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ZEN MIND, BEGINNER'S MIND: Informal Talks on Zen Meditation and Practice
Unknown Binding
Published January 1, 2007
About the author
Shunryu Suzuki
44 books691 followersSuzuki Roshi was a Sōtō Zen monk and teacher who helped popularize Zen Buddhism in the United States, and is renowned for founding the first Buddhist monastery outside Asia (Tassajara Zen Mountain Center). Suzuki founded San Francisco Zen Center, which along with its affiliate temples, comprises one of the most influential Zen organizations in the United States. A book of his teachings, Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind, is one of the most popular books on Zen and Buddhism in the West
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December 8, 2025
TEACHINGS OF THE FOUNDER OF THE SAN FRANCISCO ZEN CENTER
Shunryu Suzuki (1905-1971) came to America in 1958, intending only a short visit. But he was so impressed by the quality of ‘beginner’s mind’ and the seriousness he found among Americans that he finally became a permanent resident, making his home in San Francisco… the meditation group called Zen Center came into being and, under his abbotship, grew to three major locations, including Zen Mountain Center, the first Zen training monastery outside Asia… He died a year after this book was first published.”
World religions scholar Huston Smith wrote in the Preface to this 1970 book, “Whereas Daisetz Suzuki’s Zen was dramatic, [Shunryu] Suzuki’s is ordinary; ‘Satori’ was focal for Daisetz, and it was in large part fascination of this extraordinary state that made his writings so compelling. In Shunryu Suzuki’s book the words ‘satori’ and ‘kensho,’ its near-equivalent, never appear. When, four months before his death, I had the opportunity to ask him why satori didn’t figure in his book… he said simply, ‘It’s not that satori is unimportant, but it’s not the part of Zen that needs to be stressed.’” (Pg. 9)
Richard Baker (once Suzuki’s successor as abbot of the San Francisco Zen Center, until he resigned in 1984 after the revelation that he had affairs with several of his students at the Center, as well as other controversies) wrote in his Introduction, “For a disciple of Suzuki-roshi, this book will be Suzuki-roshi’s mind—not his ordinary mind or personal mind, but his Zen mind… the mind of the entire succession---broken or unbroken, historical and mythical---of teachers, patriarchs, monks, and laymen from Buddha’s time until today, and it will be the mind of Buddha himself, the mind of Zen practice. But, for most readers, the book will be an example of how a Zen master talks and teaches. It will be a book of instruction about how to practice Zen, about Zen life, and about the attitudes and understanding that make Zen practice possible. For any reader, the book will be an encouragement to realize his own nature, his own Zen mind.” (Pg. 9)
Suzuki wrote in the Prologue, “For Zen students, the most important thing is not to be dualistic. Our ‘original mind’ includes everything within itself. It is always rich and sufficient within itself. You should not lose your self-sufficient state of mind. This does not mean a closed mind, but actually an empty mind and a ready mind. If your mind is empty, it is always ready for anything; it is open to everything. In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities; in the expert’s mind there are few.” (Pg. 21)
He observes, “After some years we will die. If we just think that it is the end of our life, this will be the wrong understanding. But, on the other hand, if we think that we do not die, this is also wrong. We die, and we do not die. This is the right understanding. Some people may say that our mind or soul exists forever, and it is only our physical body which dies. But this is not exactly right, because both mind and body have their end. But at the same time it is also true that they exist eternally. Even though we say mind and body, they are actually two sides of the same coin. This is the right understanding.” (Pg. 25)
He explains, “Buddha could not accept the religions existing at his time… He was not interested in some metaphysical existence, but in his own body and mind, here and now. And when he found himself, he found that everything that exists has Buddha nature. That was his enlightenment. Enlightenment is not some good feeling or some particular state of mind. The state of mind that exists when you sit in the right posture is, itself, enlightenment. If you cannot be satisfied with the state of mind you have in zazen, it means your mind is still wandering about.. In this posture there is no need to talk about the right state of mind. You already have it. This is the conclusion of Buddhism.” (Pg. 28)
He states, “We say, ‘To hear the sound of one hand clapping.’ Usually the sound of clapping is made with two hands, and we think that clapping with one hand makes no sound at all. But actually, one hand IS sound. Even though you do not hear it, there is sound… Before you make it, there is sound… Sound is everywhere… Do not try to listen to it. If you do not listen to it, the sound is all over. Because you try to hear it, sometimes there is sound, and sometimes there is no sound. Do you understand? Even though you do not do anything, you have the quality of zazen always. But if you try to find it, if you try to see the quality, you have no quality.” (Pg. 60-61)
He advises, “This is Zen practice, not some teaching taught by Buddha, or some rules of life set up by him. The teaching or the rules should be changed according to the place, or according to the people who observe them, but the secret of this practice cannot be changed. It is always true.” (Pg. 64)
He notes, “Usually everyone forgets about zazen. Everyone forgets about God. They work very hard at the second and third kinds of creation, but God does not help the activity. How is it possible for Him to help when He does not realize who He is? That is why we have so many problems in this world. When we forget the fundamental source of our creating, we are like children who do not know what to do when they lose their parents.” (Pg. 67)
He acknowledges, “I think some of you who practice zazen here may believe in some other religion, but I do not mind. Our practice has nothing to do with some particular religious belief. And for you, there is no need to hesitate to practice our way, because it has nothing to do with Christianity or Shintoism or Hinduism. Our practice is for everyone… So there is no reason to worry about the difference between Buddhism and the religion you may believe in.” (Pg. 76)
He states, “our way is both Hinayanistic and Mahayanistic. I always say that our practice is very Hinayanistic. Actually we have Hinayana practice with Mahayana spirit---rigid formal practice and informal mind. Although our practice looks very formal, our minds are not formal. Although we practice zazen every morning in the same way, there is no reason to call this 'formal practice.' It is your discrimination which makes it formal or informal.” (Pg. 90-91)
He says, “When you do not realize that you are one with the river, or one with the universe, you have fear. Whether it is separated into drops or not, water is water. Our life and death are the same thing. When we realize this, we have no fear of death anymore, and we have no actual difficulty in our life.” (Pg. 94)
He asserts, “We do not slight the idea of attaining enlightenment, but the most important thing is this moment, not some day in the future. We have to make our effort in this moment. This is the most important thing in our practice.” (Pg. 101)
He states, “Because you think you have body or mind, you have lonely feelings, but when you realize that everything is just a flashing into the vast universe, you become very strong, and your existence becomes very meaningful. This was Dogen’s enlightenment, and this is our practice.” (Pg. 107)
He explains, “imperturbable thinking … is always stable. It is called mindfulness. Thinking which is divided in many ways is not true thinking. Concentration should be present in our thinking. This is mindfulness. Whether you have an object or not, your mind should be stable and your mind should not be divided. This is zazen.” (Pg. 115)
He acknowledges, “Sometimes I feel there is something blasphemous in talking about how Buddhism is perfect as a philosophy or teaching without knowing what it actually is.” (Pg. 123)
He asserts, “there is no need to know what Zen is intellectually. This is, I think, very unusual for American society… But for us there is no need to compare Buddhism to Christianity. Buddhism is Buddhism, and Buddhism is our practice. We do not even know what we are doing when we just practice with a pure mind. So we cannot compare our way with some other religion. Some people may say that Buddhism is not religion. Maybe that is so, or maybe Zen Buddhism is religion before religion. So it might not be religion in the usual sense.” (Pg. 124)
This book will be of great interest to Westerners studying Zen.
Shunryu Suzuki (1905-1971) came to America in 1958, intending only a short visit. But he was so impressed by the quality of ‘beginner’s mind’ and the seriousness he found among Americans that he finally became a permanent resident, making his home in San Francisco… the meditation group called Zen Center came into being and, under his abbotship, grew to three major locations, including Zen Mountain Center, the first Zen training monastery outside Asia… He died a year after this book was first published.”
World religions scholar Huston Smith wrote in the Preface to this 1970 book, “Whereas Daisetz Suzuki’s Zen was dramatic, [Shunryu] Suzuki’s is ordinary; ‘Satori’ was focal for Daisetz, and it was in large part fascination of this extraordinary state that made his writings so compelling. In Shunryu Suzuki’s book the words ‘satori’ and ‘kensho,’ its near-equivalent, never appear. When, four months before his death, I had the opportunity to ask him why satori didn’t figure in his book… he said simply, ‘It’s not that satori is unimportant, but it’s not the part of Zen that needs to be stressed.’” (Pg. 9)
Richard Baker (once Suzuki’s successor as abbot of the San Francisco Zen Center, until he resigned in 1984 after the revelation that he had affairs with several of his students at the Center, as well as other controversies) wrote in his Introduction, “For a disciple of Suzuki-roshi, this book will be Suzuki-roshi’s mind—not his ordinary mind or personal mind, but his Zen mind… the mind of the entire succession---broken or unbroken, historical and mythical---of teachers, patriarchs, monks, and laymen from Buddha’s time until today, and it will be the mind of Buddha himself, the mind of Zen practice. But, for most readers, the book will be an example of how a Zen master talks and teaches. It will be a book of instruction about how to practice Zen, about Zen life, and about the attitudes and understanding that make Zen practice possible. For any reader, the book will be an encouragement to realize his own nature, his own Zen mind.” (Pg. 9)
Suzuki wrote in the Prologue, “For Zen students, the most important thing is not to be dualistic. Our ‘original mind’ includes everything within itself. It is always rich and sufficient within itself. You should not lose your self-sufficient state of mind. This does not mean a closed mind, but actually an empty mind and a ready mind. If your mind is empty, it is always ready for anything; it is open to everything. In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities; in the expert’s mind there are few.” (Pg. 21)
He observes, “After some years we will die. If we just think that it is the end of our life, this will be the wrong understanding. But, on the other hand, if we think that we do not die, this is also wrong. We die, and we do not die. This is the right understanding. Some people may say that our mind or soul exists forever, and it is only our physical body which dies. But this is not exactly right, because both mind and body have their end. But at the same time it is also true that they exist eternally. Even though we say mind and body, they are actually two sides of the same coin. This is the right understanding.” (Pg. 25)
He explains, “Buddha could not accept the religions existing at his time… He was not interested in some metaphysical existence, but in his own body and mind, here and now. And when he found himself, he found that everything that exists has Buddha nature. That was his enlightenment. Enlightenment is not some good feeling or some particular state of mind. The state of mind that exists when you sit in the right posture is, itself, enlightenment. If you cannot be satisfied with the state of mind you have in zazen, it means your mind is still wandering about.. In this posture there is no need to talk about the right state of mind. You already have it. This is the conclusion of Buddhism.” (Pg. 28)
He states, “We say, ‘To hear the sound of one hand clapping.’ Usually the sound of clapping is made with two hands, and we think that clapping with one hand makes no sound at all. But actually, one hand IS sound. Even though you do not hear it, there is sound… Before you make it, there is sound… Sound is everywhere… Do not try to listen to it. If you do not listen to it, the sound is all over. Because you try to hear it, sometimes there is sound, and sometimes there is no sound. Do you understand? Even though you do not do anything, you have the quality of zazen always. But if you try to find it, if you try to see the quality, you have no quality.” (Pg. 60-61)
He advises, “This is Zen practice, not some teaching taught by Buddha, or some rules of life set up by him. The teaching or the rules should be changed according to the place, or according to the people who observe them, but the secret of this practice cannot be changed. It is always true.” (Pg. 64)
He notes, “Usually everyone forgets about zazen. Everyone forgets about God. They work very hard at the second and third kinds of creation, but God does not help the activity. How is it possible for Him to help when He does not realize who He is? That is why we have so many problems in this world. When we forget the fundamental source of our creating, we are like children who do not know what to do when they lose their parents.” (Pg. 67)
He acknowledges, “I think some of you who practice zazen here may believe in some other religion, but I do not mind. Our practice has nothing to do with some particular religious belief. And for you, there is no need to hesitate to practice our way, because it has nothing to do with Christianity or Shintoism or Hinduism. Our practice is for everyone… So there is no reason to worry about the difference between Buddhism and the religion you may believe in.” (Pg. 76)
He states, “our way is both Hinayanistic and Mahayanistic. I always say that our practice is very Hinayanistic. Actually we have Hinayana practice with Mahayana spirit---rigid formal practice and informal mind. Although our practice looks very formal, our minds are not formal. Although we practice zazen every morning in the same way, there is no reason to call this 'formal practice.' It is your discrimination which makes it formal or informal.” (Pg. 90-91)
He says, “When you do not realize that you are one with the river, or one with the universe, you have fear. Whether it is separated into drops or not, water is water. Our life and death are the same thing. When we realize this, we have no fear of death anymore, and we have no actual difficulty in our life.” (Pg. 94)
He asserts, “We do not slight the idea of attaining enlightenment, but the most important thing is this moment, not some day in the future. We have to make our effort in this moment. This is the most important thing in our practice.” (Pg. 101)
He states, “Because you think you have body or mind, you have lonely feelings, but when you realize that everything is just a flashing into the vast universe, you become very strong, and your existence becomes very meaningful. This was Dogen’s enlightenment, and this is our practice.” (Pg. 107)
He explains, “imperturbable thinking … is always stable. It is called mindfulness. Thinking which is divided in many ways is not true thinking. Concentration should be present in our thinking. This is mindfulness. Whether you have an object or not, your mind should be stable and your mind should not be divided. This is zazen.” (Pg. 115)
He acknowledges, “Sometimes I feel there is something blasphemous in talking about how Buddhism is perfect as a philosophy or teaching without knowing what it actually is.” (Pg. 123)
He asserts, “there is no need to know what Zen is intellectually. This is, I think, very unusual for American society… But for us there is no need to compare Buddhism to Christianity. Buddhism is Buddhism, and Buddhism is our practice. We do not even know what we are doing when we just practice with a pure mind. So we cannot compare our way with some other religion. Some people may say that Buddhism is not religion. Maybe that is so, or maybe Zen Buddhism is religion before religion. So it might not be religion in the usual sense.” (Pg. 124)
This book will be of great interest to Westerners studying Zen.
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