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Title: Simple Zen: A Guide to Living Moment by Moment by C. Alexander Simpkins, Annellen M. Simpkins, C. Alexander ISBN: 0-8048-3174-2 Publisher: Charles E Tuttle Co Pub. Date: June, 2000 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.83 (6 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Great Intro to Zen
Comment: Before I bought this book I knew nothing about zen. As soon as I received the book in the mail I began flipping through the pages and I could not put this book down.
This book is an excellent guide for simplifying your life. By introducing a little bit of zen into your stressful life- you could definitely make your life a little bit more bearable.
Rating: 5
Summary: An excellent guide to Zen
Comment: This book does a good job of clearly pointing to the Zen experience. It is careful to recognize the wordless quality of Zen enlightenment. The discussions are thought provoking and the exercises definitely guide toward the experience. It explains the background and development of Zen, then describes the basic themes in Zen. The third section has exercises and meditations that really inspired me on my Zen path. I really got a lot out of it and recommend it to anyone interested in Zen.
Rating: 1
Summary: Strictly for the Tourists
Comment:
Let's start with the 'good' news - this book is NOT 128 pages long, it is, including bibliography and index, 158 pages in length. Having said which, the pages are only about two-thirds the size of a regular paperback - so the book still isn't quite as large as it might seem.
And now for the other news. Namely, the whole book appears to be the author's personal view of Zen. Which wouldn't be a problem except that the author seems to have a totally sanitised, pre-packed for the American market, view of Zen.
In practice this means that, for example, pages 3 through 36, illustrate a seemingly continuous process of Dharma transmission and succession from Mahayana Buddhism, through Ch'an to Zen.
In historical reality, so far as we now know it, there is no such line, or even lines, of continuous transmission and development. Rather Ch'an Buddhism, and therefore Zen Buddhism, seriously lost its way after the death of Hui-neng (638-713).
I have no doubt that the author offers his version of Zen history in all good faith, but the fact is that the politiking of one of Hui-neng's students, a certain Shen-hui, brought about a dualism within the body of Ch'an/Zen teaching from which it has never recovered.
Its perpetuation through to the present day is demonstrated by the existance of, and competition between, Rinzai and Soto Zen.
As demonstrated by the heavy emphasis on historical considerations, this is a fairly academic, even sterile, description of Zen. (There are another 6 pages on the more recent history of Zen, plus 10 pages of "Time Lines" - in plain English that's: charts of supposed lines of succession.)
So approximately one quarter of the entire book is given over to the history of Zen. But what is it there for? Do we need to know this stuff in so much detail (even if it were accurate) in a book subtitled "A Guide to Living Moment by Moment"? I think not.
On the contrary, all it said to me was that the author is far more interested in parading his intellectual prowess than in delivering a real understanding of what Zen Buddhism is all about.
In short, this is a "strictly for the tourists"-type book. If all you want is a superficial "bluff your way in Zen" sort of introduction to the subject then I guess this may prove to be a sufficiently short read at an appropriately low price.
If, on the other hand, you want to acquire any kind of genuine understanding of Zen then this is definitely NOT for you.
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Title: Simple Taoism: A Guide to Living in the Balance by C. Alexander Simpkins, Annellen M. Simpkins, C. Alexander ISBN: 0804831734 Publisher: Charles E Tuttle Co Pub. Date: June, 2000 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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Title: Simple Buddhism: A Guide to Enlightened Living by C. Alexander, Phd Simpkins, Annellen M., Phd Simpkins ISBN: 0804831769 Publisher: Charles E Tuttle Co Pub. Date: September, 2000 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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Title: Simple Tibetan Buddhism: A Guide to Tantric Living by C. Alexander, Ph.D. Simpkins, Annellen, Ph.D. Simpkins ISBN: 0804831998 Publisher: Charles E Tuttle Co Pub. Date: November, 2001 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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Title: Simple Confucianism: A Guide to Living Virtuously by C. Alexander, Phd Simpkins, C., Dr., Ph.D. Alexander, Annellen M. Simpkins ISBN: 0804831777 Publisher: Charles E Tuttle Co Pub. Date: June, 2000 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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Title: 365 Zen : Daily Readings by Jean Smith ISBN: 0062516027 Publisher: Harper SanFrancisco Pub. Date: 01 May, 1999 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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