Customer Reviews

The Asian Journal of Thomas Merton (New Directions Books)

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This book is a must-read for fans of Merton, and for anyone interested in encounters between Western Christianity and Eastern religions (particularly Hinduism and Buddhism).

Merton achieved incredible realizations and great insight into Buddhism despite the fact that he lived most of his life as a monk and hermit isolated at Gethsemani Abbey in Kentucky, USA. At the end of his life, invited to present a paper in Bangkok on the renewal of monasticism, Merton made what he called his 'Asian pilgrimage' and finally set out to see firsthand what he had studied in books. This journal took him all across Asia, to various holy sites, and to encounters with numerous religious communities. He met, along the way, such people as H.H. the Dalai Lama and Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche. He records all of this, his encounters, and even more interestingly, his own reflection on Buddhism and Christianity, in this wonderful gem of a journal.

What would have happened had Merton lived a few more years? I often ask myself this. He was exploring not just the surface of Buddhism (even now, many decades later, the presentation of Buddhism in the West can be very superficial), but delving into its very heart -- mandalas, tantras, and so on, and probing into what their nature was and what this might mean for Christianity to encounter a spirituality that seemed at once totally foreign and alien, and yet at the same time the very essence of what Christianity means.

Merton was a brilliant individual. He does not succumb to easy platitudes such as "It's all the same thing" or anything like that. He respects difference. But he does also certainly see a deep and dazzling dynamic unity -- a truth -- that penetrates all of this -- and not just this, but every moment of our lives. That living power -- that is what is important, and he witnessed to this in his life and writings.

I never tire of reading Thomas Merton. The Asian Journal is a poignant and tireless encampment with one of the remarkable men of letters of the 20th century. Colored throughout with Merton's search for a place of greater solitude (his dissatisfaction on many levels with the cheese factory his beloved Gethsemani abbey had become being well known for some time before his death) -the redwoods of California, possibly Alaska- as the journal progresses one begins to feel in his words a kind of prescient kinship with his own accidental death, occurring in Bangkok before he had completed his Asian pilgrimage. Worthy appendices - the characteristic sweetness of his informal talk on monasticism given at Calcutta, and his lecture on Marxism and Monastic Perspectives with its prophetic last sentence "So I will disappear". Free of polemics, giving in its human searching, this is once again essential Merton.

THE ASIAN JOURNAL OF THOMAS MERTON reads in many ways like a travelogue but the one subject which Merton manages to return to constantly is contemplation. He has an abiding curiosity about the contemplative experiences of Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and virtually all mystics from any religion. Merton is especially interested in Tibetan Buddhism. At the same time he appears to remain firmly rooted in his committment to Catholicism and very appreciative of the opportunity to pursue God as a Trappist monk.

The editors have added much helpful material - including copious notes at the end of each chapter and an extensive glossary of terms.

I recommend THE ASIAN JOURNAL OF THOMAS MERTON as an intriguing book which provides a clear snapshot of Merton's thinking during the final weeks of his life.

Having read many of Thomas Merton's writings, one can see a sense of progess in his writing. More so than many other Christian, Merton sought a link between Christianity and Eastern religion, specifically Buddhism. The great misfortune was that Merton died during his trip to the East. The world may never know if Merton was on the cusp of something great. The Asian Jounral of Thomas Merton gives us some insight into his thoughts on the trip. Yet one must know his thoughts went further then what he put on paper and is included in this book.

The Asian Journal of Thomas Merton is essentially a travelogue. As Merton travels through cities and countries, he collecs his observations and thoughts. I was somewhat disappointed to discover so much of the text to be a sight-seeing log. Knowing that this was the trip that he spent years planning, I was hoping for more insight between the religions. The journal is obviously not a finished product and may never have been published had Merton not died.

While there is some disappointment in the context, there is a lot of quality writing in this book. Although they were brief, I particularly enjoyed the notes of Merton's meetings with the Dalai Lama. The photography included in the book is also beautiful.

It is with some reservations that I recommend this book. To a degree, I feel that it may not deliver the content that readers/buyers will expect. Fans of Merton's writing will assuredly enjoy it.

This is an excellent chronologically arranged collection of Thomas Merton's daily journals and correspondence as he makes his last journey. This book will both satiate Thomas Merton followers with more of his spiritual insights, his daily journal entries, along with his social and culture sensitivities. His Asian trip was an opportunity to share his monastic experiences and perspectives on the contemplative/monastic life. He also saw the planned forums as a way to address the direction in which monastic traditions should take in the modern world as they often deal with hostile political environments. This journal records Merton's thirst for the need to explore and learn from great spiritual leaders and thinkers from outside the Christian contemplative and monastic traditions. He was quite open to learning as much as he could from the great spiritual and contemplative traditions of the East, such as Buddhism and Hinduism. His sudden and untimely death leaves us with an emptiness that can't quite be filled and leaves us wondering how far Thomas Merton could have taken us in his shared spiritual and social justice journey -- had only he been not called to his God so soon.

As a Buddhist woman with several Catholic relatives, I was so curious how a Catholic priest was able to reconcile the non-dualism of Buddhism with the duality of Christianity. I was hoping that reading this book would provide that insight. Well, really, it didn't, except that maybe most Christians are misunderstanding the idea of non-duality. I don't know; I don't pretend to know. But after reading this book, I became almost obsessed with Merton; it takes such an unusual and open-minded person to just go with what he senses - sees, hears, feels - rather than by what he has been told. Such honesty is rare. His description of satori, as he experienced it, was incredibly vivid and open. And, of course, the end left me feeling that it shouldn't have been over; there should have been more. But I know that's just my attachment talking; it was as it should have been. Namaste.

I had owned this book once before. I lost my copy in hurricane Katrina. I am throughly enjoying reading the book again. In fact, I think I am getting more from the book now than I did years ago. Thomas Merton was such an outstanding, inspiring person. The pictures that accompany the text add a lot to understanding Merton's journey to the East. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is interested in monasticism and in particular taking a look at Eastern monasticism through western eyes.

This work by Thomas Merton is an exellent narrative of an outstanding Christian thinker as he encounters Asian Wisdom in the countries of origin. It is sad,but fitting,that the book contains the story of how Merton died, but The Asian Journal introduces the reader to a variety of sources, which can be explored by any reader interested in Asian thought.

The book arrived in adequate time, and in excellent shape.
Since it is out of print, I was very grateful to locate and secure a copy.
Thank you.
Maddie