Suggested Readings

 

The Mind of Clover: Essays in Zen Buddhist Ethics by Robert Aitken (1982)

Robert Aitken is a strong advocate of engaged Buddhism. He is a teacher of lay students and is clear in no uncertain terms that without participation in our sangha families and communities in a mindful and ethical manner, Zen degrades into a self-indulgence serving to stroke our “spiritual” egos.

In Mind of Clover he discusses the precepts and how to use them as a tool to both actualize and nurture the wisdom of the interbeing of all life.

The precepts are not hard and fast “(thou shall or shall not)”, dictates, but guidelines to apply to the actual and varied conditions that arise in our lives. The issue may be meat eating, political activism, abortion, or using intoxicants. This book is part of the preparation for Jukai, a formal ceremony of vow taking. For those who think Zen is about blissing out in Samadhi this could be a WAKE UP CALL;

Listen to Master Dogen,

“Thus do not be concerned with who is wise and who is stupid.
Do not discriminate the sharp from the dull.
To practice wholeheartedly is the true endeavor of the Way.
Practice realization is not defiled with specialness,
it is a matter for everyday.”
From Fukan Zazenji/ Recommending Zazen to all People

Vow Of Rakusu

“I wear the robe of liberation,

the formless field of benefaction,

the teachings of the Tathagata,

saving the many beings.”

Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind  by Shunryu Suzuki (1973)

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Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind by Shunryu Suzuki

This is a landmark collection of dharma talks given by the Zen teacher and master Shunryu Suzuki. Instrumental in bringing Zen Buddhism dharma to America, his dharma family has spread wide upon the American landscape. His Zen is of the Soto lineage as descended from Zen Master Dogen.

This book touches upon many topics, from sitting, to vows, and on to the lofty realms of realization such as emptiness. Mostly though, it is about how to live and study life in this very body with this very mind. Our temple is wherever we are. This is a book you can read over and over and find that as your practice matures, you can glean differing and deeper meanings. The total sense you are left with seems significantly greater than the sum of the parts. Welcome to the world of dharma talks.

Here is a verse we chant before a dharma talk:

On Opening The Dharma

The Dharma,

Incomparably profound and minutely subtle,

Is rarely encountered,

Even in hundreds of thousands of millions of kalpas,

We now can see it, listen to it, accept and hold it;

May we completely realize the Tathagatas’ true meaning.

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From The Zen Kitchen To Enlightenment: Refining Your Life by Dogen, with commentary by Kosho Uchiyama (1983)

Dogen is a giant, a pinnacle amidst humanity. As a Buddhist, his impact is immeasurable. To be touched by his teachings is like seeing the ocean or holy mountains for the first time.

This teaching; (known as Instructions to the Cook) is a great one. Because of its emphasis on making our everyday life our practice, it may be a bit easier to relate to than some of his other works, but don’t mistake, this teaching is a life-long challenge. It’s all here, everything you need to do; all that remains is to do it, moment to moment, wholeheartedly.

Kosho Uchiyama is a twentieth century Zen Master. His commentary is a wonderful work. Together this book is a very special discourse on the Buddhadharma. Guaranteeed!

A taste of Dogen:
A dish is not necessarily superior because you have prepared it with choice ingredients, nor is a soup inferior because you have made it with ordinary greens. When handling and selecting greens, do so wholeheartedly, with a pure mind, and without trying to evaluate their quality, in the same way in which you would prepare a splendid feast. The many rivers which flow into the ocean become the one taste of the ocean; when they flow into the pure ocean of the dharma there are no such distinctions as delicacies or plain food, there is just one taste, and it is the Buddhadharma, the world itself as it is. In cultivating the germ of aspiration to live out the Way, as well as in practicing the dharma, delicious and ordinary tastes are the same and not two. There is an old saying, “The mouth of a monk is like an oven” Remember this well.

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Taking the Path of Zen
by Robert Aitken

This book is the one we recommend for people wanting some wise words, encouragement and practical advice about Zen practice. It is not a “how to” or “Zen for dummies” but a little of this and that by one of the great western teachers and pioneers of Buddhist thought and practice for westerners. Emphasized is the need to sit consistently. Aitken teaches us through posture what to do with our body, breathing and mind. Everything else is about opening up and witnessing the wonder of who we are unbound by time and space.

Aitken is a very literary person. You can expect to be treated to both western and eastern poetry, personal experiences, a taste of koan practice and ethics. This is a book to refer to time and again. Copies available for purchase through our sangha.

 

“This very place is the Lotus Land;

this very body,

the Buddha”

-Hakuin Zenji

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