This is a collection of talks by one of the first Zen teachers in the U.S. If you're already practicing Zen, I highly recommend this book. If you're new to Zen, you might love this book or you might find it largely incomprehensible, or maybe both. Suzuki makes liberal use of the paradoxical language that is typical of Zen--e.g., "For us, complete perfection is not different from imperfection. The eternal exists because of non-eternal existence." If you'd prefer a more ordinary, explanatory style, I recommend Charlotte Joko Beck's "Everyday Zen." If you're looking for practical instruction in Zen meditation, you'll find it in "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind," but you might prefer either Philip Kapleau's "The Three Pillars of Zen," which includes more detailed instructions and illustrations of sitting postures, or Cheri Huber's instructional video "The Secret Is There Are No Secrets."
When I first read "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind," for a college class on Buddhism, I wasn't quite sure what to make of it, but I did end up practicing Zen, and maybe this book had something to do with that. For many years, even while living at a Zen monastery, I suspected that a lot of the enthusiasm for this book was an "emperor's new clothes" phenomenon: a few respected people said it was wonderful, so then everybody said it was wonderful. I figured its aura of profundity was due in large part to Suzuki's congruence with our archetype of mountaintop gurus--the short sentences and limited English vocabulary, and the paradoxical language that sounds deep even though nobody actually knows what the heck it means. More recently, I've come to think that the emperor really does have clothes and that the big issues of human life are hard to talk about without paradox, and this is now one of my favorite Zen books.
저자: 스즈키 순류(鈴木俊降, SHUNRYU SUZUKI, 1904∼1971)
20세기의 가장 영향력 있는 영적 스승 중 한 사람.
스즈키 선사는 서구 최초로 설립된 조동선 선원인 타사하라 선원과 그 지부인 샌프란시스코 선원을
설립하였다.
당시 일본에서 깊은 존경을 받는 선의 대가였던 스즈키 선사는 59년 미국에 짧은 일정으로
방문했다. 그는 선에 관심이 있는 미국인들 사이에서 발견한 “초심(BEGINNER’S MIND)”과
진지함에 깊은 감명을 받았고, 샌프란시스코에 집을 마련해 그의 마지막 거주지로 삼았다.
이후 유기농을 하여 선농일치를 추구하는 그린걸치 농원, 버클리 선원, 도심 안에 위치한
초심사(初心寺) 등이 세워졌다. 스즈키 선사는 입적할 때까지 미국 선 문화의 기초를 닦았다.
“스즈키 다이세쓰의 선은 극적이었다. 반면에 스즈키 순류의 선은 평범하다.
다이세쓰가 전한 선은 깨달음에 초점이 맞추어져 있었다.
그의 저작들이 사람들을 그토록 강하게 끌어당긴 가장 큰 이유는, 그가 말하는 깨달음이라는
비일상적인 상태가 지닌 매력 때문이었다.
그러나 스즈키 순류는 깨달음이라든가, 그와 거의 같은 의미인 견성(見性)을 결코 강조하지
않는다.” 휴스턴 스미스(메사추세츠 공대 철학교수)
“어떤 말이나 행동이 없이도, 단지 그렇게 고양된 존재와 만나는 것만으로도 삶의 방식 전체가
송두리째 바뀌기에 충분합니다. 그러나 정작 제자를 당혹스럽게 하고, 호기심을 불러일으키고,
깊게 만드는 것으 스즈키 선사의 비범함이 아니라 철저한 일상성입니다.
그가 단지 그 자신이기 때문에, 그는 제자들의 거울이 됩니다.”
트루디 딕슨(스즈키 선사의 가까운 제자)
바둑격언에 "정석을 외우고 익히되 잊어버려라"라는 말이 생각납니다.
Customer Reviews
When I first read "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind," for a college class on Buddhism, I wasn't quite sure what to make of it, but I did end up practicing Zen, and maybe this book had something to do with that. For many years, even while living at a Zen monastery, I suspected that a lot of the enthusiasm for this book was an "emperor's new clothes" phenomenon: a few respected people said it was wonderful, so then everybody said it was wonderful. I figured its aura of profundity was due in large part to Suzuki's congruence with our archetype of mountaintop gurus--the short sentences and limited English vocabulary, and the paradoxical language that sounds deep even though nobody actually knows what the heck it means. More recently, I've come to think that the emperor really does have clothes and that the big issues of human life are hard to talk about without paradox, and this is now one of my favorite Zen books.