Tag Archive for 'master'

For a religion that frowns on intellectualization and reveres silence, Zen sure has a lot to say. Explaining the unexplainable has its particular charm and any Zen master worth his salt wants a crack. Some have succeeded more than others. Here’s a brief survey of some of the better books in the Zen canon:
Zen Buddhism: Selected Writings of D.T. Suzuki – If anyone is capable of illuminating the msterious, of making the incomprehensible at least cogent, it is D.T. Suzuki, the man largely credited with bringing Zen Buddhism to the West. Suzuki’s writings provide a balance between “Zen the unknowable” and practical Zen. The book points out a fundamental problem with humans–intellectualization–and explains how Zen solves this problem. Suzuki discusses koan and other Zen instruction methods, but won’t take you right onto the meditation cusion. This is a book about the nature and limitations of intellectual understanding.
The Three Pillars of Zen by Philip Kapleau – Meticulously practical, Kapleau’s classic takes the focus away from any mystical notions of Zen. The opening section tells the beginning Zen student how to breathe, sit and focus the mind during zazen practice. The next section describes Yasutani-roshi’s private conferences with ten Western Zen students. Yasutani is seen compassionately listening and advising these students rather than whacking them with a stick. The conversations reveal both the seriousness and confusion of these Zen practitioners.
The book talks much of satori–Zen students are urged on like race horses towards awakening. At times, however, it feels like the demystification of Zen and enlightnment has made it too ordinary, little more than a moment of “aha!” clarity, or a good idea.
Zen and the Birds of Appetite by Thomas Merton – Merton, a Trappist monk, manages to remain true to his Christian faith while providing keen insights into and appreciation for Zen. Nirvana, he writes, has been misunderstood by he West, leading many to see Buddhism as a world-denying religion. He does much to dispel this myth.
The book’s final section explains Zen in Japanese art. “In traditional Japanese art,” Merton writes, “we find no divorce between art and life or art and spirituality.” The Zen discipline of tea ceremony, for example, rather than involve stiff social formalities as many Westerners imagine, is actually a spiritual expression of art itself.
The Way of Zen – For many, Alan Watts’ classic is still the authoritative text of Zen by a Westerner. Watts emphasizes that Zen is a way and not a religion. His criticism of the dualistically trained mind is delivered clearly and forcefully. He explains that he West’s conception of mind is too limited and intellectual: The Chinese word hsin (kokoro in Japanese or “heart” in English) includes the totality of our psychic functioning.
The Japanese aesthetic is also explained. The true artist expresses the reality of sabi, aware and other moods with no fixed goal to accomplish. “The purposeful life,” Watts cryptically writes, “has no content, no point. It hurries on and on and misses everything.”
Zen and Comparative Studies by Masao Abe – Masao Abe, while not a Zen superstar, has put together a masterpiece for those with a serious interest in Buddhism. Abe provides a fair comparison betwen Buddhism and Western religions, explaining where they fundamentally differ and merge. His precise and learned explanations give the reader a deeper understanding and appreciation of Christianity as well. Abe cogently tackles good and evil, emptiness, the concept of self and God, lends clarity to these difficult topics, giving them historical relevance, practical value, and a context within Western thought.
Abe also places Buddhism in the context of Shintoism, and Zen in the context of Buddhism. “Japanese have traditionally esteemed the individual fact rather than the universal principle.” Abe’s historical and religious explanations illuminate much about Japanese people’s feelings about truth and God, as well as enhancing the reader’s understanding of Buddhism.
Zen Masters – John Stevens celebrates the lives of three Japanese Buddhis legends: Ikkyu, Hakuin and Ryokan. Once, legend goes, a mountain priest (yamabushi) performed a ritual to conjure Fudo Myo-o, a fierce diety. Crazy Ikkyu promptly put out the diety’s fire by urinating on it, proving that the body is the greater miracle.
Ryokan, who died in 1831, grew up in the “snow country” of present-day Niigata Prefecture. His mother was born on nearby Sado Island, famed for artists and eccentrics. Ryokan, like Hakuin and Ikkyu, took a vow of poverty and stuck to it. He begged for alms and ate whatever was offered. He shocked some by begging at brothels, and even played with the ladies when they weren’t busy. He so loved all creatures that he slept inside a mosquito net–but stuck his leg outside to provide food for mosquitoes. The book is well researched and informative, with numerous poems by the three masters.