| The Way of Zen | 
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Avg. Customer Rating:   (based on 44 reviews)
Sales Rank: 26708
Category: Book
Author: Alan W. Watts
Publisher: Vintage
Studio: Vintage
Manufacturer: Vintage
Label: Vintage
Languages: English (Original Language), English (Unknown), English (Published)
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 256
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 8 x 5.2 x 0.6
ISBN: 0375705104
Dewey Decimal Number: 181
EAN: 9780375705106
ASIN: 0375705104
Publication Date: January 26, 1999
Release Date: January 26, 1999
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
The Way of Zen begins as a succinct guide through the histories of Buddhism and Taoism leading up to the development of Zen Buddhism, which drew deeply from both traditions.It then goes on to paint a broad but insightful picture of Zen as it was and is practiced, both as a religion and as an element of diverse East Asian arts and disciplines.Watts's narrative clears away the mystery while enhancing the mystique of Zen.
Since the first publication of this book in 1957, Zen Buddhism has become firmly established in the West.As Zen has taken root in Western soil, it has incorporated much of the attitude and approach set forth by Watts in The Way of Zen, which remains one of the most important introductory books in Western Zen.
"No one has given us such a concise . . . introduction to the whole history of this Far Eastern development of Buddhist thought as Alan Watts, in the present, highly readable work."--Joseph Campbell
Amazon.com Review
After D.T. Suzuki, Alan Watts stands as the godfather of Zen in America. Often taken to task for inspiring the flimsy spontaneity of Beat Zen, Watts had an undeniably keen understanding of his subject. Nowhere is this more evident than in his 1957 classic The Way of Zen, which has been reissued. Watts takes the reader back to the philosophical foundations of Zen in the conceptual world of Hinduism, follows Buddhism's course through the development of the early Mahayana school, the birth of Zen from Buddhism's marriage with Chinese Taoism, and on to Zen's unique expression in Japanese art and life. As a Westerner, Watts anticipates the stumbling blocks encountered with such concepts as emptiness and no-mind, then illustrates with flawlessly apt examples. Many popular books have been written on Zen since Watts' time, but few have been able to muster the rare combination of erudition and clarity that have kept The Way of Zen in readers' hands decade after decade. --Brian Bruya
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| Customer Reviews: Read 39 more reviews...
 The Taboo Against Knowing What Zen Is November 15, 2008
Everyone is so enthusiastic about this book; I hate to be the wet blanket. Alan Watts is hard not to like, writes attractively and gets full marks for pioneering Taoism, Vedanta and Zen in the West. As a light popular history of Buddhism I don't find much to quarrel with: I'm not aware of too many alternatives.
Watts' own philosophy was expressed in "The Book (on the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are.)" Pairs of contraries such as light/dark, form/space, self/other, being/non-being, are not enemies but complementaries necessary to each other. Live joyously, with the wisdom and serenity that come from understanding that everything passes, that we are masks the Universe puts on briefly. As a philosophy of life I rate this highly, but it isn't Zen.
In fact Alan Watts was badly wrong about Zen and he created a durable and harmful misconception. He never practised intensively and was acidic about long periods spent "sitting on your (behind)". He saw the regimentation and hours of meditation in Japanese monasteries as the antithesis of carefree Zen, and he misconstrued Chinese Masters or quoted them out of context to prove his point. Back then, he was sure, the Master would just gently explain the contents of "The Book" to his disciple.
This is all so far astray. Chinese Zen monks lived most un-carefree lives: long hours of meditation, long hours of labour, inadequate food and sleep. Zen is not about going with the flow and doin' what comes naturally, rather about uncovering our true Unconditioned nature hidden beneath layers of habit and conditioning. Prolonged meditation happens to be the best way of doing this. Intense effort must be combined with relaxed detachment.
He drops a few clangers, like interpreting the saying that the Zen Master can "snatch away the hungry man's food, drive away the farmer's ox," to mean that the Master is Above Good and Evil. But this is a technical term: it means to rob the student of comforting conceptions and rationalisations, to create a state of helpless bafflement in which true understanding can arise...
Much to enjoy here, then, but also much that's misleading.
 watt's The Way of Zen August 25, 2008
Alan Watts' The Way of Zen, is an excellent, though somewhat dated, overview of Zen Buddhist and Taoist "thinking".
 Empty & Marvelous February 29, 2008
This book consists of two parts. Part I is history and Part 2 contains Zen principles and practice. This book is perfect for any"one" who is interested in Zen but is not quite sure they want to buy a Zen book that is 1000 pages long. This book is highly condensed and very easy to read and understand. The history of Buddhism is exceptionally well done since the key to understanding Zen is to understand the evolution of Buddhism. The key to understanding Chinese culture as well as their language is to understand the "I Ching" or mental power and "The Tao" or intuition/suchness/naturalness. The Tao is the opposite of "Confucianism" or logic.
Buddha "the enlightened one" History covers the spread and evolution of this "thought system" from India to China to Japan.
Early "Indian" Buddhism is a lengthy path to non-duality and can take many lives.
Zen Buddhism is the direct path and can be "experienced" now; which is why it is so difficult for westerners to understand what Zen is. Ask a Zen Master a question and the answer will not make sense. The Zen Master points to the non dual answer which can seem like madness to us who dwell in the Hell of a dual world.
A Zen Buddhist Master sees no contrast, no division, no symbols, no past and no future. The Zen Buddha only sees the NOW since everything else is an illusion. The Zen Buddha generates no karma......no bad karma AND no Good karma.......no inner world and no outer world. The Zen Buddha has balanced the mind. Once the mind is balanced, Reality is experienced. From the source of this eastern thought system, every"thing" is experienced as ONE. One Mind.
Any attempt to "grasp" the Mind is an attempt to "cling" to the ego and is doomed to frustration.
From the Lankavatara Sutra: For the Mind "is beyond all philosophical views, is apart from discrimination, it is not attainable, nor is it ever born: I say there is nothing but Mind. it is not existence and non-existence; it is indeed beyond existence and non-existence...Out of Mind spring innumerable things, conditioned by discrimination (i.e., classification) and habit energy; these things people accept as the external world.... What appears to be external does not exist in reality; it is Mind that is seen in multiplicity; the body, property and abode-all these, I say, are nothing but Mind."
While my goal in reading this book was to learn what is Zen. While this book contains no Zen or Buddha exercises, I did experience a glimpse of reality. While reading about the pure non-dualistic thought system of "The Tao", I was for a brief moment able to reach the state of non-dualistic reality and did not mediate to achieve it. It happened spontaneously. The best "I" can describe in words is that it was like looking out of a window for the first time.
From the Zen Master Lien-teng Hui-yao, "Only when you have no thing in your mind and no mind in things are you vacant and spiritual, empty and marvelous."
A Remarkable Achievement February 1, 2008
There are several excellent (informative) reviews of The Way of Zen, and I won't try to duplicate them here. In my review I will briefly summarize the book, and say something about Watts' remarkable erudition.
PART I: BACKGROUND AND HISTORY
Chapter 1: The Way of Tao. I am well-versed in philosophical Taoism so there is little new in this chapter for me, but the chapter is a fine introduction to the topic.
Chapter 2: The Origins of Buddhism. This is my least favorite chapter, not because it is inferior in any way, but because the topic does not really interest me. At least not now. The chapter is notable in that it is here that Watts first mentions cybernetics (p. 48), with an example that illuminates both the Buddhist principle (avidya) and the cybernetic principle (illusion of control). There is more cybernetics to come.
Chapter 3: Mahayana Buddhism. This is better, mainly because in this chapter Watts extends my understanding of Taoism (e.g., ziran) and Zen (e.g., tathata). Interesting.
Chapter 4: The Rise and Development of Zen. All four of the history chapters are excellent, but this is the one that has the most to offer me, in terms of my interests and background. It is a very personal history, based on the stories of the Zen founders (e.g., Hui-neng), which I enjoyed greatly. It is also helpful to see how the various "flavors" of Zen developed, which seems to be a common characteristic of the great spiritual traditions.
PART II: PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICES
Chapter 1: "Empty and Marvelous" Here Watts takes up a basic principle of both Taoism and Zen: the power of empty space. Ames and Hall, translators of the Daodejing, address this basic principle by means of the "wu-forms" (wuwei, wushi, etc.) In Zen, this principle manifests itself as "suchness" - forget the words, just "point." This chapter did much to enhance my understanding of this crucially important principle.
Chapter 2: "Sitting Quietly, Doing Nothing" This is the chapter that quite literally "blew me away" In this chapter Watts demonstrates a sophisticated understanding of cybernetic principles, and interprets the practice of zazen in terms of these principles. Watts describes how the practice of "sitting quietly, doing nothing" helps dissolve the dualities of the Western mind (and, apparently, the Eastern mind as well!). Based on other books I have read by Alan Watts, I expected a sophisticated treatment of Zen (and I am not disappointed), but I was totally surprised to see an equally sophisticated treatment of cybernetic principles, and how they apply to Zen practice. In this regard, The Way of Zen anticipates Douglas Flemons' excellent book, Completing Distinctions, by almost forty years. In my copy of The Way of Zen, on the last page of this chapter, is written the note "An astonishing chapter." Wow.
Chapter 3: Za-zen and the Koan. Following Chapter 2, which is electric, this chapter is a bit of a let down. However, it is well written, as with the others, and I did appreciate a better understanding of these two Zen practices, and the role they play in Zen teaching.
Chapter 4: Zen in the Arts. Another great chapter. As a consequence of reading this chapter, I now understand the purpose and practice of Zen poetry. And as a consequence of this new understanding, I am writing my own Haikus ... almost one every day. Sweet!
The Way of Zen is a must read, although I am sure, like any great book, every reader will meet the book in a different place, in a different way. After reading Watts' Way of Zen, I recommend reading Philip Kapleau's Three Pillars of Zen: Teaching, Practice, and Enlightenment. It corrects some minor errors in Watts' book, and is a sensible next step in one's exploration of Zen.
It's got the goods September 2, 2007
This is my second Alan Watts book and I enjoyed it very much. I noticed a reviewer stating that it seemed a little dry, of courses this is personal preference. For me, it started of good, dragged a little during the history of Zen part about half way through the first part, then the second part really picked up again. Again, that's only because I wasn't as interested in the background as in the practices. Someone who is interested in where it came from and the branches of Zen would find it very fascinating.
One of the fascinating things about reading The Way of Zen and The Book is that one can see many things that have transpired in our culture that were obviously influenced by Watts' philosophy. It can be seen as coming directly from his words and not just from another source.
Years ago I read Psyco-Cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz, and I agree that it is a classic written in the early 60's dealing with human behavior, self esteem and self image. After reading The Way of Zen, which was written in the 50's, it became apparent as to where many of Maltz's ideas came from, he just reorganized them and obscured any relation to Zen, just from a psychological point of view, which is good. I reading about the Zen way and didn't realize it. Since reading Maltz, I've read some about Zen and noticed the similarities, but reading this, one could almost accuse Maltz of plagiarism. The only thing is Maltz made it more palatable for the western mind that wasn't ready or willing to embrace eastern philosophy.
Watts' writing seems to be from the perspective of a philosopher rather than a practitioner. You get the idea that he believes in the validity of what the practice of Zen, but not that he was on the path himself, which takes nothing away from the book.
The Way of Zen didn't seem to be as dated as The Book, as his way of writing didn't really reflect any of the verbiage of the time.
It's really nice discovering these books that were written before "I was born" and seeing that they contain fresh insight to ideas that were around long, long before "I was born".
If you're into Zen, on a path to "Self" discovery, or just starting, this book has some good pointers.
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