Tao and Zen / The Way of Zen

Without a doubt, this book is one of the most surprising and profound books ever written about Zen. It reveals, as well as possible, the foundations of the Buddhist “teaching of liberation,” and is one of the most important works for understanding the “philosophy of liberation” in general. Extremely simple and clear, it touches the historical roots of Zen Buddhism, including Daoism, Hinduism, and Mahayana Buddhism, and offers a wonderful, detailed picture of how Zen developed and why this doctrine of the “Direct Path” is so surprisingly unique and unparalleled.

From the author: “There are many excellent books on Zen, but until now none of them has offered an overview of this subject that would include Zen’s historical background and its connection with Indian and Chinese spiritual traditions... Since there is no fundamental systematizing work on this question, the way Westerners perceive Zen—despite all the enthusiasm and interest it has generated—has been complete confusion. So I tried to write such a work on Zen because, in my view, no one else wants or is able to do it.”

Quote: “Zen Buddhism is a way of life and a view of life that cannot be reduced to any formal category of modern Western thought. It is neither a religion nor a philosophy, not psychology nor science. It is an example of what India and China call the ‘path of liberation,’ and in this sense Zen Buddhism is related to Daoism, Vedanta, and yoga. As will be shown further, the path of liberation cannot be defined positively. It can only be described indirectly—by pointing out what it is not—just as a sculptor reveals a figure by removing the unnecessary layers of marble.”