Rate My Professor Steven Heine

Steven Heine is Professor of Religious Studies and History, as well as Founding Director of the Asian Studies Program, at Florida International University, where he joined in 1997. Prior appointments include Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Pennsylvania State University (1991-1997), Assistant Professor of Religion at La Salle University (1987-1991), and Lecturer in Religious Studies at Villanova University (1982-1987). He also served as Fulbright Senior Researcher at Komazawa University in Tokyo (1981-1982). Heine holds a Ph.D. (1980) and M.A. (1976) in Religion from Temple University, and a B.A. (1971) in Religious Studies from the University of Pennsylvania. His career has been marked by leadership roles such as Chair of the Japanese Religions Group and Sacred Space in Asia Group of the American Academy of Religion, editor of Japan Studies Review since 1999, and steering committee member for various AAR groups. He has secured over $3 million in external funding to develop FIU's Asian Studies Program, which now offers B.A. and M.A. degrees.

Heine's research focuses on Japanese religions, especially Zen Buddhism, Soto Zen, and the thought of Dōgen in the 13th-century medieval period, alongside East Asian culture and literature, comparative mysticism, folk religions, religion and psychology, and modernization's impact on religious traditions. He has authored more than 35 books and 100 peer-reviewed articles, including Dōgen: Japan’s Original Zen Teacher (Shambhala, 2021), Wisdom Within Words: An Annotated Translation of Dōgen’s Chinese-Style Poetry (Oxford University Press, 2022), Flowers Blooming on a Withered Tree: Giun’s Verse Comments on Dōgen’s Treasury of the True Dharma Eye (Oxford University Press, 2020), Readings of Dōgen’s Treasury of the True Dharma Eye (Columbia University Press, 2020), From Chinese Chan to Japanese Zen (Oxford University Press, 2017), Zen Skin, Zen Marrow (Oxford University Press, 2008), and White Collar Zen (Oxford University Press, 2005). Major honors include the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette (2007), Japan Ministry of Foreign Affairs Award (2004), two National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowships, Kauffman Entrepreneurship Professors Award (2006), and FIU Excellence in Research Award (2020). His influence is reflected in the 2021 festschrift Zen Roots, Zen Branches: Theoretical Reflections and Practical Applications, Essays in Honor of Steven Heine. Heine has delivered public lectures at institutions including Harvard, Stanford, Yale, and Zen centers worldwide.