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Moon in a Dewdrop: Writings of Zen Master Dogen (Paperback)

by Eihei Dogen (Author), Kazuaki Tanahashi (Editor) "The thought of enlightenment has many names but they all refer to one and the same mind..." (more)
Key Phrases: dharma heritage, undivided activity, buddha ancestors, Seven Buddhas, Second Ancestor, Great Song (more...)

4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

Review
"Moon in a Dewdrop is empty and clear at the same time, like the reflection of the moon in a drop of water."--San Francisco Chronicle

"Kazuaki Tanahashi and his colleagues at the San Francisco Zen Center...have given us an accessible and comprehensive Dogen in English."--Vajradhatu Sun

"Kazuaki Tanahashi...has preserved Dogen's spirit and character in his careful and comprehensive translations."--East West
-- Review

"Moon in a Dewdrop is empty and clear at the same time, like a reflection of the moon in a drop of water." -- San Francisco Chronicle

Review

"Moon in a Dewdrop is empty and clear at the same time, like the reflection of the moon in a drop of water."--San Francisco Chronicle

"Kazuaki Tanahashi and his colleagues at the San Francisco Zen Center...have given us an accessible and comprehensive Dogen in English."--Vajradhatu Sun

"Kazuaki Tanahashi...has preserved Dogen's spirit and character in his careful and comprehensive translations."--East West

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

Paperback: 356 pages
Publisher: North Point Press (October 31, 1995)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 086547186X
ISBN-13: 978-0865471863
Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1 inches
Shipping Weight: 13.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #38,583 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Popular in these categories: (What's this?)

#1 in	Books > Religion & Spirituality > Authors, A-Z > ( D ) > Dogen
#13 in	Books > Nonfiction > Foreign Language Nonfiction > Japanese
#62 in	Books > Religion & Spirituality > Other Eastern Religions > Eastern Philosophy

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Inside This Book (learn more)

First Sentence:
The thought of enlightenment has many names but they all refer to one and the same mind. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
dharma heritage, undivided activity, buddha ancestors, whose full body, inheriting dharma, actualizing the fundamental point, inherited dharma, forty ancestors, true dharma eye, dharma descendant, inherit dharma, true dharma body, initiatory name, having rice, true human body, ancient buddha, ascended the seat, inconceivable mind, buddha way, spontaneous enlightenment, old buddha, capping verses, old plum tree, primary version, unwholesome actions

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Seven Buddhas, Second Ancestor, Great Song, Song China, Sixth Ancestor, Vulture Peak, Echizen Province, Eight Pagodas, Five Schools, King Ashoka, Qingyuan Prefecture, Wan Peak, Yoshimine Monastery, Daxiong Peak, Fourth Ancestor, Jiading Era, Kanakamuni Buddha, Kennin Monastery, Linji School, Yoshida County, Zen School

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Citations (learn more)

This book cites 5 books:

The Three Pillars of Zen: Teaching, Practice, and Enlightenment by Philip Kapleau Roshi in Back Matter
Japan the Beautiful and Myself by Yasunari Kawabata in Back Matter
The Three Pillars of Zen-Teaching Practice Enlightenment by Roshi Philip Kapleau in Back Matter
Three Pillars of Zen: Teaching, Practice, and Enlightenment by Roshi P. Kapleau in Back Matter
Zen is Eternal Life by Roshi P.T.N.H. Jiyu-Kennett in Back Matter

100 books cite this book:

The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-Men Kuan (Mumonkan) by Robert Aitken on 10 pages
Flowers Fall: A Commentary on Zen Master Dogen's Genjokoan by Hakuun Yasutani on 8 pages
Being Upright: Zen Meditation and the Bodhisattva Precepts by Reb Anderson on 6 pages
Faces of Compassion: Classic Bodhisattva Archetypes and Their Modern Expression by Taigen Daniel Leighton on 5 pages
Roaring Stream (Ecco Companions) by Nelson Foster on 5 pages

See all 100 books citing this book

Books on Related Topics (learn more)

Thousand Peaks by Su-nim Mu Seong

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The Blue Cliff Record by Thomas Cleary

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Beyond Thinking by Eihei Dogen

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	82% buy the item featured on this page: Moon in a Dewdrop: Writings of Zen Master Dogen 4.8 out of 5 stars (11) $10.88
	7% buy Not Always So: Practicing the True Spirit of Zen 4.7 out of 5 stars (30) $11.19
	5% buy Master Dogen's Shobogenzo 5.0 out of 5 stars (6) $23.99
	3% buy Each Moment Is the Universe: Zen and the Way of Being Time 4.6 out of 5 stars (8) $11.53

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Customer Reviews

11 Reviews

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4.8 out of 5 stars (11 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

87 of 90 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tackling the Mountain Ranges of Dogen's Mind., May 28, 2001

By	tepi "tepi" - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

'MOON IN A DEWDROP - WRITNGS OF ZEN MASTER DOGEN,' edited by Kazuaki Tanahashi. Translated by Robert Aitken, Philip Whalen, et al. 356 pp. San Francisco: North Point Press, 1985 and reprinted.

Eihei Dogen (1200-1253), who was an exceptionally gifted child, was born into an aristocratic household in Kyoto. The death of his mother when he was eight years old so impressed upon him the central Buddhist truth of impermanency, that he forsook his aristocratic privileges when he was thirteen and went to Mt. Hiei to study to become a Buddhist monk.

But since no-one in Japan could satisfactorily answer his questions - not surprising when you consider that he was the greatest genius Japan has ever produced - he went off to China in 1223 in search of a Master. There he studied under the Soto Ch'an (Zen) Master Ju-ching (1163-1228), attained enlightenment, and returned to Japan to become the founder Japanese Soto Zen.

Zen first became known to the West largely through the writings of D. T. Suzuki, who was a follower of the 'Sudden Enlightenment' or direct koan-using Rinzai Zen. Soto Zen, in contrast, is a gentler method which places greater reliance on Zazen or deep meditation, and is the method that has gained the largest number of adherents in Japan.

To discover just how profound Dogen was, you will have to turn to his magnum opus, the 'Shobogenzo' or 'Treasury of the True Dharma Eye.' This has been translated, in whole or in part, a number of times, but an edition I can heartily recommend is the present book.

Besides twenty texts from the 'Shobogenzo,' this 356-page book includes four additional texts and a selection of Dogen's poems. It also contains a fine Introduction on Dogen's Life and Teachings, four Appendices, full Notes, an incredibly full and detailed bilingual Glossary of a kind you will not find elsewhere, a Selected Bibliography, and some interesting illustrations.

Dogen's Japanese is an excruciatingly difficult Japanese, so much so that some think it should be called 'Dogen-ese' and not Japanese. Think 'Finnegans Wake' and you'll get an inkling of the problems involved in translating him. The language and thought of the 'Shobogenzo' come from such a height that there can be no such thing as a definitive interpretation, and hence no such thing as a definitive translation.

'Moon in a Dewdrop' is the result of a collaborative effort by a team of highly competent American Zenists, some of them very well known. It has always seemed, in my humble opinion, that, considering the difficulties, they did a very fine job. To give you a taste, here are a few lines from the 'Genjo Koan' as translated by Robert Aitken and Kazuaki Tanahashi:

"The buddha way is, basically, leaping clear of the many and the one; thus there are birth and death, delusion and realization, sentient beings and buddhas. / Yet in attachment blossoms fall, and in aversion weeds spread" (page 69).

Prepared and sensitive readers will be bowled over by 'Moon in a Dewdrop.' Dogen leaves most other thinkers behind in the dust. But if you've never read any Dogen before, it might perhaps be better to start with Reiho Masunaga's 'A Primer of Soto Zen.' This is a translation of Dogen's 'Shobogenzo Zuimonki,' a short book of brief talks and instructions for Zen beginners and lay followers. In the 'Zuimonki' you can ramble at leisure the plains and foothills of Dogen's mind before attempting the mountains.

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24 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Introduction To Dogen's Integral Thought, March 4, 2004

By	Swing King (Cincinnati, OH USA) - See all my reviews

Dogen may very well be the most important master in all of Zen history, next to Shakyamuni of course. This particular book is a translation of portions derived from Dogen's masterwork, Shobogenzo. I would suggest purchasing with this "Enlightenment Unfolds: The essential teachings of Zen Master Dogen" by the same author, it's somewhat like a follow-up. Also beneficial readings come from many of the works out there from the late modern master Taizan Maezumi. This book offers clear translations of some of the most central aspects of Dogen's fascinating style of Zen (still one of the predominant schools to have survived to date). One of the previous reviewers mentioned this book's wonderful glossary of terms, to which I must agree; It's at once extensive and dense. If you are looking for a really accurate (as well as fairly easy to read) book on Dogen Zenji aside from the entire Shobogenzo itself, don't look any further. Your needs are all met right here. Enjoy!

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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Single Volume of Dogen's Writings, April 14, 2006

By	james "hank" (Toronto, ON, CAN) - See all my reviews

Eihei Dogen is without a doubt the greatest writer in Zen history. His masterwork, the Shobogenzo, represents one of the most comprehensive, fascinating, and valuable works of Buddhist literature. In Moon in a Dewdrop, Kazuaki Tanahashi has compiled the best single volume Dogen in the English language. This contains the best translations I have ever read of several of Dogen's seminal works - Genjo Koan, Uji, Yuibutsu Yobutsu, Sansuikyo, Zenki, and the Tenzo Kyokun.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars excellent book
The translation is excellent as is the background, format and copy. Dogen is an important Buddhist thinker/master who doesn't recieve enough attention. Excellent book.

Published 7 months ago by R. R. Ricketts

5.0 out of 5 stars Wisdom, Poetry and Cold Chills
D�gen-Zenji was the greatest figure in Japanese Zen; if literary output were the criterion he would be the greatest of all Zen Masters. Read more

Published 9 months ago by L. Wilcox

5.0 out of 5 stars No review
To review this book at length would ignore its lessons. My only advice is to read it and discover the Dogen for yourself. You might come away thinking he's an idiot. Read more

Published on December 19, 2006 by Dr. Marc Mayerson

5.0 out of 5 stars A sure pleasure
Great book which contains a big collection of Dogen's wisdom. In order to understand it without much difficulties, I would suggest that the reader will start by learning about... Read more

Published on November 4, 2006 by Bolokan Lucian

5.0 out of 5 stars Five Star all the Way
"moon in a dewdrop" is a collection of writings by Eihei Dogen, the founder of Soto Zen. The text is divided into four sections, which are clear and easy to understand. Read more

Published on July 9, 2006 by N. Beumer

5.0 out of 5 stars Despite the "Human Potential" Clumsiness...
This is one book to read. If there are better translations,that's good, too, but, for me, this was quite an eye-opener. Read more

Published on June 21, 2000 by J. Kowalski

3.0 out of 5 stars Problems in translation by committee
The selection of essays and order of presentation were faultless. The language is beautiful but in some places suffered an inescapable temporality. Read more

Published on December 5, 1999 by piperidine

5.0 out of 5 stars Enlightenment spills forth from treeless branch skies.
The Way is Not Words; the types of Words Dogen uses, tumbles, forsaking the these and those for the this and thising with every turning phrase and flashing Creamy Lotus Sky Smile.

Published on July 6, 1999

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