Essays in Zen Buddhism

It is not decent to review D.T.Suzuky, the major authority in Buddhism in the west. Nobody helped more than he did the introduction of buddhism in our culture. Nobody comes close to him, before and after his writtings. (some close 100 years old) It is only a shame the SECOND series of the "Essays in Zen Buddhism" is not available for a long time. The first series is available but hard to find.

I studied Buddhist philosophy in some detail as an undergraduate, but that was many years ago. I am revisiting it now, so I turned to the writings of D.T Suzuki, perhaps the most widely respected author in this field, both for his erudition (knowledge of all the primary texts in their original languages from origins in India, through China and Japan) and his accessibility to the layperson. This is something of an amazing feat, given the subtleties involved in explaining Zen, a formidable exercise in itself, given that the entire philosophy is based on enigmatic sayings/practices employed by masters approaching their students. Suzuki was the first to truly explain Zen Buddhism to the Western world and it is a must read for anyone who seeks the root understanding of the subject. I give it the highest recommendation.

This brilliant book by Suzuki has changed my life. Several times reading it I felt that I had experienced a small degree on satori or enlightenment. Heaven and earth should be experienced as one. The truth is in the present moment inside me.

More than any other known source, this series of essays (including the other two companion volumes) have probably done the most to put Zen 'on the map' - in the Western world. In some quarters - at least, it has become fashionable to regard D.T. Suzuki as 'passe' - a bridge builder, whose work has now reached its 'sell-by' date. While I can see why some people might feel that way - if training with a Roshi, or tired of 'reading too much' - Suzuki's 'essays' continue to have relevance for people making their first dip into the world of Zen. In one sense, you could say that Suzuki wants to say too much, and the 'purists' may fault him for it. But he was good at his job - and knew exactly how to write about such things for a Western audience, saying enough to entice them and whet their appetite, then drop them in at the deep end! His way of doing this was lively and engaging. Suzuki was a good communicator (he had an American wife, which certainly helped. Beatrice Lane Suzuki was an accomplished student of Buddhism in her own right) - and, in some respects, Suzuki was more successful than some of the roshis teaching in the West. He wasn't trying to sell you an institution, but pointing to the 'treasure house' we must all find, for ourselves. One thing is worth noting about Suzuki's 'essays.' For the most part, the anecdotes he has presented were taken from the T'ang masters in the Dentoroku (Chuan Teng Lu). You get a pretty fair spread of teaching-examples, and they are not all from masters in the Rinzai (Lin-chi) lineage. In the T'ang, there was no such sharp division between the Zen schools and in that sense, Suzuki's account has a freshness about it. Suzuki will not bog you down with laboured academic digressions. He was rather slap-dash about footnotes - and as such, you get the very 'marrow' of Zen teaching. Suzuki had his foibles - but, he remains the 'grand old man of Zen' who whetted our appetite. These essays have life in them yet! Digest Suzuki. You wont regret it!

Suzuki's works offer a clear insight look at the often misunderstood world of zen. Suzuki gives the reader the ability to understand zen, rather than dictating what zen is. This work would be of benefit to any one wishing to see if zen is 'right' for them