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13th out of 409 books
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464 voters
The Way of Zen
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 t...more
Paperback, 256 pages
Published
January 26th 1999
by Vintage
(first published 1957)
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Jun 19, 2012
A
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4 of 5 stars
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Shelves:
2012,
gnosticism-mysticism-esotericism
I picked this up on a whim whilst searching for books on Buddhism at the library. Actually, an online friend years ago had mentioned Watts among several other recommendations on the subject of Buddhism, so as I was searching this one immediately popped out. I wasn't interested in reading about Zen specifically, but then it's not something I know a ton about and the book was a pretty reasonable length, so why not?
I'm glad I got this book, because now I feel much more knowledgeable and conversant...more
I'm glad I got this book, because now I feel much more knowledgeable and conversant...more
I see the Way of Zen not so much as an exposition of a secularized version of Zen Buddhism (or Eastern thought more generally), explained in a manner easily understood by Westerners (which it is), but more as an accoutrement to Eastern spiritual practices like meditation and other numinous experiences derived from Eastern thought. This book is easily as good as anything I've read on spirituality, and probably the very best. It is important to read between the lines in this book if the full benef...more
Written in Watts' eminently readable attractive prose style, concise and provocative, The Way of Zen has annoyed American practitioners since its 1957 publication. Philip Kapleau went out of his way to denounce it in the introduction to his Three Pillars of Zen for downplaying zazen.
Watts' critique of zazen does in fact have merit, to the extent that Buddhadharma is reduced to sitting and nothing else. The other very interesting point he makes in his chapter on meditation is the introduction of...more
Watts' critique of zazen does in fact have merit, to the extent that Buddhadharma is reduced to sitting and nothing else. The other very interesting point he makes in his chapter on meditation is the introduction of...more
"Zen is like YOLO for pretentious people" is what I found myself thinking - as a joke - when reading this book. I'm being flippant here, but I think that thought captures the joyous celebration of spontaneity that Zen indulges in while at the same the negative connotations that "YOLO" has in Western culture also succinctly captures how spontaneity or "action without thought" is looked down upon in Western culture.
In that sense, Alan Watt's book is excellent, because what many other books on Budd...more
In that sense, Alan Watt's book is excellent, because what many other books on Budd...more
Woof! That's as meaningful/meaningless as the mind/no-mind, endless circle of paradox when expressing the inexpressible. Not nearly as much fun or entertainment as was IN MY OWN WAY, but thought-provoking as one contemplates the Great Void from within the structure of languaged thought. ""It's the same thing." said Pooh."
"According to convention, I am not simply what I am doing now. I am also what I have done, and my conventionally edited version of my past is made to seem almost more the real "...more
"According to convention, I am not simply what I am doing now. I am also what I have done, and my conventionally edited version of my past is made to seem almost more the real "...more
One of the first books that taught me how to think philosophically about the world around me. Watts has been an inspiration to me and I turn to his work to gain perspective when times are tough, or even when times are going well and I need something to focus my mind again. I love how he can synthesize complex philosophical topics in a way that anyone, even the uninitiated could really feel comfortable discussing.
"We have come to feel ourselves as centers of a very, very, tender, sensitive, vuln...more
"We have come to feel ourselves as centers of a very, very, tender, sensitive, vuln...more
This is a great book on the philosophy of the Tao, of Buddhism and the rise and development of Zen. The more academic and intellectually inclined mind will likely appreciate it the most. It's not really a "Zen practice" book although to the more experienced practitioner it may be even more powerful to read. Perhaps as practice. Alan Watts writes with incredible clarity and rationality and has a way of putting things (often with skillful use of metaphors) such that the mind is frequently stunned...more
I'm not sure I grasped it entirely. Watts has a weird approach where he goes on a million tangents in order to give you a huge selection but it ends up being confusing. As a reader, having to grasp terminology from Indian, Chinese and Japanese cultures introduced at a constant pace led to confusion.
That may be a fault with me, so I'm not going to hammer on about that. I just don't think his style of introducting us as readers is necessarily the best, especially when it's so immediately paradoxic...more
That may be a fault with me, so I'm not going to hammer on about that. I just don't think his style of introducting us as readers is necessarily the best, especially when it's so immediately paradoxic...more
Although some people have criticised Watts' take on Buddhism -specifically his understanding of the role of zazen, "The Way of Zen" is still an excellent overview for the Western reader. Concepts in Buddhism such as karma, emptiness and rebirth are notoriously elusive for those used to the Judeo-Christian black-white good-bad dichotomies, and Alan Watts has a true gift for coming up with clear, concise illustrations to explain these ideas.
The book is divided into two sections: The first is Backg...more
The book is divided into two sections: The first is Backg...more
This is an excellent read. Engaging, well-composed, well-grounded. If you're new to the notions, it won't leave you flat. If you're an expert, it'll probably (though not necessarily) link some ideas together that were previously floating separate.
I definitely appreciated the "Chinese Notes" section in the back which allows the reader to compare the translations with the Chinese ideograms from which many of the quotes have come. The concepts delved into are so simple and so complex at once that...more
I definitely appreciated the "Chinese Notes" section in the back which allows the reader to compare the translations with the Chinese ideograms from which many of the quotes have come. The concepts delved into are so simple and so complex at once that...more
Dec 18, 2012
Mirjam
is currently reading it
"Fundamental to the life and thought of India from the very earliest times is the great mythological theme of atma-yajna–the act of “self-sacrifice” whereby God gives birth to the world, and whereby men, following the divine pattern, reintegrate themselves with God. The act by which the world is created is the same act by which it is consummated–the giving up of one’s life–as if the whole process of the universe were the type of game in which it is necessary to pass on the ball as soon as it is...more
It might be that I am a little too generous with my stars here, but this was the first book on Japanese (and Chinese) philosophy that I ever read. I was very much taken with Watts' attitude - respect without too much enthusiasm, no effort to convert the reader into anything, but also no self-inflicted distance that would view the subject matter entirely as a topic of purely academic interest. Of course, Japanese studies have advanced considerably from those days, important texts have been transl...more
I have read this book in the hopes of gaining some background knowledge on Zen Buddhism, to help me in my studies of Japanese Art. Although the book is indeed very thorough and supplies a wealth of knowledge of the origin of Zen and of Buddhism as a whole, before moving on to the specifics of its appliance to the arts in China and Japan, it is written in such a way that is often hard for the uninitiated to follow and understand. Buddhism being as it is foreign to most Westerners, the Indian voca...more
Wanted to write a big review about this book... but oh well.. wu wei and stuff. But actually it's a great book, I'm very glad I "accidently" decided to read it. I dare say it's mind opening. It might seem confusing at first,("If you want to reach nirvana, you won't reach nirvana", non-dualism and those goofy koans like "-What is Buddha? -Three pounds of flax" and so on) but by the end of the book it all becomes very clear, Watts really explains what zen is all about. And zen is about current mom...more
I read this book a couple of years ago and didn't quite appreciate it at the time, mostly because I rushed myself through it thinking there was something to learn by completion. I read through it again and took my time this time around and I have to admit, this is quite a piece of a work, something which can be appreciated by novices and students of Zen Buddhism alike. Watts crams an incredible amount of information in this short work so that is is possible to learn about Zen Buddhism, it's hist...more
There ought to be a special star (green? purple?) for books that meant something to you a long time ago, but which you know you would hate today.
3 likes · like · see review
Alan Watts is considered by many as the bringer of eastern philosophy to the west, a Marco Polo or Carlos Castañeda of Zen and Buddhism. This honour is by no means unwarranted; I don’t think I’ve ever read anything on the subject which was this clear or in which the author read as if he really knew what he was talking about. Raymond Smullyan and Ray Grigg come close but Alan Watts takes the cake if only because he did it decades before anyone else. I honestly can’t think of anyone else who has n...more
A personally paradigm shifting text, like a long drawn out koan, this text speaks to my personal cultural upbringing and 'woke me out of my dogmatic slumber'. Actually, I had audio tapes by Audio Renaissance and would fall asleep to them when I lived in a monastery. While Alan was not a academic philosopher, his training as a Anglican minister and his time with DT Suzuki combined with his excellent storytelling abilities made him a great teacher of 'alternative' cultures and ways of thinking out...more
Il libro analizza il tragitto che ha portato la cultura sino-giapponese a concepire lo Zen come lo conosciamo noi oggi, riportando interessanti ed arguti stralci di conversazioni tra maestri e monaci oltre a diverse poesie Zen. L'introduzione alla filosofia Zen dell'afferrare l'attenzione senza l'afferrare ed il raggiungimento del nirvana che per diverse scuole non può avvenire per gradi: in questo ultimo caso emblematici sono alcuni episodi riportati riguardanti monaci che hanno raggiunto quest...more
I've read a lot about Zen over the years, beginning during my Asian Studies degree at university 40 years ago. I have always had a good intellectual grasp of what was being put to me but somehow I didn't really have a sense of connection. This book delivers that sense of connection. It may be the wider reading I have done recently or my daily "practice" of meditation or Watts' incisive and distinctive style of writing or a combination of all and other factors. Whatever! Who cares? This is a grea...more
Alan Watts's book is, I think, a masterpiece. What I admire about him is his lack of pretentiousness and his entirely matter-of-fact approach to Buddhism and indeed to life. He gives an example of boats standing in a nearby marina. It is not that the owners are too materialistic, but rather that they are not materialistic enough. It would not be so bad, he says, if the owners actually enjoyed the physicality of sailing the boats, but unfortunately they have been taken in by the idea of sailing a...more
Jul 27, 2011
Erroll Treslan
added it
A superb explanation of a way of thinking that has much to offer our frenetic "advanced" western society. As Watts offers in his conclusion: Zen is truly a liberation from time. "For if we open our eyes and see clearly, it becomes obvious that there is no other time than this instant, and that the past and future are concrete abstractions without any concrete reality". If all of us started appreciating the present and "danced on the surf" a little more often, what a wonderful world it would be.
Alan Watts was one of my favorite authors in my first year or two of college. I decided to pick this up again to see how it aged...and it definitely holds up. Although the ideas are no longer fresh to me, I was overjoyed to rediscover Alan Watts' conversational writing style. I was also able to identify with some of his processes of thought in a way I did not previously, indicating just how much of an influence Watts has had on my coming into adulthood. Good stuff if you like philosophy.
I like Watts' approach very much - his writing style is flowing and following, and his information useful on many levels. I think this is really the only way a westerner can approach Zen, at this stage, and I appreicate Watts for giving us this look. I have mixed feelings on Zen- - some resonates very true with me, while some of the ideas are too difficult for me to truly comprehend/impliment/embrace. But I cannot fault Watts' explaination for what I was unable to apprehend.
How does one wrap his head around Zen Buddhism when one’s head is the antithesis of Zen? Well, I just finished reading The Way of Zen, and my head is still spinning, which, I have a hunch, could be a very good thing because, maybe, just maybe, my head will spin itself out like an exhausted cyclone, allowing the precepts of Zen to settle into place. As a Zen master would tell me: “No thought, no reflection, no analysis, / No cultivation, no intention,/ Let it settle itself.”
Fascinating introduction into Zen Buddhism. Very dense at times and I will have to read the whole thing again, probably a couple of times, and practice often, to even begin to really understand it. His later chapters on Haiku, calligraphy and landscape painting were extremely instructive and acted as a bright lamp, shining light on dark corners impenetrable concepts.
I am now reading Shinzen Young's The Science of Enlightenment. Young was trained in the Japanese Shingon sect of the vajrayana sch...more
I am now reading Shinzen Young's The Science of Enlightenment. Young was trained in the Japanese Shingon sect of the vajrayana sch...more
I've investigated quite a few philosophical perspectives in order to live a more satisfying life. Religion seems to to be more of a "one size fits all" proposition than I'm comfortable with. I consider myself a Freethinker, but the concepts and viewpoints expressed in this book are relevant to anyone interested in expanding their understanding of themselves and the world around them. Well written and very accessible.
Alan Watts has a big potential to introduce the reader into the Eastern Philosophy without effort because it's force lies within it's language which is simple but very meaningful. After reading it I can say that the first part with Background and History is rather hard to follow if you are not interested. The second part, with Principles and Practice was a delight. So I recommend this book to both initiated and uninitiated.
Alan Watts is such a sly, soulful character. His videos and talks always seem to put a smile on my face and permit me to revel in a most bizarre nostalgia for the future. This book, if you aren't familiar with the thought traditions in the East, will put you at ease about these foreign "religions." Mr. Watts in this regard would be a warm and inviting "expatriate" to see in an uncharted land.
For me ... as a person who 1st incorporated aspects of the zen art and thinking processes to improve my mental toughness when playing highly competitive tennis between 12 and 22 ... and then as a professional tennis coach .... what practice and disciplined will enable the student to be ready .... when they play a match when it counts....
The moment I read "drinking water with a fork"
The moment I read "drinking water with a fork"
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Alan Wilson Watts was a British philosopher, writer, speaker, who held both a master's degree in theology and a doctorate of divinity. Famous for his research on comparative religion, he was best known as an interpreter and popularizer of Asian philosophies for a Western audience.
He wrote more than 25 books and numerous articles on subjects such as personal identity, the true nature of reality, hi...more
More about Alan Wilson Watts...
He wrote more than 25 books and numerous articles on subjects such as personal identity, the true nature of reality, hi...more
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“When we attempt to exercise power or control over someone else, we cannot avoid giving that person the very same power or control over us.”
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“We feel that our actions are voluntary when they follow a decision and involuntary when they happen without decision. But if a decision itself were voluntary every decision would have to be preceded by a decision to decide - An infinite regression which fortunately does not occur. Oddly enough, if we had to decide to decide, we would not be free to decide”
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May 24, 2012 06:49pm