David Hinton

David Hinton has published numerous books of poetry and essays, and many translations of ancient Chinese poetry and philosophy—all informed by an abiding interest in deep ecological thinking. This widely-acclaimed work has earned Hinton a Guggenheim Fellowship, numerous fellowships from NEA and NEH, and both of the major awards given for poetry translation in the United States: the Landon Translation Award (Academy of American Poets) and the PEN American Translation Award. Most recently, Hinton received a lifetime achievement award by the American Academy of Arts and Letters.

"David Hinton is fabulous translator. The work is luminous and transparent, and you can see the light of the original Chinese masters shining through. I give his books to all my friends." —John Tarrant, author of Bring Me The Rhinoceros and Other Zen Koans That Will Save Your Life and The Light Inside the Dark: Zen, Soul, and the Spiritual Life

"I love this book! The classic koans of the No-Gate Gateway are brilliantly and boldly translated by poet and scholar David Hinton. The introduction and notes are rich resources that open doors to the heart of Zen." —Joan Halifax, author of Being with Dying and Standing at the Edge

"David Hinton is the best English language translator of classic Chinese poetry we have, and have had for decades. A magician’s grace glows through all of the poems, a grace and ease uncommonly found, uncommonly masterful." —from the citation for the Thornton Wilder Prize for Translation from the American Academy of Letters

"Hinton’s translation comes without the additional commentary we see in contemporary Western editions of the work, and his reader’s guide can help practitioners deepen their study. The book also includes translator’s notes, though these aren’t placed in text. Thus, readers may linger on each case, allowing the reading experience to loosen their proclivity for binary thought." —Tricycle: The Buddhist Review