Zen in the Art of Archery - Softcover

Eugen Herrigel

3.99

14,620 ratings by Goodreads

9781850630296: Zen in the Art of Archery

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1850630291 ISBN 13: 9781850630296

Publisher: ARKANA, 1985

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Finally on Audio--a Classic of Zen Buddhist Literature

It is almost impossible to understand Zen by studying it as you would other intellectual pursuits. The best way to understand Zen is, simply, to Zen. This is what author Eugen Herrigel allows us to do by sharing his own fascinating journey toward a comprehension of this illuminating philosophy.

In Japan, an art such as archery is not practiced solely for utilitarian purposes such as learning to hit targets. Archery is also meant to train the mind and bring it into contact with the ultimate reality. If one really wishes to be master of an art, technical knowledge of it is not enough. One has to trancend technique so that the art becomes an "artless art" growing out of the Unconsciousness. In this way, as the author simply, clearly demonstrates, archery becomes a path to greater understanding and enlightenment.

This program is an outstanding way to experience Zen--and an intriguing, influential work of literature.

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Review:

So many books have been written about the meditation side of Zen and the everyday, chop wood/carry water side of Zen. But few books have approached Zen the way that most Japanese actually do--through ritualized arts of discipline and beauty--and perhaps that is why Eugen Herrigel's Zen in the Art of Archery is still popular so long after it first publication in 1953. Herrigel, a philosophy professor, spent six years studying archery and flower-arranging in Japan, practicing every day, and struggling with foreign notions such as "eyes that hear and ears that see." In a short, pithy narrative, he brings the heart of Zen to perfect clarity--intuition, imitation, practice, practice, practice, then, boom, wondrous spontaneity fusing self and art, mind, body, and spirit. Herrigel writes with an attention to subtle profundity and relates it with a simple artistry that itself carries the signature of Zen. --Brian Bruya

About the Author:

Eugen Herrigel (1884-1955), a German professor who taught philosophy at the University of Tokyo, penetrated deeply and personally into the theory and practice of Zen Buddhism. In endeavoring to become a Zen mystic, he experienced the rigorous discipline of training with a Zen Master for six years.

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