Customer Reviews

The Little Zen Companion

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

First, it's not ABOUT Zen. It's a collection of quotations and anecdotes that -sometimes - illustrate a few Zen concepts. It's like looking at a flower through a multi-faceted crystal. Every viewpoint changes the perspective and gives you something else to see. Meanwhile, the flower remains the same.
Some of it is wise, some of it is deep, some of it is funny, some just clever. Sorry - it's not the can-opener to enlightenment. Some people get upset when they don't get that instant gratification. This isn't a step-by-step instructuon manual.
Just read it and enjoy it without preconception. Meditate on it if you find something particularly worthwhile. Or don't. But just don't make it into something bigger than what it intends to be; take it as it is: a small collection of interesting and often pertinent pieces, with a little humour thrown in.
Read it one page at a time, and it'll last a long time. I find a different view of the flower each time I read - or re-read - a page.

This book is okay, but not great. I like some of the entries in it, but if you are looking for a source of Buddhist wisdom, be aware that many of the quotations in this little book are not from Eastern sources. I prefer a book of Buddhist wisdom titled "Open Your Mind, Open Your Life" by Taro Gold.

You will learn little about ZEN in any worth while sense with this book, but if you are just beginning to wonder what ZEN is this is a great book. It gives you quotes from many traditions and personalities and it is very easy find things to inspire further thought and experience. If you're more familiar with ZEN it's still a great book because of the diversity of its source material and for the ocassional quick whack up-side the head. If you want SERIOUS zen books check out Meditation in Action (or Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism) -- by Chogyam Trungpa

It is because it is a book of zen mind-set, not philosophy! Not all the great thinkers and philosophies are from Asia (just read "The Tao of Pooh" for example)and while Zen may have been formalized in Japan, there have been some pretty enlightened people in the rest of the world too. In short: zen is where you find it, and it is everywhere. As for the format; it is supposed to be an easy read. One can pick it up, flip to any page and have a little reminder of what this crazy life is all about. It is a simple (and I dare say, elegant) collection of quotes. I have never seen it sold otherwise. The reviews say it is a quote book and I saw it was a quote book when I flipped though it at a book store. You are right in that there are books out there with more detail and are better at recalling zen history, however this book is not, and was never meant to be, one of them. p.s. I remember reading of a zen master hearing a reading of the Bible's "The Surmon on the Mount". He commented that whoever wrote it must have been a Budda!

This book is wonderful, even if you are not into zen. It has all the best quotes and sayings, eastern AND western, funny, profound, or familiar. It is a good book for a break at work. Keep it handy on your desk or in your bag for a quick time-out!

This is a wonderful little book of insights, I take it everywhere with me and dip into it for inspiration.

This book is pure delight. Each page gives the reader fresh perspective, useful insights, food for thought, with an occasional break for the purest of humor. A lifelong companion, and an ideal gift for all kinds of friends and acquaintances.

I have bought six of these books and given them to friends and relatives, keeping one for myself. I find myself reading it continually. Every day I read a few pages and that helps set the tone for the day. The book has brought together some of the most poetic and profound Zenlike sayings and thoughts.

I gave a copy to a friend who asked what Zen is. This is not a Zen textbook and yet it is. Zen is not linear or analytic. It is intuitive, poetic. And that's the way this book feels.

I recommend you buy it, read a few pages per day until there is no one reading and nothing to read.

What I know about Zen you could put in a thimble and have room left over. This is a terrific book for someone like me who knows practitioners of Zen, but wants some fringe way to begin to wrap a fragile mind around a few Zen ideas. Anyone who practices Zen will tell you it's a lifetime pursuit so what's the use of this book? It fits in your pocket. It thumbs easily. It does not pretend to be a substitute for a lifetime of sitting. It's a good antidote for any time spent in meetings. It will provide a moment's respite in the harsh din. It's inexpensive. It will clear your head when it most needs clearing. It has no pretenses.

This chunky little book deals with using words to express wordless truths. Some of these sayings make you think- and some of them attempt to move you beyond thought. The ego is momentarily forgotten so that subject and object merge- and then you forget both of them. That is the Zen of it.

This really is a nice little Zen primer in the way that it touches on the essence of everything from basic Zen vocabulary (bodhisattva to zendo), historical figures (the Buddha, Bodhidharma, Layman P'ang, the Sixth Patriarch, Crazy Cloud, Basho, Suzuki, Ryokan, Dogen), to practice (koans, zazan, martial arts, haiku, tea ceremony, painting and calligraphy.) It is the wide range quotations though that really makes the book, from classical koans to the thoughts of beats, bullfighters, and scientists. It all blends together to really point to the path to enlightenment. And it is small enough that you can carry it around in your pocket to pull out at any odd moment for inspiration. You could do worse than to make this your first introduction to the subject.

There is both a bibliography in the back for more in-depth study, as well as, a listing of the sources for all the quotes.

"You can only find the truth with logic if you have already found truth without it." G.K. Chesterton