Customer Reviews

The Awakening of Zen (Shambhala Dragon Editions)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have 32 volumes of Daisetz which contain 100+ of his books in Japanese that I have read over the last 15 years or so. Still, the English essays like The Spreme Spiritual Ideal (what a title!) and Love and Power as found in this book bring the unforgettable messages of Daisetz to me - no matter how many times I read them.

If you read Daisetz's books, - to be compared to getting a breeze of "his" life pouring out of his books, you may be drawn to the universe you may find very refreshing and vividly alive. I wish that the words/ideas in his books can be made alive and help bring happiness for all!

The Supreme Spiritual Ideal is the simplest and most profound essay I have ever read. It speaks of the author's simple straw house in Japan and compares it to the massive buildings of London. They turn out to be humble metaphors for a cosmic reality brought down to earth. Lovely.

Why did I only give the book 4 stars? Many of you may be wondering that. Because the writing is very boring and the approach is too academic. The irony is I came to review the book and realized the only essay I truly got something from was the same mentioned in the previous two reviews-"The Supreme Spiritual Ideal". The rest, in my honest opinion, was written for a different kind of Zen student in the earlier half of the 19th century. Where Zen was looked at as a scholarly and intellectual philosophy, to be understood through academia.

I try, on the other hand, to not become too critical of Daisetz Suzuki. He is one reason Zen made it's way to the West, after all. In that respect I really do thank him, but also I must be true to the people buying books here on Amazon and give my take on the material at hand. If you want another book on Zen that sits on your shelf collecting dust, I have to say, I think you've found it right here. But to each their own, you may find it engaging as well.