Zen Buddhism

Japanese by birth but transplanted to Europe in adulthood, Miki Sakamoto has spent a lifetime tending her garden and reflecting on its mysteries. Why do primulas bloom in snow? Do the trees really ‘talk’ to one another? What are the blackbirds saying today? And is there a mindful way to deal with an aphid infestation? From rising early to walk barefoot on the grass each morning, to afternoons and evenings spent sipping tea in her gazebo or watching fireflies as she recalls her childhood in Japan, Sakamoto shares observations from a life spent in contemplation – and cultivation – of nature.

Written in simple language, these 108 ‘kung-an’ (koan in Japanese) embodying the experience and wisdom of the Chinese Ch’an masters have found their way into hearts of many Westerners over a century. This is because Ch'an (Zen) is not something that can be explained in words, but is a special practice with words, which is carried out for one's self-development and leads to a state of Enlightenment. If you feel an attraction to Ch'an, this captivating book can serve as a guide to lead you up to the gateway of Ch'an through the Chinese Ch'an masters' questions and answers to enter a ...

Quince joyas de la milenaria tradición zen que guían a la conciencia por caminos insólitos hacia la felicidad. Desconcertar, liberar, serenar, centrar y descentrar, demoler los límites del lenguaje y de la lógica: estos son solo algunos de los objetivos de los koans, breves historias o sentencias paradójicas de la milenaria tradición zen concebidas para guiar a la conciencia por caminos insólitos hacia la plenitud. John Tarrant nos regala quince de estas joyas iluminando su belleza y su lirismo, situándolas en su contexto y en el nuestro.

This new book from Zen teacher, psychiatrist, psychoanalyst, and critical favorite, Barry Magid, inspires us to outgrow the impossible pursuit of happiness, and instead make peace with the perfection of the way things are. Including ourselves! Using wryly gentle prose, Magid invites readers to consider the notion that our certainty that we are broken may be turning our pursuit of happiness into a source of more suffering.

From this moment on self-liberation is a priority in your life. You view life from a Zen perspective. You flow with life, never opposing things by resisting them. You yield, realigning the force of your opposition and using it to your advantage.

Masterful control is at the fingertips of all who come to accept the principles of a Zen lifestyle. The cello was designed to be performed with ease. Your experience while performing was meant to be completely free from struggle. Tension, stress, and impatience has no place in the mind of masterful cellists. While emotion is still present, its manifestation within the performance is under constant guidance. This ability to self-regulate the many facets of your physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual selves is what allows you to gain access to masterful cello performance.

Meditation teacher, filmmaker, writer, and art savant Kevin Townley turns his unique gaze upon 26 artists and magnifies the power and meaning of the five Buddhist wisdom energies through explorations of their work. Rather than trying to "explain" these energies, he reveals them to you in familiar visual language while, of course, pushing the boundaries of what you might have thought you saw at first glance. Townley leads you to, invites you in, and sometimes springs upon you, the perennial wisdom in the worlds of artists from Artemisia to Hilma af Klint to Marilyn Minter.

The world’s shortest (but not easiest) rational guide to everyday nondual awareness. Enlightenment is the ultimate self-help because it helps you realize that the self does not exist. What looks absurd and disturbing at first can grow into inspirational insight. Oneless Oneness is a fresh look at ancient Zen philosophy—not for the dogmatic, ideological, or faint-hearted, but for rational minds willing to question deeply ingrained beliefs. Do you wonder what the Zen masters mean by enlightenment? Would you like to enjoy the benefits of enlightenment too? Did you know that you don’t ...

What if the key to a more connected and mindful life lies in ancient wisdom, we've overlooked? This audiobook explores the spiritual traditions of Indigenous Australians, with a focus on the practice of Dadirri—a deep form of listening and contemplation. It also examines parallels between Indigenous spirituality and other global wisdom traditions, such as Zen Buddhism, Vedic traditions, and Christian mysticism.

The original treatise introducing rational nondualism. What if Western thought is warped by an illusion so persuasive that it affects almost every aspect of our understanding, including modern science? Scientists look for objective knowledge. But suppose the distinction between the observer and the observed does not exist. This insight—called nondual awareness—is deeply counterintuitive; few grasp its full implications. Yet rational thought points to a nondual world, as articulated in Existential Rationalism. The realization forces us to reexamine the foundations of modern science: ...

In this book, bestselling author and life coach Gaur Gopal Das decodes how the mind works. He combines his anecdotal style with analytical research to teach us how to discipline our mind for our greater well-being. Throughout this book, he provides interactive exercises, meditation techniques and worksheets to help us take charge of our mind.

A second collection of a hundred inspirational Buddhist quotations, to uplift and motivate you through the day. Each is followed by either a meditation or a reflection, to help release negative thoughts and find your own inner peace. Whether you listen to one a day, several at once, or jump around randomly, their beauty is that you can return to them time and again, as they gradually reveal new insights. They are also uplifting. At a time when we seem to be increasingly stressed and rushed, let them remind you of the hope and love in the world.

Listening to this short book about Zen Buddhism will be the easiest way to learn about Zen, meditation, and how you can train your mind and ultimately change your life for the better. This book is great for beginners that want to get into Zen, because it's very simple to understand and it guides you every step of the way.

It is a constant practice to not get stuck in the language or forms of Zen training. The precepts, wisdom, higher states of meditation - these are all concepts that need to be let go of. Don’t turn your Zen practice into a nest, a workshop, a medicine cabinet or a make-up kit. True realization is traceless. It has nothing to do with your ideas about it. Even at the top of a hundred-foot pole, there’s nowhere else to go but forward.

All the strategies in the world will not work if you're too tired, stressed out, or overwhelmed by all the work and information that's coming at you. When your stress levels are tremendous or energy levels are at rock bottom, it can be difficult to maintain any kind of discipline. You just want to be lazy and that eventually leads to procrastination. While it is impossible to completely do away with stress, we can learn to deal with it mindfully by practicing Zen.

Dharma Wheels is an examination of human happiness through the triple lenses of Zen Buddhism, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), and the art of motorcycling. Each lens resolves particular details of one and the same picture - the great process of human living and dying. Zen addresses first questions of life’s meaning and death’s certainty. CBT provides leverage on the emotional aspects of existence. A six-week motorcycle tour through the American West is the vivid backdrop for this vital investigation.

Zen is neither a religion nor philosophy, but a way of liberation - a process of finding in self, opposed to ceremony or doctrine, the path to wisdom. Learn to develop “Detached Mind” - a way of viewing life in which you stop reacting to negativity. Zen also teaches you to recognize and accept what cannot be changed and to rise above resistance out of intelligence, not repression.

A well-known spiritual saying goes, "Enlightenment is an accident. But we can make ourselves more accident-prone." As an authentic American Zen takes shape, enlightenment continues to be misunderstood as a project to be completed, a goal to be achieved, or a prize to be awarded. Tim Burkett's new book unhooks enlightenment from the hot air balloon of ego and brings it back down to earth.

After having spent countless hours working as a sheet-timing director for children’s animation for television, BE Leveille has discovered the perfect way to relax and is sharing it with you in this concise guided mindfulness meditation. You’ve already been given the title, and you don’t even realize it! Binaural beats are an illusion created by the brain when you listen to two tones at the same time, which have slightly different frequencies. Alpha waves are the brain wave frequencies (8-14 Hz) associated with relaxation. Combine the two and you may be able to:

The Zen of Art starts with the premise that making art is akin to what happens when wind engages with a set of chimes. The chance encounter of source and instrument generates a song that enriches and elevates the moment. Author and artist Carolyn Schlam draws a parallel with what she calls the "Zen of Art"—the process of allowing creative expression to manifest in a natural and unencumbered fashion. Schlam tells her personal story of making art while applying the knowledge she has gained to live an "artful life" in chapters on courage, joy, beauty, love, and more.