Laura Burges

LAURA BURGES (Ryuko Eitai) is a lay entrusted Buddhist teacher in the Soto Zen tradition. She lectures, offers classes, and leads retreats at the San Francisco Zen Center and at other practice places in Northern California. She is the abiding teacher at Lenox House Meditation Group in Oakland. Laura taught children for 35 years and now mentors other teachers.

"This book, written in a uniquely feminine voice that is supportive, authoritative, and most caring, mandates recovery as a prerequisite for genuine spiritual insight and freedom from addiction. Laura Burges’s personal voice is a pleasure to hear." —Sylvia Boorstein, cofounder of Spirit Rock Meditation Center and author of Pay Attention for Goodness' Sake

"This is a special book, the kind that only comes from someone with a wealth of gifts. The first of these that Laura possesses is the hard-won wisdom of deep recovery and a deep Buddhist practice. Those can’t be faked. The second is a talent for writing that makes her work a joy to read, beyond even the wisdom she imparts. And finally, here we find someone who is willing to give everything of herself to us. This generosity, wisdom, and elegant writing make for a book that will be a cornerstone of the Buddhist recovery community for many years." —Kevin Griffin, author of One Breath at a Time: Buddhism and the Twelve Steps

"Laura Burges, whose dharma name is Ryū Kō Ei Tai (Abundant Cultivation Flower of Serenity), opens herself to us with the gift of unstinting honesty in The Zen Way of Recovery. She skillfully reveals and shares what she has found to be true—the power to transform the suffering of addiction through the interfusion of Zen practice and recovery practice. This is the double strand of a new joyous life of serenity, sangha-fellowship, and benefiting others. A Dharma book full of laugh-out-loud humor and pathos, lessons from Zen teachers old and new, teachings from her third-grade students, and everyday stories of the alchemy of ‘spinning straw into gold.’ A treasure!" —Eijun Linda Cutts, Senior Dharma Teacher, San Francisco Zen Center

"It takes time, effort, endurance, and a bit of getting knocked around, to settle into down-to-earth wisdom, the kind of wisdom that appreciates life’s difficulties and knows how to negotiate them gracefully. Laura Burges has achieved such wisdom, and she expresses it with love and good humor in this wonderful book. Using teachings from Zen Buddhism (which she teaches and has practiced for many decades), psychology, folklore, and her personal life, Burges’s The Zen Way of Recovery is a fresh and important addition to the growing literature on Buddhism and recovery." —Norman Fischer, poet, Zen priest, author of When You Greet Me I Bow and Selected Poems 1980-2013

"The Zen Way of Recovery is a gentle and wise primer to Buddhism written by one who has used the practices to heal herself of addiction. The lessons learned are shared with humility and compassion and in no way minimize or sugar coat the difficulties we all face as vulnerable human beings prone to suffer. An excellent book that will be of help to many." —Dr. Fred Luskin, Director of the Stanford University Forgiveness Projects, author of Forgive for Good: A Proven Prescription for Health and Happiness

"This wonderful, friendly, helpful book weds the warm, practical humanity of the recovery community with the gem-like clarity and deep, ancient practices of Zen Buddhism. If you are in recovery and seeking to explore a more structured spiritual path or are secretly struggling with an addiction that your religious life hasn't ‘cured,’ I can think of no more trustworthy guide than Zen teacher Laura Burges. She has walked the walk for decades, with kindness, deep knowledge, and gentle humor. There is no inherent conflict between Buddhist teachings and the spiritual path of recovery. Laura shines a light on how the practices and teachings of each can support the other." —Katy Butler, author of Knocking on Heaven's Door and The Art of Dying Well

"Burges examines the complexity of addiction. . . . By recommitting to the path of recovery again and again, and knowing that no one travels the road alone, the ‘alchemy of recovery’ finally works its contagious magic." —Buddhadharma