Zen training: Methods and philosophy - Hardcover

Katsuki Sekida

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0834801116 ISBN 13: 9780834801110

Publisher: Weatherhill, 1975

Synopsis

First published in 1975, Zen Training has become a classic of Zen literature. It was one of the first books to demystify religion without debunking it, to explain hitherto esoteric practices in lucid, everyday terms. It offers concrete guidelines for practicing zazen, seated meditation. Posture, breathing, the function of the abdominal muscles, muscle tone, and the mechanisms of wakefulness and attention are clearly and scientifically explained, so that one learns what actually happens in doing zazen, why it leads to certain psychological experiences, and what their significance is. There is also a chapter on koans that goes far to clarify what for many has seemed one of the most frustrating and baffling aspects of Zen. Again, the reader is told how actually to deal with koans and how they operate as catalysts of enlightenment. The author also draws many significant parallels between Zen and Western philosophy and psychology, comparing traditional Zen concepts with the theories of being and cognition of such thinkers as Heidegger and Husserl. Zen Training marked a turning point in Zen literature in its critical reevaluation of the enlightenment experience called kensho, which the author believes has often been emphasized at the expense of other important aspects of Zen training. The aim of zazen is seen not as the achievement of such experiences as satori or kensho but as the attainment of absolute samadhi, that condition of utters stillness in which thought is cut off, the mind is empty, yet one is in a state of extreme wakefulness and awareness. Absolute samadhi is considered the precondition of any kensho experience of lasting value, and indeed as "the foundation of all Zen activities." This book also goes beyond the earlier stages of Zen training to describe the more advanced stages: what happens after kensho, and above all, how one lives as well as trains in Zen.

About this title

About the Author

Katsuki Sekida (1893–1987) was by profession a high school teacher of English until his retirement in 1945. Zen, nevertheless, was his lifelong preoccupation. He began his Zen practice in 1915 and trained at Empuku-ji in Kyoto and Ryutaki-ji in Mishima, Shizuoka Prefecture. He taught at the Honolulu Zendo and Maui Zendo from 1963 to 1970 and at the London Zen Society from 1970 to 1972.

Review

"Written by a lay teacher with 60 years of experience in zazan, this book provides everyone from absolute beginner to experienced student with detailed, progressive information and discussion on breathing, posture, distraction, actions of mind, physiology, mood, laughter, kensho, and samadhi."—Library Journal
"An extraordinarily important book. It should be on the shelves of all libraries."—Choice
"[Sekida's] approach is radical in its attempt to define Zen practice in terms of Western physiology and phenomenology."—New Age Journal

"This book is a valuable work. Though physiologically technical, it remains personal and practical, focusing on the actual experience of zazen practice. Ultimately, however, it is the concentrated and serious spirit of the book that most tellingly establishes its value to those interested in Zen."—Philip Kapleau

Edition details

• Publisher: Weatherhill
• Publication date: 1975
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0834801116
• ISBN 13: 9780834801110
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 258