Best of
Zen

2006

Understanding Our Mind: 50 Verses on Buddhist Psychology


Thich Nhat Hanh - 2006
    Basing his work on the writings of the great fifth-century Buddhist master Vasubandhu and the teachings of the Avatamsaka Sutra, Thich Nhat Hanh focuses on the direct experience of recognizing the true nature of consciousness. Presenting the basic teachings of Buddhist applied psychology, he shows how the mind is like a field, where every kind of seed is planted — seeds of suffering, anger, happiness, and peace. The quality of life, he writes, depends on the quality of the seeds. By learning how to water seeds of joy and transform seeds of suffering, understanding, love, and compassion can flower.

On Attaining Buddhahood in This Lifetime (Lectures on, #1)


Daisaku Ikeda - 2006
    This booklet contains the lecture by SGI President Ikeda on Nichiren Daishonin's letter "On Attaining Buddhahood in This Lifetime." This lecture was serialized in Living BuddhismSept–Oct 2006 to Mar–Apr 2007.

Chanting from the Heart: Buddhist Ceremonies and Daily Practices


Thich Nhat Hanh - 2006
    The book contains traditional and contemporary chants and recitations for daily spiritual practice; ceremonial texts for special occasions like weddings, remembering the deceased, and honoring Buddha’s birthday; and verses for day-to-day activities such as blessing a meal, sweeping, drinking tea, and washing the dishes. Also included are more than 20 discourses comprising some of Buddha’s most fundamental teachings, including the Heart Sutra, the Discourse on the Mindfulness of Breathing, the Discourse on Happiness, the Discourse on Taking Refuge in Oneself, and the Discourse on Love. This lovely book is a quintessential reference for Buddhist practitioners on any level of experience and for anyone who wants to celebrate life and the art of mindful living.

Swampland Flowers: The Letters and Lectures of Zen Master Ta Hui


J.C. Cleary - 2006
    We are happy to make the book available again after more than a decade of scarcity.J. C. Cleary's translation is as noteworthy for its elegant simplicity as for its accuracy. He has culled from the voluminous writings of Ta Hui Tsung Kao in the Chi Yeuh Lu this selection of letters, sermons, and lectures, some running no longer than a page, which cover a variety of subjects ranging from concern over the illness of a friend's son to the tending of an ox. Ta Hui addresses his remarks mainly to people in lay life and not to his fellow monks. Thus the emphasis throughout is on ways in which those immersed in worldly occupations can nevertheless learn Zen and achieve the liberation promised by the Buddha. These texts, available in English only in this translation, come as a revelation for their lucid thinking and startling wisdom. The translator's essay on Chan (Chinese Zen) Buddhism and his short biography of Ta Hui place the texts in their proper historical perspective.

A Sudden Dawn


Goran Powell - 2006
    Sardili realizes that he would rather seek enlightenment than follow his family's military legacy and sets out on a life-long quest for truth and wisdom.Sardili becomes the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma, known as Da Mo in China. He travels throughout India, brings Buddhism to China, and single handedly establishes the Shaolin Temple as the birthplace of Zen and the Martial Arts.A Sudden Dawn is a refreshing take on the mythical origins of Kung Fu with a good pace, enjoyable interpretation of legendary characters, and wonderfully written adventures during the long journey across Asia.

The Wisdom of Imperfection: The Challenge of Individuation in Buddhist Life


Rob Preece - 2006
    Explores the psychological development needed to succeed in the Buddhist path.

Super Potato Design: The Complete Works of Takashi Sugimoto: Japan's Leading Interior Designer


Mira Locher - 2006
    Using traditional Japanese building materials such as bamboo, wood, and stone, but creating original yet timeless spaces, Super Potato's designs avoid specific stylistic characterizations and short-lived fashion. By finding contemporary expression for essential concepts present in traditional Japan and combining materials in unexpected ways to create exciting spaces, Super Potato's work has had a significant impact on interior design in Japan and throughout Asia. Super Potato Design is generously illustrated with 320 full-color photographs by the respected Japanese photographer Yoshio Shiratori, who has recorded Super Potato's projects since the firm's conception in 1973. Architect and Japan scholar Mira Locher introduces the ideas and influences of Takashi Sugimoto, the founder and principal designer of Super Potato, and provides a thorough explanation of each project. Architectural drawings further describe the projects. A forward by Tadao Anso, interviews between Takashi Sugimoto and architect Kiyoshi Sey Takeyama, and also graphic designer Kenya Hara, explore the ideas relevant to Japanese designers today. A list of the Complete Works of Super Potato rounds off the book.

Calm


Steve Barnett - 2006
    Through powerful full-colour images of tranquility, 'Calm' allows readers to pause and re-evaluate each moment, to swap stress for quiet contemplation, to bask in the beauty of nature, art and humanity.

Upside-Down Zen: Finding the Marvelous in the Ordinary


Susan Murphy - 2006
    Recalling, in another vein, the warm, lyrical style of Lin Jensen’s Bad Dog!, author Susan Murphy offers a multifaceted take on the spiritual, grounded in the everyday. She uses her skills as storyteller, filmmaker, and poet to uncover the connections between Zen and Western cinema, as well as between Zen and traditions as diverse as Australian aboriginal beliefs and Jewish folktales. In the process, she finds spirituality where it has always belonged — wherever life is happening. Murphy helps readers make sense of Zen koans, the often oversimplified and misunderstood teaching stories of the tradition, and highlights their wisdom for any reader on the spiritual path. A strong new voice in Western Buddhism, Murphy speaks for the many “unrecorded” women of Zen while bringing a lively, literate approach to a sometimes daunting genre.

Dogen on Meditation and Thinking: A Reflection on His View of Zen


Hee-Jin Kim - 2006
    Through meticulous textual analyses of and critical reflections on key passages primarily from Dōgen's Shōbōgenzō, Kim explicates hitherto underappreciated aspects of Dōgen's religion, such as the ambiguity of delusion and also of enlightenment, intricacies of negotiating the Way, the dynamic functions of emptiness, the realizational view of language, nonthinking as the essence of meditation, and a multifaceted conception of reason. Kim also responds to many recent developments in Zen studies that have arisen in both Asia and the West, especially Critical Buddhism. He brings Dōgen the meditator and Dōgen the thinker into relief. Kim's study clearly demonstrates that language, thinking, and reason constitute the essence of Dōgen's proposed Zen praxis, and that such a Zen opens up new possibilities for dialogue between Zen and contemporary thought. This fresh assessment of Dōgen's Zen represents a radical shift in our understanding of its place in the history of Buddhism.