WRITER

D. T. Suzuki

1870 - 1966

Photo of D. T. Suzuki

Icon of person D. T. Suzuki

Daisetsu Teitaro Suzuki (鈴木 大拙 貞太郎, Suzuki Daisetsu Teitarō, 18 October 1870 – 12 July 1966), self-rendered in 1894 as "Daisetz", was a Japanese essayist, philosopher, religious scholar, and translator. He was an authority on Buddhism, especially Zen and Shin, and was instrumental in spreading interest in these (and in Far Eastern philosophy in general) to the West. He was also a prolific translator of Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Vietnamese and Sanskrit literature. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of D. T. Suzuki has received more than 625,747 page views. His biography is available in 34 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 30 in 2019). D. T. Suzuki is the 1,040th most popular writer (up from 1,042nd in 2019), the 214th most popular biography from Japan (down from 197th in 2019) and the 22nd most popular Japanese Writer.

D.T. Suzuki is most famous for his translations of Buddhist texts and his interpretations of Zen Buddhism.

Memorability Metrics

  • 630k

    Page Views (PV)

  • 61.43

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 34

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 5.10

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 3.04

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Notable Works

An introduction to Zen Buddhism
Buddha (The concept)
19344 / 5
Studies in the Lankavatara sutra
1930
Essays in Zen Buddhism
1927
Zen Buddhism and its influence on Japanese culture
Philosophy
Zen and Japanese Culture is a classic that has influenced generations of readers and played a major role in shaping conceptions of Zen’s influence on Japanese traditional arts. In simple and poetic language, Daisetz Suzuki describes Zen and its historical evolution. He connects Zen to the philosophy of the samurai, and subtly portrays the relationship between Zen and swordsmanship, haiku, tea ceremonies, and the Japanese love of nature. Suzuki uses anecdotes, poetry, and illustrations of silk screens, calligraphy, and architecture. The book features an introduction by Richard Jaffe that acquaints readers with Suzuki’s life and career and analyzes the book’s reception in light of contemporary criticism, especially by scholars of Japanese Buddhism. Zen and Japanese Culture is a valuable source for those wishing to understand Zen in the context of Japanese life and art, and remains one of the leading works on the subject.
1938
Studies in Zen
1955
The Zen doctrine of no-mind
No-mind (Buddhism)
19493 / 5

Among WRITERS

Among writers, D. T. Suzuki ranks 1,040 out of 7,302. Before him are Sam Shepard, Ľudovít Štúr, Hassan ibn Thabit, Paulinus of Nola, Fyodor Tyutchev, and Marcel Pagnol. After him are Cai Yan, Thomas Mayne Reid, Chinua Achebe, Michel Tournier, Thomas Malory, and Emil Ludwig.

Most Popular Writers in Wikipedia

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

Contemporaries

Among people born in 1870, D. T. Suzuki ranks 26. Before him are Maurice Denis, Clara Immerwahr, Paul von Lettow-Vorbeck, Princess Marie Louise of Bourbon-Parma, Sophia of Prussia, and Georgy Gapon. After him are Ernst Barlach, Pierre Louÿs, Prince Carlos of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Charlotte Cooper, Princess Alexandra of Greece and Denmark, and Louis Vierne. Among people deceased in 1966, D. T. Suzuki ranks 33. Before him are Carlo Carrà, Abdul Salam Arif, Rolf Maximilian Sievert, Tadeusz Bór-Komorowski, Chang Myon, and Herbert Gille. After him are Cléo de Mérode, Ludwig Binswanger, Gino Severini, Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, Alfred Naujocks, and Lao She.

Others Born in 1870

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

Others Deceased in 1966

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

In Japan

Among people born in Japan, D. T. Suzuki ranks 214 out of 6,245. Before him are Yozo Aoki (1929), Terauchi Masatake (1852), Issei Sagawa (1949), Toshihide Maskawa (1940), Yamamoto Tsunetomo (1659), and Kantarō Suzuki (1868). After him are Emperor Hanzei (336), Emperor Chūai (149), Tsugumi Ohba (1950), Emperor Go-Kashiwabara (1464), Emperor Shōkō (1401), and Empress Jingū (169).

Others born in Japan

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

Among WRITERS In Japan

Among writers born in Japan, D. T. Suzuki ranks 22. Before him are Masaru Emoto (1943), Zeami Motokiyo (1363), Kobayashi Issa (1763), Shoko Asahara (1955), Mori Ōgai (1862), and Shūsaku Endō (1923). After him are Yosano Akiko (1878), Kenji Miyazawa (1896), Eiji Yoshikawa (1892), Yosa Buson (1716), Ichiyō Higuchi (1872), and Chūya Nakahara (1907).

Japanese born Writers

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous