"It has stayed with me for the last 30 years, a classic portraying Zen mind to our linear thinking." --Phil Jackson, Head Coach of the Chicago Bulls and author of Sacred Hoops Zen Flesh, Zen Bones offers a collection of accessible, primary Zen sources so that readers can contemplate the meaning of Zen for themselves. Within the pages, readers will find: 101 Zen Stories, a collection of tales that recount actual experiences of Chinese and Japanese Zen teachers over a period of more than five centuries The Gateless Gate, the famous thirteenth-century collection of Zen koans Ten Bulls, a twelfth century commentary on the stages of awareness leading to enlightenment Centering, a 4,000 year-old teaching from India that some consider to be the roots of Zen. When Zen Flesh, Zen Bones was published in 1957, it became an instant sensation with an entire generation of readers who were just beginning to experiment with Zen. Over the years it has inspired leading American Zen teachers, students, and practitioners. Its popularity is as high today as ever.

101 Zen Stories is a captivating collection of ancient tales and koans that offer profound insights into the essence of Zen Buddhism. Compiled by Nyogen Senzaki, these short stories and dialogues between masters and disciples illuminate the core principles of Zen, inviting readers to challenge their preconceived notions and awaken to the true nature of reality. Through paradoxical and often humorous narratives, this book guides readers on a journey of self-discovery, encouraging them to embrace the present moment and find enlightenment in the ordinary.

First published in 1957, Zen Flesh, Zen Bones introduced a generation of Americans to Zen (selling over 600,000 copies). Included here are four Zen and pre-Zen classics: 101 Zen Stories, The Gateless Gate, The Ten Bulls and Centering.

In The Gateless Gate, one of modern Zen Buddhism's uniquely influential masters offers classic commentaries on the Mumonkan, one of Zen's greatest collections of teaching stories. This translation was compiled with the Western reader in mind, and includes Koan Yamada's clear and penetrating comments on each case. Yamada played a seminal role in bringing Zen Buddhism to the West from Japan, going on to be the head of the Sanbo Kyodan Zen Community. The Gateless Gate would be invaluable if only for the translation and commentary alone, yet it's loaded with extra material and is a fantastic resource to keep close by: An in-depth Introduction to the History of Zen Practice Lineage charts Japanese-to-Chinese and Chinese-to-Japanese conversion charts for personal names, place names, and names of writings Plus front- and back-matter from ancient and modern figures: Mumon, Shuan, Kubota Ji'un, Taizan Maezumi, Hugo Enomiya-Lasalle, and Yamada Roshi's son, Masamichi Yamada. A wonderful inspiration for the koan practitioner, and for those with a general interest in Zen Buddhism.

This book of Zen poetry and art blends simple, haiku-like poetry with bold minimalist ink brush drawings. The unique books of Paul Reps have attracted countless readers since they were first published in the 1950s. His classic Zen Flesh, Zen Bones remains one of the most popular books on Zen ever published in English. Zen Telegrams is a collection of Reps's picture-poems," works of calligraphic art and minimalist poetry that first fascinated Japanese,then attracted Western viewers. A lesser artist trying to combine English text and Eastern art might have failed, but Reps was a rare talent, accomplished in a wide variety of literary genres and art forms. American by birth, Reps lived in many countries and traveled throughout the world. He seemed to know no national boundaries, and his unique work appeals to a universal audience.

The best collection of Zen wisdom and wit since Zen Flesh, Zen Bones, this lively introduction to Zen Buddhism has it all. Koans, sayings, poems, and stories by Eastern and American Zen teachers and students capture the delightful, challenging, mystifying, mind-stopping, outrageous, and scandalous heart of Zen. 6 illustrations.

Introduction to Zen Training is a translation of the Sanzen Nyumon, a foundational text for beginning meditation students by Omori Sogen--one of the foremost Zen teachers of the twentieth century. This book addresses many of the questions which arise when someone first embarks on a journey of Zen meditation--ranging from how long to sit at one time to how to remain mindful when not sitting--and it concludes with commentaries on two other fundamental Zen texts, Zazen Wasen (The Song of Meditation) and the Ox-Herding Pictures. Written to provide a solid grounding in the physical nature of Zen meditation training, this text delves into topics such as: Breathing Pain Posture Physiology Drowsiness How to find the right teacher The differences between the two main Japanese schools of Zen: Soto and Rinzai Zen As a master swordsman, Omori Sogen's approach to Zen is direct, physical, and informed by the rigorous tradition of Zen and the martial arts that flourished during Japan's samurai era. For him, the real aim of Zen is nothing short of Enlightenment--and Introduction to Zen Training is a roadmap in which he deals as adeptly with hundreds of years of Zen scholarship as he does with the mundane practicalities of meditation. Sogen prescribes a level of rigor and intensity in spiritual training that goes far beyond wellness and relaxation, and that is rarely encountered. His is a kind of spiritual warriorship he felt was direly needed in the middle of the twentieth century and that is no less necessary today. With a new foreword from Daihonzan Chozen-ji, the headquarters Zen temple established by Omori Sogen in Hawaii, this book is an essential text for every student of Zen meditation.

An intoduction to the teachings of Hakuin and the study of Rinzai Zen.

Zen Koan as a Means of Attaining Enlightenment Presents the history and application of the koan exercise--the means for realizing enlightenment--with depth and clarity. The koan system has effected a special development in Zen Buddhism, and is a unique contribution to the history of religious consciousness. When the importance of the koan is understood, it may be said that more than half of Zen is understood.

Zen Masters of China presents more than 300 traditional Zen stories and koans, far more than any other collection. Retelling them in their proper place in Zen's historical journey through Chinese Buddhist culture, it also tells a larger story: how, in taking the first step east from India to China, Buddhism began to be Zen. The stories of Zen are unlike any other writing, religious or otherwise. Used for centuries by Zen teachers as aids to bring about or deepen the experience of awakening, they have a freshness that goes beyond religious practice and a mystery and authenticity that appeal to a wide range of readers. Placed in chronological order, these stories tell the story of Zen itself, how it traveled from West to East with each Zen master to the next, but also how it was transformed in that journey, from an Indian practice to something different in Chinese Buddhism (Ch'an) and then more different still in Japan (Zen). The fact that its transmission was so human, from teacher to student in a long chain from West to East, meant that the cultures it passed through inevitably changed it. Zen Masters of China is first and foremost a collection of mind-bending Zen stories and their wisdom. More than that, without academic pretensions or baggage, it recounts the genealogy of Zen Buddhism in China and, through koan and story, illuminates how Zen became what it is today.