Acknowledgments
Writing a book is a powerful way to experience the Buddha’s teaching of dependent origination, and I have depended on the kindness of so many along the way. The solitary exercise of writing this book was balanced with rewarding conversations with colleagues and friends. The project would be nothing more than an idea without the guidance and support of Robert Gimello. I also benefited tremendously from the suggestions and critiques of friends who read earlier drafts of the manuscript when it was in its dissertation phase: Erik Braun, Holly Gayley, Alan Wagner, Amod Lele, and Ryan Overby provided the sort of support any scholar could wish for, and I will always cherish the conversations we had about our projects. I would like to especially thank Jason Clower and Justin Ritzinger for their valuable feedback, help, and support in the latter stages of writing this book. Both read late drafts and offered precious insight and advice.
Parimal Patil and Michael Puett have been my role models, and their guidance and support have been invaluable. They taught me the meaning of excellent scholarship and the value of mentorship. This book germinated in Parimal’s course on Buddhist philosophy, and it benefited greatly from many conversations and suggestions from both Parimal and Michael. I will also never forget Anne Monius’s kindness. She was always generous with both her time and advice, and like many of her other students, I still mourn her early passing.
I owe a great deal of gratitude to Dan Lusthaus for his advice on this and other projects. Keng Ching patiently went over my translations and offered critiques and corrections. Dan and Ching both helped me navigate the challenging idiosyncrasies of Ouyang’s work. Michael Radich has been both a colleague and a friend and provided much-needed support in times of uncertainty. He also provided superb suggestions and corrections throughout the project.
I would like to thank John Makeham and John Powers for inviting me to take part in a project sponsored by the Australian Research Council studying the Yogācāra revival in the twentieth century. The project not only enriched my book generally, but it also provided the foundations for the chapter on Ouyang’s late thought. I also benefited from exchanges with other participants in the project: especially Eric Hammerstrom, Lin Chen-kuo, Thierry Meynard, Viren Murthy, and Scott Pacey. Another participant, John Jorgensen, deserves special thanks for going over the entire manuscript and providing valuable feedback. I also want to thank the Australian Research Council for its generous support.
Special thanks must go to my colleagues at George Washington University who read drafts, encouraged me, and gave critical advice: Kang Xiaofei, Kelly Pemberton, Robert Shepherd, Paul Duff, and Robert Eisen. I am also grateful for the funding I received from the George Washington University Confucius Institute Research Fund. In preparing the manuscript, Sean Joyce and Cynthia Col gave valuable editorial advice, and Cynthia Col is also responsible for compiling the index. I would also like to thank Jon Wilcox for the incredible editorial job he did on the manuscript. My sincere thanks also go to Qin Higley and Elizabeth You at Brill for their patience and support in seeing this book into print.
My final thanks must go to my amazing family. My children, Noam and Dana, were a constant reminder that there is life beyond working on a book. My partner, Pazit, offered her sharp eyes on my drafts and corrections, and even more, her loving support and encouragement, especially during the more challenging moments in the journey. Without her, this project would have been impossible. And it would definitely have been much less fun.