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Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind: Informal Talks on Zen Meditation and Practice by [Suzuki, Shunryu]

Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind: Informal Talks on Zen Meditation and Practice Kindle Edition

by Shunryu Suzuki (Author), David Chadwick (Afterword)

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"In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few."

So begins this most beloved of all American Zen books. Seldom has such a small handful of words provided a teaching as rich as has this famous opening line. In a single stroke, the simple sentence cuts through the pervasive tendency students have of getting so close to Zen as to completely miss what it’s all about. An instant teaching on the first page. And that’s just the beginning.

In the forty years since its original publication, Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind has become one of the great modern Zen classics, much beloved, much reread, and much recommended as the best first book to read on Zen. Suzuki Roshi presents the basics—from the details of posture and breathing in zazen to the perception of nonduality—in a way that is not only remarkably clear, but that also resonates with the joy of insight from the first to the last page. It’s a book to come back to time and time again as an inspiration to practice, and it is now available to a new generation of seekers in this fortieth anniversary edition, with a new afterword by Shunryu Suzuki’s biographer, David Chadwick.

Length: 181 pages	Word Wise: Enabled	Enhanced Typesetting: Enabled
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Product details

File Size: 351 KB
Print Length: 181 pages
Publisher: Shambhala; Anv edition (November 9, 2010)
Publication Date: November 9, 2010
Sold by: Amazon Digital Services LLC
Language: English
ASIN: B00I8USOM0
Text-to-Speech: Enabled

X-Ray:

Enabled

Word Wise: Enabled
Lending: Not Enabled
Screen Reader: Supported

Enhanced Typesetting: Enabled

Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #13,166 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
- #4 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Religion & Spirituality > Buddhism > Rituals & Practice
- #4 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Religion & Spirituality > Buddhism > Zen
- #5 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Religion & Spirituality > Buddhism > Zen Philosophy

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Starqi

This book is a bright star!

July 9, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Reading this book is like sitting with a teacher. The energy of it is clear and light, open. Its intent is to share its understanding, its observations.

On first reading, I understood very little of what it was trying to convey. Sentences in English, easy enough to read, but conveying concepts that clearly went deeply beneath the words to a place that I didn’t comprehend and couldn’t feel.

I’ve since re-read it and now, continually re-read sections of it! Its instruction cannot really be conveyed via language alone. The concepts have to be absorbed in combination with meditation, intent and an openness to different ways of looking at life. Each sentence becomes a phrase to study and meditate on. Eventually, the meaning of the words start to appear as if birds in a wood when you are looking for them. Everything quiets down and then they appear to you, though they’ve always been there.

Over time, my understanding of the book has changed from it being a lecture, a ‘this is how you should do it’ instructional to a ‘look, this is how it can work’ observation - an understanding of how it is possible to live with straight forward and simple, profound joy.

It is one of my go-to resources for spiritual guidance and calm beauty.

16 people found this helpful

Comment

March 30, 2014

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I have considered myself a Buddhist for many years but have recently been studying it more in depth. So many of my resources refer to Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind that I simply had to get it. I found the reading to be a little on the tedious side, yet the end result would be so simple. Maybe it's more difficult to explain a simple concept. Suzuki would begin each factor with a head-scratching phrase and then would proceed in describing it and explaining it in more depth. Eventually, through many various attempts, the ah-hah would reveal itself, much as a sculpture reveals itself after much chiseling. In repeated explanations about zazen, the simple method is to do whatever you do in the moment, without comparison or focus on an end result, the future, or the past. An analogy would be to exercise for exercise-sake, not to improve your health or build muscle. And do it every day without judgment. In other words, adopt the Nike slogan and "just do it." That's enlightenment. However, don't focus on enlightenment and don't do it to attain enlightenment or it's not true enlightenment and not true zazen. Get what I mean about complex yet simple??

17 people found this helpful

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September 1, 2016

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

At the time I read “Beginner's Mind”, I was a hardcore Theravadan Buddhist. But, between this & 2 other notable books,
my conception of Meditation (and the 'spiritual path', as we call it) drastically shifted.

"Beginner's Mind" is arranged into chapters/vignettes of short, 3-page talks. Suzuki's wisdom is simple, clear, & effective.
His talks help clarify the proper mental attitude with which to practice zazen [sitting-meditation], and by consequence, he clarifies the spiritual path in general.

Peace.
-Paul C.

**the 2 other notable books were: “Be As You Are: the Teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi” &
“Midnights with the Mystic” (teachings of Sadhguru, Jagadish Vasudev)

7 people found this helpful

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JLS

Simple and Helpful Way to Practice Zen

May 16, 2015

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This is one of the best basic books in Zen literature for the Western mind. There are short chapters dealing with the importance of sitting posture and ways to quiet the mind. It is a book that is based on a series of lectures that Suzuki developed for people in the U.S.A. I have used this book as a reference book for my life and return to it often to center my life when things seem to be getting a bit off-kilter. What is good is that each one of the chapters has a heading regarding an aspect of daily life. It is not full of 'doctrine' or detailed teachings, but gently explains some of the thinking behind this way of meditation and how it fits into the Buddhist tradition, specifically Zen Buddhism. I am a Christian, but find this very helpful in my daily walk.

7 people found this helpful

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Jim Martin

Everything becomes your teacher !!!

October 28, 2011

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

As I'm thinking about what to write for a review - I found myself scanning the pages again to find some `buzz phrases'. Within this book, you will discern some beautifully poetic lines concerning everyday life. Rather than describe the book, I want to list a few of these precious gems with the intention that we should all implement these teachings in our daily life...

"In your mind you create an idea of place separate from an actual time". How true is this? Nobody is saying not to plan ahead. Everyone must plan for school, work, everyday life etc. On the other hand, as human beings, we overdo everything. There is only one time - here/now. Stop wasting your life and appreciate the only moment you have -- this one.

"The true purpose of ZEN is to see things as they are, to observe things as they are, and to let everything go as it goes". This is much easier said than done. It almost gives a feeling of resist nothing but just let things happen. Of course, we have to determine in life when and where the right time to step in is, but again, I think as human beings, we think we can control everything. Instead we should realize how things fit together, and simply watch them come and go of their own accord.

"When you can do everything, whether it is good or bad, without disturbance or without being annoyed by the feeling, that is actually what we mean by form is form, and emptiness is emptiness. Knowing that your life is short, to enjoy it day after day, moment after moment, is the life of form is form, and emptiness is emptiness". This one truly speaks for itself so, must I go on?

Needless to say, this book will be reread...

11 people found this helpful

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M. Thomas

This was an assigned textbook in my Buddhism course, ...

December 17, 2015

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This was an assigned textbook in my Buddhism course, and I found myself reading the entire book cover to cover, rather than stopping at the required pages. It draws the reader in and flows well, keeping interest and providing insight. Whether you are studying the art of meditation or simply want to open your mind, this is the book for you. I habitually felt calmer after reading these pages and reflecting on them. This is one "textbook" I plan to hold on to!

7 people found this helpful

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