To truly be alive, to see and feel the life force throbbing through everything around us, we must return to our "original mind," a mind that is empty of theories and preconceived notions. This is the main message of this classic compendium of informal talks by one of the most influential Zen Buddhist teachers of the 20th century. Divided into three sections- -Right Practice, Right Attitude, Right Understanding--the book addresses everything from practical, nitty-gritty advice on posture, to more philosophical aspects of Zen. But no matter how esoteric the teachings seem, Suzuki always aims for clarity and couches his lectures in down-to-earth language that speaks to everyone. Suzuki died in 1972, only a year after this book was released, but his impact, through this and other collected talks, has been enormous.

In this classic road memoir, Robert Pirsig turns a cross-country motorcycle trip into a journey to enlightenment and self-discovery.

This is the story of philosopher Eugen Herrigel's effort to learn archery as a tool for grasping the concepts of Zen Buddhism. Having traveled from his native Germany to Japan, Herrigel studied with archery masters for six years and experienced many frustrating moments in trying to both learn the sport and also seize the concepts of Zen. Originally published in the 1950s, this book describing one person's journey towards enlightenment has become a classic in Buddhism studies and was the inspiration for ZEN AND THE ART OF MOTORCYLE MAINTENANCE.