Awakening to Zen: The Teachings of Roshi Philip Kapleau

by Philip Kapleau

When Roshi Philip Kapleau returned to the United States in 1966, after thirteen years of training in Japan with two of the country's greatest masters of Zen, he "did not come home empty-handed -- he brought us a living word of Zen," Kenneth Kraft has said. The first Westerner fully and naturally at home with Zen, Roshi Kapleau has made it his life's work to translate Zen Buddhism into an American idiom, to take Zen's essence and plant it in American soil. Four decades later, the seeds of Zen that Roshi Kapleau planted have blossomed. Zen flourishes and Roshi Kapleau continues to help people find enlightenment and fulfillment within, not outside, their daily lives. "True awakening," Roshi Kapleau has said, "is not a 'high' that keeps one in the clouds of an abstract oneness, but a realization that brings one solidly down to earth into the world of toil and struggle."

Kapleau has written a number of books in his lifetime, The Three Pillars of Zen the most well known among them, but the heart of his work, his teachings to his students, has never before been made available. Awakening to Zen extracts the vital threads of Roshi Kapleau's teachings and braids them into a strong yet supple cord that readers may follow toward a deeper understanding of the enlightened life. Roshi Kapleau's warm, sometimes humorous but always grounded lessons touch on every aspect of daily reality; they capture his power, too, to transform the lives of not just practicing Buddhists, but all people who seek to experience in a more authentic way the bond they share with the world around them. One way or another, Roshi Kapleau has spent the past forty-three years of his life helping make Zen practice and its fruits accessible to anyone of sincere intent. Awakening to Zen offers a crucial and never-before-published aspect of his life's work.

Genres: Zen, Buddhism, Nonfiction, Philosophy, Religion

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

A teacher of Zen Buddhism in the Sanbo Kyodan tradition, a blending of Japanese Soto and Rinzai schools.

Reviews

[Andy · Rating 4 out of 5]

. M

[Logan Flood · Rating 3 out of 5]

Awakening to Zen
Logan Flood
Block 3
Living life from moment to moment.
Ethnography is the scientific study of a specific culture. Awakening to Zen relates to Ethnography because, in depth, Roshi Philip Kapleau describes the journey that he took to reach full enlightenment, and how others can reach enlightenment as well. Throughout this novel, Roshi gives multiple examples of Koans, which are paradoxical riddles that are used to provoke enlightenment. Each Koan has a different purpose, and teaches Buddhist students how to think about specific situations. The sixteen precepts of Zen constitute the basic code of ethics for Buddhism. “The fourth precept is not to lie but to speak the truth”(Kapleau, 78). This is of the two most important precepts along with the sixth precept, not to speak of the misdeeds of others. Lying has been defined as the telling of an untruth with the intent to deceive. One must refrain from lying to reach full enlightenment because these precepts cannot be broken if you want to succeed. “The sixth precept, not to speak of the misdeeds of others, is for many people tough to uphold”(Kapleau, 82). It is so easy for people in this world to gossip about others, even gossip that contains a little malice. Speaking of the misdeeds of others is the second most important precept because it is very hard to keep yourself from doing so. To reach full enlightenment, one must stay true to the precepts of Zen because to reach full enlightenment, one must not break the rules of the precepts.