Light of Zen in the West: Incorporating 'The Supreme Doctrine' and 'The Realization of the Self'

by Hubert Benoît, Graham Rooth

This Centenary Commemorative Edition also includes two lesser known works Buddha and the Intuition of the Universal and Techniques of Timeless Realization. The volume is complemented by a detailed Glossary, an Index, an Original Foreword by Aldous Huxley (1955), an Original Preface by Swami Siddheswarananda (1955), and a Contemporary Foreword by Professor Asanga Tilakaratne. Benoits writings on the human predicament and the path to inner freedom were influenced by his studies in Zen Buddhism and psychoanalysis. There is, as well, an evident dialogue in Benoits writings between the Gurdjieff teaching and Zen, with insightful ideas about universal laws, inner work, the human machine, and work in life. The Supreme Doctrine and The Realization of the Self foreshadow contemporary transpersonal and integral through the re-integration of psychology and metaphysics, Benoit invites us to make our own journey toward spiritual transformation and the intuitive understanding of
universal truths. This

316 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2004

About the author

Hubert Benoit (1904–1992) was a 20th-century French psychotherapist whose work foreshadowed subsequent developments in integral psychology and integral spirituality.[1][2] His special interest and contribution lay in developing a pioneering form of psychotherapy which integrated a psychoanalytic perspective with insights derived from Eastern spiritual disciplines, in particular from Ch'an and Zen Buddhism.[3] He stressed the part played by the spiritual ignorance of Western culture in the emergence and persistence of much underlying distress. He used concepts derived from psychoanalysis to explain the defences against this fundamental unease, and emphasised the importance of an analytic, preparatory phase, while warning against what he regarded as the psychoanalytic overemphasis on specific causal precursors of symptomatology.[4] He demonstrated parallels between aspects of Zen training and the experience of psychoanalysis. He constructed an account in contemporary psychological terms of the crucial Zen concept of satori and its emergence in the individual

Reviews

[Conrad Zero · Rating 5 out of 5]

An extremely challenging but essential read.

[Nessa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think this is my Desert Island Discs book on the subject of the spiritual journey. I have read it many times with new insights on each occasion. It is very dense and difficult but well worth the effort.

[Krystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helped me get through The Supreme Doctrine!!