsaka Sutra (also called Huayan Jing, or the Flower Ornament Scripture). The one volume edition was published in 1993.[5] Another major translation was of the commentaries of the 18th century Taoist sage Liu Yiming, who explains the metaphoric coding of the main Taoist texts dealing with the transformation of consciousness, and the fusion of the human mind with the mind of Tao.
In 2000, Cleary's various translations of Taoist texts were collected into four volumes by Shambhala Publications as The Taoist Classics. Following the success of these publications, a five-volume collection of Buddhist translations was collected as Classics of Buddhism and Zen. Another translation from the Muslim wisdom tradition is Living and Dying with Grace. In 1993 Cleary published a translation of Miyamoto Musashi's Book of Five Rings.[6]
Personal life
Cleary died on 20 June 2021 in Oakland, California, due to complications from previous illnesses. He is survived by his wife and brothers.[7] [8]
Bibliography
The following is a partial list of works translated by Thomas Cleary.
Taoism
- Understanding Reality: A Taoist Alchemical Classic, University of Hawaii Press, 1987. .
- The Essential Tao: An Initiation into the Heart of Taoism Through the Authentic Tao Te Ching and the Inner Teachings of Chuang-Tzu, HarperOne, 1993. .
- The Secret of the Golden Flower: The Classic Chinese Book of Life, HarperOne, 1993. .
- Sex, Health, and Long Life: Manuals of Taoist Practice, Shamphala, 1995. .
- Immortal Sisters: Secret Teachings of Taoist Women, North Atlantic Books, 1996. .
- Taoist Meditation: Methods for Cultivating a Healthy Mind and Body, Shambhala, 2000. .
- Classics of Strategy and Counsel, Volume 2: The Collected Translations of Thomas Cleary, Shambhala, 2001. .
- Alchemists, Mediums, and Magicians: Stories of Taoist Mystics, Shambhala, 2001. .
- The Book of Balance and Harmony: A Taoist Handbook, Shambhala, 2003. .
- The Taoist Classics, Volume One: The Collected Translations of Thomas Cleary, Shambhala, 2003. .
- The Taoist Classics, Volume Two: The Collected Translations of Thomas Cleary, Shambhala, 2003. .
- The Taoist Classics, Volume Three: The Collected Translations of Thomas Cleary, Shambhala, 2003. .
- The Taoist Classics, Volume Four: The Collected Translations of Thomas Cleary, Shambhala, 2003. .
- The Taoist I Ching, Shambhala, 2005. .
- The Tao Deck, New I-Ching Tool, Lotus Press, 2005. .
- Awakening to the Tao, Shambhala, 2006. .
- The Way of the World: Readings in Chinese Philosophy, Shambhala, 2009. .
- Chuang-tzu: The Outer Chapters, 2011. .
- The Taoism Reader, Shambhala, 2012. .
- Lost Legends of Immortals, 2012. .
Buddhism
- The Flower Ornament Scripture: A Translation of the Avatamsaka Sutra, Shambhala, 1993. .
- Instant Zen: Waking up in the Present, North Atlantic Books, 1994. .
- Classics of Buddhism and Zen, Volume One: The Collected Translations of Thomas Cleary, Shambhala, 2001. .
- Classics of Buddhism and Zen, Volume Two: The Collected Translations of Thomas Cleary, Shambhala, 2001. .
- Classics of Buddhism and Zen, Volume Three: The Collected Translations of Thomas Cleary, Shambhala, 2001. .
- Classics of Buddhism and Zen, Volume Four: The Collected Translations of Thomas Cleary, Shambhala, 2001. .
- Classics of Buddhism and Zen, Volume Five: The Collected Translations of Thomas Cleary, Shambhala, 2002. .
- The Buddha Scroll, Shambhala, 2002. .
- Transmission of Light: Zen in the Art of Enlightenment by Zen Master Keizan, Shambhala, 2002. .
- Book of Serenity: One Hundred Zen Dialogues, Shambhala, 2005. .
- Body, Mind, and Breath: a Meditation Handbook, 2011. .
- Tao Te Ching: Zen Teachings on the Taoist Classic, Shambhala, 2011. .
- The First Book of Zen, 2012. .
- The Lankavatara Sutra, 2012. .
- Sitting Meditation, 2012. .
- Zen in the Pure Land, 2012. .
- The Zen Reader, Shambhala, 2012. .
- Introduction to Chan Buddhism, 2014. .
- Chan Buddhist Meditation, 2015. .
- The Fifth Council: Buddhism for the Sciences, 2015. .
- The Secrets of Tantric Buddhism: Understanding the Ecstasy of Enlightenment, Weiser Books, 2015. .
Islam
- The Essential Koran: The Heart of Islam, Harper SanFrancisco, 1994. .
- The Qur'an: A New Translation by Thomas Cleary, Starlatch Press, 2004. .
Other
- The Book of Five Rings: A Classic Text on the Japanese Way of the Sword, Shambhala, 2005. .
- The Counsels of Cormac: An Ancient Irish Guide to Leadership, Doubleday, 2004. .
- Training the Samurai Mind: A Bushido Sourcebook, Shambhala, 2008. .
- Samurai Wisdom: Lessons from Japan's Warrior Culture - Five Classic Texts on Bushido, Tuttle Publishing, 2014. .
- Six Secrets: A classic Chinese manual of Strategy, 2014, .
- Soul of the Samurai: Modern Translations of Three Classic Works of Zen & Bushido, Tuttle Publishing, 2014. .
- Judgments of the Irish, 2015. .
Notes and References
- Web site: Burton-Rose . Daniel . The Lit interview: Thomas Cleary . https://web.archive.org/web/20080312214021/http://www.sfbg.com/40/04/lit_int.html . dead . 12 March 2008 . . 10 July 2009.
- Web site: Thomas Cleary - Fons Vitae books; The Qur'an Translated by Thomas Cleary; Starlatch books . www.fonsvitae.com . 14 December 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20091214205315/http://www.fonsvitae.com/qurancleary.html . 14 December 2009 . May 2004.
- Web site: Thomas Cleary interview . Sonshi ☯ Sun Tzu's Art of War Educational Resource . 10 July 2009 . en.
- Web site: Thomas Cleary . www.shambhala.com . 1 January 2011.
- Web site: Cook. Francis Dojun. Bodhicitta's Ripple Effect. 29 June 2021. Tricycle: The Buddhist Review. en.
- Web site: 0877738688 The Book Of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi . www.isbnplus.com . https://web.archive.org/web/20180104013826/http://www.isbnplus.com/0877738688 . 4 January 2018.
- Web site: Remembering Thomas Cleary, Translator of Asian Classics. Shambhala Publications. 26 June 2021. 28 June 2021.
- Web site: Thomas Cleary, Prolific Translator of Eastern Texts, Dies at 72. New York Times. 10 July 2021. 10 July 2021.