Infinite Circle: Teachings in Zen

by Bernie Glassman

This introduction to Zen teachings is a “watershed book for Zen students, a good study companion and a trustworthy guide” (Norman Fischer, author of  The World Could Be Otherwise )

In  Infinite Circle,  one of America's most distinctive Zen teachers takes a back-to-basics approach to Zen. Glassman illuminates three key teachings of Zen Buddhism, offering line-by-line commentary in clear, direct

• The Heart Sutra : the Buddha's essential discourse on emptiness, a central sutra of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition.
•  "The Identity of Relative and Absolute": an eighth-century poem by Shih-t'ou His-ch'ien, a key text of the Soto Zen school.
•  The Zen the rules of conduct for laypeople and monks.

His commentaries are based on workshops he gave as Abbot of the Zen Community of New York, and they contain within them the principles that became the foundation for the Greyston Mandala of community development organizations and the Zen Peacemaker Order.

Genres: Zen, Buddhism, Philosophy, Nonfiction, Spirituality, Meditation, Religion

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Miles · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found Bernie's writing style to be easily approachable, yet deceptively deep – his grasp of the material and ability to reiterate some very difficult philosophical concepts is impressive. A wonderful read for those who are just beginning their journey of awakening, or even for those like me who are looking to find a way to turn these deep inner realizations outward. I look forward to reading more of Bernie's work on engaged Buddhism.

[H.M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

An enjoyably-easy-going, informative and corrective read. It has the potential to change your whole outlook on what you think life is.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Parts of this book are awesome, while others I thought were kind of hard to follow. It's worth a read though if you're interested in an overview of Zen practice.

[David Chess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good basic Zen stuff, via the Heart Sutra, the Sandokai, and Precepts

It's hard to talk about Zen, since Zen is about the futility of just talking about things. :)

This small readable book does a good job of navigating those straits in a relatively easy and natural way, using two of my favorite Zen texts (the Heart Sutra and the Sandokai). One could argue that if one reads those, one doesn't necessarily need someone to throw even more words at you, and you should really just stop there; but some of us like to read! (And to write, for that matter.)

One thing I got more viscerally out of this book than I have out of others (or the primary materials) is that it's not just that language fails and "Mind" isn't mind, but also that concepts fail and mind isn't mind. I knew this in some inchoate way, but Glassman spelled it out very nicely here, and I think I finally got it.

May it help you also on your path.

[Stef Garvin · Rating 3 out of 5]

It felt a bit like reading in a foreign language. I've been a follower of meditation and other zen practices for some time, yet this book required a higher level of insight. I gained a lot from reading this book.

[Chris Biggs · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bernie lives

This book is very profound. Roshi Bernie Glassman makes the most complicated and confounding concepts easy and straightforward. I recommend this book to anyone looking for straight answers to difficult questions.

[Andrew C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Glassman does a great job explaining the distinctions (or lack thereof) between the Zen views of the Absolute and the Relative.

[Ben Ingraham]

Bernie Glassman good - when we are truly intimate, nothing is outside and we naturally help (Heart Sutra and Precepts)

[Cody]

1. Not knowing
2. Bearing witness
3. Compassionate action

Three guiding principles that have become so central to how I try handle each situation...and life as a whole.

[Jack · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent and instructive find. While clear and direct, the writing seems more technical and less organic than that of other Zen teachers whose works I've encountered, in particular Shunryu Suzuki and Thich Nhat Hanh, but I'm inclined to chalk that up more to native English versus translated English than to anything else. A bit too abstract in places for my taste, but perhaps it'll be made a bit clearer as time goes by. Overall, very well worth it, especially the section on the Heart Sutra.