Five Houses of Zen (Shambhala Dragon Editions) [Paperback]

Thomas Cleary (Author)

Book Description

Series: Shambhala Dragon Editions | Publication Date: April 15, 1997

For all its emphasis on the direct experience on insight without reliance on the products of the intellect, the Zen tradition has created a huge body of writings. Of this cast literature, the writings associated with the so-called Five Houses of Zen are widely considered to be preeminent. These Five Houses—which arose in China during the ninth and tenth centuries, often referred to as the Golden Age of Zen—were not schools or sects but styles of Zen teaching represented by some of the most outstanding masters in Zen history. The writing of these great Zen teachers are presented here, many translated for the first time. These include:

   •  The sayings of Pai-chang, famous for his Zen dictum "A day without work, a day without food."
   •  Selections from Kuei-shan's collection of Zen admonitions, considered essential reading by numerous Buddhist teachers.
   •  Sun-chi's unique discussion of the inner meaning of the circular symbol in Zen teaching.
   •  Sayings of Huang-po from The Essential Method of Transmission of Mind.
   •  Excerpts from The Record of Lin-chi , a great classical text of Zen literature.
   •  Ts'ao-shan's presentation of the famous teaching device known as the Five Ranks.
   •  Selections of poetry from the Cascade Collection by Hsueh-tou, renowned for his poetic commentaries on the classic Blue Cliff Record.
   •  Yung-ming's teachings on how to balance the two basic aspects of meditation: concentration and insight.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

One of the foremost contemporary translators of classical Buddhist and Taoist literature, Cleary has made another valuable body of work available to Western readers with this collection of writings and teachings of some of the great Zen masters of China from the ninth and tenth centuries. The five houses of Zen that arose at that time were not actually separate schools or branches but instead represented distinctive styles of teaching carried out by certain Chinese Zen masters and perpetuated by their students. Cleary's introduction provides useful historical information on the development of Zen in China during the T'ang Dynasty (619-906). His translations shine with clarity and express the insights of these great teachers with beauty and understanding. Highly recommended for academic libraries with collections on Buddhist philosophy.?Elizabeth Salt, Otterbein Coll. Lib., Westerville, Ohio
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

One of the foremost contemporary translators of classical Buddhist and Taoist literature, Cleary has made another valuable body of work available to Western readers with this collection of writings and teachings of some of the great Zen masters of China from the ninth and tenth centuries. The five houses of Zen that arose at that time were not actually separate schools or branches but instead represented distinctive styles of teaching carried out by certain Chinese Zen masters and perpetuated by their students. Cleary's introduction provides useful historical information on the development of Zen in China during the T'ang Dynasty (619-906). His translations shine with clarity and express the insights of these great teachers with beauty and understanding.—Elizabeth Salt, Library Journal.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Shambhala; 1st edition (April 15, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1570622922
• ISBN-13: 978-1570622922
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.5 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,127,340 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Thomas Cleary is the preeminent translator of classic Eastern texts, including The Essential Tao, The Essential Confucius, The Secret of the Golden Flower, and the bestselling The Art of War.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Zen at the Source, August 7, 2000

By 

Michael P. McGarry (San Francisco, CA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Five Houses of Zen (Shambhala Dragon Editions) (Paperback)

The masters of the Five Houses of Zen did for Zen Buddhism roughly what the Church Fathers did for Christianity (recall that without these latter figures, there would be no Christian Bible!) Yes, the Five Houses, in the second half of the T'ang Dynasty (619-906), came almost half a millennium after Bodhidharma (470 - 543(?)), legendary founder of Zen. But the Five Houses represent a high point of Zen, having reached a critical mass of realized masters, and the writings of his period form the basis and touchstone of anything that later called itself Zen. Indeed, this period is universally recognized as a kind of "golden age" of Zen. Thomas Cleary's selections from the masters of the Five Houses give the general English reader direct access to the essential words of this foundational period of Zen. (This is yet another installment in Cleary's project of making all the essential ancient Zen writings available in brilliant English translations; I consider his ongoing work a priceless spiritual offering to the modern age.) This book is full of selections from the masters who (better known by their Japanese names) populate the great classical koan collections, the *Gateless Gate* and the *Blue Cliff Record*: Pai-Chang (J: Hyakujo), Lin-chi (J: Rinzai), Tung-shan (J: Tozan), Hsueh-feng (J: Seppo), and Yun-men (J: Ummon). Two of the houses, the House of Lin-chi and the House of Tung-shan, were the progenitors of what came to be called, respectively, the Rinzai Zen and Soto Zen traditions. This book is indispensable for making sense of how the important figures of this fecund period fit together. I highly recommend this book to beginners in Zen as well as to anyone who wants a deeper understanding of the tradition and history of Zen.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The beginning of Zen tradition explained, October 4, 2000

By 

"giovanni77" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Five Houses of Zen (Shambhala Dragon Editions) (Paperback)

It's without doubt, to mr Cleary's credit for his wonderful translation, this book represents a great collection of literature in English about the Five establishments that are seen as the foundation of Zen Buddhism in China. Great texts like The Secret of the Mind Elixir, the Five Ranks (of Absolute and Relative) and masters like Lin-Chi and Huang-Po make up this book - displaying the history and development of Zen.

Although I do not recommend this book for the beginner in Zen Buddhism, certainly a valuable asset to add to your collection.