Robert Aitken:
Taking Responsibility This is a talk given to Buddhist Peace Fellowship Membership Gathering on
June 23, 2006, when Aitken Roshi, founder of the Diamond Sangha, was 89 years old. He ranges over a number of contemporary issues: politics, scandals, Buddhist activism and lay practice.
Buddhism by Numbers: a chart listing some 215 uses of numbering in Buddhism. If you've ever wanted to know what the Three Learnings of the Mahyana, the Fivefold Cause & Effect, or the Thirty-two Marks of Perfection of the Buddha are, this is the page for you. A good reference source.
Paul Carus:
The Gospel of Buddha, "compiled from ancient records." An historical book written in 1894 by one of the earliest Western Buddhist scholars.
Deshimaru: Deshimaru answers students questions on ego, satori, good and evil, Zen and Christianity and more. 180 questions in all. The English
home page is here.
Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche:
Buddhism in a Nutshell: the Four Seals of Dharma Tibet master Dzongsar (also known as Khyentse Norbu, writer and director of the movie
The Cup) explains in plain, simple language impermanence, suffering, emptiness and nirvana. This is an excellent introduction to these topics expressed in language that even beginners can grasp. Recommended. Originally published in
The Shambhala Sun, March 2000
Kyudo Nakagawa:
Appreciating Your Life Nakagawa gives some advice on being happy with what you have got.
Glossary of Japanese terms used in sesshin
see also
Zen Dictionary for more Japanese definitions
Zen Masters: with sometimes 3 different names, it can be confusing as to which Zen master one is talking about. I've created a spreadsheet with masters' names in
Japanese (romaji) ,
Wade-Giles and
Pinyin as a reference. It's not 100% complete but there are over 300 names so it may be of help to some. Please write to me if you find any errors or have additions. Thank you.
10 Bulls (10 Ox Herding Pictures) : an online version of Paul Reps' 10 Bulls pictures and text from Zen Flesh, Zen Bones. There's
another nice version here, including translations of
Kuoan (J. Kakuan) poems by Urs App. An interesting
modern version painted by Tim Jundo Williams is here.
Poems by Hsu Yun (Empty Cloud) on the Ox-herding pictures are here. Illustrated nicely by
Fa Lian Shakya
The largest site on the web about
the Ox-herding pictures on
Terabessa Asia Online
How To Practice Zen: an instructional booklet based on the 10 Bulls written by a long-term Zen student. Could be a nice beginning for a beginner.
101 Zen Stories: Compilations of Zen Koans This classic work (as a YouTube video narrated by Peter Coyote)
is a 1919 compilation of Zen koans including 19th and early 20th century anecdotes compiled by Nyogen Senzaki, and a translation of Shasekishū, written in the 13th century by Japanese Zen master Mujū (無住) (literally, "non-dweller"). Well-known koans in the collection include A Cup of Tea , The Sound of One Hand, No Water, No Moon, and Everything is Best.
The Five Ranks of the House of Ts'ao-Tung: diagramic outline of the Five Ranks, including the I-Ching trigrams.
The Four Processes of Liberation from Subjectivity and Objectivity: Lin Chi's (J. Rinzai) 'host' and 'guest' in a brief outline.
The World of Shi and Li: this comes from the metaphysics of Hua-yen as developed by Fa-tsang and Ch'eng-kuan. This is the Dharmadhatu.
Metta Meditation: an online course and instruction in metta bhavana by Ven. Sujiva.
Stuart McLeod:
The Benefits and Pitfalls of the Teacher-Meditator Relationship The title pretty well tells it all. A fairly short essay but McLeod outlines simply and fairly the complex relationship from a variety of Buddhist sects. from Contemporary Buddhism, Vol.6, No.1 May 2005
Sera sMad Geshe Lobsang Tharchin
A Biography of Acarya Nagarjuna A classical hagiography of Nagarjuna
Sogen Shaku:
Zen for Americans (Sermons of a Buddhist Abbot) : Soen Shaku was one of the earliest Japanes monks to come to America to teach Zen. This collection was originally published in 1906, translated by D.T. Suzuki. This is the complete book (which is still available in print).
D.T. Suzuki:
Manual of Zen Buddhism This is the complete volume, including the Ten Oxherding Pictures, of the 1934 text.
this site is part of the Zen Buddhism Virtual Library 
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