Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind: 50th Anniversary Edition

by Shunryu Suzuki

Overview

Named one of the 100 Best Spiritual Books of the Twentieth Century (Spirituality & Practice)

A 50th Anniversary edition of the bestselling Zen classic on meditation, maintaining a curious and open mind, and living with simplicity.

"In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert's there are few."

So begins this most beloved of all American Zen books. Seldom has such a small handful of words provided a teaching as rich as has this famous opening line. In a single stroke, the simple sentence cuts through the pervasive tendency students have of getting so close to Zen as to completely miss what it's all about. It is an instant teaching on the first page—and that's just the beginning.

In the fifty years since its original publication, Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind has become one of the great modern spiritual classics, much beloved, much reread, and much recommended as the best first book to read on Zen. Suzuki Roshi presents the basics—from the details of posture and breathing in zazen to the perception of nonduality—in a way that is not only remarkably clear, but that also resonates with the joy of insight from the first to the last page.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781611808414
Publisher:	Shambhala
Publication date:	06/02/2020
Edition description:	Anniversar
Pages:	176
Sales rank:	60,595
Product dimensions:	5.24(w) x 8.22(h) x 0.48(d)

About the Author

Shunryu Suzuki (1904–1971) was one of the most influential spiritual teachers of the twentieth century and is truly a founding father of Zen in America. A Japanese priest of the Soto lineage, he taught in the United States from 1959 until his death. He was the founder of the San Francisco Zen Center and the Tassajara Zen Mountain Center. He is the author of Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind and Branching Streams Flow in the Darkness: Zen Talks on the Sandokai, and he is the subject of the biography Crooked Cucumber by David Chadwick.

Table of Contents

Preface Huston Smith ix

Introduction Richard Baker xiii

Prologue: Beginner's Mind 1

Part 1 Right Practice

Posture 7

Breathing 11

Control 14

Mind Waves 17

Mind Weeds 20

The Marrow of Zen 21

No Dualism 25

Bowing 28

Nothing Special 32

Part 2 Right Attitude

Single-Minded Way 37

Repetition 39

Zen and Excitement 42

Right Effort 44

No Trace 47

God Giving 51

Mistakes in Practice 57

Limiting Your Activity 61

Study Yourself 63

To Polish a Tile 67

Constancy 71

Communication 74

Negative and Positive 78

Nirvana, the Waterfall 81

Part 3 Right Understanding

Traditional Zen Spirit 87

Transiency 91

The Quality of Being 93

Naturalness 96

Emptiness 100

Readiness, Mindfulness 103

Believing in Nothing 106

Attachment, Nonattachment 109

Calmness 112

Experience, Not Philosophy 114

Original Buddhism 117

Beyond Consciousness 120

Buddha's Enlightenment 124

Epilogue: Zen Mind 127

Afterword David Chadwick 135

Acknowledgments 149

Editorial Reviews

One of the best and most succinct introductions to Zen practice.”—Library Journal

“Though covering Zen basics like zazen posture, bowing, intention, and so on, Suzuki Roshi’s masterwork is hardly just for Zen people—or just for beginners, for that matter. It skillfully introduces important Buddhist concepts like non-attachment, emptiness, and enlightenment.”—Lion’s Roar

“I sincerely respect and applaud Shunryu Suzuki Roshi, who transmitted Dogen Zenji’s vow to the U.S.A.”—Shundo Aoyama Roshi, former ShikèKai Kaichoh, “Teacher of the House of Soto Zen,” and author of Zen Seeds

From the Publisher