Zen and the Way of the Sword: Arming the Samurai Psyche

An excellent history of the role of Zen in japanese and some chinese martial arts. He traces the sword, and the Zen way through the various eras of Japanese history, including through the pacific war of the 1930s and 1940s. A very revealing expose into the Japanese spirit, and a timely one, viz a conversation I had regarding the lack of spirituality in the martial art I am presently studying (aka MMA). While some friends were horrified by this missing component, personally, I saw this as a strength. Bushido is a pretty weird way of looking at the world. Any spirituality that would inspire men to crash airplanes into battleships, or disembowel themselves to atone for making a mistake is not exactly something I can relate to. In any case, this book confirmed my prejudices. I like being a westerner.

Another wonderful book about the Japanese Buddhist mind from a one of a kind scholar and teacher. Winston King is, as always, honest, accurate, informative, balanced, engaging, and right on target - as he was in class. If you can't learn from him, you can't learn.

Though at times this book can be tough to read, it never stops being quite fascinating. The idea of getting into the mind of the Samurai was quite interesting. The book does a nice job explaining the ideas of Zen Buddhism and their influence on Japan. I really liked the chapters linking the Samurai mentality to WWII and the Japanese military. It can be a tough read, but worth it. Also, the illustrations are great.

Winston King is a profound scholar and great teacher. His books, like his classroom presentations, have a lifelong resonance. This is the best book I have ever read on Zen and provides more insight into Japanese militarism than all the other books I have examined in preparing to teach seminars in Asian culture.