Transmission of Light: Zen in the Art of Enlightenment by Zen Master Keizan [Paperback]

Thomas Cleary (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 16, 2002

A translation of the classic Denkoroku by one of the premier translators of Buddhist and Taoist texts illustrates how to arrive at the epiphanic Zen awakening known as satori.

The essential initiatory experience of Zen, satori is believed to open up the direct perception of things as they are. "Even if you sit until your seat breaks through, even if you persevere mindless of fatigue, even if you are a person of lofty deeds and pure behavior, if you haven't reached this realm of satori, you still can't get out of the prison of the world." Deliberately cultivated and employed to awaken the dormant potency of the mind, satori is said to be accessible to all people, transcending time, history, culture, race, gender, and personality.

Attributed to the thirteenth-century Zen Master Keizan (1268–1325), Transmission of Light (along with The Blue Cliff Record and The Gateless Barrier ) is one of three essential koan texts used by Zen students. Techniques for reaching the enlightening experience of satori are revealed through fifty-three short tales about the awakenings of successive generations of masters, beginning with the twelfth-century Zen master Ejo, dharma heir to Dogen.

The translator's introduction establishes the context for Transmission of Light within the Zen canon and elucidates central themes of the work, including the essential idea that genuine satori "is not the end of Zen; it is more properly the true beginning."

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English, Japanese --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 232 pages
• Publisher: Shambhala; 1 edition (July 16, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1570629498
• ISBN-13: 978-1570629495
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 0.6 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #781,162 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Right up there with the Platform Sutra. Absolutely amazing, April 1, 1999

By 

Tom Huston (Lenox, MA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Transmission of Light (Denkoroku): Zen in the Art of Enlightenment (Paperback)

Cleary's translation (not "illustration!") of the Denkoroku is poignant, engaging, and by far one of the profoundest texts I've ever encountered. The extremely lucid teachings of nonduality contained within will certainly be of use to both the beginning Buddhist and advanced practioner, and will help to dispel the dualistic thinking that even some "experienced" Zennists persistently cling to. Keizan Zenji's message is strikingly clear:

"Furthermore, for long eons now how many times have you gone through birth and death, how many times have you come to produce and destroy mind and body? Some may think that this coming and going in birth and death is a dream, an illusion--what a laugh! Is there something that is born and dies, comes and goes, anyway? What would you call the real human body? What do you call dream illusions?

"Therefore you should not understand life and death as empty illusions either, nor should you understand them as true reality. . . . [B]oth or these understandings are wrong when you reach here. . . .

"If you want to know the reason why, it is because this realm is not affected by becoming, substinence, decay, and annihilation. How can selfhood and otherness be considered causeless? When you have forgotten outside objects and abandoned conditioned thought within, and 'even the clear sky gets a beating,' you are clean and naked, bare and untrammeled. If you perceive minutely, you will be empty and spiritual, clear and sublime."

It doesn't get any higher than that. I don't know why this book isn't more popular. Then again, perhaps it's just too deep for the American "Zen of such-and-such" society, who are content to live with a clear mind without ever discering what it actually is.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Powerful wisdom and insight from a great master, August 3, 2008

By 

Ted Biringer "Author of The Flatbed Sutra of ... (Anacortes, Washington United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Transmission of Light: Zen in the Art of Enlightenment by Zen Master Keizan (Paperback)

Thomas Cleary, Transmission of Light

Transmission of Light, is Thomas Cleary's translation of the Denkoroku. This remarkable record of the great 13th century Zen master Keizan (second in importance in the Japanese Soto sect of Zen only to Eihei Dogen) is an extremely accessible and instructive text. While Zen Master Keizan work has much less attention in the West than Dogen's Shobogenzo and Eihei Koroku, it is a vastly important Zen text. As a source for koan-introspection, this book plays a central role to both Rinzai and Soto Zen.

Formatted in the model of the "Transmission of the Lamp" histories of Sung China, Keizan reveals the wide variety of Zen methods, doctrines, and practices through 53 successive Buddhist Masters, from Shakyamuni (the historical Buddha) through Ejo (Dogen's own successor).

Keizan uses the central message of Zen, Satori, to inspire and guide all beings to awakening. In Cleary's words, "Satori is the essential initiatory experience of Zen Buddhism, the beginning of true Zen realization, and Transmission of the Light is the most thorough guide to satori in the entire Japanese Zen canon."

As a record by the third (or fourth, depending on how you count) generation Dharma-heir of Dogen, this record offers powerful wisdom and insight from a great master that was truly intimate with the dialogues of Dogen. Besides the vital role Satori held for Dogen, Keizan shines light on the truth of Dogen's teaching concerning sitting meditation, koans, the importance of study, and the meanings behind many of the classic Buddhist doctrines.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars How to attain the enlightening experience of satori, November 10, 2002

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Transmission of Light: Zen in the Art of Enlightenment by Zen Master Keizan (Paperback)

Transmission Of Light: Zen In The Art Of Enlightenment is a fascinating translation of the classic Denkoroku, attributed to Zen Master Keizan (1268-1325), and presenting timeless wisdom in how to attain the enlightening experience of satori. Fifty-three short tales about spiritual awakening and more are smoothly translated by Thomas Cleary, who is himself an experienced translator of Taoist writings. Transmission Of Light: Zen In The Art Of Enlightenment is a highly recommended and rewarding reading for serious students of Zen Buddhism.