True Zen

Why practice Zen? What sets Zen apart from religion? What are its different practices? These questions, and more, are examined and answered by Zen Master Koun Yamada, whose Dharma heirs include Robert Aitken, Ruben Habito, and David Loy. Through compelling stories and a systematic approach, he guides the listener through creating and sustaining a lifelong practice. Warm and ecumenical in tone, Koun uses the insights of Zen to bring a deeper understanding of faith.

In Japan in 1253, one of the great thinkers of his time died - and the world barely noticed. That man was the Zen monk Eihei Dogen. For centuries his main work, Shobogenzo, languished in obscurity, locked away in remote monasteries until scholars rediscovered it in the 20th century. What took so long? In Brad Warner's view, Dogen was too ahead of his time to find an appreciative audience. To bring Dogen's work to a bigger audience, Warner began paraphrasing Shobogenzo, recasting it in simple, everyday language. The first part of this project resulted in Don't Be a Jerk, and now Warner presents this second volume, It Came from Beyond Zen! Once again, Warner uses wry humor and incisive commentary to bridge the gap between past and present, making Dogen's words clearer and more relevant than ever before.

Contemporary and completely true-to-life, Zen Master Zensho teaches us a direct way to a fulfilled, aware life. In a readily understandable way, he shows us how we can realise spiritual clarity, contentedness and joy within us in the midst of the world as the true place of practice. This is how we become able to experience the preciousness of each moment with our whole being and can live worldly activity and crystal-clear consciousness as a single reality. True-to-life and practical for the world of today.

This is extreme examination of fiction books. We take excerpts from popular novels (one page in length) from various chapters and we read them, trying to understand the writer's voice, writing structure, and more. Over time we'll have a clearer definition of how we do our analysis. This book will have notes every now and then. Enjoy! Oh, and if you were wondering, the main purpose of this is to learn how to write better fiction.