Sign in with Facebook
114 books
—
13 voters
Zen Books
Showing 1-50 of 5,402
Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind: Informal Talks on Zen Meditation and Practice (Paperback)
by (shelved 506 times as zen)
avg rating 4.21 — 49,056 ratings — published 1970
The Way of Zen (Paperback)
by (shelved 257 times as zen)
avg rating 4.16 — 22,991 ratings — published
The Three Pillars of Zen: Teaching, Practice, and Enlightenment (Paperback)
by (shelved 178 times as zen)
avg rating 4.08 — 6,996 ratings — published 1965
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values (Phaedrus, #1)
by (shelved 167 times as zen)
avg rating 3.78 — 242,540 ratings — published 1974
Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings (Paperback)
by (shelved 162 times as zen)
avg rating 4.17 — 8,479 ratings — published 1957
Zen in the Art of Archery (Mass Market Paperback)
by (shelved 150 times as zen)
avg rating 3.99 — 16,025 ratings — published 1948
Everyday Zen: Love & Work (Paperback)
by (shelved 140 times as zen)
avg rating 4.16 — 6,327 ratings — published 1989
An Introduction to Zen Buddhism (Paperback)
by (shelved 119 times as zen)
avg rating 3.95 — 5,272 ratings — published 1934
Tao Te Ching (Paperback)
by (shelved 104 times as zen)
avg rating 4.29 — 178,646 ratings — published -350
The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation (Paperback)
by (shelved 89 times as zen)
avg rating 4.19 — 38,570 ratings — published 1975
Hardcore Zen: Punk Rock, Monster Movies and the Truth about Reality (Paperback)
by (shelved 88 times as zen)
avg rating 4.02 — 7,066 ratings — published 1994
The Zen Teaching of Huang Po: On the Transmission of Mind (Paperback)
by (shelved 82 times as zen)
avg rating 4.45 — 1,036 ratings — published 857
Nothing Special (Paperback)
by (shelved 80 times as zen)
avg rating 4.14 — 3,336 ratings — published 1993
Peace Is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life (Paperback)
by (shelved 74 times as zen)
avg rating 4.31 — 46,064 ratings — published 1992
The Gateless Gate: The Classic Book of Zen Koans (Paperback)
by (shelved 73 times as zen)
avg rating 4.23 — 1,214 ratings — published 1228
Opening the Hand of Thought: Foundations of Zen Buddhist Practice (Paperback)
by (shelved 70 times as zen)
avg rating 4.42 — 1,062 ratings — published 1993
The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma (English and Chinese Edition)
by (shelved 68 times as zen)
avg rating 4.37 — 1,909 ratings — published 1986
Moon in a Dewdrop: Writings of Zen Master Dogen (Paperback)
by (shelved 68 times as zen)
avg rating 4.28 — 1,154 ratings — published 1985
Not Always So: Practicing the True Spirit of Zen (Paperback)
by (shelved 67 times as zen)
avg rating 4.30 — 2,143 ratings — published 2002
Siddhartha (Mass Market Paperback)
by (shelved 61 times as zen)
avg rating 4.08 — 854,841 ratings — published 1922
Taking the Path of Zen (Paperback)
by (shelved 61 times as zen)
avg rating 4.04 — 1,130 ratings — published 1982
Zen: The Art of Simple Living (Hardcover)
by (shelved 54 times as zen)
avg rating 3.88 — 12,459 ratings — published 2009
Sit Down and Shut Up: Punk Rock Commentaries on Buddha, God, Truth, Sex, Death, and Dogen's Treasury of the Right Dharma Eye (Paperback)
by (shelved 54 times as zen)
avg rating 4.07 — 2,955 ratings — published 2007
The Blue Cliff Record (Paperback)
by (shelved 52 times as zen)
avg rating 4.41 — 332 ratings — published 1112
Zen and Japanese Culture (Paperback)
by (shelved 52 times as zen)
avg rating 4.08 — 1,030 ratings — published 1938
The Unfettered Mind: Writings of the Zen Master to the Sword Master (The ^AWay of the Warrior Series)
by (shelved 51 times as zen)
avg rating 4.05 — 3,549 ratings — published 1644
The Book: On the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are (Mass Market Paperback)
by (shelved 49 times as zen)
avg rating 4.21 — 24,089 ratings — published 1966
Zen Buddhism: Selected Writings of D. T. Suzuki (Paperback)
by (shelved 48 times as zen)
avg rating 4.18 — 2,281 ratings — published 1956
The Wisdom of Insecurity: A Message for an Age of Anxiety (Paperback)
by (shelved 48 times as zen)
avg rating 4.15 — 27,755 ratings — published 1951
This is It and Other Essays on Zen and Spiritual Experience (Unknown Binding)
by (shelved 47 times as zen)
avg rating 4.27 — 3,275 ratings — published 1960
Zen Training: Methods and Philosophy (Paperback)
by (shelved 45 times as zen)
avg rating 4.04 — 718 ratings — published 1975
Manual of Zen Buddhism (Paperback)
by (shelved 45 times as zen)
avg rating 4.00 — 857 ratings — published 1934
Don't Be a Jerk: And Other Practical Advice from Dogen, Japan's Greatest Zen Master (Paperback)
by (shelved 44 times as zen)
avg rating 3.96 — 1,125 ratings — published 2016
The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching: Transforming Suffering into Peace, Joy, and Liberation (Paperback)
by (shelved 44 times as zen)
avg rating 4.33 — 20,522 ratings — published 1998
Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life (Paperback)
by (shelved 44 times as zen)
avg rating 4.13 — 52,794 ratings — published 1994
Each Moment Is the Universe: Zen and the Way of Being Time (Hardcover)
by (shelved 43 times as zen)
avg rating 4.21 — 385 ratings — published 2007
Being Peace (Being Peace, #1)
by (shelved 41 times as zen)
avg rating 4.32 — 14,274 ratings — published 1987
Shobogenzo: Zen Essays by Dogen (Paperback)
by (shelved 40 times as zen)
avg rating 4.20 — 335 ratings — published 1237
Essays in Zen Buddhism, First Series (Paperback)
by (shelved 40 times as zen)
avg rating 4.23 — 626 ratings — published 1925
Realizing Genjokoan: The Key to Dogen's Shobogenzo (Paperback)
by (shelved 39 times as zen)
avg rating 4.62 — 307 ratings — published 2010
Crooked Cucumber: The Life and Zen Teaching of Shunryu Suzuki (Paperback)
by (shelved 39 times as zen)
avg rating 4.29 — 1,563 ratings — published 1999
When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times (Paperback)
by (shelved 39 times as zen)
avg rating 4.27 — 62,549 ratings — published 1996
Sky Above, Great Wind: The Life and Poetry of Zen Master Ryokan (Paperback)
by (shelved 38 times as zen)
avg rating 4.12 — 985 ratings — published 1830
The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch (Paperback)
by (shelved 38 times as zen)
avg rating 4.34 — 817 ratings — published 780
The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment (Paperback)
by (shelved 38 times as zen)
avg rating 4.15 — 434,884 ratings — published 1997
The Zen Teaching of Homeless Kodo (Paperback)
by (shelved 37 times as zen)
avg rating 4.39 — 323 ratings — published 1981
Treasury of the True Dharma Eye: Zen Master Dogen's Shobo Genzo, 2 Vols (Hardcover)
by (shelved 37 times as zen)
avg rating 4.59 — 211 ratings — published 1253
The Art of Happiness (Hardcover)
by (shelved 37 times as zen)
avg rating 4.17 — 123,613 ratings — published 1998
The Book of Tea (Hardcover)
by (shelved 36 times as zen)
avg rating 3.85 — 17,042 ratings — published 1906
Zen Keys: A Guide to Zen Practice (Paperback)
by (shelved 36 times as zen)
avg rating 4.02 — 1,039 ratings — published 1974
“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few”
― Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind: Informal Talks on Zen Meditation and Practice
― Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind: Informal Talks on Zen Meditation and Practice
“I'm simply saying that there is a way to be sane. I'm saying that you can get rid of all this insanity created by the past in you. Just by being a simple witness of your thought processes.
It is simply sitting silently, witnessing the thoughts, passing before you. Just witnessing, not interfering not even judging, because the moment you judge you have lost the pure witness. The moment you say “this is good, this is bad,” you have already jumped onto the thought process.
It takes a little time to create a gap between the witness and the mind. Once the gap is there, you are in for a great surprise, that you are not the mind, that you are the witness, a watcher.
And this process of watching is the very alchemy of real religion. Because as you become more and more deeply rooted in witnessing, thoughts start disappearing. You are, but the mind is utterly empty.
That’s the moment of enlightenment. That is the moment that you become for the first time an unconditioned, sane, really free human being.”
―
It is simply sitting silently, witnessing the thoughts, passing before you. Just witnessing, not interfering not even judging, because the moment you judge you have lost the pure witness. The moment you say “this is good, this is bad,” you have already jumped onto the thought process.
It takes a little time to create a gap between the witness and the mind. Once the gap is there, you are in for a great surprise, that you are not the mind, that you are the witness, a watcher.
And this process of watching is the very alchemy of real religion. Because as you become more and more deeply rooted in witnessing, thoughts start disappearing. You are, but the mind is utterly empty.
That’s the moment of enlightenment. That is the moment that you become for the first time an unconditioned, sane, really free human being.”
―
