Recommended Buddhist Books

The Wisdom of No Escape,

Pema Chodron,

"Examines mindfulness and acceptance of all that is in our lives here and now, as well as several other basic Buddhist concepts." (Zelda)

Inside the Grass Hut: Living Shitou's Classic Zen Poem

-Ben Connelly

"A beautiful and poignant contemporary commentary on the classic Zen poem from the vibrant Ben Connolley (Minnesota Zen Center) that shows its helpfulness and relevance to today's American society for all beings." (Mike)

Beyond Thinking: A Guide to Zen Meditation

-Dogen (Ed. Kazuaki Tanahashi)

"From the founder of Soto of Zen himself, an accessible modern translation of a selection of his key explanations and teachings on the art and practice of Zen Meditation (Zazen). The glossary alone is almost worth the cost of the book!" (Mike)

Moon in a Dewdrop, writings of Zen Master Dogen,

-Dogen (Ed. Kazuaki Tanahashi)

"A collection of many of Master Dogen’s important texts, including some of his poetry. This book demands more intentional study and thinking, but is well worth the effort if one wants to delve deeper into the Soto school of Zen." (Zelda)

The Book of Mu: Essential Writings on Zen's Most Important Koan

ed. James Ishmael Ford & Melissa Myozen Blacker.

"Many ways to ponder Mu 🙂" (Jackie)

The Buddhist Bible

ed. Dwight Goddard.

"Page 34. Reads a lot like the 10 Commandments of Moses, with some changes. Fascinating to note and possibly worthy of discussion." (Shelley)

Peace Is Every Step

by Thich Nat Hanh.

"I like how Thay uses everyday situations as everyday meditations and calls to awareness." (Shelley)

Transformation at the Base: Fifty Verses on the Nature of Consciousness

-Thich Nhat Hanh

"The nature of consciousness in depth." (Jackie)

Transformation & Healing,

-Thich Nhat Hanh,

"I would suggest anything by Thich Nhat Hanh. This is simply the one I read most recently." (Zelda)

The Record of Transmitting the Light: Zen Master Keizan's Denkoroku

-Keizan Jokin (Transl. by Francis Dojun Cook)

"Keizan's "presentation of the shout" ("teisho") sections offers a warm and practical interpretation of Zen that has much to offer modern lay practitioner ears. These are offered after the enlightenment story and circumstances of each Zen Ancestor from Buddha up to his teacher (Koun Ejo). A great compliment to (and now held in the same regard as) Dogen's Shobogenzo. (Mike)

A Path with Heart

-Jack Kornfield.

"This book has aided my path of my spiritual life by mentioning various signs in the road that can come up while on a Spiritual journey. The chapter on 'Naming the Demons' is particularly useful for those times when you come to meditation with strong feelings or emotions." (Shelley)

Living By Vow: A Practical Introduction To Eight Essential Zen Chants and Texts

-Shohaku Okumura.

"An excellent book about vows and chants!" (Jackie)

The Zen Teaching of Homeless Kodo

- Shohaku Okumura & Kosho Uchiyama

(ed. Molly Delight Whitehead)

"Direct, pointed teachings of controversial but revered mid-20th Century Zen teacher Sawaki Roshi. Each Sawaki teaching, in a sort of Zen family tree, is unpacked and expanded by his disciple Kosho Uchiyama, with a concluding contemporary comment from Uchiyama's student and Sanshin Zen's [Bloomington, IN] guiding teacher, Shohaku Okumura." (Mike)

The Quantum and the Lotus: A Journey to the Frontiers Where Science & Buddhism Meet

-Matthieu Ricard & Trinh Xuan Thuan

"A conversation between Ricard, a molecular biologist turned Buddhist monk & Thuan, born into a Buddhist family in Vietnam turned astrophysicist. The fascinating discussion is about the correspondences between the two streams of thought." (Daniel)

The Compass of Zen

-Seung Sahn

"I remember this was a lively captivating book like others by Seung Sahn such as Only Don't Know and Dropping Ashes On The Buddha." (Jackie)

The Iron Flute,

-Nyogen Senzaki

"I enjoy collections of koans. This one is on the list because it is small enough to fit into my purse, and I carried it with me for a long time. Easy to read a koan in seconds or minutes, like while standing in a long checkout line, or stuck waiting in traffic, or one of many other unexpected waits of several minutes, then let it speak back to me for a long time." (Zelda)

Not Always So: Practicing the True Spirit of Zen

-Shunryu Suzuki

"Lesser known than Suzuki's classic Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind, but a very relevant and engaging edited collection of his later talks at San Francisco Zen Center. Most were given when he knew he was dying, so the urgency and concern for impressing not the 'step 1-step 2 how-to of Zen', but the idea and spirit of the tradition to his American disciples - is captivating and powerful." (Mike)

Women of the Way,

-Sallie Tisdale

"I read this book in 2008, and it opened me to the possibility of doing my best to walk the Buddha path even when those around me were less than accepting and no sangha available." (Zelda)

Sit Down And Shut Up: Punk Rock Commentaries on Buddha, God, Truth, Sex, Death & Dogen's Treasury of the Right Dharma Eye

-Brad Warner

"I highly recommend all of Brad's books, I can relate to him, he is funny and explains difficult topics in cool words in today's times." (Jackie)