In the Belly of the Dragon: A Zen Monk’s Commentary on the Shinjinmei by Master Sosan, D. 606 - Softcover

Rei Ryu Philippe Coupey

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1942493533 ISBN 13: 9781942493532

Verlag: Hohm Press,U.S., 2020

Inhaltsangabe

The Shinjinmei (written in the 6th century by the monk Sosan) is the first of Zen’s four fundamental texts. Thus, it is central to all Zen lineages and schools, and an essential source of study for all Zen practitioners.Here, Philippe Coupey, a contemporary practicing monk for over 45 years, reflects on each of the 73 verses of this famous text. Despite its ancient roots, the Shinjinmei is still dynamic today, and Coupey’s commentaries are fresh and relevant to life in the 21st century. His remarks are not based on scholarly studies, as for some well-known translators, but on the understanding transmitted through a lineage of practice, teaching and commenting on the Shinjinmei by great teachers and masters of the traditions, including Coupey’s own teacher Taisen Deshimaru, who brought this practice to Europe in 1967.Zen today is often coopted by the dominant marketing paradigm, with all types of products branded this way, and loses its potency when it devolves into yet another form of relaxation. Not so here. Thanks to Philippe Coupey’s frank style of speaking and writing, like his teacher Deshimaru before him, Coupey reflects a raw, unreserved approach more in keeping with the ancient masters. His commentaries are also more exhaustive and detailed than others published so far. People who are tired of self-development “Zen” books might find real answers (and questions) here. The underlying message of the Shinjinmei is to avoid clinging to the extremes—left and right, good and bad, love and hate. The opening stanza reads: "Entering the Way is not difficult, But you must not love, or hate, or choose, or reject." This clinging leads to the separation of one thing from another and is therefore the origin of many of the big problems in society today. The first half of this book (verses 1-31, originally published as volume one, with the same title, In the Belly of the Dragon) were the result of eight years of teaching lectures (kusen) during which Coupey made oral commentary on the text. The remainder of the book (verses 32-73) was created more recently as written essays. The style of these presentations is less formal, and more intimately represents the dynamic spirit of the author’s practice. The entire collected work vivifies the ancient Zen text for modern students of the Way and is a valuable resource for all those interested in Eastern thought and religion.

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Rei Ryu Philippe Coupey, born and raised in New York City, is a Soto Zen teacher in the lineage of Kodo Sawaki. He met his Master, Deshimaru, in 1972 and followed him as a close disciple. Today, after 45+years of Zen practice, Coupey directs a large community of practitioners in Europe. The practice is shikantaza: simply sitting, without goal or profit-seeking mind. Coupey is the primary author of several books, and others done in collaboration with Deshimaru. He also publishs Zen-fiction writing under the pseudonym of MC Dalley. He is a member and officer of the International Zen Association (AZI).

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Entering the Way is not difficult,But you must not love, or hate, or choose, or reject.If you want to know what Zen teaches, there it is, summarized in two lines. In the first line, Sosan is referring to Buddhahood, our Buddha-nature; in the second, he explains what makes us able to see it—or not. Buddha-nature is the nature we all have, even before birth, even after death. Buddha-mind. The mind of rocks. The mind of the Way. Following the great Way is not at all difficult: trees grow in it, fish swim in it. We all follow it—even when we make mistakes. The Way is right in front of our eyes, right under our noses and under our zafus. And this has not changed since ancient times, since Bodhidharma, since Buddha, since before Buddha. “From ancient times down to today,” writes Master Jiun, himself an ancient, “the great Way has not changed. It is.” Then he adds, “The head on top, the legs below to either side.” It’s a little like when Master Dogen returned from China and was asked, “What have you discovered about Buddhism?” He replied simply, “Eyes horizontal, nose vertical.” This is not difficult at all. But understanding and practicing it is not so easy. Entering the Way is not difficult. Sure. But we could also say, “Entering the Way is not easy.” Trees follow the Way; rivers, rocks, birds and fish follow it. For them, it’s not hard. But for human beings, it’s not always easy, because of “small mind,” the mind of selection and choice. With your personal mind, your personal consciousness, your preferences, your desire to stay in bed when everybody’s getting up, you can become complicated. You’re looking for love, you want to be spoiled: “I like the zazen posture, but not the ceremonies, or samu—why should I do samu? I want to relax.” There are people who have been practicing for twenty years with this attitude. They’re wasting their time. They’d be better off going bowling. Other people see the dojo for the first time, get into zazen posture, hear the bell, and their lives are changed forever. But for people who don’t even know that the Way exists, it’s very difficult. Very difficult also for those who know that the Way exists but have no idea of how to go about it. So they turn towards Tibetan Buddhism, Hinduism, the Church, Zen, Sufism, macrobiotics, New Age practices. There are many roads one can follow but going from one to another makes the practice of the Way very difficult.

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Hohm Press,U.S.
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2020
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 1942493533
• ISBN 13: 9781942493532
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Auflage: 2
• Anzahl der Seiten: 504
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: Buchbär; info@buchbaer.de; ; Weberstr. 67; Osnabrück; 49084; Deutschland