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To Realize Enlightenment: Practice of the Cultivation Path

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Ever since D.T. Suzuki the great Zen scholar died no one had been able to take his place introducing the heart of Buddhist practice. Master Nan is not only a comprehensive practitioner of wide range of Buddhism, Varjrayana, Chan Buddhism, Yogacran and also Taoist Qigong practitioners. He bridged the very needed insight into the treasure house of ancient Chinses wisdom injecting a new vigor to the Beat Zen mumble jumble of talking Buddhist that is so pervalent of our time. The Book is a translation of his dharma talks during one of his intensive retreat period. In between the lines, the reader can feel the great love and compassion he had toward his students and all beings. He has tremendous humor and many time laugh with us at our own hazy moon of enlightenment nature. Like what he sayed that spiritual awaken sometime is a fine line between crazy wisdom or just plain craziness. Insanity has also a very convincing subjective self nature. This book will be like drinking a glass of cool water and a antidote to the excessive intellectual college professor Buddhism that is overflooded the earth and media. If you are a sincere practitioner then this book is for you.

This is a follow up of "working towards enlightenment". Both translated from the single volume Chinese book titled "how to cultivate the Buddhadharma." J.C. Cleary has once again done a very fine job. The translation is lucid and beautiful in its own right. Literally inclined cultivators will cherish the many poems which are probably translated for the first time.

My own teacher one of Master Nan's long time students, echoed Master Nan's words as many of the great enlightened ones of old have done. Seeing the TAO is easy, what is hard is realizing the TAO. Master Nan picks up from his last book and again points the way with highlights from many other texts of enlightened individuals. With Master Nan's commentarys on these texts he pushes you to leap over your own boundaries of learning, better yet your discrimative mind of comprehension. It's all about behavior modifications of mind and body. Finish it now with PRACTICE.