Teachings of Zen

by Thomas Cleary (Translator)

Zen Buddhism emerged in China some fifteen centuries ago and remained the most dynamic and influential spiritual movement in Asia for more than a millennium. Though the teachings of the first Zen masters are sometimes considered innovation, they were actually a return to the core of Buddhist teaching and to an understanding of the importance of the personal experience of enlightenment.

This anthology presents talks, sayings, and records of heart-to-heart encounters to show the essence of Zen teaching through the words of the Zen masters themselves. The selections have been made from the voluminous Zen canon for their accessibility, their clarity, and above all their practical effectiveness in fostering insight.

Genres: Buddhism, Nonfiction, Religion, Spirituality

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Dr. Thomas Francis Cleary, Ph.D. (East Asian Languages and Civilizations, Harvard University; J.D., Boalt Hall School of Law, University of California, Berkeley), was a prolific translator of Buddhist, Taoist, Confucian, and Muslim classics, with a particular emphasis on popular translations of Mahāyāna works relevant to the Chan, Zen, and Soen systems.

Reviews

[Bones Green · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice and useful sayings to grasp not grasping.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Over my head? Lost in translation? Deeper the second time? Or just plain mumbo jumbo?
There are nuggets and allusions here and there but honestly I believe I have learned more about Zen in my dad-to-day life over decades than what was offered in this book.
It's no Art of War by Sun Tzu, that's for sure!
Hmmm...maybe if Sun Tzu edited it it would be more straightforward

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Selections from the writings of a number of figures in Chinese Zen, most of them a page or less in length, with only a very few going beyond two pages – ideal if you're looking for a source of brief readings. A bit repetitive, over the course of the book the same points will be made numerous times.

[Monique Evans · Rating 1 out of 5]

All I can say about this book is that Zen is apparently not for engineers.

[Jeff Cliff · Rating 3 out of 5]

A mixture of people who were full of themselves for whom no one called them on it, and some deep insight into important matters -- with no clear glimpse which was which to keep you guessing.

There are things worth pointing out, worth learning in this book. Maybe you should go pick it up and learn for yourself? That might be more authentic of an experience than me spoonfeeding it to you. Or not; the secret is, that anything you could learn from this book you can learn outside of this book. The book is not something to grasp at and history will eventually burn it. Being able and willing to watch those particular lessons go is something hard to do, but perhaps the most important lesson I took from it was that this, in itself, is a lesson worth learning.

[Mac Quast · Rating 3 out of 5]

I still don’t really get Zen, but maybe that’s kinda the point??? Oh well, at least it was a quick read.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great collection. I've read it many times, and each time I get a little more out of it.