The Zen Guide to Opening Your Heart: Practical Advice from a Zen Buddhist Monk

Let go of worry, release endless wanting, and discover how to cultivate a stable, peaceful heart.

Zen Buddhist monk Gensho Taigu teaches that true happiness doesn't depend on changing the world around us—it depends on transforming what's inside us. In this clear and life-changing guide, he shares how a handful of timeless Buddhist principles can help us ease anxiety, quiet restless desires, and open our hearts to joy.

Through simple teachings, relatable examples, and easy meditation and visualization techniques, you'll learn how to:

• Break the habit of constant wanting and chasing
• Stop worrying over things you cannot control
• Fill your heart with gratitude, compassion, and "good things"
• Build calm and resilience that lasts beyond temporary ups and downs

Gensho's approach is refreshingly direct—grounded in centuries of Zen practice yet deeply relevant to modern life. Written in a warm, straightforward style and accompanied by playful cat illustrations, this book is a gentle but powerful invitation to reshape your mind, lighten your heart, and live with greater ease.

Gensho Taigu is chief priest at Fukugonji Temple in Komaki City near Nagoya. His Buddhist name "Taigu" expresses a state of boundless freedom. He embodies the phrase "neither monk nor layman" with six different professions: as a monk, businessman, writer, lecturer, therapist and karate practitioner. A YouTube channel which he started in response to a consultation with the mother of a suicidal girl has over 57,000 subscribers. In 2019, he established the Fushin sect of Buddhism which is based on the principles of "nurturing compassion, wisdom, and Buddha‑nature." His website has English-language information: https://taigu-gensho.com -- ~~~~~~