A masterclass in enlightenment and simplicity. In The Secret World of the Zen Buddhist Monk (originally published as The Training of the Zen Buddhist Monk), Zen master and scholar D.T. Suzuki explains the origin, culture and practices of Zen Buddhism as he leads readers on a journey into the hidden world of the Zen monastery-a journey that can transform the way we see the world.
"Human life is not always governed by economic principles: there is something more in it, and the peace and happiness we all are seeking is attained only when this 'something more' is understood. It is most unfortunate that our modern life is systematically moving away from this thought, in fact deliberately trying to stifle the inner voice."
"There is (among the monks) at the same time a certain reverential attitude towards nature and her resources. In this machine age I have a strong desire to see this feeling of reverence towards nature restored and also the 'living' use of things generally more properly appreciated by us."
"When (the source of life and death) is not thoroughly understood, the eyes rove, the heart palpitates, the viscera writhe, as if a fire-ball were rolling up and down inside the body. And who is the one, again, that undergoes this torture? If you want to know who this one is, dive down into the depths of your being, where no intellection is possible to reach; and when you know it, you know that there is a place where neither birth nor death can touch."
The Secret World of the Zen Buddhist Monk, D.T. Suzuki, Floating World Press, Paperback, 184 pages, $24.95
Daisetsz Teitaro Suzuki was a student of the Zen master Shaku Soen and a Japanese author of books and essays on Buddhism, Zen and Shin that were instrumental in spreading interest in Far Eastern philosophy to the West. Suzuki was also a prolific translator of Chinese, Japanese, and Sanskrit literature. He spent several lengthy stretches teaching and lecturing at Western universities, and devoted many years to a professorship at Otani University, a Japanese Buddhist school.
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