Zen Teaching of Homeless Kodo

Author: Kosho Uchiyama Roshi
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1614290474
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 374

Book Description
Abandon your treasured delusions and hit the road with one of the most important Zen masters of twentieth-century Japan. Eschewing the entrapments of vanity, power, and money, "Homeless" Kodo Sawaki Roshi refused to accept a permanent position as a temple abbot, despite repeated offers. Instead, he lived a traveling, "homeless" life, going from temple to temple, student to student, teaching and instructing and never allowing himself to stray from his chosen path. He is responsible for making Soto Zen available to the common people outside of monasteries. His teachings are short, sharp, and powerful. Always clear, often funny, and sometimes uncomfortably close to home, they jolt us into awakening. Kosho Uchiyama expands and explains his teacher's wisdom with his commentary. Trained in Western philosophy, he draws parallels between Zen teachings and the Bible, Descartes, and Pascal. Shohaku Okumura has also added his own commentary, grounding his teachers’ power and sagacity for the contemporary, Western practitioner. Experience the timeless, practical wisdom of three generations of Zen masters.

Opening the Hand of Thought

Author: Kosho Uchiyama
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 0861719778
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 257

Book Description
For over thirty years, Opening the Hand of Thought has offered an introduction to Zen Buddhism and meditation unmatched in clarity and power. This is the revised edition of Kosho Uchiyama's singularly incisive classic. This new edition contains even more useful material: new prefaces, an index, and extended endnotes, in addition to a revised glossary. As Jisho Warner writes in her preface, Opening the Hand of Thought "goes directly to the heart of Zen practice... showing how Zen Buddhism can be a deep and life-sustaining activity." She goes on to say, "Uchiyama looks at what a person is, what a self is, how to develop a true self not separate from all things, one that can settle in peace in the midst of life." By turns humorous, philosophical, and personal, Opening the Hand of Thought is above all a great book for the Buddhist practitioner. It's a perfect follow-up for the reader who has read Zen Meditation in Plain English and is especially useful for those who have not yet encountered a Zen teacher.

Discovering the True Self

Author: Kodo Sawaki
Publisher: Catapult
ISBN: 1640093788
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 178

Book Description
In easy-to-understand language, a 20th-century Zen master explains profound teachings from Zen Buddhism, offering an essential resource for anyone interested in Zen meditation. “You can’t see your true Self. [But] you can become it. Becoming your true Self is zazen.” Having come of age as an orphan in the slums of Tsu City, Japan, Kodo Sawaki had to fight his way to adulthood, and became one of the most respected Zen masters of the 20th century. He had a great understanding of Dogen Zenji’s teaching and he knew how to express Dogen’s philosophy in clear, easily–understood language. Sawaki’s primary mission was to bring all people to an awareness of the Self, which he believed came through Zen meditation. His humor and straightforward talk garnered Sawaki followers from all walks of life. Though he remained poor by choice, he was rich in spirit. Two of his students who became known in America as well as in Japan were Kosho Uchiyama, abbot of Antaiji Temple and author of Opening The Hand of Thought, and Gudo Nishijima, Zen teacher and translator of Dogen’s Shobogenzo. A student of Kosho Uchiyama, Arthur Braverman has compiled an anthology of Sawaki’s writings and a garland of sayings gathered from throughout his lifetime. One of a few collections of Sawaki’s teachings published in English, his life and work bracket the most intriguing and influential period of modern Zen practice in Japan and America.

To You

Author: Kodo Sawaki
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781942493709
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 234

Book Description
Kodo Sawaki Roshi [1880â€"1965] was commonly referred to as â€œHomeless Kodoâ€ due to his nomadic lifestyle. In the tradition of Soto Zen, which emphasizes zazen (sitting meditation practice) above the use of texts and koans, he is one of the most influential teachers of the twentieth century. In this book, hundreds of pith sayings taken from his wide-ranging teachings have been carefully compiled and grouped according to subject by one of his closest students. The reader is easily struck by Sawakiâ€(TM)s sincerity, depth and directness. What comes across so immediately is his uncompromising dedication to zazen and his determination to transmit an authentic practice. This he does by pointing out, with biting accuracy, the many pitfalls we â€œordinary humansâ€ stumble into. His teaching is at the same time both completely faithful to the Buddhist ancestors and absolutely relevant to our many modern predicaments. Are you worried about your career? Fighting with your spouse? Concerned about money? Complaining about how busy you are? Homeless Kodo has a piece of advice for you. Kodo Sawaki Roshi also has an appeal to those who are decidedly irreligious, in his irreverence and criticism of hollow traditions. He ruthlessly challenges political and societal conformity, consistently referring his readers back to the essence tenets of zen. Very few of his works have been translated into European languages. Of all his books, perhaps it is this one, To You, (enthusiastically received in both French and German) which best captures his contribution to the tradition. While Kodo Sawaki R� shi is still a lesser-known teacher in the West, some of his disciples, most notably K� sh� Uchiyama R� shi (who collected these sayings) and Taisen Deshimaru R� shi both had many Western disciples, who in turn have brought the practice to literally hundreds of centers and thousands of practitioners in North America, South America and Europe. This English-language version is a joint effort by a distinguished team of Zen practitioners and translators: Muho Noelke and Reih� Jesse Haasch. Muho previously translated the Japanese version into German, and is the first Westerner to hold the post as abbot of a major Japanese Zen monastery, Antaiji. There, Kodo Sawaki himself also served as the abbot from 1949 until his death in 1965.

How to Cook Your Life

Author: Dogen
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
ISBN: 0834824329
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 212

Book Description
This modern-day commentary on Dogen’s Instructions for a Zen Cook reveals how everyday activities—like cooking—can be incorporated into our spiritual practice In the thirteenth century, Zen master Dogen—perhaps the most significant of all Japanese philosophers, and the founder of the Japanese Soto Zen sect—wrote a practical manual of Instructions for the Zen Cook. In drawing parallels between preparing meals for the Zen monastery and spiritual training, he reveals far more than simply the rules and manners of the Zen kitchen; he teaches us how to "cook," or refine our lives. In this volume Kosho Uchiyama Roshi undertakes the task of elucidating Dogen's text for the benefit of modern-day readers of Zen. Taken together, his translation and commentary truly constitute a "cookbook for life," one that shows us how to live with an unbiased mind in the midst of our workaday world.

The Mountains and Waters Sutra

Author: Shohaku Okumura
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1614293120
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 320

Book Description
An indispensable map of a classic Zen text. “Mountains and waters are the expression of old buddhas.” So begins “Sansuikyo,” or “Mountains and Waters Sutra,” a masterpiece of poetry and insight from Eihei Dogen, the thirteenth-century founder of the Soto school of Zen. Shohaku Okumura—renowned for his translations of and magisterial teachings on Dogen—guides the reader through the rich layers of metaphor and meaning in “Sansuikyo,” which is often thought to be the most beautiful essay in Dogen’s monumental Shobogenzo. His wise and friendly voice shows us the questions Dogen poses and helps us realize what the answers could be. What does it mean for mountains to walk? How are mountains an expression of Buddha’s truth, and how can we learn to hear the deep teachings of river waters? Throughout this luminous volume, we learn how we can live in harmony with nature in respect and gratitude—and awaken to our true nature.

Zen Master Raven

Author: Robert Aitken
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1614294003
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 247

Book Description
A uniquely playful and incisive collection of Zen teaching stories from a beloved American master. A Modern Classic. In the tradition of the great koan collections and the records of ancient masters, Robert Aitken distills a lifetime of teaching down to its essence. Intriguing and deceptively simple, Zen Master Raven is a brilliant encapsulation of Zen in over a hundred koan-like encounters alongside many charming illustrations. Featuring curious beginners like Mallard and Mole and profound teachers like Brown Bear, Moose Roshi, and Zen Master Raven himself, this classic of contemporary Zen and will inspire seekers for generations to come.

Living by Vow

Author: Shohaku Okumura
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1614290105
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 321

Book Description
A Sot Zen priest and Dharma successor of Kosho Uchiyama Roshi explores eight of Zen's most essential and universal liturgical texts and explains how the chants in these works support meditation and promote a life of freedom and compassion.

The Grass Flute Zen Master: Sodo Yokoyama

Author: Arthur Braverman
Publisher: Catapult
ISBN: 1619028921
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 128

Book Description
What motivated Sodo–san to spend the last twenty years of his life in a “temple under the sky”— a corner of a public park where he taught passersby what it means to be forever young through the funky tunes he played on his grass flute? In The Grass Flute Zen Master: Sodo Yokoyama, we are seeking not only a truer understanding of this well–loved monk, but of zazen, Zen meditation, itself. In his search for insights into Sodo Yokoyama’s life, Arthur Braverman skillfully weaves a tapestry from seemingly disparate threads—the brief taisho period into which Sodo–san was born and where individualism shone; his teachers, both ancient and contemporary practitioners of Zen Bhuddism; the monk’s love of baseball; and the similarities Braverman finds between Sodo–san and Walt Whitman, who both found the universal in nature. Through conversations with Joko Shibata, Yokoyama’s sole disciple, and careful study of his teacher’s poetry, an intriguing tension between the personal and the universal is revealed. The Grass Flute Zen Master is a meditative examination not of just one life, but of many. The lineage of teacher and protégé is traced back through generations, contemporaries are drawn up from unexpected places, and Braverman examines his own long journey in Zen Buddhism; confronting his own expectations and surprising disappointments (the monk lived in a boarding house and later took a cab to his park when he could no longer walk the whole way) and the understanding and acceptance that followed. “When you play the leaf,” Sodo–san once wrote, “you’ll usually be a little out of tune. That’s where its very charm lies . . .”

Returning to Silence

Author: Dainin Katagiri
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
ISBN: 0834841002
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 209

Book Description
A renowned Zen teacher and contemporary of Shunryu Suzuki explores the many pillars of Zen spirituality, explaining how we can bring these practices into our daily lives For twenty-five hundred years Buddhism has taught that everyone is Buddha—already enlightened, lacking nothing. But still there is the question of how we can experience that truth in our lives. In this book, Dainin Katagiri points to the manifestation of enlightenment right here, right now, in our everyday routine. Genuineness of practice lies in “just living” our lives wholeheartedly. The Zen practice of sitting meditation (zazen) is not a means to an end but the activity of enlightenment itself. That is why Katagiri Roshi says, “Don't expect enlightenment—just sit down!” Based on the author's talks to his American students, Returning to Silence contains the basic teachings of the Buddha, with special emphasis on the meaning of faith and on meditation. It also offers a commentary on “The Bodhisattva's Four Methods of Guidance” from Dogen Zenji's Shobogenzo, which speaks in depth about the appropriate actions of those who guide others in the practice of the Buddha Way. Throughout these pages, Katagiri Roshi energetically brings to life the message that “Buddha is your daily life.”