Seung Sahn

“Somebody comes into the Zen center with a lighted cigarette, walks up to the Buddha statue, blows smoke in its face, and drops ashes on its lap. You are standing there. What can you do?” This is a problem that Zen Master Seung Sahn is fond of posing to his American students who attend his Zen centers. Dropping Ashes on the Buddha is a delightful, irreverent, and often hilariously funny living record of the dialogue between Korean Zen Master Seung Sahn and his American students. Consisting of dialogues, stories, formal Zen interviews, Dharma speeches, and letters using the Zen Master’s actual words in spontaneous, living interaction with his students, this book is a fresh presentation of the Zen teaching method of “instant dialogue” between Master and student which, through the use of astonishment and paradox, leads to an understanding of ultimate reality.

The Compass of Zen is a simple, exhaustive—and often hilarious—presentation of the essence of Zen by a modern Zen Master of considerable renown. In his many years of teaching throughout the world, the Korean-born Zen Master Seung Sahn has become known for his ability to cut to the heart of Buddhist teaching in a way that is strikingly clear, yet free of esoteric and academic language. In this book, based largely on his talks, he presents the basic teachings of Buddhism and Zen in a way that is wonderfully accessible for beginners—yet so rich with stories, insights, and personal experiences that long-time meditation students will also find it a source of inspiration and a resource for study.

A major figure in the transmission of Zen to the West, Zen Master Seung Sahn was known for his powerful teaching style, which was direct, surprising, and often humorous. He taught that Zen is not about achieving a goal, but about acting spontaneously from “don’t-know mind.” It is from this “before-thinking” nature, he taught, that true compassion and the desire to serve others naturally arises. This collection of teaching stories, talks, and spontaneous dialogues with students offers readers a fresh and immediate encounter with one of the great Zen masters of the twentieth century.

Includes koans from Chinese and Korean Zen, Lao-tzu, and the Christian tradition.

Zen is famous for koans (called kong-ans in Korean, and in this book), those bizarre and seemingly unanswerable questions Zen masters pose to their students to check their realization (such as “What is the sound of one hand clapping?”). Fear of koans keeps some people from ever giving Zen practice a try. But here, through the experience of seeing a modern Zen master work with his students, you can see what koan training is really It’s a skillful, lively practice for attaining wisdom.This book presents the system of ten koans that Zen Master Seung Sahn came to call the “Ten Gates.” These koans represent the basic types one will encounter in any course of study. Each of the ten gates, or koans, is illuminated by actual interchanges between Zen Master Seung Sahn and his students that show what the practice is all it is above all a process of coming to trust one’s own wisdom, and of manifesting that wisdom in every koan-like situation life presents us with.For more information on the author, Zen Master Seung Sahn, visit his website at www.kwanumzen.com.

Zen combines hundreds of traditional kong-ans with vivid artwork, in a unique volume exploring the crucial balance between the self and the world.The kong-ans, selected from the work of an eminent Zen Master, encompass not only Chinese and Korean Zen, but also the Zen of Lao-tzu and even the Christian tradition. Original Chinese calligraphy and ornamental line art adorn every page, and are augmented by a dozen full-color photographs upon which to meditate. Packaged with a beautiful satin-bound cover and clasp.

TheCompass of Zenis a simple, exhaustive—and often hilarious—presentation of the essence ofZen by a modern Zen Master of considerable renown. In his many years ofteaching throughout the world, the Korean-born Zen Master Seung Sahn has becomeknown for his ability to cut to the heart of Buddhist teaching in a way that isstrikingly clear, yet free of esoteric and academic language. In this book,based largely on his talks, he presents the basic teachings of Buddhism and Zenin a way that is wonderfully accessible for beginners—yet so rich withstories, insights, and personal experiences that long-time meditation studentswill also find it a source of inspiration and a resource for study.

Zen Master Seung Sahn is the first Korean Zen Master to live and teach in the West. After becoming disenchanted with academics and then radical politics as ways to help people understand life, he turned to Buddhism. Given transmission at the age of 22 by the famous Zen Master Ko Bong, Seung Sahn became the youngest Zen Master in Korea. After three years of silence, he worked to revitalize Korean Buddhism and became the abbot of five temples in Seoul. He taught in Japan, founding temples in Tokyo and Hong Kong; in 1972, he came to the United States and found the community of students which became the international Kwan Um School of Zen." Bone of Space is in the remarkable tradition of Zen poetry begun in China in the T'ang dynasty, and today -- on the evidence of these poems -- as much alive as ever. As with the ancient poems, the best of which revealed wisdoms too deep for prose, these startle with their boldness, freshness, sharp intuitions. The collection should be thrust at once into the face of American Zen, and well beyond." Lucien Stryk

English transliterations and selected translations of the Buddhist chanting used in the international Kwan Um School of Zen. Includes Zen Master Seung Sahn's Temple Rules and a foreword by him.

Tai – antrasis knygos leidimas lietuvių kalba, inicijuotas lietuvės zen vienuolės, Dharmos Meistrės Myong Hae Sunim (1973-2020).Štai jos įžanginio žodžio, skirto šiam leidimui, citata:„Zen Meistras, kalbėdamas apie žmonių gebėjimą mokytis, vartojo žirgų paklusnumo raiteliui palyginimą. Kad pajudėtų, vieniems žirgams reikia stiprių rimbo kirčių, kitiems pakanka tik pliaukštelėti; yra žirgų, kurie ima bėgti pamatę pakeltą rimbą; ir esama žirgų, vien iš žvilgsnio suprantančių, ko iš jų norima. Manau, kad esame buvę visų šių rūšių žirgais – patiriame gyvenimo bizūno kirčių, ir vos tik talžymai sušvelnėja, mes vėl paskęstame savo sapne.Kartais iš šalies pamatome kitų bėdas – jos mus sukrečia ir ištrūkstame iš to sapno. Kartais tikrovei mus pažadina nuostabus pavasario kvapas...."Ištrauka iš knygos:KAS YRA MEILĖ?Vieną vakarą po Dharmos kalbos Kembridžo zeno centre mokinys Seung Sahno Soen Sa paklausė:– Kas yra meilė?Soen Sa tarė:– Klausiu tavęs, kas yra meilė?Mokinys tylėjo. Soen Sa pasakė:– Tai – meilė.Mokinys vis dar tylėjo. Soen Sa vėl prabilo:– Tu klausi manęs, aš klausiu tavęs. Tai – meilė.

Nauczanie Zen Seung Sahna zawsze będzie przynosić wspaniałe światło temu światu. W tej niezwykłej i ważnej książce możemy poznać jego szczególny dowcip, inteligencję, odwagę i współczucie.

The Compass of Zen Teaching is the original booklet that Zen Master Seung Sahn used to teach his students. The Shambhala book with the similar title of Compass of Zen is a compilation the teaching sessions which he ran. This book is in the format of original Sutras which contained only the titles of the subject matter, while the teacher would fill in the blanks for the students.

Cartas de un maestro zen

65 Poemas zen del gran maestro coreano Seung Sahn Su Nim, escritos entre 1973 y 1979.

spiral bound softcover. translated by Zen Master Seung Sahn. 119 pages

Great book! rare find!

Excellent Book

Dae Soen Sa Nim (Wielki Czcigodny Mistrz Zen) Seung Sahn był 78 patriarchą buddyzmu koreańskiego w linii przekazu od Buddy Siakjamuniego. Urodził się w 1927 roku w północnej części Korei. Został mnichem w październiku 1948 roku. W dziesięć dni po wyświęceniu udał się na 100 dniowe odosobnienie, w trakcie którego osiągnął oświecenie. 25 stycznia 1949 roku otrzymał Przekaz Dharmy od Mistrza Zen Ko Bong. W 1957 roku został Opatem Świątyni Hwa Gye Sah w Seulu. Kilka lat później został zaproszony, aby nauczać zen w Japonii. W maju 1972 porzucił pozycję sławnego mistrza w Japonii i Korei, aby udać się samotnie do USA i tam rozpocząć nauczanie zen. W ten sposób narodziła się Szkoła Zen Kwan Um, skupiająca kilkadziesiąt ośrodków na całym świecie; od prawie 30 lat Szkoła funkcjonuje również w Polsce. Kompas zen jest prostą, jasną i często przezabawną prezentacją najważniejszych nauk głównych buddyjskich tradycji - hinajany, mahajany i zen - dokonana przez jednego z najbardziej uwielbianych mistrzów naszych czasów. Podczas kilkudziesięciu lat swego nauczania na całym świecie, mistrz zen Seung Sahn zasłynął ze swojej unikalnej umiejętności docierania do sedna buddyjskiego nauczania w sposób uderzająco jasny, nie polegający na ezoterycznym czy też akademickim słownictwie. W swojej najważniejszej książce, opartej na wygłaszanych w różnych miejscach mowach, przedstawia podstawy nauk buddyzmu w przystępny i intrygujący sposób, zarówno dla początkujących, jak i dla doświadczonych uczniów. Mistrz zen Seung Sahn zmarł w świątyni Hwa Gye Sahn w Korei 30 listopada 2004 r. Miał 77 lat.

Este maravilhoso série apresenta toda a riqueza da sabedoria oriental e da meditação relaxante. Uma introdução essencial e inspiradora que leva-nos ao rico e experimentado mundo dos ensinamentos tradicionais, que abrem novos caminhos para uma vida mais saudável, intensa e social.

Historic recording by Zen Master Seung Sahn and his students of the daily chanting in the international Kwan Um School of Zen.

265 pages. Text in Korean. Original title in The Compass of Zen.