The Diamond Sutra Meets the Piano... Yeungnam Law Professor Lee Sungwon Hosts Unique Book Concert

Lee Sungwon, a professor at the Yeungnam University Law School, will hold a "Diamond Sutra Concert" at 7 p.m. on the 29th at the Chamber Hall of the Yeungnam University Cheonma Art Center. This book concert, held under the theme of "Emptying and Filling (Emptiness and Form)," is a public lecture based on Professor Lee Sungwon's recently published book, "Step-by-Step Explanation and Instant Understanding of the Diamond Sutra." The event aims to clearly and simply convey the core messages and structural understanding of the Diamond Sutra.

The book published by Professor Lee organizes the text of the Diamond Sutra into the main flow of "Preface, Main Discourse, and Circulation," and further reconfigures the Main Discourse into eight units of "Main Text Refrain" for explanation. The book is characterized by its ability to help readers, who have previously found it difficult to grasp the overall context even after multiple readings, understand each sentence of the original text within its structure.

A poster announcing a book concert featuring the Diamond Sutra and piano together

Furthermore, the book analyzes the original text to show that, even though the Diamond Sutra does not explicitly use the word "emptiness," it simultaneously demands "enlightenment (emptiness)" and "practical action in reality (form)" through the relationship between form and emptiness. Professor Lee's attempt to interpret the scripture with the rigorous reasoning and structural reading of a legal scholar has been praised as "innovative yet faithful to the original text."

In addition, following the book talk, the event will feature a unique concert that includes a piano performance. Professor Lee Sungwon himself will perform Beethoven's "Piano Sonata No. 8 'Path?tique' 2nd and 3rd movements," Bach's "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring (BWV 147)" (piano duo with Lee Miyeon), and Schubert's "Impromptu Op.90-3," among others.

Professor Lee Sungwon graduated from Daeryun Middle School, Kyungshin High School, Seoul National University School of Law, American University, and Yeungnam University Law School. He has worked as an attorney in both South Korea and New York State, USA, and since March 2023, he has been teaching civil law and international business law at Yeungnam University Law School. The upcoming "Book & Piano Concert," which combines lecture and performance, is open to the public free of charge and does not require prior registration.