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GUIDES

Kazuaki Tanahashi: A Guide for Readers

Related Reader Guides

Kazuaki Tanahashi

Kazuaki (Kaz) Tanahashi is a gem with many facets: peace and environmental activism, generosity,  art, poetry, creativity and more.

Below you will find many of his contributions in book form, sometimes as translator, sometimes as editor, sometimes as author, always as collaborator.  One of the things you will notice with any of the books Kaz is involved with is that they are a team effort, assisted by his vast network of friends and admirers.

We have separated his works across a few categories you can jump to from here: those on art and calligraphy; the great Zen master Dogen; Hanshan, Ryoken, and Soen Nakagawa; and the  Heart Sutra and other Zen chants.

We put this reader guide together to mark his 90th birthday which was celebrated at Green Gulch Zen Center in September, 2023, but his output has not slowed and additional books will be added here as they come out.

Kaz’s 90th Birthday Cake, with an image of him painting.
Kaz’s 90th Birthday Cake, with an image of him painting. Created by his daughter Karuna Tanahashi.

On Dogen

Unsurprisingly, Dogen has been a major focus of Kaz's translation work.  As the spearhead of a  project involving many from the San Francisco Zen Center community, Kaz has edited, compiled, introduced and translated multiple works of Dogen.  The first, Moon in a Dewdrop, is still in print but with another publisher.  The others are below, culminating in Dogen's masterpiece, The Treasury of the True Dharma Eye.

essential dogen
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On this volume, Kaz writes,

This volume is intended to make [Dogen's] writings easily accessible to readers, including those who are not familiar with Zen or Buddhism in general. Peter Levitt and I have selected passages from Dogen’s enormous body of work throughout his career and classified them according to theme. We hope that this approach will help those who are interested in his thinking and teachings on various topics. We have also included a selection of Dogen’s poems that, at a glance, might appear eccentric or absurd but may be more easily understood when placed in the context of his other writings.

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Enlightenment Unfolds: The Essential Teachings of Zen Master Dogen

Enlightenment Unfolds is a sequel to Kaz Tanahashi's previous collection, Moon in a Dewdrop.

Tanahashi has brought together his own translations of Dogen with those of some of the most respected Zen teachers and writers of our own day, including Reb Anderson, Edward Espe Brown, Norman Fisher, Gil Fronsdal, Blanche Hartman, Jane Hirschfield, Daniel Leighton, Alan Senauke, Katherine Thanas, Mel Weitzman, and Michael Wenger.

dogen beyond thinking
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Beyond Thinking: A Guide to Zen Meditation

On this volume, another collaboration of many contributors, Kaz writes,

For this book we have selected his essays, talks, and instructions that touch on various aspects of Zen meditation. We present the text in four parts: ‘‘Entering Zazen,’’ ‘‘Zazen Experience,’’ ‘‘Zazen in Community,’’ and ‘‘Zazen through the Seasons.’’

In focusing on Dogen's most practical words of instruction and encouragement for Zen students, this collection highlights the timelessness of his teaching and shows it to be as applicable to anyone today as it was in the great teacher's own time. Selections include Dogen's famous meditation instructions; his advice on the practice of zazen, or sitting meditation; guidelines for community life; and some of his most inspirational talks. Also included are a bibliography and an extensive glossary.

true dharma eye dogen
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Distinct from the Treasury of the True Dharma Eye below, this is a collection of three hundred koans compiled by Dogen which presents readers with a uniquely contemporary perspective on his profound teachings and their relevance for modern Western practitioners of Zen. Following the traditional format for koan collections, John Daido Loori Roshi, an American Zen master, has added his own commentary and accompanying verse for each of Dogen’s koans. Kaz Tanahashi translated this work.  Zen students and scholars will find The True Dharma Eye to be a source of deep insight into the mind of one of the world’s greatest religious thinkers, as well as the practice of koan study itself.

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Treasury of the True Dharma Eye (Shobo Genzo, in Japanese) is Dogen's manum opus and a monumental work, considered to be one of the profoundest expressions of Zen wisdom ever put on paper, and also the most outstanding literary and philosophical work of Japan. It is a collection of essays by Eihei Dogen (1200–1253), founder of Zen’s Soto school.

Kazuaki Tanahashi and a team of translators that represent a Who’s Who of American Zen have produced a translation of the great work that combines accuracy with a deep understanding of Dogen’s voice and literary gifts. This volume includes a wealth of materials to aid understanding, including maps, lineage charts, a bibliography, and an exhaustive glossary of names and terms—and, as a bonus, the most renowned of all Dogen’s essays, “Recommending Zazen to All People.”

The Heart Sutra and Zen Chants

heart Sutra
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The Prajna Paramita Hridaya Sutra is among the best known of all the Buddhist scriptures. Chanted daily by many Zen students, it is also studied extensively in the Tibetan tradition, and it has been regarded with interest more recently in the West in various fields of study—from philosophy to quantum physics. In just thirty-five lines, it expresses the truth of impermanence and the release from suffering that results from the understanding of that truth with a breathtaking economy of language. Kazuaki Tanahashi’s guide to the Heart Sutra is the result of a life spent working with it and living it.

The book is divided into six parts.  In Kaz's words:

"Part One, 'The Heart Sutra Here and Now,' presents a new translation of the text by Joan Halifax and myself. Our intention is to bring forth the sutra’s essential teaching of transcendence and freedom, which is often obscured by seemingly pessimistic and nihilistic expressions. We use the word “boundlessness” instead of the more common translation “emptiness” for the Sanskrit word shunyata. We use “free of the eyes, ears, nose . . .” instead of the usual rendition “no eyes, no ears, no nose . . .” Because we want to make the sutra accessible to non-Buddhists as well as Buddhists, we have replaced such traditional technical terms as bodhisattva and nirvana with more easily understandable words. I hope those of you who are used to chanting the common English versions of the sutra will find our translation helpful and thought-provoking. This first part also includes stories of my own affinity with the scripture and its potential to inspire us all.

Part Two, 'Story of the Sutra,' introduces ancient recountings of its use as a living text, as well as descriptions of my visits to temples in Korea and Japan, where I conducted research on the historical impact of the sutra.

Parts Three and Four, 'Modern Scholarship' and 'Most Recent Scholarship,' discuss scholarly findings over the course of two centuries about the formation and expansion of the text.

Part Five, 'Globalizing the Sutra,' discusses Chinese enthusiasm for and pan-Asian responses to the text, as well as examples of how the sutra has inspired modern scientists.

Part Six, 'Terms and Concepts,' includes semantic, etymological, and grammatical analyses of the Sanskrit and Chinese terms in the text. Most of the words in the sutra have Sanskrit origins, so looking at these terms is extremely fruitful. A Chinese version has become the standard text in East Asia, however, and was the basis for some of the translations of the sutra in European languages. Three English translations are also included here: the version by F. Max Müller from the late nineteenth century, as well as those by D. T. Suzuki and Edward Conze from the twentieth century."

Ruth Ozeki had this to say about this work:

“A masterwork of loving and meticulous scholarship, Kaz Tanahashi’s Heart Sutra is a living, breathing, deeply personal celebration of a beloved text, which all readers—Buddhists and non-Buddhists, newcomers to the teaching and seasoned scholars alike—will cherish throughout time.

The Online Course

kaz

Using Kaz’s book The Heart Sutra: A Comprehensive Guide to the Classic of Mahayana Buddhism as its text, this course delves deep into the history and lived experience of the Heart Sutra, posing questions and drawing connections to help you integrate this precious teaching into your daily life and awareness, whether you are encountering the sutra for the first time or have chanted it for decades. We invite you to join these two remarkable and wise teachers in exploring the boundless nature of all existence through this core text.

hs
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Zen Chants: Thirty-Five Essential Texts with Commentary

A Zen chant is like a compass that sets us in the direction of the awakened life; it is the dynamic, audible counterpart to the silent practice of zazen, or sitting meditation; and it is a powerful expression of the fact that practice happens in community. Here is a concise guide to Zen chants for practitioners, as well as for anyone who appreciates the beauty and profundity of the poetry in dharma. An introduction to the practice is followed by fresh and carefully considered translations and adaptations of thirty-five chants—some common and others less well known—along with illuminating commentary.

The accompanying audio of this book:

On Ryoken, Hanshan, and Soen Nakagawa

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Sky Above, Great Wind: The Life and Poetry of Zen Master Ryokan

Ryokan (1758–1831) is, along with Dogen and Hakuin, one of the three giants of Zen in Japan. But unlike his two renowned colleagues, Ryokan was a societal dropout, living mostly as a hermit and a beggar. He was never head of a monastery or temple. He liked playing with children. He had no dharma heir. Even so, people recognized the depth of his realization, and he was sought out by people of all walks of life for the teaching to be experienced in just being around him. His poetry and art were wildly popular even in his lifetime. He is now regarded as one of the greatest poets of the Edo Period, along with Basho, Buson, and Issa. He was also a master artist-calligrapher with a very distinctive style, due mostly to his unique and irrepressible spirit, but also because he was so poor he didn’t usually have materials: his distinctive thin line was due to the fact that he often used twigs rather than the brushes he couldn’t afford. He was said to practice his brushwork with his fingers in the air when he didn’t have any paper. There are hilarious stories about how people tried to trick him into doing art for them, and about how he frustrated their attempts. As an old man, he fell in love with a young Zen nun who also became his student. His affection for her colors the mature poems of his late period. This collection contains more than 140 of Ryokan’s poems, with selections of his art, and of the very funny anecdotes about him.

The Complete Cold Mountain
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The Complete Cold Mountain: Poems of the Legendary Hermit Hanshan

Kaz translated this complete set of Hanshan's poems with Peter Levitt.

Welcome to the magical, windswept world of Cold Mountain. These poems from the literary riches of China have long been celebrated by cultures of both East and West—and continue to be revered as among the most inspiring and enduring works of poetry worldwide. This groundbreaking new translation presents the full corpus of poetry traditionally associated with Hanshan (“Cold Mountain”) and sheds light on its origins and authorship like never before. Kazuaki Tanahashi and Peter Levitt honor the contemplative Buddhist elements of this classic collection of poems while revealing Hanshan’s famously jubilant humor, deep love of solitude in nature, and overwhelming warmth of heart. In addition, this translation features the full Chinese text of the original poems and a wealth of fascinating supplements, including traditional historical records, an in-depth study of the Cold Mountain poets (here presented as three distinct authors), and more.

Peter Levitt and Kazuaki Tanahashi
endless vow
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Endless Vow: The Zen Path of Soen Nakagawa

Endless Vow is the first English-language collection of the literary works of Soen Nakagawa Roshi. An intimate, in-depth portrait of the master of Eido Tai Shimano, his Dharma heir, introduces the poems, letters, journal entries, and other writings of Soen Roshi, which are illustrated with his calligraphies. In a postscript, some of his best-known American students—including Peter Matthiessen and Ruth McCandless—reminisce about this legendary figure of American Buddhist history.

Here is what Kaz has to say about the book,

Zen Master Soen Nakagawa was a key figure in the transmission of Zen Buddhism from Japan to the Western world. As abbot of the historic Ryutaku Monastery, he trained monks and lay practitioners. Among them were Robert Aitken and Philip Kapleau, who later became two of the first Westerners to teach Zen in the United States. Soen Roshi had a major impact upon Paul Reps, Maurine Stuart, Peter Matthiessen, Louis Nordstrom, Charlotte Joko Beck, and a great number of other Westerners whom he taught in and outside of Japan.

Soen Nakagawa was also an extraordinary poet. In Japan his haiku are renowned, even though no substantial collection of his work has been made available to the general public. Because he did not wish his anthologies to receive wide circulation in his lifetime, all four collections of his poems were published privately, in limited editions, for small circles of readers.

We have selected materials for this book largely from those four collections: Shigan (Coffin of Poems), 1936; Meihen (Life Anthology), 1949; Henkairoku (Journal of a Wide World) with Koun-sho (Ancient Cloud Selection), 1981; and Hokoju (Long Lasting Dharma Light), published posthumously in 1985. These selections are now presented in English for the first time.

On Art, Calligraphy, and Haiku

Painting Peace
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“Awakening,” says Kaz, “is to realize the infinite value of each moment of your own life as well as of other beings, then to continue to act accordingly.” This book is the record of a life spent acting accordingly: through his prose, poetry, letters, lyrics, and art, Tanahashi provides an inspirational account of a what it’s been like to work for peace and justice, from his childhood in Japan to the present day. Included are fascinating vignettes of the seminal figures who refined his views—among them Daniel Ellsberg, Gary Snyder, Mayumi Oda, and Morihei Ueshiba, the founder of Aikido—as well as striking examples of the art he has so famously used to bear witness to the infinite value of life.

It is such a wonderful that shows so many facets of his activism, generosity, commitment to peace, art, poetry, creativity and more.  It is incredible to hear about his training with Morihei Ueshiba, the role his father played in the military leading up to the war and the impact these had on Kaz.  It is sure to leave you with a deep appreciation of his work in all its variety.

heart of the brush
Paperback

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This comprehensive and accessible introduction to the history and art of calligraphy as it’s been practiced for centuries in Asia offers the possibility of appreciating it in a hands-on way. It works as a guide for the beginner hoping to develop an appreciation for Asian calligraphy, for the person who wants to give calligraphy-creation a try, as well as for the expert or afficionado who wants nothing more than to exult in lovely examples of this art. After proving a brief overview, Kazuaki Tanahashi invites you to give it a try yourself, giving guidance for materials, and then instruction in the basic strokes. He then provides examples of 150 characters, from action to zen, with history and development of each, famous examples, stroke sequences, and the author’s interpretation of the character in styles that range from traditional to modern. It’s a calligraphy course in a book, but it’s also a book for hours of meditative browsing.

O'Leary describes it this:

The One Thousand Character Essay is both essay and visual art. For brush calligraphers who do not read Chinese, this text offers a rare opportunity (by looking at the bottom of the facing left-hand page for translation and then reading a column of characters on the right-hand page), to take in the visual aspects of a larger meaning, of several characters in a row. To compare, side by side and over and over, formal and cursive script. Then glance back again to the top of the left-hand page, for the specific
meaning of a particular character. For me, this was entering a calligraphic text as I never had before.

In recent years, some calligraphers have been taking cellphone photos of individual characters and then enlarging them on the phone screen to be able to study the detail of strokes and how the calligrapher formed them. It is mesmerizing to look so closely at Zhiyong’s art. This form of attention can seem to slow down time, and it feels like an opportunity for carefully observing that only museum conservators could have had until very recently. We encourage you to try this.

Kaz once said to me, “I believe in the power of writing. I believe in the power of art.” You hold in your hands the written art of space and time. Of black night sky and earth. Ochre earth.

The Online Course

kaz brush

In this online workshop, you can study with him up close, as he guides you in exploring the wondrous world of brush calligraphy.

In each of the eight workshop sessions, Kaz will guide you in making a close study of an ancient Chinese masterpiece. He will demonstrate the character himself and then comment on the work of several of his calligraphy friends to help you deepen your understanding. He ends each session with homework designed to help you cultivate your own calligraphy practice.

You don’t need to have any previous experience of calligraphy or know any East Asian language to take this course. It takes years of practice to be a good calligrapher, but in this workshop and through Kaz’s unique style of teaching, you will experience both a beginning and, at the same time, an advanced study of East Asian calligraphy.

Paperback

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In this translation collaboration between Kaz and Susan O'Leary, The Thousand Character Essay is China’s most widely used and beloved calligraphy textbook—sung to infants as a lullaby, used to teach reading and writing, employed as library index codes, and more. Composed by the literary giant Zhou Xingsi and handwritten by sixth-century Buddhist monk Zhiyong, this masterful work has endured for centuries as the standard guide for brush writing both in formal and cursive scripts. Delight in One Thousand Characters brings this sublime body of art-as-text to English-speaking readers, detailing the fascinating history, geographic range, and aesthetic nuance of the essay. Preserving the renowned beauty of Zhiyong’s only extant handwriting, the book includes a full one-hundred-strip edition of his calligraphy and offers corresponding commentary explaining the meaning of each character.

O'Leary describes it this:

The One Thousand Character Essay is both essay and visual art. For brush calligraphers who do not read Chinese, this text offers a rare opportunity (by looking at the bottom of the facing left-hand page for translation and then reading a column of characters on the right-hand page), to take in the visual aspects of a larger meaning, of several characters in a row. To compare, side by side and over and over, formal and cursive script. Then glance back again to the top of the left-hand page, for the specific
meaning of a particular character. For me, this was entering a calligraphic text as I never had before.

In recent years, some calligraphers have been taking cellphone photos of individual characters and then enlarging them on the phone screen to be able to study the detail of strokes and how the calligrapher formed them. It is mesmerizing to look so closely at Zhiyong’s art. This form of attention can seem to slow down time, and it feels like an opportunity for carefully observing that only museum conservators could have had until very recently. We encourage you to try this.

Kaz once said to me, “I believe in the power of writing. I believe in the power of art.” You hold in your hands the written art of space and time. Of black night sky and earth. Ochre earth.

white tea bowl
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A White Tea Bowl: 100 Haiku from 100 Years of Life

Kaz edited A White Tea Bowl, a selection of 100 haiku written by Mitsu Suzuki, the widow of Shunryu Suzuki Roshi, which was published in celebration of her 100th birthday. The compelling introduction by Zen priest Norman Fischer describes the profound impact on her life and work of war in Japan and social upheaval in America.

Part I: 100 Haiku presents a kaleidoscope of poems by Mitsu Suzuki that touch all aspects of her being: her dedication to the Buddha way, the loneliness of a widow's life, her generational role as "Candy Auntie," her sensitive attunement to nature, and her moments of insight into the dharma. The more you read these haiku, the more their wisdom will emerge.

Part II: Pickles and Tea contains reminiscences and anecdotes about Mitsu Suzuki by those who lived and studied with her at the San Francisco Zen Center; often these meetings took place in Mitsu's kitchen where she provided countless cups of tea, cookies, and homemade pickles as well as sage advice.

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Zen in Japan: Up to the Meiji Restoration

Zen in Japan: Up to the Meiji Restoration

circle of the way

 

 

This is part of a series of articles on the arc of Zen thought, practice, and history, as presented in The Circle of the Way: A Concise History of Zen from the Buddha to the Modern WorldYou can start at the beginning of this series or simply explore from here. 

Twilight Landscape In the Style of Ikkyū Sōjun Japanese. From the Met.

Explore Zen Buddhism: A Reader's Guide to the Great Works 

Overview

Chan in China

Zen in Korea

Zen in Japan

> Zen in Japan up to the Meiji Restoration 

Additional Resources

The period after Dogen and the early period of Zen saw rich developments, including of course the Rinzai school and the Samurai which are covered in the sister guides to this article. Here are some of the works we publish from after the early period up to the 19th century Meiji Restoration when changes in power made for a more challenging environment for Zen practitioners and institutions throughout Japan.

Secrets of the Blue Cliff Record: Zen Comments by Hakuin and Tenkei

Secrets of the Blue Cliff Record is a fresh translation featuring newly translated commentary from Hakuin of the Rinzai sect of Zen and Tenkei Denson (1648–1735) of the Soto sect of Zen.

Ryokan

Chinese Poem Lamenting the Death of a Friend by Ryokan from the Met

Ryokan (1758–1831) is, along with Dogen and Hakuin, one of the three giants of Zen in Japan. But unlike his two renowned colleagues, Ryokan was a societal dropout, living mostly as a hermit and a beggar. He was never head of a monastery or temple. He liked playing with children. He had no dharma heir. Even so, people recognized the depth of his realization, and he was sought out by people of all walks of life for the teaching to be experienced in just being around him. His poetry and art were wildly popular even in his lifetime. He is now regarded as one of the greatest poets of the Edo Period, along with Basho, Buson, and Issa.

sky above

Sky Above, Great Wind: The Life and Poetry of Zen Master Ryokan

He was also a master artist-calligrapher with a very distinctive style, due mostly to his unique and irrepressible spirit, but also because he was so poor he didn’t usually have materials: his distinctive thin line was due to the fact that he often used twigs rather than the brushes he couldn’t afford. He was said to practice his brushwork with his fingers in the air when he didn’t have any paper. There are hilarious stories about how people tried to trick him into doing art for them, and about how he frustrated their attempts. As an old man, he fell in love with a young Zen nun who also became his student. His affection for her colors the mature poems of his late period. This collection contains more than 140 of Ryokan’s poems, with selections of his art, and of the very funny anecdotes about him.

Dewdrops on a Lotus Leaf: Zen Poems of Ryokan

Deceptively simple, Ryokan's poems transcend artifice, presenting spontaneous expressions of pure Zen spirit. Like his contemporary Thoreau, Ryokan celebrates nature and the natural life, but his poems touch the whole range of human experience: joy and sadness, pleasure and pain, enlightenment and illusion, love and loneliness. This collection of translations reflects the full spectrum of Ryokan's spiritual and poetic vision, including Japanese haiku, longer folk songs, and Chinese-style verse. Fifteen ink paintings by Koshi no Sengai (1895–1958) complement these translations and beautifully depict the spirit of this famous poet.

One Robe, One Bowl: The Zen Poetry of Ryokan

The hermit-monk Ryokan, long beloved in Japan both for his poetry and for his character, belongs in the tradition of the great Zen eccentrics of China and Japan. His reclusive life and celebration of nature and the natural life also bring to mind his younger American contemporary, Thoreau. Ryokan's poetry is that of the mature Zen master, its deceptive simplicity revealing an art that surpasses artifice.

Ikkyu

Twilight Landscape

In the Style of Ikkyū Sōjun Japanese. From the Met.

Finally, there is the figure of Ikkyu (1394–1481).  While we do not have any stand-alone works on or by him, he appears in many, many works.  In The Circle of the Way, he gets a few pages that begins:

Of all Muromachi-period Zen monastics, with all of their talent and accomplishments, the monk most well known today was something of a black sheep. Ikkyu Sojun (1394–1481) remains so popular in Japan that he has been portrayed in anime and the popular graphic art of manga.

Peter Matthiessen, In Nine-Headed Dragon River: Zen Journals, adds more color with his flowing prose, describing him as

A bastard son of the emperor, pauper, poet, twice-failed suicide, and Zen master, enlightened at last by the harsh call of a crow. At eighty-one Ikkyu became the iconoclastic abbot of Daitoku-ji. ('For fifty years I was a man wearing straw raincoat and umbrella-hat; I feel grief and shame now at this purple robe.')  His 'mad' behavior was perhaps his way of disrupting the corrupt and feeble Zen he saw around him: 'An insane man of mad temper raises a mad air,' he wrote.  He also said, 'Having no destination, I am never lost.' One infatuated scholar has called him 'the most remarkable monk in the history of Japanese Buddhism, the only Japanese comparable to the great Chinese Zen masters, for example, Joshu, Rinzai, and Unmon.' Ikkyu found no one he could approve as his Dharma successor. Before his death, civil disorders caused the near obliteration of Kyoto, forcing Rinzai Zen to follow Soto from the decadent capital city into the countryside.

After Ikkyu and Other Poems

After Ikkyu and Other Poems

by Jim Harrison

A collection of poems inspired by Ikkyu by the great novelist and essayist Jim Harrison who said of this work,

The sequence After Ikkyu- was occasioned when Jack Turner passed along to me The Record of Tungshan and the new Master Yunmen, edited by Urs App. It was a dark period, and I spent a great deal of time with the books. They rattled me loose from the oppressive, poleaxed state of distraction we count as worldly success. But then we are not fueled by piths and gists but by practice—which is Yunmen’s unshakable point, among a thousand other harrowing ones. I was born a baby, what are these hundred suits of clothes I’m wearing?

Naked in the Zendo

Naked in the Zendo: Stories of Uptight Zen, Wild-Ass Zen, and Enlightenment Wherever You Are

While not by Ikkyu, he makes an appearance  in this work over a few very entertaining and moving pages.

Zen in the Age of Anxiety

Zen in the Age of Anxiety: Wisdom for Navigating Our Modern Lives

Ikkyu makes an appearance for several pages of Tim Burkett's excellent work which includes translations, by John Stevens, of several of his poems

You Have to Say Something: Manifesting Zen Insight

Dainin Katagiri Roshi shares this story about Ikkyu in this work:

A man who was soon going to die wanted to see Zen master Ikkyu. He asked Ikkyu, ‘‘Am I going to die?’’ Instead of giving the usual words of comfort, Ikkyu said, ‘‘Your end is near. I am going to die, too. Others are going to die.’’ Ikkyu was saying that we can all share this suffering. Persons who are about to
die can share their suffering with us, and we can share our suffering with those who are about to die.

Ikkyu’s statement comes from a deep understanding of human suffering. In facing your last moment, you can really share your life and your death.

minding mind

Minding Mind: A Course in Basic Meditation

One of the meditation manuals in this work date from pre-Meiji Restoration Japan.

The second, An Elementary Talk on Zen, is attributed to Man-an, an old adept of a Soto school of Zen who is believed to have lived in the early seventeenth century. The Soto schools of Zen in that time traced their spiritual lineages back to Dogen and Ejo , but their doctrines and methods were not quite the same as the ancient masters’, reflecting later accretions from other schools.

Man-an’s work is very accessible and extremely interesting for the range of its content. In particular, it reflects a modern trend toward emphasis on meditation in action, which can be seen in China particularly from the eleventh century, in Korea from the twelfth century, and in Japan from the fourteenth century.

Pure Land: History, Tradition, and Practice

This recent work by Professor Charles B. Jones, a leading scholar on Pure Land Buddhism, goes into much detail of Pure  Land and its intertined relationship with Zen.  The sections on Japan include its introduction from China, Ryonin and the Yuzi Nenbutsu, Honen and Jodo Shu, Shinran and the Jodo Shinshu, and Ippen and the Jishu.

Continue to our next article in the series: A Readers Guide to the Heart Sutra >

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Buddhist Poetry - A Reader Guide

Recent Releases

Until NIrvana Time

$21.95 - Paperback

Until Nirvana's Time: Buddhist Songs from Cambodia

By Trent Walker

Until Nirvana’s Time presents forty-five Dharma songs, whose soaring melodies have inspired Cambodian Buddhist communities for generations. Whether recited in daily prayers or all-night rituals, these poems speak to our deepest concerns—how to die, how to grieve, and how to repay the ones we love.

Introduced, translated, and contextualized by scholar and vocalist Trent Walker, this is the first collection of traditional Cambodian Buddhist literature available in English. Many of the poems have been transcribed from old cassette tapes or fragile bark-paper manuscripts that have never before been printed. A link to recordings of selected songs in English and Khmer accompanies the book.

Click here to listen to songs from the book, performed by Trent Walker.

Chan and Zen Poetry

The Poetry of Zen, edited by Sam Hamill & J.P. Seaton

Here, poet-translators Sam Hamill and J.P. Seaton offer up a rich sampling of poems from the Chinese and Japanese Zen traditions, spanning centuries of poets, from Lao Tzu to Kobayashi Issa. While a few of the poets included were not Zen practitioners, their poems nonetheless illustrate a strong Zen influence. Hamill and Seaton open the anthology with an overview of the Zen poetic tradition, and provide historical, philosophical, and biographical context to the works throughout, showing readers how poetry “is one of the many paths to enlightenment” (7). With a compact trim size, this collection makes a wonderful travel companion.

The Poetry of Zen Edited by Sam Hamill and J. P. Seaton

$18.95 - Paperback

Poetry from Chinese Chan Masters

By Indara (因陀羅) (Yintuoluo) (Emuseum) [Public domain or Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

The Poetry of Enlightenment: Poems by Ancient Chan Masters, by Chan Master Sheng Yen

Look inside the minds of enlightened masters with this collection of Ch’an teaching poems. Chan Master Sheng Yen offers commentary on ten poems by ancient Chinese Ch’an masters, selected both for their simplicity of language and depth of meaning. Written by Ch’an practitioners post-enlightenment, these poems touch on the experience of Ch’an, how to practice, cultivating the right attitude, and obstacles to avoid, as well as offering a glimpse into the state of mind of enlightenment.

$18.95 - Paperback

The Complete Cold Mountain: Poems of the Legendary Hermit Hanshan, translated by Kazuaki Tanahashi & Peter Levitt

Capturing readers with its insightful, light, humorous, and often rebellious spirit, Hanshan’s Cold Mountain poems have long been enjoyed by Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike. This new translation of these centuries-old writings by Kaz Tanahashi and Peter Levitt presents readers not only the full body of poems in its entirety, but also provides a wealth of insight into the poets behind the poems, full Chinese text of the poems, historical context, and the Buddhist elements present throughout the collection. The translators’ deep appreciation for Hanshan shines through the collection. Translator Peter Levitt notes in the introduction, “Because of the compassionate discernment, profound tranquility, unexpected insight, and the occasional outrageous humor of his poetry, Kaz Tanahashi and I have gratefully considered Hanshan one of life’s treasured companions for fifty years. As a result of the kinship we feel with him, we gathered together, translated, and now offer readers the most complete version of the poet’s work to date in the English language” (2).

The Complete Cold Mountain

$22.95 - Paperback

Poetry from Japanese Zen Masters

The Poetry of Ryokan

Widely admired both for his character and poetry, Ryokan remains one of the key poets of the Zen tradition. Though written in eighteenth century Japan, Ryokan’s poems seem to transcend time and space, with reflections on the human experience that are as relevant to today’s readers as they were centuries ago.

Ryokan

“Who says my poems are poems?
My poems are not poems.
When you know that my poems are not poems,
Then we can speak of poetry!”

 

*Image by Ryōkan (English: Replica before 1970) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

$18.95 - Paperback

Dewdrops on a Lotus Leaf: Zen Poems of Ryokan, translated & edited by John Stevens

Providing brief biographical context, John Stevens introduces us to the world and work of Ryokan. The collection demonstrates the spirit of Ryokan’s Zen outlook, with poems covering the full spectrum of the human experience and focusing on “things deep inside the heart.” Throughout the text are ink paintings by Koshi no Sengai, a devotee of Ryokan, many of which include calligraphy of Ryokan’s verses.

$19.95 - Paperback

One Robe, One Bowl: The Zen Poetry of Ryokan, translated & introduced by John Stevens

In comparison to Dewdrops, this collection offers a more detailed introduction to the life of Ryokan and his relationship to Zen Buddhism. Ryokan was not married to one poetic style, and thus this collection is broken up into classical Chinese style poems, and Japanese waka and haiku, organized by season.

$18.95 - Paperback

Sky Above, Great Wind: The Life and Poetry of Zen Master Ryokan, translated by Kazuaki Tanahashi

For readers who want to take a really deep dive into Ryokan, this is the collection to read. Not only does Tanahashi present Ryokan’s poetry (organized chronologically), but he also offers selections of Ryokan’s calligraphy, maps of relevant sites for readers’ reference, a detailed biographical introduction, notes on individual poems, an analysis of Ryokan’s poetic forms, and a collection of anecdotes about the beloved Zen poet.

The Poetry of Saigō

Saigyō, the Buddhist name of Fujiwara no Norikiyo (1118–1190), is one of Japan’s most famous and beloved poets. He was a recluse monk who spent much of his life wandering and seeking after the Buddhist way. Combining his love of poetry with his spiritual evolution, he produced beautiful, lyrical lines infused with a Buddhist perception of the world.

This world—

strug jewels

of dew

on the frail thread

a spider spins.

Gazing at the Moon: Buddhist Poems of Solitude, translated by Meredith McKinney, presents over one hundred of Saigyō’s tanka—traditional 31-syllable poems—newly rendered into English by renowned translator Meredith McKinney. This selection of poems conveys Saigyō’s story of Buddhist awakening, reclusion, seeking, enlightenment, and death, embodying the Japanese aesthetic ideal of mono no aware—to be moved by sorrow in witnessing the ephemeral world.

$16.95 - Paperback

Check out the interview with Meredith McKinney on the Books on Asia Podcast!

Indian Buddhist Poetry

Songs of the Sons and Daughters of Buddha: Enlightenment Poems from the Theragatha and Therigatha, translated by Andrew Schelling and Anne Waldman

More than two thousand years ago, the earliest disciples of the Buddha put into verse their experiences on the spiritual journey—from their daily struggles to their spiritual realizations. Over time the verses were collected to form the Theragatha and Therigatha, the “Verses of Elder Monks” and “Verses of Elder Nuns” respectively. Renowned poets Andrew Schelling and Anne Waldman have translated the most poignant poems in these collections, bringing forth their visceral, immediate qualities.

$16.95 - Paperback

Tibetan Buddhist Poetry

Gendun Chopel: Tibet’s Modern Visionary, by Donald S. Lopez Jr.

The debut title in Shambhala’s Lives of the Masters series, Gendun Chopel offers an in-depth look at the life and writings of the Tibetan Buddhist visionary, by scholar Donald Lopez. While much of this book is a biographical exploration of Gendun Chopel, Lopez also provides a wealth of Gendun Chopel’s writings, believing that “one learns a great deal about an author by actually reading what they wrote” (x). More than a Buddhist visionary, Gendun Chopel is considered one of Tibet’s greatest poets of the twentieth century, and thus included among these writings is a significant selection of poetry. As a student and writer of poetry throughout his life, he mastered many poetic forms, and often composed poems spontaneously.

The relatives and servants we meet are but guests on market day.
The rise of power, wealth, and arrogance are pleasures in a dream.
Happiness alternates with sorrow, summer changes to winter.
Thinking of this, a song spontaneously came to me.

Gendun Chopel

$22.95 - Paperback

$39.95 - Paperback

The Rain of Wisdom: The Essence of the Ocean of True Meaning, translated by the Nalanda Translation Committee

Translated under the direction of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, this collection offers more than one hundred vajra dohas of the Tibetan Kagyu lineage, by more than thirty lineage holders, including Tilopa, Milarepa, and the Sixteenth Gyalwa Karmapa. Contained in these songs are teachings on karma, bodhicitta, devotion, and the Buddhist path. Trungpa Rinpoche writes in his Foreword, “these songs should be regarded as the best of the butter which has been churned from the ocean of milk of the Buddha’s teachings” (xiii).

$39.95 - Paperback

Tibetan Literature: Studies in Genre

Renowned scholar Roger Jackson takes on the subject in the chapter ‘Poetry in Tibet: Glu, mGur, sNyan ngag and “Songs of Experience”.  He explores Tibetan poetry from its earliest forms to the present including Trungpa Rinpoche and Allen Ginsberg.

The rise of power, wealth, and arrogance are pleasures in a dream.
Happiness alternates with sorrow, summer changes to winter.
Thinking of this, a song spontaneously came to me.

The Treasury of Knowledge

Jamgon Kongtrul Lodro Thaye’s ten volume Treasury of Knowledge includes the volume Indo-Tibetan Classical Learning & Buddhist Phenomenology (Book Six, Parts One & Two). Chapter eight catalogues the elements and components of Tibetan poetry including the types of composition (metrical, prose, and a mix of the two) as well as poetic ornaments.

$49.95 - Hardcover

Songs of Spiritual Experience: Tibetan Buddhist Poems of Insight and Awakening, selected & translated by Thupten Jinpa & Jas Elsner

Published in English for the first time, this collection of fifty-two poems by realized masters, from classic to contemporary, represents the full range of Tibetan Buddhist lineage traditions. Organized thematically, these songs address impermanence, guru devotion, emptiness, and other key themes of Tibetan Buddhism. Also included are a detailed glossary and exploration of the Tibetan tradition of nyamgur (“experiential songs”), offering a comprehensive look at poetry’s role within Tibetan Buddhism. A foreword for the collection is provided by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

The introduction forms one of the best introductions to Tibetan poetry available.  Here is a taste:

"Many of the greatest Tibetan poems demand of the reader an attentiveness to a complex line of thought and philosophical reasoning, albeit in the heightened forms of verse combined with the inspiration of imagery. For the poet, the ideal reader is one whose reading of the poem becomes itself an act of meditation, penetrating the depths of human experience with an insight tempered by sensitivity.

$22.95 - Paperback

Listen to Thubten Jinpa discuss the Songs of Spiritual Experience

Other Media on Tibetan Buddhist Poetry

Watch this episode from the Tsadra Foundation’s Translation and Transmission conference in 2017 with leading scholars of Tibetan poetry.

kavya poetry

Poems of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche

trungpa cal

While Trungpa Rinpoche was a Tibetan, his poetry is unique and has therefore been included in the contemporary Buddhist poetry section.

When Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche arrived in the United States, he asked, “Where are your poets? Take me to your poets!” Not only was Trungpa Rinpoche a spiritual teacher, but he was also an avid poet and dharma artist. Below, we describe the differences between our multiple collections of his work:

$19.95 - Paperback

Timely Rain: Selected Poetry of Chogyam Trungpa

Timely Rain is a collection of new and previously published poems, edited and curated by David I. Rome. While First Thought Best Thought presents poems in roughly chronological order, this collection is organized thematically, with each thematic section in chronological order. This allows readers to more easily navigate the poems, while also witnessing the evolution of Trungpa’s expressiveness and state of mind. Editor David Rome reflects in his Afterword that “poetry is also a refuge for Trungpa, perhaps the only place where he is able to step out of all the roles and self-inventions and speak truthfully from—and to—his own heart” (193). Themes contained herein include loneliness, samsara and nirvana, love, and sacred songs.

Mudra Chogyam Trungpa

$16.95 - Paperback

Mudra: Early Poems and Songs

Mudra is a selection of spontaneous, celebratory poems of devotion written by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche between 1959 and 1971. Trungpa opens his collection with two translations of Jigme Lingpa and Patrul Rinpoche, explaining that “they are the vajra statement which frees the people of the dark ages from the three lords of materialism and their warfare.” Also included are ten traditional Zen oxherding pictures along with Trungpa’s unique commentary.

$24.95 - Paperback

First Thought Best Thought: 108 Poems

Dictated (Trungpa composed poems verbally to a scribe) around the time of his arrival in the United States, this collection of poems, with an introduction by Allen Ginsberg, encapsulates Trungpa’s creative energy. His vision of joining East and West shines through each poem, combining classical Tibetan poetic influences with a modern American poetic style. As the collection progresses chronologically, readers witness Trungpa’s increasing familiarity and comfort with American culture. The collection’s title pays homage to William Blake’s “First thought is best in Art, second in other matters,” while also invoking the notion of beginner’s mind. As Ginsberg writes in his introduction, here is an “amazing chance to see his thought process step by step, link by link, cutting through solidifications of opinions & fixations” (xv).

Buddhist Songs and Poetry from Southeast Asia

Until NIrvana Time

$21.95 - Paperback

Until Nirvana's Time: Buddhist Songs from Cambodia

By Trent Walker

Until Nirvana’s Time presents forty-five Dharma songs, whose soaring melodies have inspired Cambodian Buddhist communities for generations. Whether recited in daily prayers or all-night rituals, these poems speak to our deepest concerns—how to die, how to grieve, and how to repay the ones we love.

Introduced, translated, and contextualized by scholar and vocalist Trent Walker, this is the first collection of traditional Cambodian Buddhist literature available in English. Many of the poems have been transcribed from old cassette tapes or fragile bark-paper manuscripts that have never before been printed. A link to recordings of selected songs in English and Khmer accompanies the book.

Click here to listen to more songs from the book, performed by Trent Walker.

Contemporary Buddhist Poetry

The First Free Women: Original Poems Inspired by the Early Buddhist Nuns, by Matty Weingast

Composed around the Buddha’s lifetime, the original Therigatha (“Verses of the Elder Nuns”) contains the poems of the first Buddhist women: princesses and courtesans, tired wives of arranged marriages and the desperately in love, those born into limitless wealth and those born with nothing at all. The authors of the Therigatha were women from every kind of background, but they all shared a deep-seated desire for awakening and liberation.

In The First Free Women, Matty Weingast has reimagined this ancient collection and created an original work that takes his experience of the essence of each poem and brings forth in his own words the struggles and doubts, as well as the strength, perseverance, and profound compassion, embodied by these courageous women.

$18.95 - Paperback

Beneath a Single Moon: Buddhism in Contemporary American Poetry, edited by Kent Johnson & Craig Paulenich

For readers who prefer a more modern aesthetic, Beneath a Single Moon is a delightful read. This anthology features more than 250 poems by forty-five contemporary American poets, supplemented with essays exploring spiritual poetic practice. Among those included in this collection are John Cage, Diane di Prima, Norman Fischer, Allen Ginsberg, Susan Griffin, Anne Waldman, Philip Whalen, and Gary Snyder, who also provides the book’s introduction. Offering a refreshing look at spiritual poetry, the editors explain that “the variousness of the work [stands] very much at odds with the fairly common notion of American ‘Zen’ poetry as a literary remnant of the sixties, with derivative, and generally identifiable ‘Eastern’ criteria. It [is] even more intimately at odds, perhaps, with the well-diffused perception—at least in the West—of Buddhism as collectivizing and inimical to individual spirit” (xv-xvi).

$29.95 - Paperback

After Ikkyu & Other Poems, by Jim Harrison

Those who find spiritual poetry can become too rigid or serious will find this to be a refreshing departure from the norm. These raw and often pithy poems by novelist Jim Harrison draw inspiration from his many years of Zen practice, and in perfect Zen spirit, they reveal a poet and practitioner who does not take himself too seriously. In his introduction Harrison explains, “It doesn’t really matter if these poems are thought of as slightly soiled dharma gates or just plain poems. They’ll live or die by their own specific density, flowers for the void” (ix).

After Ikkyu and Other Poems

$12.95 - Paperback

Listen to a sample from Jim Harrison's original reading of After Ikkyu. Audiobook available on Audible and Apple.

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